Many updates, much stupidity, the Feed

Not much new today, but metric buttloads of updates and additional information about wrecks both recent and ancient. If I hadn’t been doing this for 500 blog posts here at Witch on a Bicycle I would be homicidal by now. I keep mentioning that my mind is “pre-exploded” as a joke, but I have a hard time keeping my equilibrium when reading comments sections to mine for additional information about wrecks.

Up first is another article on the cyclist hit while riding in the bike lane. Cyclist dies after being hit by SUV This is the guy that was hit and then the driver left dust getting away from the scene leaving a debris trail almost a quarter of a mile long from the bicycle trapped under her vehicle. I don’t know what should be done about this waste of skin, maybe crush her car with her strapped in it?

Another cyclist hit in the most dangerous state in the US to ride a bicycle. Bicyclist injured in Fort Myers crash (photo) The cyclist was riding on a sidewalk and was hit when he didn’t stop for a Don’t Walk signal. To avoid a similar wreck, either don’t ride on the sidewalk or follow traffic controls like a pedestrian when you are riding on the sidewalk.

A trial date has been set for the waste of skin that ran head on into a cyclist riding on the opposite side of the road. Judge orders trial for fatal DUI suspect I think the sub-head says just about everything important in this report. “Prosecutors say Marco Valencia had methamphetamine, marijuana, cocaine, alcohol in his system.” Maybe they should crush his car with him strapped in it, too? My wife says just lock him up and throw away the key because he has abused the privilege of living in society.

More about the victim of a bicycle/bus wreck in the UK. Tribute to cyclist who died after Birmingham city centre bus crash The picture of the victim shows a decent happy guy, the kind of person you wouldn’t mind having a pint with after a ride.

The guy that hit-and-run a cyclist in the UK continues to run, either to Turkey or Australia. Three wanted men sought overseas You know he’s guilty, innocent men don’t run.

Chilling testimony about a drunk driver’s consumption just before he ran over a cyclist. Cyclist’s death: Driver consumed 12 vodkas before driving Yeah, the defense is trying to cast doubt on the science here, but there’s no escaping the truth, the driver was schnockered, blitzed, wasted, (insert euphemism of your choice here) well beyond the legal limit of fun. I’ll let Maltese justice take its course here.

From Singapore, more about safe cycling there. Safe cycling in focus Funny that the same things are being said about cyclists there, and drivers also…”Motorists are frustrated with cyclists who road hog and switch lanes abruptly, often without regard for traffic behind them. The cyclists say motorists are impatient and often drive too close and too fast, especially when overtaking.“

Another Veteran’s ride for wounded veterans. Veterans will bike 350 miles If you have a chance to support this effort Witch on a Bicycle says do it.

A DVD we are supposed to be getting a copy of to review here shortly is being shown as a regular movie. See Breedlove’s story at Stilwell I won’t say anything about it until I actually see it, but I am heartily in favor of seeing this movie and supporting the charity.

And that’s all today. Reminder that unless there is a major breaking story, like a certain “doctor” getting killed in prison, there will not be a report for tomorrow.

Billed @$.02, Opus

What is going on with Darcy Allan Shepard’s killer? And the Feed

I have been very frustrated in trying to find out the results of the court visit by former AG Michael Bryant this past Monday, Googling the name came up with nothing new at all. Can some of my Canadian readers shed some light (and maybe some links) on this situation. I have even been to the WordPress Blog on the case, and they don’t have anything new there either. I thought court proceedings were public records, but apparently public records in Ontario are not on the Internet.

Up first today is a report on the filing of a suit in the case of a cyclist killed. Wrongful death suit filed on behalf of cyclist killed in Beaumont If LEO would do their jobs then lawsuits would not be necessary in cases like these, the perps would be in jail instead of walking free and unencumbered by the law.

Charges are filed against a woman that killed a cyclist while DUI and awaiting trial on a previous DUI. Manslaughter charge in Palm Beach DUI bicyclist fatality “She told the police she had ingested prescription medications including Xanax, Hydrocodone and Oxycodone.” Why is she still breathing? She tested positive for the narcotics and an illegal level of alcohol in her system, she should have been dying of respiratory shutdown unless she was an addict. If she was an addict then she should have never been released to probation after the previous DUI, and should have never been allowed access to a motor vehicle until her addictions were proven under control by a period of years without intoxicating substances in her body. In other words, she should have been medically disqualified from driving before she was driving down the shoulder of the road drunk and on drugs. Stuff like this just infuriates me almost (but not quite) beyond words.

Another report on the man arrested over the death of a UK LEO riding a bicycle to work. Man charged over The facts of the case are just so depressing, even with the limited information given by UK media.

