Summer has landed, and the Feed

The post is getting a late start today because I was Doing Things today. First I mowed the lawn again, took a break and answered some e-mail while I cooled off enough to stop sweating for a few minutes, then showered and dressed to go run errands on Blue. I went to the local Post Office where they told me they couldn’t track my package that has been AWOL since Friday of last week (I would call that LOST), then picked up my new shoe from getting the lift installed at the shoe repair. After I got caught in a massive traffic jam caused by some kind of emergency near the house (complete with fleets of TV news helicopters hovering overhead) that all I could see of was several police vehicles and a fire engine, I managed to roll back into Casa de El Poeta just before 1830. And the headline? I was riding in 95 degree weather with a heat index of just under 100°F today, with the heat index in the high 90s while I was mowing.

What was breaking news when I got it, a cyclist was struck by a motor vehicle in PA. Car strikes bicyclist in Carlisle this morning At this point the only thing known is the cyclist was hit in an intersection and was centerpunched by the driver. So intersection protocols to avoid, but I don’t know if infrastructure would have prevented this wreck. I need more information to make that assessment.

More on a wreck in KS from last month. Cyclist’s death should be a lesson for all drivers: don’t kill people with cars One would think that this lesson would be obvious…

In CA a car runs a stop sign and hits a cyclist that had the right of way. Crime Blotter: Bike and Car Collide, Minor Injuries Only I can’t believe that LEO said this wasn’t the cyclist rolling the stop… Intersection wreck, use the protocols to avoid, but since the driver ignored the existing infrastructure changing the infrastructure would not have improved matters any.

More on a fatal CA wreck. Cyclist Killed in Pleasanton “Bright, Loving Person” This was the cyclist that was hit from behind while riding in single file in the bike lane. This was the driver that claimed the cyclists were riding side-by-side all over the road in spite of the evidence provided by the skid marks.

Another SWSS wreck in CA. Cyclist injured in collision on Alpine Road This is an area that has killed at least 2 other cyclists in the recent past, and was scheduled for a serious upgrade in infrastructure this summer…

Still in CA a cycling hazard that is very hard to avoid. Bicyclist shot at, but not injured What is ironic in this wreck is the driver was already in control over a weapon that could have killed the cyclist with no danger of prosecution had he just claimed the cyclist “swerved” in front of him.

A IN cyclist is severely injured in a hit-from-behind wreck. Huntington Co. Bicyclist Airlifted To Fort Wayne Hospital After Hit By Car There is some speculation that it might have been deliberate on the part of the driver, in the comments section.

Another hit-and-run in NYC. Police Search For Driver In Alleged Brooklyn Hit-And-Run Involving Cyclist I fail to see what is “alleged” about the hit-and-run. Since the direction of travel was not given for the cyclist I can’t say if this was a hook or a cross, but intersection protocols either way, and infrastructure to prevent. And make hit-and-run equal in severity to attempted murder if the victim survives, murder if the victim dies. And the hit-and-run was a fact not an allegation.

Another hit-and-run, in CO this time. Family Of Cyclist Struck By Car Makes Public Plea LEO made the statement that the driver could not have helped but know he had hit someone in this wreck, the picture of the bike showed brackets for a headlight and a tail light that were empty, and one additional tail light and reflectors. I would say the cyclist had his bases covered prior to this wreck. Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid and get ALL the infrastructure right to prevent.

A young cyclist is injured in ND. 5-year old West Fargo boy injured when bike struck by car Intersection wreck, but the age of the cyclist suggests that infrastructure would not have been much help. Going with the age of the victim I would say the wreck was in a residential area that would have a 12.5 MPH speed limit under the Dutch model of infrastructure. This might have prevented the wreck or mitigated the damage.

From the Great White North, a cyclist wearing rain gear in the rain is hit from behind. Cyclist in fatal collision identified Update I think the investigation is relying too much on the testimony of the operator of the weapon vehicle on this one, we know from the CO wreck in a paragraph above this one that things like headlights and tail lights tend to not survive violent wrecks. Anyway, hit-from-behind protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

More on an old wreck in the Great White North. Cyclist killed in collision I can’t see the back of the bike but I don’t see a headlight bracket in the crime scene pictures of the bike, so I can’t say anything about the reported lack of a tail light.

A UK driver is exonerated by claiming against the physical evidence that he was on the right (left) side of the road. Driver cleared after cyclist killed in crash Apparently juries in the UK will believe a driver’s word over the physical evidence to the contrary. I just hope the octogenarian doesn’t run one of them over.

Another link about the report from Enn Zed that HiViz clothing is well-nigh useless in preventing wrecks. High-vis clothing makes little difference for cyclist safety – expert As I posted earlier I wear HiViz mostly as a defensive move for the lawsuit to show I was doing everything I could to avoid a wreck (the full-face helmet is because I don’t want to have to get my face sewn back on a second time. Once was more than enough this lifetime, thank you.

Some good news about bike infrastructure in TX. On the Lege: HB 200 Signed Into Law This law frees up the cleared right of way under power lines for use for bike trails, giving large wide swaths of land that can’t be used for any other purpose than bike trails and power lines. The power companies can use the paved trails to maintain the power lines as part of the deal. This means the trails have to be strong enough to support heavy trucks, which means the trails will probably outlast the power lines.

