I’m blogging from a bus, and other things

OK first up the “broadband” connection is about as fast as dialup, but #1 for this blog post that’s plenty (at least until it comes time to use the proofreader) and #2 I have internet from a moving vehicle. Just the reality of #2 from a perspective of 10 years ago is mind-blowing.

I’m creating this post from the second row of seats on a northbound Greyhound bus somewhere in Northern VA, I think on I95. I can’t see out the front of the bus and reflections off the inside of the windows keep me from reading the road signs, so I’m basing that assumption on what I can read of the signs on the roads we cross, with one thing consistent being signs directing people to I95. It’s kind of hard reading signs when the first time you can see them they’re almost edge-on to you at 60 MPH.

This is an unsecure access point, so I’m not getting into my e-mail to get the Feed. But I figure live-blogging a trip on a bus should be adequate compensation for no bike wrecks.

Speaking of wrecks, I’m just about physically and emotionally recovered from the one I had trying to get away from the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. I can’t feel the scuff on my elbow when I run my hand over the impact site and the PTSD attack is long over. The anger is almost sort of contained about how I was treated during the post-wreck process, let’s just say that there are a number of GPD that need “re-education” about bicycles on the road.

Ok, it’s a bit hard to type this because of the traffic making the bus driver constant,y tap on the brakes, but we just crossed over into Maryland (MD) now.

More to come…

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No links today, I got hit

I’m just a bit shaky today so you’ll excuse me if I leave in some typos.

I was running errands on Blue, getting things ready to go before I leave for vacation. I went to the bank to make a mortgage payment (directly so I know it went through). As I was turning left into the bank parking lot I was passed on the right in the same lane by two pickup trucks. The first one was scrubbing the curb so I was startled more than anything else by that one. The second one was a bit further over and I started waving it to the right or to stay behind me and my right elbow came in contact with the driver’s side mirror hard enough to break the mirror.

I’m OK, my elbow does not even hurt and you can barely see the scuff from the contact. The big problems I’m having is the PTSD attack from my third skin-to-vehicle contact with a vehicle in motion since the turn of the Century, and the adrenaline crash. When I got out of the bank (task fixation, part of the PTSD) I called 911 and the cops were already on their way from another person (not the driver of the weapon vehicle) calling in the contact. I discussed the incident with the cop, who said I shouldn’t have been on the street making a left turn. I quoted TX VC 551.103a and b by number and paragraph which stated what a person on a bike is supposed to do when making a left turn.

The driver of the truck got a ticket for an unsafe pass to go with his broken mirror. I got a massive case of the shakes.

PSA, Opus

Back for a post before heading to the lab rat keeper, and the Feed

Today may be huge as far as links are concerned. I haven’t opened the folder yet but there are 16 messages in the Feed folder. My usual post has 4-6 messages from the Feed folder…

Last night after I got done with the gig I can’t tell you about I got to go to the local dirt track to watch the USMTS race. The USMTS is a touring series for what used to be called IMCA modifieds, but this flavor has a few less restrictions on allowable components because of the frequency they race at, the race yesterday was the 9th in 10 days. The IMCA rules are more of a “junkyard” style of race car where the USMTS allows more fabricated components that can be bought online or purchased from local racing supply shops, meaning when you tear up a front corner you can just buy replacements and have then delivered to the next stop on the tour by UPS Overnight instead of hoping there is a junkyard that has that component open near the track you’re going to. But they have adjusted the rules so that the local guys running the IMCA rules won’t be at a disadvantage when the USMTS rolls in. The local guys with their junkyard parts ran very well last night and won at least 2 out of the 5 heats. Since I don’t know the local modified drivers any more (I last went to that track in 2006 and quit because the road was so bad my bike at the time could fall halfway to the axle in the longitudinal cracks in the road surface and my headlight at the time was more of a “seen by” light rather than a “see by” light) so I don’t know if the last heat was won by a local or tour driver. Anyway, the racing was good if a bit on the loud side even with the mandatory mufflers. You could barely hear the cars as they drove by like they were moms in minivans driving the kids to school, but they made a racket under full throttle… BTW the trip to the race was part of my pay for this gig.

More on a deadly bike wreck involving an SUV that left the road in the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike 9 years running. Exeter grad killed on bike in Florida Nothing new on the wreck, lots new about the victim. As I posted before this is an unavoidable by human cyclists wreck.