No surprise to this blogger, 20 MPH speed limits reduce the number of people killed or injured by cars. 20mph speed zones cut road injuries by 40%, study says Well besides the increased amount of time that slower speeds give to react, when hit at 20 MPH the NHTSA has shown that only 5% of pedestrians and cyclists die, where at 30 MPH only 5% of cyclists and pedestrians walk away from the wreck (of the rest 50% die and 45% are hospitalized).

More from the debaters in that Spectator debate. Cyclists must stick to the rules of the road Yes that car drivers expect cyclists to obey the same rules of the road when the vehicles are so different is not reasonable, but them’s the breaks. Or to put it in more formal language, that is the situation with which we deal.

In Enn Zed, something is being done about cars hitting cyclists, I’m just not sure they’re doing the right things. New rules for Tamaki Dr after cyclists hurt Some of the things (like posting a sign for broken glass instead of just cleaning the mess) are just wastes of time and money to look like something is being done without actually taking care of a problem. Other things might actually do something about problems.

The residents of a SC island recognizes they have infrastructure issues. Lady’s Island cyclists need safer riding options Because some people can’t share they have to spend more money to make room for them? Why not just reduce the speed limit to a safe level?

A NY lawyer-to-be creates a blog that tells people what the real laws are in NY as opposed to the ones people make up in their minds. Bike Blawg: Post 1 The only problem is actually getting the people that need to, to read it.

Finally a report on bicycle commuting from Nova Scotia. Commute changes work, life perspectives on getting to and fro I know bicycle commuting changed my life, hoo boy did it change my life. Commuting by bicycle almost ended my life, but just because there was one stupid person on the roads that wanted to kill me because I wasn’t driving a car doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t do it again, in fact the few times after the wreck I had work I did commute by bicycle.

Aannnd, that’s a wrap. I have things to do this afternoon and tonight, and bread to make tomorrow, but there will be a post tomorrow.

Billed@$.02, Opus

Another cyclist hit in the bike lane, plus more stuff that will make you mad (crazy) and other stuff that will make you mad (angry)

I hate finding out that another cyclist was hit in the bike lane, and I hate having to post about it in my blog, but if people don’t know about it how can change be made? If you don’t know that drivers are killing cyclists where cars and trucks should not be, how can you do anything about it? And what can I do about it except tell you about the carnage?

Getting to that story first, a woman drives into the bike lane and kills a cyclist. Names released in cyclist-vs-car crash and Woman accused of felony hit and run “Authorities said Murphy was following bicycle safety laws and was wearing a helmet as he rode northbound on Jamboree Road along the easterly curb. Izquieta hit him and didn’t stop to help him, police said.” and “Izquieta had made an “unsafe turning maneuver” before hitting Murphy” Now it appears that “unsafe turning maneuver” was driving in the bike lane. The cyclist’s bicycle was dragged over 300 feet according to one report, so there’s no way the driver could not have known they hit something. Mr. Murphy was riding with a group of cyclists when he was hit, so it was probably just chance that he was the one hit instead of someone else. For you to avoid this kind of wreck, use the hit-from-behind protocol I mentioned a couple of months ago in this post .

No bicycles involved in this one, it’s just a demonstration of why I think that large vehicles need to have special permits to be on the roads with much higher standards of licensing. SUV slams into building in Mechanicsburg The SUV in this case had barely 100 feet to reach a speed that almost took out a concrete block building, and would have killed someone had they been inside the blast radius of the debris that sprayed from the wall at impact, or been crushed by the shelving unit that was knocked from the wall.

The rest of the wrecks were outside North America.

From the charges filed it appears that someone drove a bus over a cyclist, literally in this case as the bus had to be lifted off the cyclist. Birmingham city centre bus crash: Cyclist named This makes this report unusual for a UK wreck report, in that the mode of the wreck can be inferred from the report. Using my incredible powers of deduction I can hazard the statement that the cyclist was waiting at the stop light and the bus turned left over him, causing him to be trapped under the bus. Check back in 6-18 months when the court case is concluded and the real story is released, if that ever makes the news.

From Enn Zed comes a story of an injured cyclist whose ID went elsewhere in the wreck. Police Seek To Identify Injured Cyclist If the description of the cyclist, his kit and his bike ring a bell ring up the LEO contact mentioned in the article and let them know who you think it might be. The Witch on a Bicycle says it’s your civic duty.

More lawyer talk about the change in injury severity and type as more commuters go by bike. Can Cars and Bikes Co-Exist?

Infrastructure for pedestrians gets slammed because it’s ugly?! Safety vs. eyesore? Signs at Oceanfront draw complaints

Get a bike fit as a first step in fixing painful cycling. Enjoy the Ride Or you could just get a recumbent.