And those are all the links that gave me fits today. Programming note I will be working Thursday morning and part of the afternoon, so the post will be late again.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

What is the deal with this %*$(*&^ package, and the Feed

No box of books today. It has been 6 days since the box was delivered to the post office. This has ceased to be even remotely amusing. The books have now spent twice as much time in the local USPS as they spent getting from Lincoln NE to Dallas. I am very unhappy about this to put it mildly. This was money I had to work hard for to get these books, and the books were my reward to myself for doing this work, well half of it anyway. The rest of the money went to household expenses to ease some of the financial burden.

An OH man is killed in a hit-and-run. Cyclist killed in hit and run accident in Dayton It appears that this was an intersection wreck, use the protocols to avoid/survive, and get the infrastructure right to prevent. As part of that infrastructure make hit-and-run a capital crime with sentences that may include the death penalty or life in prison should the run part of the hit-and-run be proven to have caused the death, in cases where the failure to get the victim to medical care in a timely manner directly contributed to the death. Hitting may have been outside of your control, but leaving them to die is entirely within your control.

Update on a NYC hit-and-run. Singapore cyclist in US hit-and-run crash ‘recovering well’ Nothing on the wreck which was covered here last week (the driver was going the wrong way, nothing the cyclist could have done to avoid or mitigate), but I’m glad the cyclist appears to be on the road to recovery.

Update on another NY wreck. Police ID Greece bicyclist hurt on Lake Shore Blvd. Still claiming that the wreck did not involve any other vehicles…

Again a cyclist is blamed more for a wreck than any of the drivers ever get. Pedestrian seriously injured in bike collision in downtown San Francisco I’m so tired of reading stories like this. I know my readers don’t ride on sidewalks that are not marked as MUP, so I don’t know what can be done to prevent wrecks like this on my part. What really angers me though is the resources expended on this wreck will far exceed those used to investigate a motor vehicle wreck with either a pedestrian or cyclist.

More on a CA wreck from yesterday. Pleasanton: Police identify Dublin bicyclist killed in weekend crash and Coroner IDs Bicyclist Killed Riding With Her Husband In Pleasanton Still the fault of the driver that hit the two cyclists from behind.

Another hit-and-run in CA. Bicyclist in hit-and-run accident near Riverbank was from Modesto Hit-from-behind, use the protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

More about CA bicycle wrecks in summary instead of singly. Bike-vehicle crashes mounting Most of the wrecks (73%) are the fault of the motor vehicle operator. Interesting to know.

And on the subject of bike wrecks in plural, we get the stats from Boston. What the Boston Cyclist Safety Report actually found Count on bike-hating news media to get it wrong.

A cyclist in SD gets buzzed, and not in the pleasurable way. Bike Rider Hurt on Highway 1804 When Struck by Side Mirror of Passing Vehicle The cyclist was riding according to the law while the weapon vehicle was passing too close. Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent. A passing law with promotion should be a big part of that infrastructure.

Part of the problem is demonstrated in CA as a drunk driver is arrested after being clocked at 101 MPH. CHP: Repeat DUI suspect clocked going 101 mph on Highway 101 in Santa Rosa The driver’s license had been suspended 10 times in the last 4 years for a variety of offenses INCLUDING DUI. This waste of human skin should not have been anywhere near the controls of the WMDs we call motor vehicles.

A cyclist is hit in the Great White North. Cyclist killed in Milton Monday evening and Police: Cyclist killed in Milton crash was homeless this one too Cyclist killed in collision more Cyclist dies after struck by vehicle in Milton Hit-from-behind wreck but as they have not immediately blamed the cyclist it may be that the cyclist was legally lighted and reflectored. The fact the they took the weapon vehicle in custody makes me think that there may have been a lighting problem with it also. Anyway, hit-from-behind protocols to avoid and if the infrastructure was done right these two would have never been in wrecking range of each other…

From the UK comes a anti-DUI PSA that has a lot of impact. ‘Pub Loo Shocker,’ British Anti-Drunk Driving PSA, Is So Terrifying It Might Just Save Lives (VIDEO)

From Enn Zed comes news that drivers don’t see HiViz any better than just regular clothes, so making it mandatory by law would have a negligible effect on drivers hitting cyclists. High-vis vests won’t cut cyclist death toll: expert I don’t wear ANSI Safety Lime because I think it makes driers notice me more, but because wearing it is an additional defense in the lawsuit my survivors will file in the event of my death.

From NYC is an infrastructure comment. What’s All the Fuss About Bikes? What indeed.

Last link? Urban Bicycling Is For Lazy People Oh, hells yeah, I’m lazy.

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

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Lots of stuff and still waiting on that package that should have been here last week, and the Feed

Things are looking very busy today, there are tons of reports in the Feed folder in my e-mail, and that box of books I bought that should have been last week is still MIA as I compose this sentence but the mail hasn’t run yet. Yep the box that should have been here Thursday is still MIA on Monday. I am very protective about my printed reading materials, especially when the total cost was over $90… The UPS center is about 8 miles from Casa de El Poeta in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell and they handed off to the USPS Wednesday morning of last week. I’ll let you figure out how long that has taken to travel that 8 or so miles assuming it gets here today. EDIT TO ADD It did not make it today meaning it has taken more than 5 days for a package to get from one adjoining town to the other.

