Arrrg...hit by a bicyclist :|

[pragmatic]

Course in my opinion motorcycles have no business on interstates either

When I took up bicycle riding for exercise 20 years ago I carefully chose the roads I would ride on. Looking for ones with limited traffic, good sight lines, etc. A co-worker who was a avid cyclist could not understand how I rode a motorcycle, it being a dangerous way of getting around. But nothing compares to the dangers of riding a non-motor bike. I've pedaled in Manhattan and Brooklyn, but mostly stick to mountain biking to limit the dangers. Give me a MC any day. I will ride the MC anywhere and everywhere in any weather other than ice or snow (though I have been caught in both on occasion). The two biggest safety hazards now are people forgot how to drive and people do not paying attention (both in cars and on bikes). Driving is a full time job not a chore that can be multi-tasked.

On secondary roads - u-turns made approaching or just after bends, using the phone and drifting over the double yellow, not knowing how to pass safely and efficiently, and generally no situation awareness.

 

[Telco]

True, a motorbike is safer because they can at least keep the flow of traffic, but I get very nervous around them on the highway. You never know what a motorcyclist is going to do, and I have had them cut me off close enough that if their bike didn't operate perfectly there would have been no way I could have avoided running them clean over. I always try to keep a wide berth of motorcyclists while on the road.

 

[1LoudLS]

all of those could be said about idiots in cars too, the only difference, if a motorcycle does something stupid like cut somebody off and mess it up, they are really going to be paying the price. motorcycles are fine, just as long as they follow the laws. i mean really your car slamming into a motorcycle isn't really any different from a simi-truck slamming into a toyota corolla, that metal cage ain't saving you from sh!t... and it you wouldn't want them banning passenger cars from the hwy too because they are not safe compared to trucks.

 

[Telco]

True, but on the other hand a passenger car isn't going to cut between two other vehicles that are side by side on a 4 lane, or try to carve a path at a high rate of speed in heavy traffic, ect. That metal cage will save you from a lot more than the bike will, where you are the one keeping dents out of the machine.

This is one of those things where people simply aren't going to agree though. Not really worth arguing on the motorcycle bit, but I think we can all agree that bicycles need to obey the rules of the road, and be limited to roads where they can maintain the speed limit.

 

[RigsLS]

Again today, I'm up front, first in line to make a right on a red, I'm hauling some equipment. Stopped and looking to advance right on red when safe to do so. Looking at my inside mirror, I see this cyclist, whom I've already passed earlier, using his right leg to skim the curb to get passed cars.

As I see my opening, and I need a larger opening with the trailer, I see cyclist, playing dare devil on the inside along side my trailer.

I hang the large horn and get off the clutch gently, I see him stop as I begin to crawl out into the intersection, my signal lights have been on all this time.

I hesitate then double check everything again, swing wide and pull a wide right while looking at the now yielding cyclist.


Point being, he 'tried' it because as a cyclist he insisted on having the right of way.

This 'cyclist' should I have had to yield to him, just so he could come up along side of me, wanting to go straight through or turn right, he would have caused me to impede traffic at an intersection.

Yield as the law says I must or take right of way so as not to impede the intersection any further then I need to.

We have several ghost bikes on certain corners in town around here. They are the leftovers from daredevil'ing on the inside line. Most people just turn right, while looking left, some don't even look at all.

 

[SoonerLS]

True, but on the other hand a passenger car isn't going to cut between two other vehicles that are side by side on a 4 lane,

You've never driven I35 between Ft. Worth and Austin, have you?

Call me chicken, but I've never seen the need to intentionally ride my bike on a 50mph section road with no shoulder and an 8-foot bar ditch (probably full of sand burrs), but I see people doing it every day.