The Thin Black Line
Every time we get on our bikes, we are playing a game of Russian Roulette. We take care to maintain our machines, to make sure they are in perfect running order, we look after our bodies to maximise our performance, and we, hopefully, abide by the rules of the road to keep ourselves safe from the dangers of other road users. But ultimately, our lives are in the hands of fate, destiny, or even other people. Ours is a sport fraught with danger, and every now and then, and increasingly all too often, we are reminded of the thin black line between life and death.
Such a reminder came today with the news that yet another Pro Cyclist, Kristof Goddaert, lost their life when going about their everyday job. Maybe we are less at risk in our own day-to-day lives than these athletes, but we shouldn’t take with a grain of salt the dangers that are inherent any and every time we cover ourselves with a thin shield of lycra, mount an 8kg piece of plastic, alloy and rubber, then surround ourselves with tonnes of fast-moving metal often operated by less-than-accommodating drivers. We should regard every motorist with caution, never knowing if they themselves are a cycle-aware operator or one of the increasingly common outspoken anti-cyclists that seem to crawl out of the woodwork to vent their disdain for us every time an online article regarding any aspect of sharing the road appears. Make no bones about it, there is a lot of contempt and anger towards cyclists from many drivers.
There’s only so much we can do to minimise our risk of not returning from a ride. Wearing a YJA is not going to help. Having a foam lid half-encasing our craniums will only do so much (let’s not get into a helmet debate here though). Not putting ourselves into a dangerous situation by flouting road rules, running red lights or riding erratically in traffic should be a no-brainer. Yet just by joining the arterial flow of cars, buses and trucks we put ourselves at the bottom of the transport food chain, and like a hyena in a lion-filled savannah, we need to be alert and aware of our surroundings and regard everyone around us a potential predator.
We’ve lost many of our own, and it’s often I think about our community friend @itburns when I kit up. Every time I read about another cyclist tragically killed, the reality of the dangers of our passion hits home, again, hard. Having met Kristof on KT12, when he gave up his time to talk to us before Paris-Roubaix, answering our questions, humouring us as he prepared for one of his most important days at work of the year, it feels that little bit more personal, even though our worlds were so far removed from each other. And now, he is removed from our world completely, a victim of bad luck, a tragic accident of circumstances that we might never consider could happen to us. Which only serves to remind us that it can.
Be careful out there, friends.
Amen
This reality is always sobering. Thanks for articulating it so well.
A Merckx. Very sad.
By all accounts he was a top bloke, hard as nails and a consummate professional.
A-Merckx indeed.
Unfortunately as cyclist’s we are much more vulnerable than those that merely ride a bike, we often travel twice the speed of your average “joe” this gives the in-attentive driver only half the reaction time. Take care-always.
In the UK it appears a cyclist’s life is cheap. This article from yesterday makes me shudder just thinking about it.
http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/11018855.Crook_delivery_driver_who_killed_Cleadon_cyclist_on_A66_near_Stockton_walks_free_from_court/
Bad luck? Fate? Careless? None of them. It seems every upstanding citizen is entitled to kill one cyclist with their vehicle and effectively get away with it. One Scottish case of last year allowed that to increase to 2.
Would like to have shaken his hand before a ride. He is pictured here and all over Facebook — and he seems awesome. Timely that I am mounting a cleaner more powerful Sigma Mono red light centered on the seat tube beneath the seat stays. And giving the previous Sigma signal light to my training mate whom I have a great interest in protecting. Riding on his wheel and could barely detect that he had a faint light on.
@JohnB
A very, very sad state of affairs. I hear the death toll of cyclists in London is appalling. From what I’ve seen here in WI, cyclists’ lives are cheap too. Kill one and you’ll get a slap on the wrist. This one will amaze you: http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/127285988.html
With more and more drivers being under the mistaken impression that they are great drivers who can drive and text at the same time, I’m afraid the onus is on us to be extra vigilant. I’m amazed how often I see drivers surfing the web or texting. I’m also amazed how often I get asked if I wear earphones and listen to music. They look surprised when I say no, I need every faculty to be engaged to stay safe.
Well written mate…. Be careful out there everyone! Feels like every weekend at the moment we are losing someone here
The most straight forward light I have found — and recharges on USB.
Wearing a YJA might not help but it will allow me to go before a judge and refute the driver’s claim that they didn’t see me. They might not have seen me, but the judge will certainly think they should have. And that will be enough for me (or my heirs ) to win damages. G
The fact that you snobs won’t ride with me is just icing.
