Running late but not much to say, and the Feed

Had another session with the widow woman yesterday, and had to wait for her sleep meds to wear off before I could come back. Instead of coming straight home we stopped at the local Harbor Freight and picked up some stuff I needed for camping and working on bikes. The most important item on the list was a charger that lets me do single-cell charges on my AA size NiMH rechargeables. The other charger I have only allows charging in pairs which means that for those things that used 3 AA batteries I was up the unsanitary tributary without visible means of locomotion as far as using rechargeable batteries was concerned. This includes many bicycle lights and flashlights. But now that’s no longer a concern as I have a single-cell to 4 cells charger that cuts off automatically to prevent overcharging.

Up first because that was what I clicked on first is a link to a hit-from-behind in MA. 60-year-old cyclist killed in Westfield LEO need to subpoena his online activities and see if he ever posted that he would run a cyclist over instead of passing safely, because that’s what the driver did in this case. And I have read too many posts on Boston.com that had comments that said either exactly that or something very similar to that. Anyway, hit-from-behind, use the protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent. And start executing drivers that kill.

Next folder had 2 links to a hit-and-run in NYC. Cyclist Critically Injured in Apparent Hit-and-Run in Brooklyn, Police Say and my favorite NYC local news outlet said Cyclist Critically Injured In Bushwick Hit And Run At this point NYPD has not released any details about the wreck that would allow my making a determination about conclusively avoiding or preventing this wreck, but based on what I know no I can say that they were in an intersection and that intersection protocols might have helped avoid this wreck and that getting the infrastructure right would have prevented it. Also see the last sentence of the previous paragraph.

A cyclist is hit-from-behind in CA. UPDATED: Bicyclist killed after being hit by car on Highway 299 At this point there is much speculation about why the driver hit the cyclist bu no hard facts. Another case of protocols to avoid, maybe, and fix the infrastructure to prevent. Also another one to check the driver’s online comments.

A killer driver faces charges in the death of a cyclist in the Great White North. Driver charged in September crash that killed cyclist They left off murder charges so the driver probably wasn’t on the Internet, or never made any comments to a link about a bicycle wreck. The wreck was a hit-from-behind where the driver hit 3 cyclists. This tells me that the protocols would have been ineffective even if used (maybe the survivors did use the protocols), and that the only thing that would have positively prevented the wreck would be infrastructure.

A rare UK link. Cyclist Alan Mort death: Judge warning after John Evans jailed Seldom do you read such a thing in UK media, that the judge actually warns other drivers to be more carefull or face a similar outcome. Also seldom do you see a sentence of prison handed down in the death of a cyclist, most get community service or a small fine. Even the driving ban was higher than usual for killing a cyclist (sometimes there is NO ban). So not only a rare link from the UK for this blog, but a rare link for the UK in general based on content.

Last up I have an Infrastructure! story that will knock your socks off. Death By Dooring? House Speaker Howell Thinks It’s Funny also An open-and-shut case of Assembly’s foolishness and “Dooring” Bill — Yes, it is About the Bike I was amazed that it’s legal to throw a door into the path of a cyclist or the actual cyclist and there is nothing police can do, any damages are the fault of the cyclist, not the driver that throws the door in front of him. There oughtta be a law! Well if this passes there will be a law.

And except for one link I lost while trying to put it in the post, those are all the links that gave me fits today.

Billed @$0.02, Opus

Recovering from yesterday’s plumbing attempt, Wreck-Free Sunday

Yesterday I tried to turn the water off to the entire house so I could repair a leaky toilet with an equally leaky cutoff valve. Unfortunately the cutoff valve for the house has been pulled below the level of the water meter so the wrench I had had less than 1/8 of a turn to swing before hitting the water meter and coming off the valve, the first time rather violently causing my finger to get bashed against the inside of the water meter enclosure. That finger is still sore and difficult to bend because of that. So tomorrow I shall call the water company and find out how to get someone to shut off the water for a few hours (I expect it will take less than an hour to fix the toilet) because I have tried everything I can to do it myself and can’t. I am strongly considering modifying the wrench I bought many years ago to fit the valves installed now so I don’t have to go through this mess again in the future. it looks to be a simple cut and weld job to do the modification, cut a shape from plate steel that fits over the valve and then weld it to the existing wrench. Also I expect to have a slightly easier job of doing the blog post because my day for the widow woman to cry on my shoulder (which seems to be doing her a world of good) has been moved to Monday night instead of Sunday night. This means that I have a full day to make beans and rice and do a blog post before riding to the church for Mentor’s Circle.

