The wind is insane out there, and the Feed

I’m running a little late getting started today because I had banking to catch up on before my trip starts tomorrow. Reminder on that trip, this blog will be silent until Monday April 15 as I will be outside mobile range and away from communication devices until then. Anyway, the wind was so bad that I had to chase my bike down the sidewalk as the wind pushed it along while I was trying to handle banking business (and no bike racks at the banks (Plenty of free parking for motor vehicles was provided, though)). It was another one of those days in Texas where you have to drop into really short hill-climbing gears to ride upwind, but can coast up moderate hills downwind. If I remember my readings correctly I had an average speed of just under 11 MPH for the whole trip and a maximum speed of 24 MPH over a very flat trip. Starting Wednesday I will be doing a very different kind of riding as I will be riding on packed gravel roads petering off into dirt tracks as I run messages and tote water around a campsite for a religious retreat. Don’t worry, I’m not going stupid on y’all, there will be a clothing-optional drum and dancing circle around a bonfire every night of the gathering so I’m just expanding from my Pagan roots, not making any changes. IOW it’s Happy Naked Pagan Camping Time where my attire will be a pair of spandex shorts and a HiViz vest as I ride around the campsite making sure everyone has enough water and we don’t get any heat injuries this year and the only reason I will have the shorts on is because riding a bikeBlue without shorts is painful… I might be wearing tights in the mornings as the forecast is a bit on the chilly side until near noon.

Most of the links today are away from TX and the US, we have a couple of CA links like this one about a SWCC wreck. Bicyclist Struck and Killed on Valley Boulevard in Pomona The thing I find interesting about this report is they can’t decide if the cyclist was riding salmon or crossing the road. “(T)he bicyclist was heading east, riding across the westbound lanes of Valley Boulevard,” when he was hit. That was one talented cyclist, riding across and against traffic at the same time like some non-Euclidian alien. The only witness was the driver of the weapon vehicle, which means that absent a thorough investigation of the wreck we will never know what really happened, just what the driver thought he saw. Also the driver left the scene and returned as noted in the “the wreck was thought to have been a hit-and-run.”

An apparent California stop where an Idaho stop would have been a better choice. Bicyclist injured after hit by SUV in Oakland hills There are several possible scenarios for this wreck dependent on exactly what traffic controls were in effect at the intersection. One is a classic Idaho stop where the cyclist assumed a higher speed for the SUV than was the case, or just flat out ran the stop sign. Another that happens to me is I will wait my turn at a 4 way stop and someone on the cross street ignores me as I go and almost sideswipes me as I cross the street because “Eff You I’m driving a car here” only in this case it was a full contact “Eff You”. But since Google Maps just shows me the inside of the tunnel instead of the cross roads when I try to find the wreck scene I’m going to go with a California Stop with contact. Intersection protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

A cyclist narrowly avoids a potentially tragic hit-and-run in Far West Canuckistan. Masset RCMP seek info after accident I find it interesting that hit-and-run is an “accident” while riding without a helmet on the sidewalk is a crime… Anyway the cyclist used good situational awareness to avoid a serious wreck and got away with only minor injuries, but getting the infrastructure right would have prevented this wreck. Oh and that other stuff in the article can be avoided by removing Windows and installing a Linux-based OS… 😛

From the UK a driver that ran straight over a cyclist is on trial for careless driving. Lorry driver on trial for killing cyclist This is another case where several drivers on the road were able to see and avoid the cyclist before the wreck, but for some reason the driver that killed him never saw him. Perhaps his vision will be better after his (should be) mandatory 10 year ban from driving. Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Terrifying Infrastructure news from Oz. VIDEO: Cyclists fear another tragedy If I read the transcript right there is 4″ between getting run over in the traffic lane and hitting the curb with a pedal and no room to take the lane on the bridge because of the speed of the motor vehicle traffic and no place to pass. That drivers seem unable to slow down for other road users’ safety (or any other reason) seems a bit off to me. That they are unable to slide over to the other lane to keep from hitting cyclists seems more than a bit off.

UK cyclists think that single-mode transportation planning needs to go as an intersection takes another life. Safety pleas after cyclist killed at west Hull roundabout Not much I can add to this one…

And final link, wouldn’t it be nice to just take the shopping cart from the store after you fill it and hook it to the back of the bike? Burley Travoy Trailer Review: E-Bike Cargo Hauler & Shopping Cart! [VIDEOS] Seriously, a bike trailer that can be used as a shopping cart, then hooked back to the bike to transport the goodies home.

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

Billed @$0.02, Opus

Advertisement