Strange referral, and the Feed

I had a couple of strange referrals today. For some reason Facebook has a click on their home page that directs people to my blog. I’m not on Facebook so I have not a clue why there would be something for people to click on that directs them here. Facebook users, could you post a comment and help me out here?

Up first is a wreck where a cyclist crossing the road was hit by a car. BRIEF: Cyclist killed in crash with car in Blaine and Bike Rider Killed In Blaine While Crossing Street And that is pretty much all I know about it at this point. Nothing on if there was a signal light, who had which signal if there was a light, stop signs, nothing.

And after what must qualify as one of the slowest lab analysis in human history, charges have been filed against the Boise teenager that left crossed a cyclist in the bike lane. Officials promise justice for cyclist Kevin Pavlis They promise justice, but because the killer was a minor we will never know about it even extending to the name of the killer…

And the man that claimed to not see a 6 foot tall driver in an orange bunny costume and her brightly lit pedicab gets a trip to jail. Man convicted in orange rabbit pedicab hit-and-run Apparently hitting someone while digging for your cell phone is OK but hit-and-run is still illegal. From this and previous reports on the wreck there wasn’t anything the pedicab operator could have done to avoid the wreck since the driver wasn’t watching and didn’t slow down.

A pair of reports on the wreck near Toronto reported on here ealier this week. Memorial in Cambridge for cyclist killed And UPDATE – Cyclist killed I fail to see where sidewalks would have made any difference in this wreck, but bad infrastructure is bad infrastructure even if it’s not our (bicyclist) infrastructure.

Apparently somebody has decided that it’s OK to have huge blind spots on big trucks because it would cost too much to fix…Cyclist Death Ruled “Accidental” Why is not being able to see an “accident” and not a defective vehicle?

A motorcycle/bicycle wreck in India puts the motorcycle rider in jail. Biker held for Shivranjini mishap A little confused as to who hit whom, but the guy on the bicycle came out the worst for it.

A loudmouth in Oz changes her tune after making a massively untrue statement on Australian national TV earlier this week. Going berko over a bisycho Yes, she did say that cyclists had no legal place on the roads earlier this week, which is contrary to the laws of every civilized nation which includes Australia, and now she’s back-pedaling so hard if she was actually riding a bicycle the tire would be smoking.

SC cyclists try to remind drivers that cars are not the only thing on the road. Cyclists urge motorists to share the road “People aren’t watching,” Connelly said. “We’re not getting any respect out there. We do have a right to the road. We’re considered a part of traffic, and drivers don’t seem to understand that.” He said it better than I could.

Same song, different verse in CA. Bikes and cars: Can we share the road? Between 1998 and 2008, for example, bike commuting in Marin County increased 66% as bicycle crashes declined 34%. The best practice is to get as many bikes on the roads as possible.

Still in LA is an article on cyclist safety that is highly car-head. Bicyclists should stay on the defensive to stay safe Watch out for cars, but don’t give up the road to them.

And that’s it for tonight, have a spooooky Halloweeeeen [evil chuckle].

Billed @$.02, Opus

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Do people lose their minds when they turn the ignition key? And the Feed

After filtering the Feed today I have come to the conclusion that everyone that drives a car is Goofy. Goofy in ‘Motor Mania’ (1950) Yep, it has been one of “those” Feeds. I advise just ignoring the comments section of every article, unless you already have brain damage and then you’re immune, like me. 😛

Up first is not directly bicycle related but more “Why can’t they see me?” related as a psychology experiment involving a clown riding a unicycle asks people talking on their cellphones if they saw anything unusual. Perceptions: What Clown? I Was Talking With My Mom This is why cell phones should be banned, because the people on the other end of the conversation can’t change their behavior when you are doing something that requires concentration and expect you to be hanging on their every word in utter rapture. Tip of the chapeau to Mad Dog Media for alerting me to this article.

Another report on the multiple DUI killer getting the maximum sentence possible, plus another 20 years probation. Woman Gets 20 Years In Prison For DUI Death Of Bicyclist What didn’t hit me at first on this case was a woman was really smacked down hard in this case, which is a rarity. Most killer female drivers get even less of a slap on the wrist than their Y-chromosomed counterparts, but this one got the maximum prison sentence plus the maximum probation, plus a lifetime ban on driving. She must have been a real horse’s patootie to the judge either during the trial or during sentencing.