Things have been a little strange since the Mayan Apocalypse last month. I have been having exceptionally good luck with traffic lights detecting my bike and changing for me, drivers have been exceptionally good about changing lanes to pass (Except for one Hispanic lady in a Lexus SUV that passed me driving on the shoulder to my right), and my cold-weather gear has been working pretty good at keeping me warm (even the home-made stuff, the only problem I have been having has been with glasses fogging because I can’t get the baffles sealed all the way). I need to put something that will positively locate the glasses on the mask so I can see out without having to fiddle with them and the wingnut for several minutes every time I use the mask. I have a fender washer that is drilled to fit the bolt I’m using, I might locate the glasses and then use a bead of Goop to glue the washer to the glasses so popping the glasses on it a quicker operation. I have also been experimenting with different methods of putting the mask on since I only wear it on days I wear the ‘clava under the helmet. I tried wearing the ‘clava over the mask to make putting the helmet on a faster operation, and the test seemed to work, but that was just an on/off test. The full test will be tonight in the cold going to and from church. The good thing about mask first then ‘clava is the mask keeps the ‘clava from getting in my peripheral vision while the ‘clava keeps the mask from getting caught on the helmet sweat liner.

The opportunity to complete the 20/20 Crank Forward full suspension bike has been presented before the annual local custom car and bike show, but I’m thinking probably I should do a better job and show the bike next year instead, after a bit of riding to get the bugs out of it. I’m torn between the 20/20 bike and the e-assist bike as to which would be the better bike to put in the show. Since the show is near Valentines Day every year I don’t have much time to build whatever I decide to build.

If things go as planned I should be doing a short post tomorrow and Tuesday.

PSA, Opus

I have awesome readers Pt.2, and the Feed

OK not only awesome, but slightly scary. I clicked a link to a T-shirt ad and said to Mrs. the Poet that I liked the shirt. I don’t recall telling anyone else that, or writing anything about it in my blog (and I’m too lazy to check) but this morning that shirt showed up in the mail with my legal name on the label and nothing else in the package. The shirt was in an ad that was headlined “The Zombie Apocalypse will not be motorized” and had schematic figures (like the ones telling you which bathroom to use) across the front with word and thought balloons depicting three to the left (wearer’s right) as zombies seeking brains and the fourth bent over in exhaustion as desiring a bicycle. The ad also had a caption that said “Rule 1, cardio”. I know Mrs. the Poet did not get me this shirt as she does not have access to the Internet except on my computer, so who knew and how they knew I wanted this shirt is a mystery to me. As you can see, this shirt is also no longer available so the mystery deepens. OK I just checked my Amazon Wish List and I didn’t put it on there either. I’m reminded of what Alice said after falling through the looking glass.

Up first is a local infrastructure project. Changing The Cycling-scape: Garland’s North-South Bikeway Project Will Ease Transportation For Experienced And Beginner Riders The infrastructure they are talking about includes that bike lane I was complaining about a couple of weeks ago. So, progress, but not much progress.

Another CA driver mistakes a cyclist wearing Hi-Viz for a deer. Lawyer Charged in Fatal Hit-And-Run that Killed Bicyclist Due in Court I’m sure drivers mistake cyclists for deer all the time NOT. The other thing that bothered me was that killing the cyclist was a misdemeanor, leaving the scene of a fatal wreck was a felony. They both need to be felonies and hit-and-run needs to be a major felony even if the victim survives. To avoid use hit-from-behind protocol and shark repellent (I don’t know that it works against lawyers, but it helps against their cousins). To prevent get the infrastructure right including confiscating the cars used in hit-and-run and destroying them after the trial if convicted.

A VA man objects to having a bike trail through his back yard apparently because he doesn’t pay attention to his mail. Varina man upset by Virginia Capital Trail’s path I find it telling that the man would not object to a road being run through his back yard, but a bike path!? Heaven forfend!

And last link, that HiViz bike wear may be so much fluff in the Greater Scheme of Things. Why cycling in high-vis may be not as safe as you think The study was done with motorcyclists because people not burning fossil fuels just are not worth the time of day (J/K). But what it shows was something I mentioned in my stuff to get me for Christmas post back in November, that you have to contrast your color with the background to make the HiViz really pop and make you noticeable in traffic.