More on the cyclist hit by a hit-and-run driver fleeing cops in NYC. Cyclist Seriously Injured After Hit-And-Run Driver Struck Him While Fleeing From Cops and Hit & Run Driver Took Out A Cyclist & Light Pole But Remembered To Pick Up the Dry Cleaning This brings the story up to date as to why the driver was being an idiot (besides the fact that he’s an idiot). There was no way to avoid the wreck for the cyclist, and since the idiot in control of the WMD damaged a building I don’t think anything short of a massive barrier would have prevented the cyclist’s injuries.

A cyclist in NJ is injured by debris from someone else’s stupid wreck. 2 Brick men killed when car strikes tree, police say OK the original report hd the cyclist hit by the front end of the car after it separated from the rest of the car, but now the report is the cyclist was hit first, then the tree that caused the front end of the car to separate from the rest of the car. Still no way to avoid this and no way for infrastructure to prevent the wreck. The driver pulled a Forest Gump (stupid is as stupid does), and the cyclist suffered for it.

An OH cyclist apparently ran a red light. Cyclist seriously hurt in crash The description of the wreck implies either a very low-traffic intersection or a cyclist crossing on a stale green. Or the driver could be lying. Anyway intersection protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent. As this was physically near a large institute of higher learning there should have been bike infrastructure there already.

Another case where murder charges are being brought against a driver that hit a cyclist, this time in CA. Coroner identifies cyclist slain in fight with driver The cause of the fight is still not known, but the cyclist was trying to leave when the driver hit him from behind, then got out and kicked the cyclist (a report I can’t link to said the driver kicked the cyclist in the head). The driver is now charged with 1^st degree murder (again from the report I can’t link to). As for avoiding, this was a murder, a human cyclist could not have avoided the wreck.

Most of the story is behind a paywall, but there is enough I can read to know that this was an infrastructure-caused wreck. Naperville man injured when bicycle flips over The front end slid out in loose gravel, that is one of the definitions of a wreck caused by bad infrastructure. I’m going to assume the gravel was road aggregate from the road the cyclist was riding on at the time of the wreck which is basically invisible until you hit it at which time it’s already too late to avoid the wreck.

Another CA wreck that has an appearance of a deliberate act as 2 cyclists are hit. Police: Woman bicyclist struck and killed by teen driver in Pleasanton and Cyclist killed by car in Pleasanton identified Hit-from-behind wreck, use the protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent. I suggest that as part of that infrastructure the standards for driver’s licenses be raised considerably as the current standard does not weed out drivers that can’t avoid hitting another vehicle in front of them in the road.

Another CA wreck. Cyclist Seriously Hurt in Novato Crash Not much here to chew on, intersection wreck so intersection protocols may apply. I don’t know if there was anything that could have been done to the infrastructure that would have prevented the wreck because of the lack of information.

Still in CA we get a SWSS. Oakley: Bicyclist killed in traffic collision another link Bicyclist Dies After Being Hit By Truck In Elk Grove Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid remembering that trailers cut to the inside of a curve behind the towing vehicle. Get the infrastructure right to prevent.

I think anti-bike bias pervades LEO in the entire state of NY, not just the NYPD. Bicyclist Seriously Injured On Lakeshore Blvd The cyclist was severely injured while riding along a major road and they don’t think a motor vehicle was involved? Are they really that stupid? Buzz job, use the hit-from-behind protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent. And word the wording worders that can’t recognize a hit-and-run unless there are car parts strewn about the crime scene even with a severely injured victim.

Justice of a sort in the UK. Lorry driver jailed for death of cyclist on A18 The driver had a dirty windshield that he could barely see through at the tie of the wreck. Also this is extremely rare that a driver gets any jail time for killing a cyclist. Most of the time the offense is treated like a littering charge because the driver failed to remove the cyclist’s body from the side of the road.

A hit-and-run in South Africa has a better ending than it looked like it was going to have. Bakkie smashes into cyclists in Cape Town Translation, a bakkie is what they call a pickup truck in South Africa. The sole uninjured cyclist managed to get someone to chase down the weapon vehicle and get the plate which led to an arrest. Hit-from-behind wreck, but as it appears at this time to have been a deliberate act I don’t know that a human cyclist could avoid it, get the infrastructure right to prevent. As a hint the weapon vehicle should be shredded and recycled first… in any wreck with a vulnerable road user.

A wreck in Oz. Cyclist Maria Defino who died after being struck by a car in Pagewood had a ‘heart of gold’ and Cyclist killed by car in Sydney’s south-east also Cyclist killed in Sydney accident even Cyclist killed in Sydney road accident still more Cyclist killed in Pagewood, in Sydney’s south not done yet Woman killed as cycling couple hit in Sydney road accident last link Woman dies after car hits cyclists Apparently a hit-from-behind wreck at a choke point caused by a parked vehicle. Protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent. There was some concern in the early links that the driver may have been impaired by infirmities of old age.

The legal infrastructure for the state of KS. Bicycle Rules Of The Road Unless you can connect the ID of a comment to a person involved in a wreck with a bicycle I suggest not actually reading any of the comments. More Of pedals and petrol Much better article. No comments left.