More FL CARnage. Pinellas Park cyclist dies after crash with car The wreck is technically a SWCC, but preliminary toxicology tests found “something” in the dead cyclist’s system. Also the cyclist was reported to be riding “ninja”. To avoid ride sober and if you ride “ninja” ride like you’re invisible and people would run you over if you let them. I don’t know that infrastructure as we do it in the US would have been of much help, but Dutch-model infrastructure would have had the cyclist on segregated lanes with a barrier protecting him.

Another crossing cyclist fatality in FL. Jacksonville teen killed on bicycle Saturday night From looking at the Street View this is another case of improper infrastructure created by sprawl, as there is a highway rolling right through a residential area with 3 lanes in each direction and turning lanes plus a grassy median to cross. I don’t know if the cyclist was killed inches away from the safety of the median or if he was killed as he left that safe location, but intersection protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent. And what was an 18YO doing driving an Escalade with 5 other people in it? That’s just asking for trouble.

An IN man is killed in a hit-and-run. Northern Indiana man on bicycle dies after being struck by vehicle that fled the scene Drunk driver that hit a parked car after he killed the cyclist. Hit-from-behind wreck, apparently there were parked cars preventing the cyclist from having a usable escape route so the protocols don’t apply/can’t be used here to avoid the wreck, but infrastructure looks like it might have prevented it by moving the parked cars over a bit and allowing the cyclist to ride to the right of the parked cars. Then the drunk would have hit just the parked cars and not the cyclist too.

A NJ cyclist is killed. News Nearby: Teen Bicyclist Seriously Hurt in Lindenhurst Crash Ooopsss, the cyclist has been upgraded from dead to seriously injured in the time it took to create the link…Anyway, intersection wreck implies intersection protocols to avoid, the cyclist was hit in the bike lane so the infrastructure was good by US standards but a separate light phase for cyclists might have prevented this wreck, I don’t have enough information from this link to make a judgement. More Teenager Seriously Injured in Car Collision on Hoffman Avenue The consensus from the commenters on the second link is that the weapon vehicle driver may have been trying to beat the light. That would make avoiding the wreck dependent on the cyclist knowing the driver wasn’t going to stop for their red light, kinda like when I saw the truck running the 4 way stop sign last week. I actually found it interesting that the comments did not blame the cyclist for being there or suggest that he ran the red light.

Another NJ wreck. Jersey City Restaurant Owner Killed in Hit-and-Run Crash The cyclist was reported to have been riding salmon but as was pointed out in the comments the only witness that could have seen that was the driver that claimed to not have known she hit a human being… So I’m going to go with hit-from-behind protocols to avoid and infrastructure to prevent. The helmet was a red herring issue as the wreck would have been non-survivable even with one from the reported injuries.

A report from the land of “no criminality suspected”. NYPD: 1,376 Pedestrians and Cyclists Injured, Eight Killed in Traffic in May Of 397 cyclist-involved wrecks 395 required at least a transport by ambulance with the other 2 being dead… The pedestrian report is equally dismal if not worse because of the higher numbers.

A SWSS wreck from upstate NY. Boy riding bike struck by car The boy “swerved from the shoulder into westbound traffic”. On a similar note, have you met my wife, Morgan Fairchild? (OK so you don’t get the joke, and I’m old for remembering it). Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent a similar wreck…

An IA wreck with very little information usable by this blog. Lenox, Iowa, bicyclist dies after being struck by car Hit and run, the weapon vehicle has been located, but nothing on the actual wreck. He was just “struck while riding” nothing about from behind or at an intersection, just a hit-and-run. More Woman who hit cyclist: I thought I hit deer The cyclist was left for more than 24 hours on the side of the road… Also Lenox, Iowa, man killed while riding bike even more Cyclist on morning ride fatally injured

A wreck in OH hurts a boy. Nine Year Old Boy Hit By Vehicle, Critically Injured The kid supposedly pulled out from between 2 parked cars and immediately into the path of the weapon vehicle, leaving the driver no time to react. The cars blocked the view of the cyclist from seeing the oncoming car, and the driver from seeing the cyclist. Intersection protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

A PA fatality. Cyclist killed in collision at Carrick intersection At this point all I know is there was an intersection involved somehow so intersection protocols seem like a good bet to avoid the wreck. Infrastructure to prevent it. More Carrick Bicyclist Dies After Being Hit By Car Now it’s an intersection wreck and the comments section is betting on the driver of the weapon vehicle not stopping at the 4 way stop.

