Holy Christ. I can’t drive home from work without a fixie running red lights, jumping lanes dangerously, or simply riding the wrong way. Oh, and soooo many of them aren’t wearing helmets. Awesome.
Don’t get me wrong. I dig that more people are riding around on bikes and making it easier to get around, be a community and the like. But when I regularly rode to work there were certain things that I and the other bike commuters did: we followed the rules of the road.
I always ride with a helmet, and have a very hard time riding against traffic. It’s a very basic principle that would do a ton to promote car-bike relations. Don’t make driving harder. Be a part of traffic and keep up where you can. But this business where riding the wrong way on a one way street is somehow accepted is not helping. go the extra half-block and ride safer.
Not putting on a helmet isn’t as much of a bother to me, but it is undeniably stupid. If you don’t wear a helmet, you’re a douche. It’s pretty simple. Further, if you wear the dumb little frenchie hat, you deserve every angry driver who threatens to punch your girl-pant-wearing ass. With that, wouldn’t it be safer to just wear a helmet?
Comments
Kat wrote:
Good post! I too believe bikes deserve to be on the road but when a person decides to ride east and suddenly do a u-turn to go west without any notice or clue that he can get hit by a car, I shake my head. Oh and to top that off, not where a helmet.
Jul 15, 10:36 PM
Ann Onn wrote:
I wrote about this recently and expected to get hate mail, but I didn’t. Maybe we’re not the only ones who are annoyed when stupid people put their lives in our hands.
Jul 16, 09:20 AM
Ryan Jerz wrote:
It’s most frustrating to me because I have done it and would like to see an increase in bike riders. But I also read and hear stories about cars acting like jerks, and I often agree. It’s not hard for a car to just slow down a bit when there are bikes near you on the road, but it’s a two way street. Bikes need to understand that they should be making it as close to a flawless process as it can be. Stay to the right or keep up. And for God’s sake, don’t ride three abreast on a 35mph road doing at best 20. That’s what makes drivers mad and makes them automatically hate the next bike guy they come across. You want to be safer and recognized on the road, do your part and tell your friends to do the same.
Jul 16, 10:30 AM
brian wrote:
This is funny because I was just heading up Sierra Street and had to change lanes to avoid the uber-cool fixie that insisted on staying in my lane, going the wrong direction. It was like some kind of “fuck you, I’m emo as hell” game of chicken that I can’t even waste time getting mad about, but it was a skidmark on the reputation of bikers everywhere. I don’t mind the leisurely wrong-way down the quiet neighborhood streets, but come ON when it’s a high-traffic area! WTF.
And helmets are for pussies, dude. Thought you knew that.
Just kidding, but seriously, I think it’s an individual’s choice to wear one, motorcycles included.
Jul 16, 04:24 PM
unkempt "temporaily a douche" jnani wrote:
One of the community access channels had a good show on bike riding
rules and practices. Essentially, bike riders are supposed to follow
practices like drivers, i.e. go into left turn lane when making a left turn
or into the lane just left of a right turn lane if going straight ahead.
Always look over shoulder when making a lane change from the right
shoulder of the road (like when you have to get onto the left turn lane).
Rolling stops at four way stop signs I think are acceptable if you have a
clear view all the way around the three other roads. Going through a red light is pretty damn stupid. Unless your right behind the bike cops who are likewise doing so.
Bike cops are pretty adept riders who seem to be very flexible at times
with the “rules”. :-)
Picture the route you want to take ahead of time. Be familiar with road construction obstacles. And, road conditions. (Like a certain stretch of
Vassar St!!)
I can’t wait for that hand me down helmet. Being a douche is pretty messy business.
Jul 17, 12:05 PM
Ryan Jerz wrote:
unkempt jnani,
That was pretty funny. I’m cool with not wearing helmets. It’s obviously not a law on bikes. I just see it in the commuter crowd as less a choice and more a fashion statement, which just annoys me. It’s all anecdotal and generalizing, but I’d reckon that a helmetless biker is more likely to be an offender of all the above than a helmeted biker.
While I’m at it, I’d like to add that anyone over 13 should not be riding on the sidewalk. Those dudes are always weaving from the sidewalk to the wrong side of the road and back. As a driver, it’s just not making it any easier. I wish everyone applied the principles of defensive driving to biking. Don’t put yourself or others in any more danger than you’re already in. Try to make it easier for everyone. If there’s no one else on the road, then by all means have your way, but as soon as there are other people, play nice.
