Bicycles and automobiles- can’t we all just get along? @Kah writes about this universal (do aliens have this issue also?) problem of us co-existing with humans in cars. We all drive cars too and have cursed the occasional cyclists for some good reason. Cars are our greatest threat. We can crawl away from our own bicycle crashes, thanks very much. We always lose when a car is involved. Thanks for contributing @Kah.
Yours in Cycling, Gianni
High-visibility jackets offend me. I’m not in the position to judge fashion really, and generally don’t care what other people wear, but something that tarnishes an entire mode of transport as unsafe and dorky is not okay. These garments misinform the general public that cycling is an unsafe activity (look, that cyclist looks like a lit up flare and a Christmas tree had a baby!), they make all other cyclists look like dorks.
Now, I’m not picking on genuinely introverted people, but people who are just less comfortable interacting with other vehicles on the road. As someone truly in love with spinning pedals on the road, I don’t see why there is this reticence to spend time on the road. The footpath is by far the worse option: congested with pedestrians, littered with signs, and unpredictable in its ebb and wanes.
There’s a spectrum of how happy you are with sharing the road: going from very uncomfortable to exuding quiet confidence before becoming attention-seeking and finally there is a thin line to obnoxiousness.
Uncomfortable, more introverted cyclists tend to hug the kerb, trying to stay out of everyone’s way. Every potential interaction is exaggerated; every passing car becomes a danger. Confident cyclists who are experienced know when to draw attention to their intentions, when to back off while negotiating between quickly moving cars, and how to tell the difference between a passing maneuvere that is actually dangerous and one that is not even worth commenting on. This comfort around other road users is something you can cultivate, but not one you can fake.
Attention-seeking cyclists and obnoxious cyclists tend to feel more self-entitled. “I’m a vehicle/road user too!” is the common mantra of these cyclists who don’t feel inclined to offer the same courtesy they demand to the other road users. To be fair these rolling douchenozzles tend to be the same regardless of vehicle.
My problem is, the introverts are trying to make up for their meekness with the artificial posturing afforded by the YJA. Their mistaken assumption of course is that this magical garment bestows visibility, and thus invincibility in traffic, leading some to jump to the illogical conclusion that they have automatic right of way in every circumstance by virtue of the highly visible jacket.
Magic jackets are not the answer to safer cyclists. Learning to share the road on a bicycle is the answer. Anticipation, not hindsight.
Fucking cyclists.
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@paolo
Or Taylor Phinney. Even when he misses the time cut, they make him out to be the second coming.
@paolo
@DerHoggz
True That.
I'm quietly stunned that Cuddles is still getting questions at the Giro about TDF team leadership.
FFS, Van Garderen's win at the ATOC was good, but it's not the fucking Giro! Perspective, people!
@mouse
Lets see here, we've got a TDF winner and (presumptive) two-time Giro runner-up against a talented kid who won a second-rate one-week stage race.
Brainstorm! Lets put the rookie in!
When taking a promotional photo for the front page of your website, be sure to leave a 1/2 cm of belly exposed.
http://mike-kluge.de/
I say Rule #9 to anyone that complain about me (or anyone) wearing a Hi-Vis rain jacket.
I've just picked up one of these Mavic H20 Sprint jackets that I'll wear during my dark commutes over the winter. It's a quality bit of kit, well fitted and not stupid expensive. The white / black contrast will make me as visible as I need to be. I'd say good lights are more important, I see a lot of riders in hi viz but with rubbish lights.
@Jamie
Why stop at 450 lumen when you can have 450,000 lumen?!
@sthilzy
Weeping baby Merckx... Frank's seatpost looks very low in that photo.
@mouse
To be honest I'd query whether Cuddles will be able to back it up to lead the Tour given the effort involved in competing in the Giro. Bertie couldn't keep up in the last week of the '11 tour after his casual jaunt through the Italian countryside earlier that year, given the conditions they've been getting through this year, I'd wager Cuddles & Nibbles will need some sort of R&R after this week is done.
If he doesn't recover in time to be in top form why not have Teejay as the leader & Cuddles playing a Hincapie-esque road captain role?
@Ron here's my compromises with the VMH on the 'safety' wear when riding in the dark (or at least starting/finishing in it).
Rapha's pink brevet gilet & the yellow DeFeet oversocks, they still look good (in my opinion) and they're bright enough to well & truly catch the attention.