And those are all the links that gave me fits today, mostly from FB friends and Ted Rogers’ BikingInLA blog. My web search service was crapping out on me again today.

Billed @$0.02, Opus

Soggy ride last night, and the Feed

First of all I need y’all to go visit this WP post so I can have a better chance at winning a Kindle HD that I could actually use to blog with (there being a WP app for the Kindle HD) and get out of the house more often.

Now that that’s out of the way, I had another meeting at the church last nigh planning a fund-raiser that will require some major planning and stage work on our part. Can’t say much about it yet, but I have been cleared to say we are putting on a murder mystery dinner with some slight parallels to “Harry Potter” instead of the Agatha Christie milieu that most of these productions hinge upon (or the board game “Clue”). One thing I have been tasked with is coming up with a recipe for butterbeer to serve with dessert. Now the getting to and from the meeting was a bit of a production for me, as my rain gear is starting to get old and show some leaks the most annoying of those leaks was the one at the crotch of my rain pants, which are coming up on 4 years old now, them and the jacket both. I don’t know what the expected lifespan of vinyl rain gear is, but I have had to repair the jacket a couple of times now and the crotch leak in the pants is recent (maybe as recent as the return trip last night). This means that between the leaky jacket and the leaky pants I’m now in the market for new rain gear. The problem is the difference between what I need and what I can afford is huge. I mean we are talking a divide worthy of the Grand Canyon. I need rain gear that lasts for years and breathes so I don’t get as wet from transpired moisture (not necessarily sweat, my skin does breathe and lose moisture through its pores) as I would have from just riding without protection, but here in TX the need to ride in the rain usually comes very seldom as we usually get our rain in the form of thunderstorms that are not safe to ride in no matter what kind of rain gear you are wearing. I went an entire year without riding in the rain during the drought 2 years ago. So I need rain gear that won’t dry out and crack or otherwise develop leaks if it just sits for a year or so in the closet and at the same time does not cost as much as a Wally World BSO, that has ventilation so I don’t get wet from my own transpired moisture, and that actually works to keep me dry in conditions that would be better suited to riding with SCUBA gear. Any suggestions?

Up first is a novel suggestion for getting around raising the gas tax from the state of VA. Gov. proposes getting rid of gas tax, raising sales tax As I pointed out in the comments section to the article, this means that people that don’t drive have an equal stake in the infrastructure as people that do because NONE of the money comes from “people that drive”, it comes from “people that spend money” and as the fuel source for cyclists and pedestrians is taxed but gas would not be that makes bike/ped and transit spending a higher priority as our fuel is taxed while cars are not.

First wreck, a CA cyclist is hit twice with the first impact being a hit-and-run. Bicyclist killed when hit twice on Highway 29; Clearlake woman arrested The driver claimed to have hit a deer. The second driver was driving too fast for conditions and should also get a ticket at the very least. Hit-from-behind so the protocols may have made it possible to avoid the wreck, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

And another link from the UK with an outcome. Two ‘thrill seekers’ killed cyclist as they raced a Mercedes and an Audi at 80mph Hit-from-behind but the description of the wreck shows that the motor vehicles were going too fast to avoid and at the same time removing any escape route by filling the entire width of the road. Getting the infrastructure right would have had the cyclist not riding on a major highway filled with idiots and prevented this wreck. The sentence in this case is another travesty as the driving ban will expire about the same time as the end of the prison sentence. The “ban” will result in minimal inconvenience for the perpetrators of this crime, while the victim is still dead.

And those are all the links that gave me fits today.

Billed @$0.02, Opus

Building winter gear from a Halloween costume, Wreck-Free Sunday

I have almost completed making the mask to keep the cold wind off my face, and what needs to be done won’t be visible in pictures so I’m just going to go ahead and document the build now.

First of all you need to start with the right mask, the hockey mask used by the monster in one of those slasher series. you will need to trim it so that it doesn’t interfere with your helmet but still covers your face where the helmet and balaclava (if you use one) doesn’t. I didn’t have a camera for this part of the build so I’m just going to describe the process and show what I had when I got the camera. What I did was I wore the mask under my helmet, and used a Sharpie to mark the plastic at the edge of the helmet. This was an uncomfortable process and I rushed it a bit which compromised the appearance of the finished project but did not effect the performance of the mask all that much. After I marked it I used heavy shears to cut the plastic mask leaving the parts I wanted in good shape.