Nothing else about recent wrecks in the US this time, but a cyclist hit in the bike lane in Montreal ain’t happy. Cyclist with no helmet, lights injured in Rosemont I’m really sure the lack of helmet contributed to the driver driving into him in the bike lane! Lights might have helped, but to be honest, really? It was a well-lighted street, would a bike light less than one of those miniature stadium lights really have stood out enough from the clutter for the driver to see the guy riding his bicycle? Does that mean the driver would have hit a pedestrian on the sidewalk if one had been there to be hit? I refer you back to the video at the beginning of the post.

And what appears to be a hit from behind wreck near Toronto. Cyclist killed in Cambridge identified You would think this was a UK paper instead of a Canadian one.

They finally charged the driver that ran over 4 cyclists in a pack in Enn Zed. Woman charged over cycle crash on Tamaki Drive Charges are one thing, getting to trial and punishment are another.

And front channel confirms what I was told on back channel about the driver of the Toyota that killed a doctor out cycling was involved in another hit-and-run against a different cyclist. Hit-and-run driver ‘targeting cyclists’ The reach of the Witch on a Bicycle is just amazing, but the fact that the same vehicle has been used to hit-and-run at least 2 cyclists in separate wrecks is just disgusting.

Whee! more infrastructure going in in Huntsville. Bicycle safety rolls to forefront in aftermath of Huntsville cyclist’s death I love the picture they put up of the RoS from this Spring, with the recumbent tricycle followed by the penny-farthing. But cute pictures aside, cyclists are over-represented in fatal wrecks in Huntsville. Something needs to be done, and if the drivers won’t share then they will have to be kept out of parts of the street so that others can get to where they have to go without getting killed.

Bike lanes in Philly get enthusiastic cheers from cyclists, mixed reviews from drivers. Changing Skyline: Pedaling in a lane that’s their own I love the preliminary finding that removing a lane from cars didn’t reduce car throughput because of poor driving before the bike lane was installed. I again refer you to the video at the top of this posting.

And another look at the findings that bike wrecks are getting more severe. Phys Ed: Do More Bicyclists Lead to More Injuries? This is the other half of the equation, as more cyclists use the streets and roads the types of wreck changes from the bicycle equivalent of the fender-bender at low speed, to impacts that involve major trauma to many parts of the body that require significant intervention to repair enough to make the cyclist mobile again. Fewer people are getting hurt but the ones getting hurt are getting hurt much more severely. The answer? Well, so far the best practice has been to make the driver of the more dangerous vehicle responsible for wrecks unless he can prove that the more vulnerable driver was breaking the laws and that that led directly to the wreck. It’s not enough that the vulnerable user was at fault, the vulnerable user has to be at fault and breaking the law. Places that have done this have reported significant decreases in both the frequency and the severity of wrecks involving vulnerable users.

And finally a school principal rides a bike to school every day regardless of weather, to set a good example. Principal pedals 700 miles to and from school Actually 700 miles since the day after Labor Day in the US is nothing to sneeze at. The principal is the skinny guy with the big legs wearing the obnoxiously colored jacket. 😛

And that’s all I got today. I have a Samhain ritual to attend at my church tonight, so no late updates. FYI we are having the Dumb Feast to honor the departed and our ancestors, and I spent hours trying to match place settings from the yard sale castoffs we have as flatware at my church. The only complete setting with all the forks and spoons was set aside for the Seat For The Dead, but everybody else has a knife, fork, and spoon with at least two of the three matching, most with all three. I also am baking a special loaf of bread for the occasion.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Same stink, similar “stuff”, different day, the Feed

We had another stinky Feed today, stunk up by the thing that walks like a man with a medical degree. Well he had some help, but truth be told he did most of the stinking up all by himself.

Shoving that putrid pile out of the way as quickly as possible. Doctor denies trying to injure cyclists And VeloNews’ reporter had this take LA road-rage defendant says he stopped to try to take a picture I wonder what the penalty for perjury is in CA? Right up until the trial he was saying the cyclists deserved it, but now that he’s facing the music he denies he was trying to hurt anybody. So that makes him a two-faced thing that walks like a man with a medical degree. His title grows while his reputation shrinks. Again when he is found guilty of assault with a deadly weapon (or whatever the charges are against him) I hope that he is forbidden from ever owning or driving a car or other motor vehicle again for the rest of his miserable life.