The day the lead pic was taken was a nice day. He leaned against that AG2R car for a good half hour talking to us about his love of riding the cobbles and how he hoped to continue improving in P-R. Nice guy, just shooting the shit with other cyclists who shared the love and traditions of the sport. He knew he was lucky to be participating in something very special and seemed to respect that. Too bad he’s gone. Fuck, that’s young.
@Walbly Maybe we can keep it classy and avoid trolling on this thread. If you have a beef, take it up in the Rules section or somewhere else. Otherwise, welcome.
http://m.bikeradar.com/road/news/article/killed-cyclists-helmet-smashed-to-bits-by-slow-moving-van-court-hears-39617/
Killing cyclists is considered acceptable in Southampton now.. And this is what members of the public think –
http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/yoursay/letters/10996773.Cyclist_s_death__was_the_fault_of_all_cyclists_/?ref=twtrec
Truly disgusting..
Stay safe fellow cyclists..
I believe in the UK there’s official guidelines for working out proportional liability in the case of an insurance claim, where it’s basically akin to a points-based checklist. Was the cyclist travelling at an appropriate speed for the road and conditions? Were they wearing a helmet? Did they have lights? Were they visible i.e. YJA? Were their senses otherwise impaired e.g. headphones?
Basically if you’re riding in the dark with no lights, headphones and dark clothing, kiss any compensation goodbye, but it makes you think that despite how moronic they look (and most likely how useless they are) a YJA could be significant if you were to suffer serious injury.
I believe the document I saw it in was from the DfT, I can find a link if anyone’s interested.
Wow, some of you had met him. RIP, Kristof. Definitely too young to go out.
Yup, sometimes I hate that the sport I love means being involved with careless cagers on open roads. I wish I like golf, or something. It is crazy how distracted and even hateful drivers are towards cyclists. I was just wondering today how much of it has to do with the fact that so many people are a) not happy with themselves b) in poor health due to personal choices c) jealous of an adult who is able to have fun like a kid, on a bike.
I also wonder how fucking bonkers people would go if say Wayne Rooney were run over by a cyclist and killed while working on free kicks. Or if Lebron James was smashed by a moped while shooting free throws. Not encouraging this, just a shame that so many PRO cyclists (and non PROs) are killed simply doing what they enjoy. Not many other sports have the top players frequently killed by automobiles.
Ride defensively aggressive, everyone!
What does YJA mean?
Oh, I’m also involved with my city’s cycling coalition to work for better/safer cycling. I encourage others to see what they can do to be advocates. The more cyclists out there, the better.
@Gunnersaurus I ride in Columbia, South Carolina with a reputable rider named Gunner. Gunner-saurus?
@Pedro
YOUR JACKET is ASS-OUT-LOUD!
@Ron
[ Emperor voice ] “Good… good…” I am (also) working directly with Palmetto Cycling Coalition to help them create a new brand identity and stronger documentation, but mainly to help them realize how they can connect with riders like myself — that train weekly over different county lines. And I also get the insider perspective of regular folk that just want to ride downtown — safely.
Nice one Bretto. For our encounter with Kristof during KT2012 I had the feeling AG2R’s Monsieur Lavenu poked his head in the door of two of the younger riders on the team and said get up lads, I need you two out here to chat up some civilians. It was nice of them all to answer our questions.
I’m using a lezyne red flasher on the back of my bike all the time now. It’s more effective than a YJA. The flashers might catch the eye of the young texter right before they hit me. These dangers aren’t going to keep us from riding, so we have to be as clever as possible, Rule #62, bitches!
@Gianni Yes, yes, yes all music must be sung “Breaking Away” style — or add a professional soundtrack later.
You can wear any colour you like. If they aren’t looking, they won’t see you. A flashing light on the other hand stands out, repeatedly, and can catch an eye.
You have very likely seen the experiment below but it demonstrates that motorists looking for other cars, are very likely not going to see a cyclist.
http://www.theinvisiblegorilla.com/gorilla_experiment.html
A very tragic tale, unfortunately heard too often.
A group of Perth (WA) cyclists are rolling out a new tail-light/ camera, trying to change driver culture by letting them know they are being recorded. The “Fly6” is getting a reasonable amount of press (also as they were (over) funded by Kickstarter). I have no financial interest, but have bought one. Cool little product…
Video didn’t work, try;
http://kck.st/1h1viSw
@asyax Nice thinking on that product. I had an idea last year to mount a worthless GoPro body on the Nobi race number bracket to give drivers that “obvious” feeling that they were being recorded. I could not take the extra bracket being mounted under the brakes and a constant GoPro presence dominating the rear of my bike.
Sad news indeed.
But if I may be slightly lateral, I think we as cyclists should be careful about overstating the dangers.