After that I needed to figure out some way to put my glasses on the mask. I had a spare pair that had single-vision lenses and a broken temple piece so I decided they would be part of the mask. I removed the other temple piece and trimmed back the “barbs” on the side of the frames to reduce the amount of snagging things when I was using the mask. The glasses have a nose piece and a bar across the top of the frame, which suggested that a bolt type attachment could be used along with a wing nut to attach the glasses after I put the mask and helmet on. I had to do this because the frames were too wide to fit while putting the helmet on (from prior experience with identical frames and that same helmet, next time I buy glasses I’m making sure I can put my helmet on without removing my glasses). This required further modification to the frames by removing the nose pad (on these frames the nose pad was one structure that went from one side of the nose, up and over the brow, and down to the other side of the nose, instead of two smaller pads) so that the frames would fit closer to the face at about the same distance they would if I wasn’t wearing the mask. Then I marked the mask and drilled a hole for the bolt. I missed the spot (too low and to the side) so I had to re-drill a new hole that was higher and closer to the center. You can see both holes in the pictures.

After I made the physical alterations to the mask to make it fit the helmet and take the glasses, I modeled it for Mrs. the Poet. She did not like it and pronounced it “scary”, so I painted it black since I was planning on doing that anyway. Black was “still scary” because inside the helmet I became faceless, like Darth Vader crossed with one of those comic book super heroes that wore the stretch mask that he could see out but people could not see in. I became “too anonymous” which was “scary”. As I wasn’t trying to be scary (this time) I decided to add some color to the mask and give myself some facial features. which you can see in the first picture.

After I painted the mask I needed to put baffles in it to keep my moisture-laden breath from fogging the glasses (which was the original reason to make the mask as previous solutions to the frozen face issue resulted in fogged glasses and having to stop to wipe them off so I could see again). First thing I needed to do was get the baffles cut out, which happened before I got the camera. I cut the baffles from a hunk of PU upholstery foam I had sitting around from a previous project. Then the baffles had to be glued to the inside of the mask in such a way that they didn’t fall off or get permanently squished (glued down squished). This took a couple tests with my favorite craft adhesive, Goop.

I had a little material left over on each side.

Which was trimmed off after checking for fit.

You can see the difference in this view.

Testing showed that the mask was blocking a clear view of my mirrors which required some more trimming, this time on the mask itself.

It is really visible in this picture.

Putting on the mask and having it work right is a minor production bit all on its own. First I have to put the balaclava on, and then put the mask over it.

Then I have to slide the helmet over the mask, keeping it from getting pushed off my face.

The helmet must be seated while the mask gets pulled down enough to spin the wingnut over the glasses.

Then the glasses are installed and the mask moved into place.

I made a run last night at near-freezing temperatures, and while there are leaks in the baffles that caused the glasses to fog, my face was very warm. Problems yet to be solved are related to the condensation of that moisture-laden breath against the cold surface of the mask, the mask isn’t insulated so the inner surface is only slightly warmer than the outside air temperature. All the mask was intended to do was keep the cold wind off my face and prevent direct heat loss on the skin, but as designed and built now my breath condenses out most of its moisture when it hits the inside surface of the mask which on long rides results in a rather large puddle in front of my face. I’m still working on a solution to that issue.

Another thing I’m still working on is making the whole mess quicker to put on and take off. I see two possible solutions for that. One is to buy smaller glasses that can stay with the mask while the helmet goes on over the mask. The second is to trim the mask so that it fits completely out from under the helmet and the strap goes over the helmet instead of inside, but that would require coming up with a different way to attach the strap to the mask and glasses. That’s doable but I haven’t figured it out yet.

PSA, Opus

Edit: So far none of the pictures I uploaded to the site have shown in this post for me. Can anyone see the pictures? All I can see is what is supposed to be the mouseover text posted to the page as regular text.

Edit 2/24 I finally got the pictures to work, now the alt text doesn’t work, but I don’t care.

I have awesome readers, and the Feed

Just a note to start today’s post about something I got in the mail, something I dearly wanted but could not afford to get for myself, that came in a package with no return address sent to “Opus the Poet”. Thank you anonymous benefactor, and I will use your gift wisely and with pleasure. I know it was from one of my readers because the note inside the package said this person had read I needed/wanted this item on my blog…

The only live link I have today is a more than week-old report from the UK. Cyclist is injured So if the question is “Was this a slow news day at WoaB?” the answer is “Glacial.” Notice that in spite of the cyclist being taken from the scene by medical transport the driver has not been charged more than a week later. I’m told that this is typical of UK LEO, even in cases where the cyclist was not at fault in any way.