Still in the state of CA. Bicyclist Injured in Collision at Market and Ellis Streets this Morning Actually that would be yesterday because of the time lag involved. Nothing much known about this one, maybe a car, probably a car, but maybe not. If there was a car involved the driver stayed at the scene because nobody notified the hit-and-run investigators about the wreck.

Apparently the only way to get charged with a crime when you hit a cyclist is to be on something at the time of the wreck that can be found with a blood test. East Tennessee man charged with vehicular homicide in bicyclist’s death and from MS Man charged in death of bicyclist from Netherlands The MS report is another on the cyclotourist killed on the NTP bike route this spring. But seriously, is the death of a cyclist only meaningful if the killer was drunk or on drugs? Or does the feeling that the killer could be the cop or the prosecuting attorney because everybody drives like that make only deaths with chemical impairment prosecutable? I don’t know the answer, I’m just glad that impaired killers are prosecuted. I would like to have all killers prosecuted, but at the moment that’s just not possible. Until we get prosecutors that can identify with the cyclists over their killers we are up the unsanitary tributary without visible means of locomotion.

Another cyclist is hit in the most dangerous state in the US to ride a bicycle. Bicyclist hospitalized after struck by SUV in Fort Pierce Another one of those driverless vehicles hits a cyclist and nobody says anything? And this one had 4 people sitting in it while it drove around all by itself. 😉

Another right hook crash that is getting blamed on the cyclist… Cyclist killed by city water vehicle “Based on witness statements, the bike pulled into the path of the vehicle,” Guitron said. Yeah, and I bet all the witnesses were either on the truck that killed the cyclist, or employees of the city which would have been liable for the death… TANJ!

And in spite of the relative dangers for cycling under the influence the fine is the same as DUI. Cycling under the influence? In Sacramento, it can cost you $570 Around 17,000 people died last year because of drunk drivers, but less than a dozen were killed by all cyclists, drunk or sober. But to be fair they have to stop the drunk cyclists just like they do the drunk drivers.

A memorial was held for the cyclist killed in NC. Memorial Service Held Tonight For Killed Cyclist I don’t see why they don’t just arrest the owner of the vehicle that hit him, which they found this week. Had a gun been used to kill him the registered owner of the gun would have been responsible for the death unless he could prove that the gun had been in someone else’s possession at the time of the killing, why not the same standard for death by WMD with nice seats and A/C?

From Jolly Olde, a cyclist wins the door prise and wants to share the bounty with the driver of the vehicle, who drove off without leaving contact information. Appeal after cyclist injured in accident Yep it’s pretty low to injure a cyclist by flinging a door in his path and then leaving the scene.

Someone else knows the right thing to do, still in the UK here. Oaklands College student praised for helping injured cyclist Yep kudos from the Witch on a Bicycle blog for doing the right thing. Keep up the good work.

A cyclist in Oz is hurt in a wreck. Cyclist seriously injured after highway collision Apparently the driver didn’t see the cyclist until just before impact, from what I have been able to determine. Now whether this was because of the path of the cyclist, lighting conditions, or driver inattentiveness is unknown as the cyclist’s path prior to the impact with the car is not known at this time (not known publicly). So, continue to ride like drivers are blind and stupid, because mostly they are.

They finally charged the driver that ran into a pack of cyclists after she ran a stop sign in Enn Zed. Charge after allegedly driving into cyclists I hate to tell them but somebody ran into those cyclists and whoever did it was driving the car she was in. Unless it was another one of those DARPA cars that was joyriding around with someone in the passenger seat, that kinda makes the only person that was in the car that hit the cyclists the one that was responsible for the wreck. Alleged doesn’t enter into it.