Aaaannnd, that’s a wrap.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Again few wrecks from the US and Canada, much consternation here and abroad

I’m back from the Lab Rat Keeper, still percolating right along. My BP is better than it has been in decades (since before they lowered the definition of high blood pressure down to 120/80 in fact) my rest pulse is akin to a Zen elephant’s (very slow) and my weight is down, after Thanksgiving no less! They are double-checking the Red Cross on my Hgb levels, the RC had it as 11.8 when I tried to donate a couple weeks ago, but back in the summer when I was testing a new med and getting that stuff tested every couple of weeks my Hgb and Hcrit were both good. But I wasn’t taking Azor during the test, I was on a different med. So, maybe I have found a new side effect for Azor when taken over an extended period of time. On the blood donation front I still haven’t been able to donate since my last donation in 7/2007. I might as well go ahead and get that tattoo now while I work on getting my Hcrit and Hgb levels back up, this looks like it might take a while…

Up first because something has to be, a report on a head-on crash between a cyclist and a cab on the wrong side of the street in DC. Crash Last Night at 31st and M, NW What can I say? The cab was driving on the wrong side of the street. Given that DC streets have danged high curbs to prevent sidewalk flooding (or so I was told back in the dark ages before Clinton, or even Carter) a cyclist doesn’t have any escape route should a motor vehicle do something as stupid as driving on the wrong side of the street unless the cyclist is extremely skilled in the “bunny hop” to clear the curbs and not wreck. The wrong-way vehicle would prevent any escape to the left (where the motor vehicle would be if it was on the correct side of the street), and you can’t hop the curb, the only other option would be to abandon the bike and accept road rash over broken bones and massive internal trauma, and hope the bike does some major damage as it goes under the motor vehicle.

Kill a cyclist, go to jail… Hit-and-Run Driver Sent to Jail “Lipe pleaded no conest to felony hit and run, and a judge ordered him to spend the next year in jail and four years on probation.” But not for very long in jail. From the limited details of the wreck in the article it appears the cyclist could not have avoided this wreck that took him into the canal. I don’t know if the cyclist drowned or was dead prior to being in the canal.

In the City of Brotherly Love there ain’t much love between the various modes of transport: drivers hate pedestrians and especially cyclists, cyclists hate pedestrians and especially drivers, and pedestrians just hate anything that can hit them hard enough to hurt including cars, cyclists, and joggers (other pedestrians). Readers Write: We don’t need your stinking traffic rules And apparently everybody hates the traffic laws…

From my examiner.com colleague in Toronto, jurisprudence reports from the Great White North. Toronto Goes To Court – Bryant and Kenk Trials Both Begin Bryant is scum, but Kenk is in a class by himself. Of course from what I know Kenk never killed anyone to obtain any of the bicycles he had, they were all stolen after the owner had left them to go do something else, much like someone stealing a parked car. Bryant killed a cyclist, that much has been determined, all that’s left is did the cyclist do anything that would warrant a response of deadly force? It is known that Darcy Sheppard had been drinking, but my back-channel report was that toxicology on Sheppard found that he was not drunk, considerably under the legal limit, and that Bryant was never tested for drugs or alcohol.

A huge WMD almost takes out a building and a cyclist nearby as a driver apparently has a seizure at the controls of a large truck. Two hurt as lorry ploughs into pub Fortunately the only injury was to the cyclist, as normally the front of the pub and the sidewalk in front are packed with people during operating hours. This is why there should be a physical exam requirement on a driver’s license, like there is for a pilot’s license. Bi-annual exams would have caught the physical issues that led to the driver having a seizure, and a psych evaluation would prevent people like TTTWLAMWAMD and Bryant from having access to the WMD that motor vehicles have become. Anyway, there was no way for the cyclist to have avoided this wreck except clairvoyance, so just look sharp out there.

And another incident involving a truck in the UK. Cyclist seriously injured after being hit by lorry And in this case they know even less than the typical UK wreck report.

Finally something (slightly) less lethal than a big truck, I hope. Cyclist from Godalming killed in collision with car $&(% no, still lethal, still nothing I can point to and say “Do this, don’t do that” and you can avoid a similar wreck.

I love the UK’s media sometimes, where they can advocate a point of view without fear of court for creating a false impression. Sign of the times: The cycle path with a painted symbol every few feet (and still someone is going the wrong way) so the photographer stands in front of the cyclist, facing away from him and when the cyclist passes in the oncoming lane, the photographer takes his picture to “prove” that cyclists can’t even follow the laws in their own protected places, with markings on the pavement every few feet (probably at every intersection with a driveway).

Another working cyclist in South Africa is hit by a truck. PIC: Cyclist pinned under truck nothing yet known about what caused the wreck, “It is thought that the bicycle delivery man had entered Mitchell Road and the driver of the truck was unable to avoid him.” Typical car-head thinking on display.