Jul 17, 12:39 PM
Wolfy wrote:
1) Cars and cyclists can take up the entire lane if they are within 15 MPH of the speed limit. IT may be douchey, but it’s legal
2) the idea that a douchey emo fixtard is, “a skidmark on the reputation of bikers everywhere” is a lazy and douchey way to look at the world. You obviously see a difference between fixies, commuters, roadies, and the DUIs on wallmart bikes on the wrong side of the road, so why pretend that there isn’t one? I don’t say the same thing when a douche in a car almost takes me out. that person isn’t representing car drivers everywhere.
2) A rolling stop is a rolling stop.
3) Serious cyclists ride in ways that are better for their own safety, Occasionally that means riding on the sidewalk, running a light, and going the wrong way.
4) Criticizing fixies for being fashionable is unoriginal and lazy. What’s your real problem? Cars are fashionable too. Last I saw you were driving some spiffy looking newish vehicle of some kind. Should I judge you based on your response to high dollar brand marketing?
5) I think you would look killer in schpants.
6) I’m going to ride down to the gym now.
-M
Jul 17, 12:54 PM
Ryan Jerz wrote:
Wolfy,
You make great points if this were a conversation about understanding bikers. It’s not. It’s about how to make the relationship between cars and bikes better from the perspective of a driver. I simply don’t see a lot of those posts, and the bikers tend to ignore the fact that cars are far greater in number because you’re busy reading blogs and magazines about permeating the world with bikes.
I generalized the hell out of that post because most drivers see bikes as one entity. The average driver doesn’t care if it’s the DUI guy or the fixie or the regular commuter. They see a bike. That’s all. And too many of those bikes do things that piss off drivers, like riding the wrong way up a one way street. I’ve seen it done by the DUI guy and by someone who lives close to me and should know better.
Like when you’re in a car, when you’re on a bike you need to be careful to not make others around you have to alter their habits and actions to accommodate you. Yeah, it might be legal to do whatever you’re doing, but it’s not helping the relationship, and you should be hyper-aware of that.
Jul 17, 03:51 PM
Marissa wrote:
Wow, way to make an extremely ignorant generalization of people who ride fixed-gear bikes, Brian. But since we are generalizing, I’m going to jump right in and say that anyone that takes someone riding a bike (fixed-gear or otherwise) the wrong way on a street as a personal “f-you” thinks mighty highly of themselves.
Bike helmet laws are an infringement on personal freedom as far as I’m concerned. I feel the same way about seat belt laws; I wear one, but because I choose to, I really don’t want the “politicos” in my car, telling me what do to. Several states, including Maine, have had these laws over turned, using the same logic. Should you wear a helmet/seat belt…probably, but don’t tell me I have to, or call me a name if I’m not.
As far as the commuter bike crowd being a fashion statement, Ryan, is that why you used to ride to work? I agree with Wolfy that cars present much more of a statement, whether it be fashion or wealth, etc. Now what I have to figure out is what statement my 13 year old car is making!
Jul 17, 03:53 PM
brian wrote:
Wow. Wolfy, all I did was point out that there was a cocky idiot playing chicken with me. Sorry that the fact he was on a fixie made it sound like I was singling fixies out. Or any other type of bike/biker for that matter. In all fairness, someone could make equal fun of me for wearing my buttoned down shirt on my roadie this morning, but that’s not what I was really talking about. I’m talking about a dude riding the wrong way in heavy traffic. That’s dumb. And if you’re going to rant, try mixing up the insults…using lazy over and over seems, well…
Marissa: The original post was written in a “general” tone, and I responded that way. Too bad the humor can be interpreted in so many ways. The saddest part is that as a biker I get upset to see people riding like idiots because they DO stain the reputation of all of us. And they add fuel to the fire of ignorant drivers who feel justified in cutting off ANY biker or running ANY biker off the road. Sure, I know the difference between fixie and the rest, but those road rage drivers do not. Sorry to break it to you. And I didn’t take it as a personal F-You. It was most defitnitely a FTW from that shithead…I just happened to be the one he chose off THAT time…in MY 13 year old piece of shit car, I might add.
Anyway you guys are way too “Serious” of cyclists for me.
Jul 24, 09:42 AM
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Ryan Jerz is an all-around good guy who shoots photos and video, builds websites, and works in athletics at the University of Nevada, Reno. He received a Masters Degree in 2007 from the University of Nevada, Reno's Reynolds School of Journalism.