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

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Gotta do a rush job on this, and the Feed

I only have about 2-3 hours to get this done today as we need to get our tickets for Mrs. the Poet’s annual summer trip away from the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. Since I now have a portable computing device (my Chromebook) all I need to keep the blog going is WiFi access, which I can get most of the places I will be going on the trip. Yes, that means I will be blogging from the road.

I mowed most of the yard yesterday, and my allergies are in overdrive today. So actually seeing the screen while I type is something of a hit-or-miss proposition. One blink all I see is a white haze, the next everything is clear, then a couple blinks after that I have patchy vision.

Up first a gruesome testament to why adequate signage is needed for bicycle infrastructure. Bicyclist Struck, Killed Trying To Cross I-80 In Berkeley more Cyclist Killed on I-80 in Berkeley a Massachusetts Man Also Cyclist Killed Trying To Cross Freeway In Berkeley even more Cyclist killed trying to cross Bay Area freeway The cyclist killed was visiting S.F. from MA and did not know the local bike infrastructure and was killed between two bicycle crossings of the freeway. Lack of local knowledge and a lack of wayfinding caused this cyclist to attempt a deadly freeway crossing.

A respected Windy City bike advocate is killed. Bobby Cann, Chicago Cyclist, Killed By Motorist As Biking Community Mourns and Critical Mass ride to pay tribute to cyclist tonight also Bicyclist killed in Old Town was ambassador for biking more Ex-Times intern writer killed in bicycle crash Some people advocate for cycling by ranting and raving (waves hand) while others just quietly move things along. Mr. Cann was in the latter category from my understanding. Of the wreck, it appears to have been a pinball collision which are only avoided by pure luck on the cyclist’s part. The only infrastructure that can prevent cyclist death or injury in such a collision is barrier segregated.

A WI cyclist is killed by a heartless driver. Bicyclist killed in hit-and-run crash near Stanley Hit-from-behind wreck that disabled the weapon vehicle which the driver abandoned and called for a ride instead of calling LEO and an ambulance. The weapon vehicle was going so fast the bicycle was “yard saled” with bits and pieces strewn the length of the crime scene. IMHO this was not an avoidable wreck, and only barrier-segregated infrastructure could prevent it. [sarcasm]If only there was something that would keep heartless and brainless drivers like this one off the roads, some kind of permit to use a motor vehicle that required knowledge and testing, and verification that the person was psychologically fit to use such a dangerous tool as transportation[/sarcasm]

A cyclist is killed in KS and the driver is arrested and charged. Arrest made in connection with bicycle fatality Nothing specific on the mode of the wreck, but I think it’s safe to assume with the arrest that the cyclist was not at fault…

Another dead cyclist in the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike 9 years running. Bicyclist, 18, killed in Pinellas Park crash I looked at the scene in Google Street view and it was an uncontrolled intersection across 5 lanes of traffic (counting the turn lane). The cyclist could have paused at the turn lane before crossing the last 2 lanes but chose not to and was killed. I have a similar intersection that I have to negotiate every day just 0.4 miles from my house, and I always use the 2 step method of crossing. Intersection protocols to avoid, get the infrastructure right to prevent including removing highways from residential areas.

A UT cyclist was either riding a fixie, or a BMX bike set up for riding half-pipe. 14-year-old on bike without brakes injured in car accident Given the age of the cyclist and the location I would say the more likely scenario would be BMX bike.

I’m just utterly gobsmacked. Police: Drunk driver speeds for 5 miles on W&OD Trail, hits bicyclist No way for a human cyclist to avoid a wreck like this, and it took place on segregated bicycle infrastructure. The driver needs to spend a long time in prison and be permanently banned from driving after release with being caught driving being equal to illegal possession of a weapon. Either that or just chain the driver to the steering wheel as they recycle the car, I don’t care.

A cyclist survives a red-light-running hit-and-run driver in the Great White North. 13-year-old Riding his Bike Injured in Hit-and-Run Accident There was nothing any human cyclist could have done to avoid this wreck. Infrastructure also would have been of limited effectiveness in preventing a similar wreck as the infrastructure in place should have prevented it had the driver been sane. I hope that when they catch the driver he “falls down a flight of stairs” a few times, then gets beat up by inmates. Then has the “book” thrown at him, heck the entire library.

More on the serial cyclist killer’s ludicrously lenient sentence being appealed. ‘Unduly lenient’ sentence on driver who killed cyclist is to be reviewed that one’s paywalled but has a good picture Appeal against sentence for cyclists’ killer

A deadly wreck in Oz. Cyclist killed in road collision in The Basin and Cyclist’s death brings weekend toll to four also Four die on Vic roads in 24 hours Other that the wreck was in a roundabout making intersection protocols the way to avoid the wreck there isn’t enough information about the wreck to make an informed statement, so “infrastructure!” to prevent.

Still in Oz is an assault with a WMD. Cyclist injured in hit-run after argument with driver The driver had an argument with the cyclists and then hooked one and drove off. This is an assault in my book, intersection protocols to avoid, and lock up crazy drivers who use their vehicles as weapons to prevent.