A police blotter from a Chinese newspaper reports, you have to scroll down a good bit to find the bicycle wreck. Cyclist killed in hit-and-run

A lawyer tries to explain that cyclists belong on the roads and that people in cars should respect that. Finding equilibrium

The DCist finds lots of interesting infrastructure news. Go Home Already: Making Friends Lots of interesting things in the report.

Among those interesting things was a parking enforcement vehicle parked in a bike lane. Oh Look: A Parking Enforcement Car Blocking a Bike Lane They are allowed to use the bike lane as they write tickets for vehicles parked in the bike lane, but it is still annoying to find a car in the bike lane.

And that’s all I have tonight.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Back into the fray, the Feed

Yes, so soon after doing a 2 part post yesterday/early this morning, I’m back at it again. I must be crazy. At least there weren’t as many wrecks this time.

Up first is the first of 2 wrecks in TX, this one in Waco. Minivan Strikes Bicycle On Busy Waco Street; Rider Seriously Hurt They went to press with this so soon after the wreck that the article reads like a UK wreck story with the lack of information.

Down the I-35 a bit further is this report from Austin. Cyclist injured in campus collision Again nothing on the actual wreck because of deadlines, but plenty of snark in the comments.

What appears to be another bike ninja gets hit from behind. Marshfield man seriously injured in bike-truck accident Seriously people, lights and reflectors aren’t that heavy or expensive and the greatly increase your visibility at night and low light conditions. Just remember that reflectors only work when cars are shining headlights on them.

They are having some difficulty with gas-assisted bikes in CA, as their regs are much more restrictive than other states. Officers upping enforcement on illegal gas-powered bicycles The interesting thing about the wreck reported in the article was entirely independent of the legal operation of the struck vehicle and entirely caused by the driver not watching what was on the road in front of him. As a driver went by one bicyclist, he became distracted, wondering what he had just seen. He then made a left turn and hit the other bicyclist. How is that the fault of the second cyclist? But still, follow the laws about registration and safety equipment.

Another wreck in the UK. Cyclist injured in crash

They are having real problems with construction vehicles in China with bicycles being their favorite victims. Death toll in truck accidents rises to 13 Too many wrecks to tell you about in that article, but in every wreck the truck was at fault and the cyclist died.

Infrastructure analysis from Green And Save News. The Not-So Open Road

And laws don’t mean a thing without LEO that will enforce them. A Troubling Story of SFPD Bias Against Bicycle Riders If you can’t trust the LEO that is investigating your wreck, what good are laws?

And that’s all I have today, remember no post tomorrow because of church and other obligations.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Dec. 4 Feed Pt. 2, the rest of the world

OK I’m back from my church duties and ready to finish this mess and go to bed. I have been at this off and on since 11:45 AM and it is now 2 minutes after midnight. Between baking bread and sustaining the body, and my church duties, and this blog I have been going constantly for over 13 hours now. {yawn}

I think this is supposed to be a hit-and run in Jolly Olde, but it sounds more like a nightmare. Cyclist injured in non-stop crash Yes that does remind me of one of my nightmares, the crash that never ends, bouncing off the cars and the road until I wake up, the sheets a tangle and covered in sweat. But since this is a typical UK media wreck report, aside from that bit of horror poetry there isn’t anything aside from names and places. Well there was the note that the suspect vehicle was a white van and would be missing the passenger side rear view mirror, so be on the lookout for a vehicle fitting that description.

A incident more than a wreck, someone assaulted a cyclist on a bike path. Cyclist is pushed off bike by man PC Ryan Townsend from Bromsgrove Police appealed for any witnesses or anyone with any information to contact him and said: “Fortunately the woman’s injuries were not too serious but we need to identify the male who pushed her from her bike.” So if the person described in the article is familiar, and you’re somewhere near the scene of the crime, call the PC. Just don’t call PC Macintosh, he has some serious identity issues.

Another UK bike wreck that is a bit worse than most. Cyclist critically injured in smash Yowch, a head on crash between a White Van and a cyclist. LEO are looking for witnesses, the van driver was hysterical at the scene and incoherent and of course the cyclist was not doing too well either. Again if you know anything, contact number is in the article. Do your civic duty and get the cyclist off the hook.

Several reports on the critical PR infrastructure building being done by the UK cycling community. Us Cyclists aren’t a menace, we’re freedom fighters and ‘Blinkered motorists make roads unsafe for cyclists’ also UK cyclists in more danger than foreign counterparts Keep up the pressure, people. Illegitimi non carborundum!

Sometimes they can’t even decide who is the intended target of an informational PSA. Highway Code TV ad to target cyclists says Minister… oh no it isn’t says Driver Standards Agency Get back to me when you figure that one out, lads, will you?