And an INFRASTRUCTURE article, from TX. Avid proponents of walkability want to ‘get there from here’ I thought it was a Federal law, and a TX law that all new or rebuilt roads in TX were supposed to be walkable and bikeable. I have a PDF dated 2002 that states as much, that under a law that went into effect in 2001 all TX roads and highways that get state funds must have walking and cycling facilities, except those roads that are prohibited for walkers and cyclists. Silly me actually expecting government to obey their own laws…

And that’s it for today. I have a lot on my plate this time of year so the next few days my be a little spotty on the new posts.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Not much in the Feed was bicycle related

The filtering process on the Feed went pretty quickly after ignoring all the reports about who was riding which motorcycle next season after someone else was injured in an off-track wreck. It seems like about half the SuperBike field is laid up from off-track or testing wrecks which require extended recuperation periods. I’m angry about the off-track wrecks, as every one reported was either a left cross or a right hook, something we riding bicycles can relate to. Testing I’m not angry about as crashing during testing is just one of the hazards of the sport, but I do still feel sympathy for the injured riders, all of them. Aaaand, back to the meat grinder.

Up first is VeloNews’ report on the trial of the thing that walks like a man with a medical degree. Dr. Thompson takes the stand in his trial on assault charges. I think my description of the defendant pretty much covers my opinion of this trial. Again let me state I wish that the punishment include a permanent ban on his ever owning or driving a motor vehicle again ever in his lifetime, and after. When he dies he can walk to the graveyard.

Much of wasn’t motorcycle related was either from Jolly Olde, or lifestyle, like this report from KS. Scout finds new life for old bikes I’m thorouoghly in favor of reusing or recycling old bikes. One of my favorites is to recycle a BMX bike into an adult SWB recumbent by welding a boom to the head tube and changing the rear to a multispeed hub. My favorite trick is to leave the cranks in place and cut off the crank arms and use the chainwheel as an idler. It’s very cool and also ensures a stable chainline to the rear wheel. One of these days I’ll post on my stable of Trashbikes, recycled recumbents.

A ride similar to the Ride of Silence to honor riders who gave all just to ride a bike. Ride pays tribute to those injured or killed in bicycling accidents Why should riding a bicycle have to be a death defying act of heroism? Why can’t it just be transportation?

Another not-so-jolly report from Jolly Olde. Appeal after cyclist threatened in Leicester park Yes, someone pulled a knife on a cyclist after a minor bump. I would ask what is this world coming too, except I already know. When impeding a motor vehicle is considered an act worthy of killing the one not in the motor vehicle (which was not the case in this report) then I start looking for the handcart we are in. There must be some way for the sane amongst us to find a way out of this situation. Getting killed or injured just because you are in a different mode of transportation than someone else is beyond stupid, beyond insanity, just beyond everything that makes us a civilized society.

Someone throws a brick at a cyclist. Cyclist injured by flying object See the above paragraph for directions in how to find the handcart and how to get out of it.

Finally, a wreck, in the UK. Cyclist injured after collision with van Typical UK wreck report, long on meaningless details but dreadfully short on useful information.

From Oz comes a mixed infrastructure/lifestyle report. Cars and bikes ‘in harmony’ I fail to see how moving bicycles completely away from cars and placing them on a low speed path that instead of cars is clogged with oblivious pedestrians and pets is creating “harmony” with cars. It brings to mind a certain Brit named Nigel after giving away Czechoslovakia to Hitler. Something about “peace in our time” that was less than 3 years from the invasion of Poland.

And that’s everything bicycle in the Feed. More later.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Computer problems, and the Feed

My computer’s power supply is in the process of dying, it stays running if you get it to run, but getting it cranked up is a hit or miss affair. After reading some of the articles in the Feed I almost wish it had stayed busted.

Up first because it’s closest is a kid killed in Edinburg TX. Edinburg teen killed riding bike late at night It took until just before I posted this link for someone to notice that the bike riders were riding the wrong way when they got hit. I know my readers don’t do that, except when they can’t get through otherwise or if they have to backtrack out of a one-way section of road, but how often does something like that happen? Don’t be a salmon.

BikingInLA has a man in the courtroom in the trial of the thing that walks like a man with a medical degree. Evil on trial: UPDATE — Christopher Thompson takes the stand I hope the prosecuting attorney gives him a new one on the stand. Maybe two new ones. 😛

More reports on the man arrested for the death of a Dutch cycle tourist. Man indicted in death of cyclist from Netherlands and Man charged in cyclist’s death Great, stoned on opiates and driving a car. Not any better than drunk, just different impairing substances. Bring on the bicycle chain floggers.

They found the truck in the NC hit-and-run crime, driver to follow. Troopers seize damaged SUV and Editorial: A careless and shameless act And the lawyer’s take on the wreck Hit and Run Driver Kills Bicycle Rider in Guilford County, North Carolina Again I advise against reading the comments unless you already have brain damage and can’t get hurt any worse by stupid people.