Now that I have completed the blog post, I will don my mule suit (J/K, I do not actually own a mule suit) and head out to purchase comestibles to maintain the WoaB and house.

Billed @$0.02, Opus

Long day at the lab rat keeper, and the Feed

There was a personnel issue at the LRK office that resulted in the staff not being prepared for my visit, which delayed the start of the review and then there was a problem with the number of pills I had left which delayed the end of the visit. Then I missed the bus after everything was straightened out which put me another half hour behind. That made me actually 45 minutes later than I would have been had I caught the bus on time, because of the 45 minute frequency of the last bus between the transit center and WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell, which are no longer covered in snow BTW.

OK I have been going through the links for about 7 hours now and I still don’t have any live links to share. I’m getting a little punchy and it’s coming up on 0100. I’m going to bed…

PSA Opus

Bean day again, and the Feed

Once again I get to make my favorite food, beans and rice. During the summer when Mrs. the Poet visits her side of the family and I have to fend for myself I make a pot of these and have dinner for most of the week from two cups of dry beans and a cup before cooking of brown rice. I did a nutritional survey on the web of the ingredients and I could live indefinitely on the dish, and I would probably live quite happily on a diet of coffee with 2 sugars and 1/3 milk for breakfast (and most of the day, a cup at a time until the pot was gone), peanut butter and honey on whole wheat for lunch, and beans and rice for dinner. Throw in a bowl package of ramen every so often to shake things up at lunch, add a burger or two a week to cover the days when the beans run out, and I would live like that pretty much forever. I would spend more on the burger than I would for the beans and rice for 2 weeks. Seriously even in this economy I can get 5 cyclist-size servings a week for 2 weeks for under $5, that’s less than $0.50 a serving. There are still ways of surviving when pay goes down while costs go up.

Up first in the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike a sidewalk cyclist is hit by a driver making an illegal right turn. Teen cyclist injured by vehicle in Dunedin crash Again from reading the article most of the way through one would think the vehicle was autonomous, and out for a drive on its own, and responsible for the wreck, instead of the human driver. Intersection wreck brought on by a total failure of the infrastructure to safely accommodate bicycles, intersection protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent. More Teen injured when hit by jeep

More on the IL cyclist killed late last week. Bicyclist hit, killed in Skokie Still SWCC, still dead. Again, assuming the report was accurate just because most of the traffic is stopped where you’re trying to cross don’t assume it is all stopped. More Skokie cyclist struck by car, killed

Last week was a bad time to be a cyclist in Skokie. Skokie EMT charged in hit-and-run death of cyclist

Death and destruction along with a tom of hateful comments in CA. Coroner identifies cyclist killed in hit and run on Stockton Boulevard No mode on the wreck, but given the hit-and-run aspect it is highly likely the driver was at fault. Get the infrastructure right to prevent, including making hit-and-run a crime covered by the death penalty if the victim dies.

A cyclist is injured in the Great White North. Cyclist struck in Markham, suffers serious head injuries The picture pretty much tells the entire story in this wreck as the near-pristine bicycle sits next to what appears to be a broken helmet and just feet away from a pool of blood. This was a buzz job wreck, the driver failed to pass safely hitting the cyclist but not the bike. Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid, get the infrastructure right to prevent, and stop acting like helmets are some kind of magic talisman that can prevent all harm. Helmets can’t even prevent all harm to the one part of the body they were designed to protect, the head, as demonstrated by this wreck.

Assault with a deadly weapon in the UK. Woman cyclist hit by glass bottle thrown from passing car I honestly can’t say how you’re supposed to avoid a random assault like that, but I do know that getting the infrastructure right would go a long way towards getting cyclists out of range of such attacks.

A cyclist in Oz is crushed by a truck that left him no room when passing. Cyclist fighting for life after being hit by semi I don’t understand the actions of LEO in this case. The cyclist was where he was supposed to be by law (stupid law but still obeying the law) and was crushed by a truck that failed to leave room for the cyclist as it was driven from a stoplight. The driver claimed he never even knew he had just crushed the cyclist because of the weight and power of the vehicle. So not even a charge for hit-and-run to make civil damages easier to recover for the cyclist? And the linked article points out this was mainly an infrastructure-related wreck as there was no place for the cyclist to escape when the semi took all the room on that side of the road.