Infrastructure! news from Oz. Injured cyclist saved from legal cycle

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

Billed @€0.02, Opus

A marathon trip to get a new coffeemaker, and the Feed

Well maybe not a marathon, but more than a half-marathon. Because the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell are designed to an automobile-centric transportation mode things are not very close together. I had to make a trip downtown to the bank to get the money, and then ride to the store on the fringes of town to get a coffeemaker, and then back to Casa de El Poeta. That’s about 16.5 miles, plus or minus. Throw in winds that were over 15 MPH steady with gusts of 25 and you have an exhausting trip on a bike that is aero-limited to about 15 MPH in still air on a level road. With the tailwind it was another story as I held a steady cruise of 18-19 MPH on the bike route that kinda sorta went in the direction of the store on the outskirts of town. I kept that up for miles.

The other thing that I found out while I was out is that the local shoe repair place can put the lift on my short-side shoe for $36 plus the cost of the shoe that I have to buy (my shoes are disintegrating as I walk they are so old). So a trip to the shoe store Saturday, then a trip to the shoe repair guy on Monday and I’ll be walking better by Friday.

A deadly crash in Upstate NY. 13-year-old killed on bike in Sylvan Beach, man arrested for hit-and-run DWI Hit-from-behind wreck, I don’t know that the protocols would have been effective against a drunk driver. Infrastructure might have prevented the wreck by physically separating homicidal drunks with WMDs away from fragile human bodies. The thing I really liked about the article was that someone of authority made the statement that if the kid was wearing a helmet was moot when he got hit by 6000 pounds of speeding motor vehicle.

An update on the cyclist killed by the garbage truck in S.F. CA. Garbage Truck Accident Causes San Francisco Bicycle Death Note that this narrative has the cyclist getting right-hooked rather than running into the truck.

A cyclist is hit from behind in WA. Cyclist seriously injured in crash with car LEO are still trying to figure out how a driver could hit another vehicle in the lane in front of him… Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent. As part of that infrastructure make hitting a vulnerable user from behind an automatic loss of vehicle if the victim survives, and a permanent loss of license on top of any other penalty if the victim dies.

A cyclist is injured after hitting a pothole in the Great White North. CYCLIST INJURED Umm, yeah, having both hands on the handlebars when you hit a pothole is not just a good idea, it could save your life.

The laughable sentence given a serial cyclist killer in the UK is being actively appealed. Driver who killed cyclist Audrey Fyfe to have sentence reviewed and Cyclist killer Gary McCourt: Crown to appeal against ‘lenient’ sentence also Driver who killed Edinburgh cyclist faces appeal last link Crown to appeal ‘unduly lenient’ sentence of driver who killed cyclist The original sentence is 2 1/2 months of community service and a 5 year driving ban.

Infrastructure! from NV. Bicycle riders, safety advocates trumpet awareness of new ‘3-foot law’ And I’m sorry, but a law passed in 2011 is not “new” in 2013.

And I’m just at a loss for words about this article. Cop Talk: Bike safety starts with helmet Well, no, it doesn’t. It begins with keeping motor vehicles from hitting people on bicycles.

Last link, DIY active transportation infrastructure in CA. Calif. man suspected of painting crosswalk Sure, arrest the guy that does your job for you and makes you look bad.

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

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Running way late again after visiting the Lab Rat Keeper, and the Feed

Well it was a long day today. I rose at 0700 instead of the usual 0900 (because I’m normally up until 0200 watching the Feed come in from Oz) and had a cup of tea instead of my usual half-gallon of coffee because I still haven’t figured out how to break into the disabled coffeemaker and repair it, mostly because it has those stupid tamper-resistant screws holding it together and I can’t locate the right driver to remove them. So I have been going through caffeine withdrawal since Monday, with a massive headache that started on Tuesday and was still going strong this morning. So going through withdrawal and short 2 hours sleep, and I’m apparently the only person in the world that quitting caffeine causes an increase in resting heart rate and blood pressure. Not by much, but enough to disturb my doctor.

On another medical front, I now have an explanation for my muscle aches that never seem to get better while new ones pop up all the time. I have low testosterone. This also explains why my nails have suddenly gotten softer, my hair stopped growing and other things that have recently failed to function to design specs. Basically all the things I have noticed going wrong were the result of that one hormone level being out of whack. Whodathunkit? Now the question is “why?” What caused my testosterone levels to drop suddenly and so far?

Update on that kid getting hit in TN. @White=[C] Boy killed on bike was Jacob Billings This outlet is saying the mode of wreck is not known, and that LEO will release what happened later. So, now I’m confuzzled about if the kid crossed the centerline or not. Still no matter what really happened, this remains a difficult wreck to avoid if the cyclist was forced to cross the centerline or if the cyclist was riding on the correct side of the road for his direction of travel.

A MA cyclist gets hit. Newton native dies in Amherst bicycle accident The mode of wreck wasn’t elaborated upon, but since it involves a turning truck it could only be an intersection wreck, either a left cross or a right hook. From what I’m gathering from the article the driver is getting all the blame for this wreck and there was nothing the cyclist was doing wrong, so I’m hesitant about advising intersection protocols to avoid, as it seems the wreck was not one a mere human cyclist could have avoided. Getting the infrastructure right to prevent I can get 100% behind, on the other hand.

An IL cyclist is seriously injured by a driver that may have been impaired by marijuana. Joliet 8-year-old seriously injured riding bike, driver faces pot charges Th story is behind a paywall, so that’s all I know about it.