Another reason not to run red lights, drivers think they mean “go like hell” instead of “proceed when clear”. Decatur Central Student Killed in Bicycle/Semi Accident But I really can’t blame the truck driver in this wreck, it appears that the truck was already moving well before the cyclist ran the red and ran into the truck. Again, don’t run red lights, unless you think death or serious injury are fun.

And they just don’t take us witches seriously at the ME’s office. Bicyclist died of traumatic head injury, M.E. rules Nobody saw the truck I guess.

Great, the law firm that employed that pedestrian killed by a hit-and-run cyclist is out for blood. Caesar Rivise law firm wants justice in death of beloved longtime employee Why couldn’t they get this worked up over someone getting killed riding a bicycle? And don’t hit the pedestrians, they are on the same side as us cyclists, the bad guys drive cars.

From Jolly Olde, an MP gets a burr up his butt and the police catch a bad case of stupids too. Police launch crackdown on cyclists Just because a cyclist can see where they are going on a well-lit street, does not necessarily mean that they are fully visible to motorists approaching with their headlights on. Yep, car drivers are blind as well as stupid. Just because you’re in the headlights doesn’t mean they will see you. They will run into you but they will claim to never have seen you. That’s why I always use the Honkin’ Huge Taillight^tm when I ride at night. Look like a motor vehicle and avoid that “run down” feeling.

Boris makes more noise about making London safer for cyclists. Newton unsure about London Olympics The article about making London safe is down the column from the headline article.

The rest of the post tonight comes from Oz, AKA the Land Down Undah.

And speaking of having a case of the stupids, some cyclists have near fatal cases. Cyclists not given free ride by police Aside from the helmet laws most traffic laws make sense to follow if only because it makes your actions more predictable so that drivers can better avoid hitting you. That’s the main reason why I say to not run red lights, as it makes where you will be on the road unpredictable and drivers don’t expect to see a bicycle crossing their path when they have the green light, as an example.

It appears that Australian cars are even more deadly than US cars as shown by the graph that goes with this article. Cut speed to let our cyclists live Their near-zero survivor speed is 60 km/hr, but the “knee” speed is about the same as US statistics, roughly 30 MPH (50 km/hr) with an initial rise at 20 MPH (30 km/hr). I didn’t even bother to try reading the nearly 500 comments that went with the article at the time I made this post.

And letter to the editor about a proposal to make bicycles have license plates. Identifying cyclists will not cure road rage apparently this was precipitated by a bus driver nearly hitting a cyclist, who then was able to catch the bus in traffic, get on the bus and beat the tar out of the bur driver for nearly killing the cyclist. This is not something I would recommend but it is something I understand. and I bet this was the fastest extended sprint on the part of the cyclist in a long time if not ever.

And that’s all I have today, maybe I can do another one tomorrow, if the power supply holds up and doesn’t die.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Back at work on my “Other job”

The software glitches over at examiner.com have been solved so that I can again submit my deathless prose for remuneration. Check it out at Change of focus, let’s keep you alive on your bicycle The subject should be familiar to most of you here, it’s the protocols I tell you about nearly every day on how to not get hit, or at least how not to get hit so bad you get killed. I’ll be doing a regular report of the North American wrecks also, Monday through Friday if I get any North American wrecks to report that day. It will be pretty much a cut’n’paste from here but with some language cleaned up, and also more attribution for my fellow writers over at examiner.com. Since I will be getting paid over there I will be using a different closing then my usual here. No “Billed @$.02, Opus” for those guys (I don’t get paid that much there), instead it will be “Have fun riding your bike”.

Also I’m in negotiations for a monthly column with a startup car magazine. I can hear jaws dropping all over the country at that news, but really I love cars, it’s the drivers I have problems with. I may never actually write the column, we’re still way far apart on the word count and rate at the moment, as well as for access to their technical department. but if I get that gig it still won’t reduce your favorite blogger’s output, except I might cut back on weekends. I do want to get some time to actually ride my own bike(s) other than to the store and church, and I do have responsibilities at church that will need to be taken care of.

And that’s all I have right now.

Billed @$.02, Opus

This just in: Newt Gingrich and the Witch on a Bicycle agree on something!