From Enn Zed a report on a hit-and-run that was caught on tape. Hit-and-run culprit sought The picture with the link shows the weapon vehicle as it speeds away from the scene. Hit-from-behind wreck, use the protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Infrastructure! news from LA. Local cyclists tout rules of the road That headline should really read “Local police tout rules of the road”, because they just happened to be cyclists, who are also LEO.

Infrastructure from CA. City steps up bike, pedestrian safety Notice that even with the heavy windshield bias of LEO in CA most wrecks are still the fault of the driver, but only just barely. Now if windshield bias is accounted for (like in cases of right hooks that the cyclist is blamed for “going too fast”) then more wrecks become the fault of the driver.

Bad infrastructure news from the UK. Sharp rise in cyclist and pedestrian accidents and Worrying rise in cyclists injured on Scotland’s roads [An] uphill struggle to make our streets safer for cyclists Overall road deaths are declining but cyclists and pedestrians are increasing, That tells me two things: 1) cars are getting better at protecting occupants from wrecks, and 2) drivers are not getting any better at avoiding wrecks.

Continuing along those lines London cyclists report being hit is a fairly common situation that seldom gets reported to police. Half of cyclists ‘hit by vehicles’ The headline greatly exaggerated the ratio as only one demographic even approached “half” and that was still barely 40% with other age groups reporting much lower wreck rates. Still, that as large a portion of the cycling as that has been hit hard enough to cause the rider to fall is greatly disturbing, showing terrible behavior on both sides of the situation but especially on the part of the people driving around in the deadly weapons.

Lifestyle for a KY cyclist. Memorial ride scheduled for bike rider killed in Lexington and Memorial ride in honor of bicyclist who was killed

Finally, those are all the bicycle links that gave me fits today.

Billed @$0.02, Opus

Riding in the rain, And what do you get a bicycle blogger for Yule/Christmas, Wreck-free Sunday

We finally got morning services restarted at my church, just in time for me to get caught in a slight rain shower on the way home from one today. I got damp is all, but DANG! at the winds each way. I’m talking steady winds that had me pedaling my uphill gears going down slight hills against the headwinds on the way out, and then a wind shift that had me fighting crosswinds that felt like headwinds on the way back, to go with that shower.

The subject of the morning service today was honoring our Veterans by examining the Way of The Peaceful Warrior. A peaceful warrior is a person trained in violence that strives to prevent violence. We examined ways that those of us not trained in violence can use to deflect or prevent violence, by the use of psychic shields and projections of Love energy.

And once again it is time to prepare my list of material desires for the upcoming season. Aside from some items that need replacing because they are broken or worn out I really don’t need much this year.

One thing I am in dire need of is short and long sleeve wicking shirts in the ANSI safety palette of colors. I find that the orange is better for spring and early summer, while the lime and yellow colors are better for late summer and fall, with either one being great curing the dull days of winter,

Long-sleeve wicking sweats are ideal for riding in winter down to about 30°F with additional layers, I need these in 2X because they run a little to the small side, and also to allow additional layers underneath.

Log-sleeve wicking tees are ideal for the transition periods between cold and hot weather and also as sunblocking garments for high summer wear. I need these in the XL size.

Short sleeve polo shirts with pockets and a regular shirt collar help me look more “normal” for those presentations to the City Council while maintaining wicking ability and visibility for when I’m on the bike getting there. I need one of these in the XL size.

All of these shirts are from the same company I got short sleeve wicking tees from 3 years ago for Christmas and those are still going strong except for some stains from food spillage. Most of the rest of my visibility garments are “of an age” that they are just falling apart like my reflective vest that the reflective tape is falling off of and that the velcro closures are wearing out to the point that they sometimes just fly open in a strong breeze. These zippered reflective vests don’t have either of those problems and have inner and outer pockets besides. I need one in XL for summer wear and another in 2X for wearing over multiple layers in the winter.