In Oz they can’t figure out where to put cyclists… Hidden injury toll sparks call to segregate cyclists And the most infuriating thing about it is the idiots in the comments section that blech and moan about how much of a hazard cyclists are to motor vehicles, and how they should be taxed to construct the bike lanes, and never even realize that if drivers weren’t hitting the cyclists they wouldn’t need segregated infrastructure.

On the same subject but from a different perspective, still in Oz. `Not enough bike paths’ The complaints are typical, drivers expect cyclists to ride in the paths, but the paths don’t go anywhere useful.

Infrastructure in the US is similar to the UK and Oz. Southwest Florida’s Deadly Streets Again drivers complain that cyclists don’t use the paths that don’t go anywhere useful, and cyclists are caught between the rock and the hard place.

So what do the experts (?) recommend? Helmet Use Proven Life-Saver That’s right, don’t do anything about the infrastructure or bad drivers, make people wear helmets instead.

Finally, so I don’t blow a fuse, an article about something to let you get where you need to go without getting all sweaty or driving a car. Currie’s electric beach-cruiser bicycle is priced right, goes the distance I keep telling you guys about my working on e-assist bikes for the “slow”, well here’s one that you can buy without having to tinker on it or weld brackets in or program the uController after you build your own motor and controller (I do that, but then I’m brain damaged, so I think it’s fun). I do this for fun, you can do it for transportation. And you can even get some of that nasty “e” word if you want.

And that’s it, finally.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Running late again, the Feed

Yes we’re running a bit late again. This time it’s because of trying to get shopping done, and bake some bread for family consumption, plus the creaky antique of a computer I’m using. It would be easier to post the blog if getting the articles to link to didn’t take so long. After about a half-dozen the computer starts to get bogged down and Java and Flash scripts start causing program crashes from running my poor AMD 1 GHz processor at its limit, and it just gets worse the more windows I have to keep open to be able to link the articles from. I currently have 24 windows up, one to compose this post from, 22 containing articles for links, and one that monitors my system use (not what I type or anything like that but resource use like memory and CPU). Right at the moment I’m using 90+% of my CPU resource, but I still have about a third of my memory available.

Up first because it’s the closest thing to being local for me is an update on the cyclist killed in Houston. Honor-guard ride set for late cyclist Campbell The comments were blissfully short and respectful. Still no word on if the car that hit him went through a traffic control or not.

This is the kind of wreck that just makes me sad and angry at the same time. Boy, 9, dies after being hit by pickup The driver admits, no volunteers to driving with impaired vision, why wasn’t an arrest made at the scene? The kid was following traffic rules and waited for the truck to stop before proceeding and then was run over by a bozo driving a truck raised so high he couldn’t see a legal road vehicle crossing in front of him. Why was the driver allowed to drive away from the scene? More 9-year-old killed in bike accident identified

We don’t know what caused this hit from behind wreck in Tempe AZ but I can make a pretty good guess… Tempe PD: Bicyclist seriously injured in collision with car Traffic backed up from a previous fender-bender and a cyclist in the middle because of debris, add in drivers more interested in what’s on the side of the road instead of what is in front of their car, and you get flattened cyclist. The driver in this case went through an intersection where the cyclist was already crossing without paying attention to the cyclist and broadsided the cyclist at a fair rate of knots, causing serious injury to the cyclist and totaling the car.

A teenager riding his bike to school is hit from behind by a bus. Harrisonburg Teen Injured When Hit by Bus The bus driver was charged with reckless driving for not slowing the vehicle when sun glare diminished her vision. And I soooo relieved that none of the bus passengers was injured when a 10 ton bus ran over a bike and rider that weighed less than 200 pounds.

And while the bus driver is facing jail time, a driver that ran several cyclists off the road and threatened them with a gun gets probation> Driver who targeted cyclists gets probationary sentence Some people are just real slow to learn, or maybe because he was threatening cyclists instead of “real people” the sentence was so lenient. Whatever the reason, someone needs to invite this guy for a beer and then alert his probation officer so his probation can get revoked.

In a similar vein, the sentencing of TTTWLAMWAMD has been delayed because of the swine flu. Breaking News: Christopher Thompson sentencing delayed Apparently because H1N1 was detected in the cellblock the former Dr. Thompson was unable to be interviewed by psychiatrists for his evaluation prior to sentencing, so will have to spend the holidays in the LA County Jail. From what I have been able to determine he is not in general population but in a special jail for rich people, something he won’t get when he gets transferred to regular prison. The next hearing date is 1/8/10, but i don’t know what courtroom it will be heard in, I assume the same one as it has been for the trial.

While I usually trust the Motley Fool for investment advice, I don’t extend the same deference about their take on traffic safety. Be careful on your bikes, trikes, and unicycles! The same old car-head thinking, why are cyclists on the road when there’s a perfectly good bike path in the park? Well besides the fact that some people ride to get places instead of for {shudder} exercise, there is the corollary rebuttal about why you aren’t driving on the highway instead of surface streets?