Yes, it’s true! Newt and I are in agreement that the Saratoga Springs NY ban on children riding their bike to school is a load.

Gingrich: Bike power

Whodathunkit? Usually Newt and I are about as close on the issues as Reagan and Gorbachev.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Mass insanity, death, destruction, and a really cool bike, the Feed

See what happens when I take a Sunday off? People lose their minds. Actually people have lost their minds a long time ago, I just document the process when it comes to bicycles. I also found a really cool concept bike from Lexus (Toyota).

Up first because it affected a lot of people over on BikeJournal.com is multiple reports on a hit-and-run in NC. Motorist sought in death of cyclist and Summerfield Cyclist Killed in Hit-and-Run The U turn after the wreck indicates to me that this was pre-meditated, the driver was going to kill one of those annoying cyclists and teach them all a lesson. I don’t know that it would help much but you could use the hit-from-behind protocol to keep you from ending up the same way. The problem with the H-F-B protocol is it was designed to protect you from drivers that aren’t paying attention to where they are going, not from drivers that are trying to kill you.

Not much information at this point, but there was a bicycle fatality in AL. Wrecks claim at least three lives in Huntsville Saturday Other than the fact it was a hit-and-run I don’t know anything about this wreck.

More violence against cyclists in Boise. Police looking for two hit-and-run drivers Both riders appear to have been riding legally when hit, aside from this again I can’t say anything about the wrecks except I’m running low on rabid badgers and I still haven’t found a way to make people allergic to kittens. Perhaps we should just stick to flogging drivers who hit-and-run against cyclists with bicycle chains, the logistics are much easier. And if you don’t understand the badgers and kittens reference you really need to read some of the older posts in my blog.

And I really expected better than this from USAToday. Two-wheel troublemaking: Have motorists let bicyclists’ ‘rights’ go too far? Have bicyclists let motorists’ “rights” go too far? Drivers act like they own the roads and every piece of pavement around it. Oh, don’t read the comments unless you already have brain damage.

A scholarship has been created at the alma mater of a cyclist killed on the roads. Scholarship created to honor cyclist Mr. Novotny’s memory will live on long after the reason for his death has been forgotten.

Another Ghost Bike this time in Lawrence KS. Friends seek ghost bike memorial for hit-and-run victim People in Lawrence are so nice, most of them. It just makes the minority of fucktards so much more annoying and prominent.

Another one from the UK Black Bridge crash – cyclist seriously injured At least the driver hung around after the wreck, even if it was to complain about all the damned cyclists in his way. (J/K I don’t know if that was in fact why the driver stayed at the scene.)

Things are getting uncomfortable for politicians in Enn Zed. Politicians duck as cyclist’s widow targets drink-driving loophole I agree on this one, why should a repeat drunk driver get to drive again after being caught for the third time?

An interesting article about where cyclists get hit by cars in NZ. Danger lurks for cyclists One of the first things to do when faced with road deaths is to determine if this is an infrastructure issue or an attitude issue. The first step for that is mapping the wrecks, and investigating the sites where the most wrecks have happened.

Now that seriously cool e-assist bike with a carbon fiber frame and most of the structural and non-structural bits also make from CF composites. Eco Bikes: Lexus debuts carbon fiber pedal-assist electric bicycle at Tokyo Motor Show The e-assist bike for the rich. It was reported that this was a running bike at the show, with fully developed electronics and is ready to go into production at the drop of an oil barrel.

And that’s all I have today.

Billed @$.02, Opus

Rant only today

I think I mentioned I went to NCTCOG HQ for a BPAC meeting. What all that alphabet soup means is I went to North Central Texas Council Of Governments Headquarters for a Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee meeting. What that means is I went to the sausage factory to see how they are made. What I learned is the city I live in has 2 people that are allowed to participate (in a meaningful way, I can inject my $.02 but I don’t have any official say), but neither has ever made an appearance at a meeting.