A MI cyclist shows how not to do it when merging into the turn lane. Bicyclist injured after hitting car Hit-from-behind wreck, the protocols would definitely have made the cyclist able to avoid this wreck, and getting the infrastructure right would have prevented it.

A strange wreck in the Great White North. Cyclist injured by transport truck on Huron Church You have to admit, just from the headline that is one mighty strange wreck. The actual wreck is much more mundane than that as a SWCT (Single Witness Crossing Truck) runs a red light with a cyclist in the intersection and “brushes” the cyclist with the back tires. Getting “brushed” by 20+ tons of truck makes this a lucky-to-survive wreck. Intersection protocols would not have helped in this wreck, and unless it was completely grade separated standard north american bicycle infrastructure would not have worked either. Notice the LEO attempting to absolve the red-light-running driver of blame for the hit-and-run by claiming the driver may not have known he hit the cyclist. I’m sorry but “not knowing” you hit someone is not an excuse, but another charge to be filed. I guess that would be “driving while stupid”, which is a felony… or it would be if I was king.

Also from Canickistan drivers are mowing down vulnerable users so fast they don’t even get separate articles anymore. Cyclist, pedestrian seriously injured in separate collisions along 118th Avenue and Cyclist and pedestrian injured in two separate collisions near Rexall Place Intersection wreck, at this point they haven’t decided which one was running the red and are not blaming the cyclist immediately. So anyway, intersection wreck, use intersection protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Another article on the deadly doofus who got a gentle caress on the wrist instead of the severe legal beatdown he deserved. 5,000 want driver who killed two cyclists re-sentenced My electronic signature is on there also, but not counted among the 5K because I’m not a subject of the crown, making my sig “unofficial”.

Another strange wreck, this time in Oz. Boys injured after Prospect motorised bike accident The wreck was caused by the passenger riding on the handlebars sticking his foot in the spokes of the front wheel, something that could have happened with or without the motor. The only safe way to take a passenger is to put them on the back on a seat made for that purpose (like an Xtracycle) or ride them on the pegs standing up, assuming you have grinding pegs bolted to the back of the bike. Or buy a tandem bike with the extra seat and pedals and stop taking freeloaders…

What can only be called an act of automotive terrorism, a driver in Enn Zed drives into a bicycle safety class for kids. Driver runs into cycle safety class The kid was waiting at a stop sign for crossing traffic to clear when he was hit from behind by a driver that LEO are waiting to charge until the toxicology tests are done. If they don’t find any intoxicants I suggest attempted murder and terrorism charges, because there is no way a sober driver could have missed seeing the HiViz on the adults leading the class, so if he was sober he must have done it on purpose. Whaddaya know, I finally found a situation that a drunk driver would get charged less severely than a sober one.

Last link is about an 11 YO telling the truth about cars. 11-Year-Old Says, “When You Drive, The Earth Smokes” Children are adversely effected by cars even when they don’t get hit by one…

And those are all the links that gave me fits this evening.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Got rained on again last night, and the Feed

It’s a good thing I’m a grumpy OLD bike blogger and not a sweet young thing like Mrs. the Poet, because I would have melted in the rain last night. I went to drumming with the forecast calling or the line of T-storms to remain well to the west coming no further east than the western suburbs of Ft. Worth about 40 miles away. We had showers on and off most of the night. I asked someone with a smart phone and access to weather radar to help me plot a departure time, and I left with a small shower that was just south of Seagoville and wending slowly north. That shower was still working it’s way through Mesquite when a T-storm popped up over Garland caused by the instability disturbed by the shower. Anyway short story is that on my 3.6 mile return trip I was hit by heavy rains starting about a mile or so from the house, and I got home drenched. It’s a good thing I’m (mostly) waterproof.

Up first because it was the first link in the Feed, a cyclist was hit by a school bus in CA. Bicyclist Injured In Crash With School Bus In San Jose OK it was only technically a bus because it was being used to transport school children otherwise it would be called a Maxi-Van. Still hurts to get hit by one, and LEO are sitting on the details of this story. Later links School Bus Strikes, Injures Elderly Cyclist and School Bus Seriously Injures Elderly Bicyclist in Saratoga

Another wreck in a GA town I used to live in. Bicyclist killed on Peach Orchard Road early Friday Hit from behind so the protocols apply including lights and reflectors to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Update on the child cyclist killed in AR. Truck hits, kills child riding bike The driver was medically impaired by diabetes and should not have been driving, and has been charged because of that. I’m not happy that he killed, I am happy that he’s not going to get away with it without prosecution.

A cyclist is killed in NC and LEO are sitting on the details. Elderly bicyclist struck and killed in Leland Nothing about the mode or exact location. Just a wreck near an intersection, with the operator of the weapon vehicle not injured.

Update on a wreck in IN (I love that pun). Police arrest driver in crash that killed Lafayette cyclist Nothing new about the wreck, but the slime that killed the cyclist will be staying as a “guest of the state” for a while. Now this is new Death of bicyclist after being struck by SUV highlights concerns about courtesy, safety

An update on the wreck that killed Darcy Allen Sheppard. Father of Cyclist Killed in Confrontation with Michael Bryant Calls for Review For those with short memories, Darcy was struck from behind at a stop light and knocked down which understandably caused him to be “annoyed” and he went to the driver’s side of the car to “discuss” the incident (translation: Darcy was royally pissed off and went to rip the driver a new one), whereupon the driver (Michael Bryant) proceeded to wipe him off the side of the car with street furniture including the mailbox that killed Sheppard. The failure to prosecute Bryant has been a scandal in some circles.

