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Update on Outlaw Trail accident

11.01.2008 by Ray Niekamp // Leave a Comment

Emergency vehicle at the accident on Granger Dam Road.
Emergency vehicle at the accident on Granger Dam Road.

When I wrote about my first century two weeks ago, I mentioned an accident that involved two cyclists — one of whom suffered injuries.  The injured rider, Tony Plutino, sent along a comment on the ride, with a full account of what happened.

He also corrects some details that were in the original post, based on hearsay from ride volunteers and emergency workers.

Here’s a link to the comment.  Tony reiterates a caution about riding in pacelines that we would all do well to remember.

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Categories // Safety Tags // Outlaw Trail 100

Safer cycling

10.30.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 5 Comments

I’ve mentioned before that I work at a university.  One of the things I’ve noticed as I hit town during my daily commute is an increasing number of cyclists on the road, biking to and from campus.  I think we’re all noticing more cyclists lately, because of high gas prices, but the ones I’ve been seeing are worth a comment.

More and more cyclists seem to be practicing what is called “vehicular cycling,” where bikes take their place among other traffic on the road, and cyclists follow the same rules cars must follow.  This morning, one fellow waited in a left turn lane about four cars back from the stoplight.  When the light changed, he pedaled hard to stay with the flow of cars around the corner, then reached the bike lane on the road he was turning on to, and settled in.  The cars behind him were not delayed by following a bike.

A four-lane road leads from the interstate highway toward campus.  This morning, a cyclist rode “as far to the right as practicable” and moved at a pretty good clip.  Cars passed him closely, because there’s no room for a bike lane on this road, but there is enough room for two cars and a bike — if everybody pays attention.

I’m also seeing more riders stop at stop signs and signal their turns.

Of course, there are always some jerks, but that’s not what this post is about.

As a larger number of cyclists ride according to the rules of the road, that boosts the chances that motorists will be more likely to accept their presence, and perhaps ease the antagonism between cyclists and drivers.

And before you ask — no, I’m not one of the bike commuters.  Unfortunately, I live 30 miles from work, and riding there is not a realistic choice — for me.

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Categories // Commuting, Safety Tags // car free, Commuting, Safety

Critical Mass

10.02.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 4 Comments

I’m not a very political kind of guy. I tend to live and let live. I do think that bikes should get more deference from politicos, though, and I’d like to see local cities and towns take measures to make biking a more realistic transportation alternative for most people.

For most people, that would mean making the streets safer for bikers. Let’s face it, most folks haven’t taken classes in biking, like the Road I class offered by the League of American Bicyclists. I had the good fortune to take both the classroom and road parts of Road I last spring, and it did me some good.

One group of cyclists is trying to be more in-your-face about using the road. It’s Critical Mass, which has popped up in major cities around the country. And now, it’s even in not-so-large cities. San Marcos, Texas, where I work, has about 40-thousand residents, but because the university is a good-sized one, it now has its own Critical Mass ride. I got caught behind it on my way out of town this evening.

This cell phone shot doesn’t do justice to the size of the group. I estimate there were about 50. If you look closely, you can see that some have already made the right turn at the light.

The cyclists decided to take the main road leading from campus to the Interstate highway. They took up the entire right lane, which forced traffic to use the left lane. At 5:15 p.m., that can really back up the cars, and we waited longer than usual to get out to the Interstate.

In their favor, I must admit that they impressed me. There was none of the raucous conduct we’ve read about on other Critical Mass rides. These folks did a good job of keeping to their lane. They filled it from edge to edge, and with about 50 riders in the group, they were not a compact mass. However, by the time they reached their turn point, they had spread out, and were not as bunched in the lane as they had been. They seemed to be mostly university students. Although some older road bikes were present, I did not see one pair of padded shorts or a polyester cycling jersey. Clothing was rock concert casual.

Some motorists are always going to be upset by the presence of bikes, and some this evening were impatient to get past the riders. I’ll bet we’ll read something about it in the local paper over the next couple of days. But if nothing else, it showed the city that bikers are among ’em, and must be taken seriously.

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Categories // Safety Tags // Critical Mass, Safety

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