Another report on the LA cyclist injured by a hit-and-run driver. Hit and Run Driver Critically Injures NoHo Bicyclist The cyclist was listed in “critical” condition the last I heard from my back-channel informants. I hope they catch the humanoid that did this.

In Canuckistan killer drivers will face trial over the death of a cyclist during a street race. Street racing trial ordered after hearing I find it upsetting that racing on the street is a greater offense than killing someone, riding a bicycle or not. Street racing can get you life in Canada, killing a cyclist about 5 years if the reports on the former elected official who killed a cyclist in Toronto are accurate.

In more jurisprudence news from above the 49^th parallel, a man is fined $2000 CDN for killing a cyclist because the driver wasn’t watching where he was going. Road death brings $2,000 fine “Death always complicates sentencing in any case,” said provincial court Judge Peter Ayotte, who ruled a jail term was not called for. OK, the driver left-hooked a cyclist, resulting in death, so exactly what does call for a jail sentence? and the judge might want to re-read his law books, except for central city areas cyclists are allowed to ride on sidewalks and use crosswalks.

Also from the Great White North is this report on sidewalk cycling. Bikes don’t belong on sidewalks I agree, bicycles don’t belong on sidewalks except to park. The only people that think otherwise are drivers who don’t want bicycles in the street.

I have to go someplace so this post has a “to be continued” addendum to come later.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Road insanity continues unabated, the Feed

The Feed this morning was humongous, with updates from previous reports, and new reports, and a metric buttload of UK reports. Tuesday and Wednesday have been very busy for bicycle wrecks in the UK. We also have reports on studies that have just been released in the UK, and a whole host of other things from North America.

Up first because it just floored me, a pedestrian waylays a cyclist in PA. Bicyclist threatened with bat in Carlisle Apparently the pedestrian was upset the cyclist wasn’t there to buy drugs but was just passing through his “turf”. I have no idea how to avoid a situation like this.

Another in the epidemic of hit-and-run in LA CA. Cyclist critically injured in NoHo hit-and-run The actions of the driver are just inexcusable. The cyclist was crossing legally, other traffic had stopped to allow the cyclist to complete his crossing, and this bozo comes along at between 30 and 40 MPH and never even slows down, running right into the cyclist who was plainly visible crossing from the left. It wasn’t like the driver couldn’t see the cyclist if he looked, if he looked he just didn’t care. He knew he wasn’t going to get hurt.

Another LA hit-and-run, in the state of LA. Cyclist Killed in Hit and Run This is another one that the cyclist didn’t have much chance to avoid, according to police the vehicle left the road to hit the cyclist then proceeded on. The cyclist was knocked into a pole near the road causing massive internal injury leading to death. Police have no clues as to the make and model of the weapon vehicle.

Another UK road incident involving a cyclist. Cyclist injured in collision Other than the cyclist was 22 YO and the driver was 73, that pretty much recaps the entire report except for the geography.

A cyclist is slightly injured, I think. Cyclist injured in Botley Road I hope she recovers. From the description she most likely will.

Another report on the cyclist being injured by a silver Mercedes that was noted here yesterday. Cyclist is injured in hit-and-run A 3 door Mercedes? Must be one that never made it to the US. It figures, they did tend to keep all the really good cars in Europe back then. Anyway it will be scrap soon as the driver will have to either destroy it or face charges.

Another report on the wreck on A16 reported here yesterday. Cyclist killed in A16 crash and a report on the victim Tulips stalwart killed in Spalding A16 crash Apparently the nickname for the local soccer team is the Tulips, but from the report we know the cyclist had no lights or reflectors on the bike, which may have had an effect on the wreck.

More on that debate over the danger posed by cyclists to the community at large. Cyclists aren’t a menace: Spectator debate and Cyclists”not a menace” according to Spectator debate

And a profound reason why cyclists are not the menace. English cyclists 20 times more at risk than motorists I question the methodology of the study a little, but not the results. Given the exposure of a cyclist compared to the amount of protection afforded by a car it’s quite logical that what would be pranged sheet metal would be bruises, scrapes, and broken bones for a cyclist, even if cyclists had an accident rate many times less than motor vehicles they would still get injured more often.

Infrastructure woes in Montreal. Who owns the road in Montreal? This article feels familiar, I may have made a link to it at another web site. But even if it is new the problems reported are familiar, when cyclists are given segregated infrastructure in North America pedestrians begin to take it over, and then complain about how rude the cyclists are to them.

When NPR notices you have a problem, it’s not a small problem. ‘Road Rage’ Case Highlights Cyclist Vs. Driver Tension Some good advice, but some seriously car-head thinking going on at NPR. Also don’t ride like a jerk in a video game, GTA is make believe, you don’t get any extra lives for riding your bike, and riding like you are in GTA just annoys people that then take it out on the next cyclist they see.