This means that 2 people are costing Garland millions of dollars in Federal funds. Maybe tens of millions of dollars lost forever, because someone didn’t want to come to work. In the meantime it takes testicular fortitude of immense proportions to ride a bicycle for transportation in Garland, I’m talking 16 pound clanking cast iron ones because you have to ride in the same lane as cars moving 65 MPH with a curb to your right. So who is responsible for this sad state of affairs? My contact at the NCTCOG identifies them as John Baker and Robert Wunderlich of the City of Garland staff. They haven’t responded to my e-mails yet but maybe if you send them a message at jbaker@ci.garland.tx.us or rwunderlich@ci.garland.tx.us . You might also want to contact the mayor at mayor@ci.garland.tx.us and express your displeasures at losing badly needed $$ because someone couldn’t be bothered to show up at all the places he was supposed to work.

Billed @$.02, Opus

It never ends, the Feed

No, it never ends. People will remain people and conflict over whatever will never end, even if it is something as stupid as to a slower moving vehicle in front of a faster one. People (some people) will still think it is perfectly alright to try to kill or injure you because you cost them 10 or 15 seconds of their precious time on the roads. We call those people sociopaths when they act that way outside of a car. I don’t know what you call them when otherwise “normal” people act that way in a car. My wife says “sociopaths” still, but I think there is a better term.

Speaking of sociopaths, the trial of the thing-that-walks-like-a-man with a medical degree continues, with supporting testimony from another cyclist run off the road. Cyclist testifies in car-versus-bike case Even the “liberal” LA Times has more than their fair share of car-head bias showing in this case.

A cyclist is injured in NB. Omaha cyclist hit, injured by car Yeah, watch the signals because people think that green lights mean “Everyone else get the Heck out of my way”, not “Proceed when clear”.

Another “invisible” cyclist is hit in CA. Bike rider injured in crash People just don’t see a bicycle in the street, when the lights change they go.

Another SWSS in the most deadly state in the US for cyclists. 1024 POLICE BRIEFS: Man on bike hit by truck I take all reports that the cyclist “swerved” into the path of the other vehicle with a grain of salt about the size of the vehicle involved, because of the fact that many people don’t see a cyclist until they hit them, and then say “Where did that come from?” This is a good time to remind my readers about hit-from-behind protocol usage.

Yet another cyclist is killed in CA. Elderly Bicycle Rider Killed When Struck By Pickup Truck OK the driver was displaying signs of intoxication, but wasn’t drunk, did anyone test for drugs? Or think to charge with impairment other than alcohol?

More on the woman killed in Chicago now that they have their stories straight and reached consensus on what happened. Woman killed on bicycle loved freedom of riding My advice on this wreck continues, don’t “filter” to the head of the line.

This is the kind of wreck that is impossible to avoid. Cyclist injured in collision with tree At first I thought why should a cyclist hit a tree, since roads go around trees, but then I read further that the tree fell in front of the cyclist, and blocked the road. It doesn’t take a very big trunk or branch to knock down a cyclist on a road bike.

Another cyclist/pedestrian wreck, this time in Jolly Olde. Woman injured by cyclist Don’t hit pedestrians, if you hit a pedestrian, don’t leave until contact information has been exchanged. Don’t hit pedestrians, if you hit a pedestrian, don’t leave until contact information has been exchanged. Don’t hit pedestrians, if you hit a pedestrian, don’t leave until contact information has been exchanged. Got it?

Well, at least they know they have a problem, that’s the first step to fixing it. Northamptonshire has highest accident toll of young children in region It seems that walking is much more dangerous than riding a bicycle even when you’re very young and still ignorant.

And large amounts of money are being spent to plan for safety in London. Mayor and TfL plan to improve cycle safety Now if they just do something to improve bicycle safety.

More on the Enn Zed doctor killed while riding his bike. Tower of strength mourned by friend Last I heard back channel (yes I have back channel communications with Enn Zed) the police were going and checking the registered Toyota pickups for damage, but they think there’s a possibility the vehicle was not registered so that it can be used to kill cyclists.

Local infrastructure news. White Rock Lake spillway project nears completion For those not local, when the spillway collapsed it too out a chunk of the bike path around the lake, and the repairs are going to address some long-standing safety issues with the existent infrastructure.

They claim something will be done to make a bike trail safer from out of control vehicles on an adjacent highway. Barrier promise along Wantagh Parkway bike path welcomed I want to know why there is a requirement for cyclists to park at the end of the bike trail during the summer but not cars to park before they enter the same area. And also why they didn’t install the guard rail or Jersey Barrier when they built the bike path or the freeway, whichever came second.

And that’s all for today, have fun tomorrow.

Billed @$.02, Opus