Closure and a rare custodial sentence in the UK for a cyclist’s killer. Driver who killed cyclist jailed for four years The fact that his driving ban starts while he’s in prison means the public is not as protected from him as we could be (not that I have anything to worry about from him here in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell). More Driver jailed over hit and run that killed teenage cyclist

A bit of educational infrastructure in the UK. Driving schools announce ‘cyclist awareness’ plans Drivers that actually know what the laws really are for cycling instead of making up laws in their heads that cyclists then “break” because they are not the real actual laws but are sometimes the opposite of the real laws, that would be good.

Last link, how to buy e-assist for your bike (or a complete e-assist bike) for under $1K US. Cheap Electric Bikes Guide (~$1,000 and Less) A good quality older bike can be converted to e-assist and then used as a car substitute for about US$1K with premium components that will last for a long time and have good warranty coverage if something goes wrong.

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

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Trying to figure it out, and the Feed

The Feed is still wonky in that what few actual bicycle reports I get are mostly from the UK, and the rest are not actually about bicycles but almost everything else, including a link to an article about women’s monthly cycles. I was getting too little a few months ago, now I’m getting too much, but I’m still not getting bicycles. Well, that’s why I put a human being in the loop to filter out the non-pertinent items.

Up first is a CA wreck that authorities are calling a single vehicle wreck. Cyclist Injured in Ralston Ave. Crash Given the evidence if there is a second vehicle involved it would be a Jerry Brown wreck, a car passing so close that it causes a cyclist to lose control without actually touching the cyclist. If the second vehicle managed to get that close without the cyclist knowing it was there (electric car or cyclist not exercising good situational awareness) then the startle reaction can cause a wreck all on its own. The other reasonable explanation is something on the road knocked the front tire out from under the cyclist, another good reason to exercise good situational awareness.

Also from CA a BMW makes a U-turn and cuts off a cyclist. Bicyclist injured after crashing into car Of course the person writing the article doesn’t subscribe to that hypothesis. Any way, about the only way to avoid a wreck like this is to use heightened situational awareness so that you are aware of the idiot turning in front of you and have time to react. Infrastructure that prevents idiots making U-turns from interfering with cyclists would be the only way to prevent this.

From NJ a sidewalk cyclist narrowly escapes serious injury or death. Bicycle rider escapes injury in Red Bank after brush with truck Truck driver is backing out blind over the sidewalk, sidewalk rider can’t see the truck. Truck driver leaves scene without leaving contact information. Every driveway is an intersection, use intersection protocols to avoid. Since this appears to be in a residential area the only infrastructure change to make would be making hitting a cyclist or pedestrian a crime, but hit-and-run is already a crime so I don’t know what making hitting a cyclist a crime would have done to prevent this wreck.

From West Canuckistan comes their annual warning that people will soon be changing from cars and buses to bicycles. Warming weather means more cyclists and a renewed focus on safety The sad part is people don’t notice that there are fewer cars on the roads, just more bicycles and they hate bicycles.

More about the idiot in the UK who hit a cyclist and then bragged about it on Twitter. Emma Way Arrested For Hit-And-Run After She Brags About It On Twitter Yep, stupidity can be painful, usually when stupid people are in cars around cyclists it’s painful for the cyclist, but this time the pain was shared. And with any luck the sharing can be more painful for the driver.

Also from the UK is a story about a wreck caused by the infrastructure. Injured cyclist’s warning over road pothole danger As I posted in the first paragraph road defects can cause wrecks which heightens the need to be totally aware of your surroundings.

A South African hit-and-run is solved. Hit-and-run driver held for cyclist’s death The cyclists were hit in an area of the road that cars were not supposed to be on, then the car left the scene. Not something a cyclist can prepare for except or that old standby situational awareness and hit-from-behind protocols.

A late RoS link. Local Cyclists Silently Commemorate A LIfe Lost on Rockland Roads

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

Billed @€0.02, Opus

A very late severe weather season, and what happened to my Feed?

I can not recall a severe weather season that got as late a stat as this one. Here it is almost June and we are just now getting those severe thunderstorms and tornadoes that would be almost finished by now if not long gone. Weather patterns for this state have been bolluxed for several years and people are just now starting to notice by going over the recent records that we have been breaking year after year. We had hottest year, earliest recorded 100°F day, most 100°F days in a year and in a row, latest frost, latest low below 40°F, all in the last 3 years. I’m not going to fall into the fallacy of weather vs climate, but something is wrong. You don’t get so many records broken in so short a time without something being wrong. And that’s all I have to say about the subject.

On the subject of my Feed, well it’s full of motorcycles and motorcycle wrecks. Either there aren’t that many bicycle wrecks or the keywords I used to craft the search are being used differently by the people writing the news now, and terms that were once exclusively used for bicycle wrecks are getting used for any kind of wreck not involving a car or pedestrian. I mean seriously what do ATV wrecks have to do with bicycles? But I get at least one a week, sometimes more than one a day, right in my Feed.