Lawrence KS decides to put up a Ghost Bike. City of Lawrence supports ghost bike memorial to encourage cycling safety I’m afraid they still don’t get the idea of a Ghost Bike though. The idea is you make people aware that bicycles use that strip of road by marking the place where a cyclist was hit, you don’t just put one up any old place to remember fallen cyclists.

And another ride for wounded vets. Injured Vets Riding into Jacksonville I know the healing effect a bike, or other human powered vehicle, can have on the physical and mental health of an injured person, from first-hand experience. Go Us!

And that’s the whole of the mess today.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Bicycle zombies take over the news, people still getting killed by cars, the Feed

Yes, “zombies” are all the rage now, and have spread from the UK to the US. In the meantime cars are still killing people at a rate of nearly 110 people a day in the US, and nobody is saying anything about that (except me and a few other bicycle fanatics). I feel a rant coming on, and I don’t think it is going to be pretty.

Up first is another report on the waste of human skin that had 20 beers before going out and driving into 2 cyclists, killing one. Driver who downed 20 beers, killed cyclist gets 25-40 years in prison This is the guy that in a previously linked report the victim’s mother gave him a Bible and said he was going to heaven. I hope she’s wrong about that, because if there was ever a guy that deserved to suffer, this is the guy. Interesting that the previous reports said the disgusting piece of filth got 45 years determinate sentence, but this report has him as serving 25-40. I wonder who’s right.

In other court news the driver that dragged a cyclist 860 feet under her car while the man was screaming and beating on the car (that part was new information), is facing undisclosed criminal charges in the case. Driver of car that dragged bicyclist in Natick to face criminal charge The complaint was filed Nov. 25 in Framingham District Court against Lorraine Peterson, 61, of 359 Berlin Road, though police redacted the specific charge. Apparently public records are not public for certain people.

More on the wreck that killed the driver while only slightly injuring the cyclist he hit. Vehicle crashes kill 4, injure 5 Not a good day to have been driving a car, or riding a bicycle for that matter. If I’m reading the report right the vehicle hit the cyclist on the north side of the street and then crossed the road to hit a tree on the south side of the street. That ain’t normal. Hitting a cyclist isn’t what I would call “normal” but the circumstances of the wreck speak to me of a person who was dieing before they hit the cyclist, and the tree just finished the job. This sounds like a stroke or heart attack in progress when he left the road the first time and grazed the cyclist and then tried to stay on the road and pulled left on the wheel, then died. I know that’s an awful lot to pull from a tiny report…

Another hit-and-run in LA CA. Cyclist struck in West Hollywood hit-and-run Not much to go on in this report, but it appears to be a typical right hook wreck, good that the cyclist survived.

In Scotland a cyclist has a run in with a bus and survives. Cyclist in serious condition after accident with bus and from the Beeb Cyclist injured in bus accident It’s good to know that you won’t get hurt driving a bus into a woman riding a bicycle [/sarcasm]. For those who live on my side of the pond, it appears the woman was trying to turn across traffic when she got hit. They drive on the wrong side of the roads in Scotland so you have to turn right to cross traffic, not left.

Someone driving a silver Mercedes is going to have a rough time of it when he gets caught. Cyclist seriously injured in hit-and-run As per usual in UK wreck reports I can’t say anything about how to avoid a similar wreck, other then to always be alert, this cyclist being able to say make and color may very well result in the miscreant being brought to justice.

And what seems obvious as the nose on your face is debated in the UK. Cyclists are not a menace, Spectator debate decides In the end the argument was mass times velocity, would you rather get hit by 200 pounds going 20 MPH, or 4000 pounds going 35 and up? In the overall scheme of things it was like getting hit in a rugby game versus getting hit by an artillery shell. Every once in a while someone will die in a rugby game, but not often, but get hit by a car and you stand a good chance of dying or being permanently injured.

A cyclist is injured in a left hook wreck in Oz. Cyclist injured after collision with car I noticed the cyclist got a few licks in on the car as he was hit, tearing off the passenger side mirror and crumpling the hood a bit and only sustaining minor injuries in the process. As they say “Good on ya!” for returning fire in the face of the enemy

Still trying to figure out if the guy that hit a cyclist in South Africa was just stupid or culpable. Cops hunt for evidence in cyclist death Hit from behind in the cycle lane, and there’s a question of culpability? Did these guys get their training from AZ LEO?

And the “bicycle zombies” meme makes its way to these shores. ‘iPod zombies’ blamed for UK road deaths Note that in this article from the people that actually make the iPod, using one on any vehicle that one is in control of is not a good idea. Bicycles because you might get hit by a car you didn’t hear, cars because they distract you from your environment, and you already have way too many distractions while driving a car anyway.