One of the things that always struck me in my daily journalism days, constantly reading news wires from around the world, was that each and every day dozens of people walk out their front door confidently expecting to return home that evening but they never will. Sometimes the cause will be mundane, sometimes it will be bizarre but the effect is the same.
Cycling is not an inherently dangerous activity. As a form of transport it’s not that much more dangerous than driving a car, and less dangerous than a motorbike, depending of course on where you are.
Shit happens – it’s sad, but it just happens. Don’t let it stop you.
Just got done with an evening ride in the semi-dark. Flashing lights front and back.
This did not stop the driver of a car from pulling out across my path as he looked directly at me. He did that sort of nervous pause, as if stopping directly in front of me would make things right. But I was watching him as I approached, because I’m a motorcyclist and I expect that all cross traffic is trying to kill me at all times. I covered the brake and I was ready.
All the yellow jackets and flashing lights in the world would not have stopped this guy. So the only thing left to do is stay alert and expect to be attacked by anything that moves. As soon as you begin thinking of drivers as sentient beings who can think and reason, you’re letting down your last line of defense. You can’t prevent everything of course, and it’s horrible to hear news like this, seemingly all too often these days. Try to be seen. Just don’t ever *expect* to be seen.
@Gunnersaurus [ Martin Short voice ] “Wait!” It’s Gunnar with an ‘a’ — my mistake.
Gents and all, I’ve been reading a long time here. The other day I read a comment about only drinking as much as life requires. And to hear of news as such… not too long ago it was a young lady in her prime in Belgium. This kinda news too often. I don’t know, I guess I’ve finally been prompted to register and post. Not that I have anything really enlightening to add to conversation but I sure feel that this kinda news really, really sucks and yea, maybe an extra drink is required to appreciate life sometimes. RC
@wilburrox
Welcome. Buses, trucks, our own bad bike handling, it’s all trouble but we just have to take our chances and raise a glass to our brothers and sisters who get maimed doing what we all do. When Velominati @itburns got killed down in Texas, a brother most of us had never met but knew…that sure required an extra drink.
@ChrissyOne
Exactly that: assume you’re invisible to most, if not all, and play the most conservative card available when it comes to potential vehicular conflict.
@unversio Thanks.
Has anyone found a good solution for rearlights and aero seatposts?
@copaking http://www.evanscycles.com/products/cateye/rapid-x-rear-usb-rechargeable-led-light-ec053177
This is why i ride at 0530 and yes i know it only takes one but my odds are so much better. My VMH thinks i’m one turn away from crazy ville getting up as early as i do but it is a sacrifice i’m willing to take . On the plus side almost zero cars and exhaust to deal with as well. Keep it safe and assume nothing.
@Duncan
I think the issue is not aerodynamics but the mounting around aero seatposts which are often too large for standard-issue bands and mounts. That Cateye looks like it might have the same problem, unless it comes with large bands as well.
At least I hope that’s the issue – if it’s aerodynamics then it’s just wrong.
@ChrisO
You raise a good a valid point, Chris. This is terrible news and I feel for his family and those who knew Kristof, including of course the Keepers and KT12 folks. But, none of us know our fates. We just need to do the very best we can to keep safe.
@ChrisO
Two of these are on my Madone aero seat mast (2008). They’re the business…
http://www.use1.com/exposure-lights/cycling-lights/rear-lights/flare
The timing of this article and the tragedy just brings a shiver to my spine. I was out riding with a friend yesterday and coming down a quiet country village a car approached from the other direction and in full view went to pull across us to turn in to a car park. A vast amount of screamed abuse just about saved our skins but the difference between still being here and not is sometimes a very very fine line. The worst of it was in the first 10 minutes of the ride we passed an RTA on the other side of the road with…you guessed it…a cyclist (casual type on a MTB) lying in the middle of the road being treated by paramedics (still don’t know if it was a fatality or not).
I just hope these things only come in 3’s
@Walbly
Says who? Where is that written? I see no Rule that says we won’t ride with you. I could give a fuck if you show up for a ride in sandals, YJA, and unshorn guns as long as you can keep up and you don’t crow about it. Read the entry for “Brian” in the lexicon and you will understand.
I love riding Audax/Rando more than anything, and it’s a hotbed of gratuitous Rule violations. Come to Nashville, TN and I’ll ride with you anytime.
Riding safely is paramount, and as @brett put it, there is only so much you can do. I’ve recently been hypothesizing with my club on kit wearing. Currently, it’s not mandatory for club rides, and despite no studies to back up my thoughts, I truly believe that a group is safer if all wearing matching kit. I just feel there is an unconscious sense of “team” that adds some sense of respect and hopefully an awareness or an extra few inches from a motorist.