First up is another link about the stupid driver that committed hit-and-run and then bragged about it on Twitter. Girl Brags About A Hit And Run On Twitter, Justice Is Swiftly Delivered Can I say that this is the link that REALLY earns the “Stupid drivers” tag for my blog? Because, stupid driver. Seriously stupid driver, as in “How do you remember to breathe?” stupid driver. And did I mention this driver was stupid? because she is. More “I knocked a cyclist off his bike. I have right of way, he doesn’t even pay road tax”

A single bike wreck in CT. Bicyclist Injured In New Canaan Accident I don’t actually “like” single bike wrecks, but as they are almost always non-fatal I like them a heckuva lot more than wrecks involving motor vehicles.

An ID cyclist looks to get some justice in a hit-and-run. Caldwell man charged in suspected hit-and-run The location of the wreck indicates that intersection protocols may have helped avoid the wreck, infrastructure may have prevented it, but some way to keep unlicensed driver from the controls of a rolling WMD would have definitely prevented the wreck.

A cyclist wreck in the Great White North has been solved. SIU clears Windsor police in case of injured cyclist Whodathunkit that hitting car mirrors with your hand until they break could cause hand and shoulder injury. Or that you could get hurt falling from your bike in a drunken heap…

A wreck in South Africa results in a criminal investigation. Police open case after cyclist killed by bus Hit-from-behind wreck, protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent. In this case the infrastructure includes criminal charges against the driver for failing to pass safely.

Last link is to an article about why has the word “bicycle” become a dirty word for conservatives? 7 Reasons Conservatives Should Embrace Bikes I’m still trying to figure out why “bicycle” became a political word.

And those are all the links that gave me fits today, from only one posting to my Feed.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Narrowly avoiding being drenched, and the Feed

I’m running late today because I’m back to the gig visiting the widow woman and letting her cry on my shoulder and fix me breakfast. I was out of that gig for a while because they were adjusting her anti-anxiety meds to control side effects and they went too low and she got all “I hate the world and everybody in it!” for a month and stopped seeing me. Now her meds have been adjusted back up and she’s back to liking the world again and needing to talk to someone about how she feels and all, so I’m back to getting a weird breakfast once a week. Anyway, the avoiding being drenched part of the headline alludes to the bands of thunderstorms we had pass through the area just as I got home. When I got the mail it was just spitting rain, but by the time I got in the house it was pouring buckets. No tornadoes, just some hurricane level gusts and elsewhere they had some hail but no chunky style precipitation here. The temperature dropped about 10 degrees when the storm blew through because of the cold upper altitude air pulled down by the rain and the sudden rise in the humidity chilling things down also. And I just got a news item that says Senators from the east coast are getting ready to vote against disaster aid to OK because both of OK Senators voting against disaster aid for the people ruined by Sandy. I think OK just got run over by a Karma Ghia.

A NM cyclist’s death appears to have been in vain. Woman who killed cyclist in court again She drove off the road and killed a cyclist on an adjacent bike path and got the maximum sentence of… 90 days. Now she’s caught driving drunk again. Lifetime ban from driving (and I don’t understand why this didn’t happen for the fatal wreck) added to her sentence for repeat DUI. More Woman who killed cyclist now in court for DWI

More on the cyclist killed in MA over the weekend. Cyclist Killed Sunday Was MIT Scientist Nothing about the wreck. Lots about the victim. RIP. Another link Visiting MIT scientist killed while riding bike

Still in MA a child riding a bicycle is run over by a dump truck. Police: Child riding bicycle with mother dies in Westfield accident This link had nothing on the mode. 7-year-old boy killed in Mass. road accident also Memorial grows for boy killed on bike and Westfield child killed in accident with dump truck identified as Michael Ryan, 7 even Westfield boy killed in traffic accident identified OK a day later and LEO are still not reporting how this kid got hit beyond “hit by the front of the truck” and ending up under the rear wheels.

A WI cyclist is killed with LEO also sitting on the report. Girl struck, killed on bicycle in New Berlin is identified Nothing about the mode or anything beyond identifying the victim and the age of the driver. You would think this was a UK media outlet…

A young CA cyclist is killed riding to school. Teenage bike rider killed in San Jose traffic accident I hate it when media uses the term “accident” instead of “wreck”. More San Jose: Silver Creek High sophomore killed in bicycle crash remembered as classroom leader At this point LEO are not saying anything, but the driver says he “thinks” he had the green when he hit the cyclist in a crosswalk.

A fatal wreck in DC. Cyclist Killed in U Street Collision With Car Last Thursday The report said the cyclist was making a turn and that the light was green for the driver at the time of the wreck, what the phase was when the cyclist entered the intersection is unknown. Intersection wreck implies that intersection protocols might have helped avoid the wreck. Infrastructure would have prevented the wreck had the bicycle been separated from the motor vehicle traffic in both time and space.

From the UK a stupid driver gets caught after bragging about her wreck. Woman Brags About Hitting Cyclist, Discovers Police Also Use Twitter The mode of wreck is highly unusual in that the driver was on the wrong side of the road. Not much that a human cyclist can do about drivers being on the wrong side of the road, but getting the infrastructure right would keep the driver away from the cyclists. More Driver ‘admits’ knocking down cyclist on Twitter and Twitter hit-and-run boast shows dangers of ‘road tax’ entitlement

Last link is a “Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot?” moment. Cyclist Killed Duckling

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

Billed @€0.02, Opus