Car vs. Bike = Mismatch
Cyclist and Equal Rights
I decided to take on this topic for two very important reasons.
- I’ve seen the picture at right posted multiple times on Facebook
- I’ve been hit by a car while riding my bike 3 times in the last year
After reading the inspiration for my post I’m sure your first question is “Does Dane really care what people post on Facebook?” The answer is generally going to be “no”, but there are times when things rub me the wrong way. This is one of those times.
Hypocritical
In my mind it seems a bit hypocritical to post the picture of the girl on the bike (I love the spelling error). Yes, there are plenty of bikers who do this kind of thing. They get all excited about being out riding their new bikes. They’re happy to be getting some exercise, they’re wearing new spandex clothes and they just seem to ride wherever they want. Quite frankly, I feel like they gave cyclists like me (no spandex and generally try to follow the rules of the road) a bad name.
However, do I know any drivers that bend the rules of the road? Of course… and yes, that includes me.
When I’m driving I roll through stop signs all the time. I disobey the maximum speed limit virtually every time I drive. Do I signal each and every time I change lanes? Nope. I’d be willing to bet every person reading this does things on the list and doesn’t think twice about it. In the scope of things those are pretty minor offenses, but they are violations just the same. The same type of minor offenses that people on bikes commit (rolling through a stop sign, crossing against a light, etc)
Why Are You Upset?
My guess is that you’re annoyed by the cyclist’s behavior because you’d like the freedom to roll through stop signs without penalty. To drive through red lights when you feel like it. Basically, you’d like to just do what you want. Well, reading the article linked below it’s not only cyclists who can do what they want without penalty.
Fines total $248 for falling asleep, killing father of three Mar 30, 2016
Being a Little Less Angry
Hopefully by this point starting to realize that everyone, people walking, people on bikes and people driving cars all have room for improvement. We all need to be more aware of each other and our surroundings as not paying attention can be costly:
- Charge alleges driver texting before killing medical researcher on bicycle Apr 14, 2016
- Driver had been drinking before fatal crash in Germantown, charges allege Apr 7, 2016
- Antigo Bike & Ski Club member killed in crash in Langlade County Mar 23, 2016
- Prosecution moves forward in deaths of Northwestern Mutual executives Mar 14, 2016
Thanks for reading and ride/drive safe!
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