i don't get it

[lauralh]

Can someone explain to me why people on bicycles feel the need, for example, to flip you off if you come within three yards of them? Or take up an entire line while not wearing a helmet and wearing headphones? Myself, I'm completely terrified when I ride a bike in the city and am very respectful of people in three-ton killing machines. Especially after Reg's Accident.

Comments

[kamakhai.livejournal.com]

Cyclists are aggressive towards drivers because our lives are constantly being threatened by people who don't seem to realize the potential deadliness of their cars. I doubt that you're one of those people, but it's not hard to get oversensitive about this, especially when you've just come within inches been killed by some frazzled commuter or a stoned kid talking on their phone. Personally, I tend not to antagonize people in cars because it's unlikely to accomplish much.

And as for biking on the sidewalk, apart from often being illegal (I know it was in Portland, don't know about SF), it's actually more dangerous for both the cyclist and pedestrians. Sidewalks aren't maintained very well and people walking around are even more oblivious than drivers.

[herbaliser.livejournal.com]

as mentioned above it's legal in seattle... anyway like I said, we were nowhere near the guy who flipped us off, and the other guy was very blatantly breaking nine kinds of laws. he wasn't being aggressive just highly inconsiderate.

cars are deadly to other drivers too, just waaay more deadly to bikes. this to me is a good reason to be more defensive about biking, not more aggressive.

[kamakhai.livejournal.com]

Legal or not, biking on the sidewalk is a bad idea.. you're a lot more likely to, say, hit a kid or run into someone exiting a driveway. At least on the road people are generally keeping an eye open for moving objects.

And my dislike of cyclists listening to music (unless it's, say, a boombox in a basket on a cruiser) is second only to crack/meth heads on bikes (which come to think of it could account for the first guy). Yuppies in neon tour outfits poorly operating $5000 rides are a close third.

[herbaliser.livejournal.com]

just to give you more ammunition, the guy with headphones later did get on the sidewalk.

[kamakhai.livejournal.com]

I bet he was on meth too!

[velvet.livejournal.com]

Bike + Pedestrian = Bad
Bike + Car = Worse

[langston.livejournal.com]

after hitting a pedestrian on a cyclist and putting her in the hospital, I'll ride in the grittiest traffic before I deal with the dips, breaks and obstacles of the sidewalk. Getting off the major roadways where the sidewalks are resolves this, and riding downtown on the sidewalk at more than a walking pace (at which point, why ride?) is inviting a manslaughter charge.