Now another thing I need is more light, specifically more light to the rear but being able to see deteriorating pavement and avoid the worst of it would be nice as well. This headlight puts out plenty of light to aim at the ground and also make me visible to drivers and is designed to work with this tail light and this splitter with this extender to make the back of the bike obnoxiously visible at night. Or just get the light and cables without the added battery from Amazon . I don’t want to be another victim of SMIDSY for lack of enough tail lighting. And a pair of these handlebar end lights add side visibility as well as acting like turn signals in blinking mode. The headlight I have now is adequate to light the road at low speed but even my turtle-like cruise speed has me seriously over-driving my headlights to avoid pavement defects at anything less than a freshly-charged battery pack The first ride after charging the batteries I can see and avoid the road defects that can take down my bike but after a week I can only see a tiny ellipse in the road lighted by the hot spot from my light, but the real problem is my home-brew taillight is hors d’combat after the lack of rear suspension and the condition of the roads got to it for a few months. So I need a better light.

And hopefully my kids will see this and maybe get together on getting the stuff from the safety store. Off all the items listed in this post, the clothes are the most pressing need, everything except the polo shirt.

PSA, Opus

A delicate situation, and the Feed

I have been invited to a party where we are all supposed to wear our sexy underwear, with no white cotton briefs allowed. I have some time to prepare for this party as it is for NYE this December. I think I mentioned the issues I have buying underwear that I can get over my legs, I do good just to be able to find white cotton briefs I can wear. So question for the readership, do you know of any “sexy” underwear that fits a 38″ waist for a cyclist with sprinter’s thighs. I don’t even know what is considered “sexy” underwear for men these days hence the quotation marks. I seldom get invited to parties so I would like to be allowed to attend this one, as I don’t mind hanging out at a party in my underwear, so long as everyone else is, too. I know #firstworldproblem, but like I said as often as I get invited to parties this is a problem for me.

Also I have been asked to bake some bread for the potluck tonight, but I am unsure about the viability of my yeast. I’ll do the bloom test to see if the little bugs are sort of alive and maybe get them to reproduce a bit before time to bake, but I have no backup plan if they don’t as we have no buttermilk for making soda bread. So, actually we have two delicate situations.

Up first, they may charge the man that chased a CA cyclist off the road and on to a golf course with attempted murder. Cyclist recounts Oakmont road clash Now we know that the driver hit the cyclist once but did not knock him down, that the cyclist retaliated, and the driver then told the cyclist he was going to kill the cyclist before chasing him on to that golf course. Things are not looking good for the driver. Thank [DEITY].

A WA cyclist survives a close encounter of the third kind with a van. Bicyclist Hit by Ford Van, Driver Cited All we know about this one is the driver was wrong and the cyclist got hurt, and it was in an intersection. Intersection protocols to avoid, but as this is a residential area this would be shared infrastructure under the Dutch plan so the driver would be at fault with that infrastructure plan, too. Looking at the scene with Streetview this was a T intersection with the cross of the T being through and the other street having a stop sign. From the description the driver ran the stop or stopped but failed to yield to traffic on the through street (the cyclist). Kudos to LEO for recognizing that just because the through traffic is a bicycle that does not remove the requirement to yield at the stop sign. This link earns the “Smart LEO” tag for my blog today.

More on the cyclist killed this week in IL. Man Riding Bike Struck, Killed By Car In Skokie So now we have another SWCC wreck, Intersection wreck even though we don’t have a trustworthy direction of travel for the cyclist, so intersection protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right so cyclists don’t have to be stuck in stop-and-go traffic where stupid or inattentive drivers can hit them to prevent.

From the Great White North a horrific tragedy is made worse by insensitive police actions. Cyclist killed in collision, belongings end up in trash Nothing on the wreck itself, but some of the items that were thrown away should have been kept as evidence for any possible criminal actions against the driver. Especially the “pieces” of the helmet, a helmet that is not intact is a great prop to use against a driver that killed a cyclist, showing the violence of the impact (“he hit the cyclist so hard that his helmet was blown to bits by the force of the impact.”)

A cyclist is mangled in a wreck with a truck in Oz. Cyclist couldn’t be saved after crash The truck driver failed to yield to the cyclist as the truck pulled out of a driveway and struck the through traffic (cyclist). Intersection protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

A “Ugh!” infrastructure report from Boston MA. Boston goes aggressively after helmetless bicyclists A totally insane effort to make people wear something that is of limited value in a wreck and no value before one.

LifeStyle from the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bicycle for 8 years in a row. Memorial ride planned Sunday for cyclist killed in Sunrise crash

And those are all the bicycle links that gave me fits today.

Billed @$0.02, Opus