To the subject at hand: I have seen this kind of senseless, bloody death firsthand, and will happily live out my life without seeing it again. That said, I find some hope in the following idea, which I’ve been wanting to set it down in writing for some time. Now seems the correct moment. Forgive the prosy rendering – it seems appropriate, given the gravity of the subject.
————-
The death of one of our own drives our thoughts inward, inspiring us to probe at the dormant kernel of fear that we hide behind bravado and V.
We must confront the fear alone – in this way we are truly islands unto ourselves. Fear passes through us, leaving resolve in its wake, or cripples our minds with craven imaginings of pain and annihilation. How then do we act when the fear is upon us and we cower under death’s deadly regard?
I clutch to this thought when the fear is upon me:
When we pass death’s high cold gates, the Man With The Hammer awaits us, and weighs our fear and our courage to a nicety in the scales of his judgement. If our resolve is not found wanting, we shall join his Shadow Peloton, to ride alongside the living and instruct them with loving Hammers of our own.
The dead are never truly gone, but ride with us on steeds wrought of the essence of V.
Vive la Vie Velominatus.
@ChrisO
@ChrisO
Very nice point, ChrisO. It is a big, complicated world. To assume your place, your sanctity, your role is to misjudge how big, wild, and unpredictable things truly are.
Be safe, ride defensively aggressive, and make sure you’ve recently told your VeloPartner/Pal/minatus you love them.
@ChrissyOne
I believe that expecting that ALL traffic is trying to kill you at all times is the only way to go.
A while back I was returning home after a group ride, and a UPS truck nearly pulled out in front of me from my right. I saw him approach the intersection, and my hands went directly to the brakes. I stared at the driver the whole time, and after he started to pull out and the truck lurched as he slammed on the brakes, I continued to make eye contact with him, as if to say, “Thanks for not killing me today.” Which is exactly what I was thinking.
I’ve been seeing lots of stories lately about the lack of consequences for motorists who hit cyclists. Perhaps some of this could be avoided if countries would adopt the Dutch law where in the case of a collision between car and bike, the driver is automatically at fault, until proven otherwise. If people knew there were consequences for their actions, perhaps they would think twice.
Until that day comes, stay vigilant and safe brothers and sisters.
@LIIIXI
That’s an interesting theory.
On the one hand it would seem to be counter to the study by Ian Walker at Bristol University who found that drivers give more room to people they think are inexperienced cyclists i.e. not wearing high-vis or lycra, and preferably female.
However the comparison was to individuals so I guess it is possible a team in matching kit might be more imposing. Maybe it plays on some natural instinct of an individual being more wary about taking on a pack, especially if it looks organised. Just don’t be the old, sick one… I’ve watched enough Nat Geo Channel to know what happens to them.
Anyway, forget the safety element – you should all wear team kit because you will look More Fantastic.
@KW
Yeah, the eye-contact thing is an interesting one; I find they usually look away after they’ve come jolting to a halt rather than hold my eye. And that Dutch law says so much about the transport culture there; try to introduce that in Sydney, where I grew up, and talk-radio stations would explode with hostility, and that in a country that managed to pass serious gun control.
Germany is just so car obsessed and the ‘solution’ for cyclists is generally to designate narrow cycle-paths which — at least in theory — must be used and which are then so badly maintained or used by drivers for parking and delivery stops as to be unusable. Unless you’re on a mountain bike and enjoy riding over potholes, cracks and tree roots.
@ChrisO
Surely team kit is the only real alternative to V-Kit
I was once stopped by a policeman on motorbike for running a red (was much younger and stupid) He basically told me to go but next time HE would run me over…Try changing that culture.
http://www.mec.ca/product/5025-534/mec-plasma-usb-white-led-front-light/?h=50002+50037&f=10+50002+50513
I picked up the Front and Rear versions last time I was in Montreal – recharchable and cheap…
@andrew
I was actually shocked that the UPS driver actually held my eye contact the whole time, and even pointed at me with a smile to acknowledge that he saw me and realized what he almost did.
Same thing would happen here in Wisconsin if you tried to pass a law like that. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the 5 years I’ve lived here is that you don’t mess with people’s cars (or Harleys!). I can’t imagine what it’s like in Germany!
We tried to get a high speed rail line extended from Milwaukee to Madison a few years ago, and the general sentiment from those opposed was, “Why would I want to take a train when I could drive?” It’s difficult to fundamentally change the mindset of a population regarding transportation.
Frankly, it’s about 120km from Milwaukee to Madison, and I’d rather make the trip by bike.