An opinion about the ruckus over the recent pedestrian deaths by bicycle in the City of Brotherly Love. Road Rage at Philly Newspapers Why are Ronnie and Stu whipping up fear when cars and trucks pose a bigger threat? Because they don’t like bicycles in their streets, and making then out to be a danger to pedestrians arouses fears that they can use to get them legislated away from their city…

On the same subject but from a different direction. Registering bicycles will not prevent any accidents If there was just some way we could easily identify cars so that when the hit someone and drive off the owner could be brought to justice… and pedestrians they just wander around like they own the place, we need some way of identifying pedestrians too…

I hope NY has a better time of it than TX when they pass their 3 foot passing law. NYS Assemblymember to Introduce Safe Passage Law for Cyclists This is desperately needed legal infrastructure for cyclists and pedestrians.

And SF finally gets to build bicycle infrastructure again. Eyes On the Street: SF Gets Its First New Bike Lane in Three Years The paint was barely dry before people started using the new bike lane, who had been trying to ride vehicularly but because of driver attitudes were not having a good go of it.

And that’s all I have today, but there will be a rant later, I still haven’t figured out how I’m going to phrase it yet.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Sturgeon’s Law applies to the population in general, too, and the Feed

I know that the pronouncement in the headline will go right over the heads of many of my readers, but I don’t care. For those of you interested you can look up Theodore Sturgeon in the Wikipedia. If you’re really interested you can do a follow-up on Kilgore Trout and Kurt Vonnegut. That literary journey of discovery will place you square in the middle of Wonderland, enjoy.

Up first because it’s closest is a wreck in Houston. Cyclist, 68, struck by car in fatal NW Harris crash I noticed that many papers have disabled their comments sections when reporting a bicycle wreck in their online editions. That saves a lot of agita for me. This wreck seems very well defined, the car ignored a traffic control and hit the cyclist in the intersection, the driver is expected to be charged after the grand jury hears the case. I fully expect this case will not languish because of the close relationship between the decedent and a member of the 4^th estate.

In ID a driver is jailed for hitting a cyclist while driving drunk, before he sobered up. Caldwell man charged after car hits, injures cyclist The driver was jailed on charges of aggravated driving under the influence until his case can be heard and bound over for bail/bond. Why can’t TX do that? Why can’t AZ do that?

Another trial over injury to a cyclist that took even longer than TTTWLAMWAMD to come to trial. It’s been a long road to trial in cyclist’s death This was a homicide, the other case was a simple case of assault with a deadly weapon, and yet in spite of the evidence in this case it still has taken more than a year to come to trial. The wait must have been terrible for the family of the victim.

In UT a cyclist asks that drivers hang up and drive. Bicyclist’s instruction Don’t read the comments section, while there is some sentience in there the babbling of the semi-sentient will drive you insane.

In Enn Zed they are cranking up their warm months campaign to alert drivers that there are other people on the roads besides people driving cars. Share the road this Summer Equally, cyclists are very vulnerable and the road can be a scary place if you don’t have the protective shell of a car body. Amen Brutha’! Also, as cyclists we need to obey traffic controls, even when they don’t make a lot of sense for bicycles, and work on legislators to get traffic rules that make sense for cyclists and drivers, even if that will require making different rules for drivers and cyclists.

Another “Share the roads” event, in Oz this time. Riders pedal message to share the road Again the comments section ruins a perfectly good article.

Even in South Africa they are having issues with drivers that don’t want to give up an inch of their precious pavement to other road users. Appeal over Tour training as cyclist killed You have to do a couple of page downs to get to the actual article as there is some kind of issue with the layout in FF or Opera. I don’t have IE because I have a Linux system so I can’t tell you how it looks on that browser. The fact that cycling clubs are leasing race tracks to train because the roads are too dangerous should be a wake up call to the politicians that something needs to be done, ASAP if not sooner.

A motorcycle/bicycle wreck in Nepal kills the motorcycle rider and severely injures his passenger and the cyclist. One killed in Saptari This is one of the few wreck modes where the cyclist is on even terms with a motor vehicle operator in terms of relative injury. In the long run that makes motorcycle operators our allies in the battle to make roads safer.

And an article about something very close to the author of this blog, brain injury. Changed in a moment: Inside the lives of those living with brain injury Yes I have a brain injury, no you can’t tell from my blog. I have a permanent limp, that I try very hard to disguise and mostly succeed in doing so. I have aphasia when I speak, so sometimes my speech is slow and halting. I have anger issues and poor anger control; if you make me mad I will let you know about it in no uncertain terms if I can get the words to come out.

And that’s all I have for today, it’s such a nice day out I think I’ll go for a ride with Gigi.

Billed @$.02, Opus