Lawyer blather from PA. Reducing injury: Bicyclists have similar rights to the road as motorists Actually cyclists have more rights than motorists, as cycling does not require a license…

Another fatality of a PA cyclist, this time in DE. Pennsylvania woman killed while riding bicycle in Bethany Beach OK this reads like everybody lost their minds when they saw a bicycle in the road, from the “swerving from the shoulder to the median” bit to the multiple vehicles involved. Hit-from-behind wreck, use the protocols to avoid.

A cyclist in Western WA is killed when a driver passing other cyclists hits him head-on. BICYCLE RIDER KILLED IN WOODINVILLE The driver of the weapon vehicle was passing cyclists going the same direction as he was driving when he ran head-on into the victim. This wreck was caused by a driver not paying attention to the other traffic on the road, possibly fixating on the cyclists he was passing causing him to miss seeing (but not miss hitting) the oncoming cyclist. I couldn’t get a street view of the scene to pull up, but the description sounds like a narrow rural 2 lane. I don’t know that a human cyclist could have done anything to avoid this wreck, but getting the infrastructure right would have prevented it. More Noted bike rider killed at Woodinville and Noted bike rider killed at Woodinville Not done yet Cyclist killed in collision over the weekend was well known in Marymoor Velodrome community

A NV cyclist is critically injured in a hit-and-run. Police Investigate Bicycle Accident in Wingfield Springs At this point LEO either don’t know or aren’t releasing the cyclist’s direction of travel, but the street he was riding when he was hit is a residential street that would be a low speed limit and non-permeable to motor vehicles under the Dutch infrastructure model so infrastructure changes would be limited to reducing the speed limit and making cut-throughs for cyclists.

Another cyclist injury in VA, this one a little out of the ordinary as the person that struck the cyclist was not even driving his weapon… PD: Passing Bike Rider Shot by Man Loading Gun Keep your finger off the trigger when you’re closing the action, some guns will fire as soon as the bolt goes home if the trigger has pressure on it. As for avoiding this, are you kidding me? More John Albers of Va. shoots cyclist while loading gun, police said

A MI cyclist is hit. Girl injured in car-bicycle accident in Ironwood All I know for certain is it was an intersection wreck, “officials” say she was running the red but nothing about lane position or direction of travel so she could have entered legally which would have given her right of way until she could clear the intersection. Anyway, intersection wreck, intersection protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

A writer from the Great white North on how to get hit while riding your bike. Six ways a cyclist with a death wish can become a hood ornament This is in response to the previous article on 6 ways to kill a cyclist, which was equally tongue in cheek.

Also from the Great White North is this report of a cyclist/pedestrian fatal wreck. Man charged after woman hit, killed by cyclist in Mississauga DO NOT HIT THE PEDESTRIANS!

Still in the Great White North a cyclist is hit by an illegal driver. POLICE BEAT: Cyclist not seriously injured The driver of the weapon vehicle was driving without a license, driving in violation of his parole and just generally a menace to society. Intersection wreck, protocols to avoid, and LEO need to figure out some way to keep idiots like this from getting behind the wheel to prevent, along with getting the rest of the infrastructure right.

Partial closure on a wreck in the Great White North. Vernon senior who killed cyclist pleads guilty

I’ll just let the headlines speak for themselves here. Date set in appeal of ‘lenient’ sentence of driver who killed cyclist and Date set for Crown Office appeal against “unduly lenient” sentence for double cyclist killer Gary McCourt

Along the same lines as the links posted above, but more general. Scotland’s cyclists ‘at risk’ from contradictory and complacent policy

Apparently the Power Puff Girls were too busy to save the day for this cyclist (Obscure media joke). Female cyclist, 58, killed in clash with truck near Townsville Not much information but from what was released it appears to have been a hit-from-behind wreck caused by a blind driver, I mean how else do you hit 4 cyclists in one shot killing one and sending 2 more to the hospital? Anyway if that’s true then hit-from-behind protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent. More Female cyclist dies in Townsville crash and Truck ploughs into cyclists, killing one also Missing cyclist found as another mourned

Infrastructure! news from the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike. City considers $5 million pedestrian/cyclist safety plan I wonder how much a lawsuit would cost because the city failed to install proper bike/ped infrastructure and someone was maimed for life?

Legal infrastructure problems in ME. Cyclists say there’s a pro-motorist bias when tragedy strikes A semi passing within 4 feet at speed can literally such a cyclist under the back wheels, as demonstrated in this wreck.

Infrastructure in the Great White North. Bronson bike lane gets a makeover This was a bike lane that got a woman killed last year, it’s not perfect but until safety is more important that keeping up the flow of motor vehicle traffic that’s about the best we can hope for.

More infrastructure from West Canuckistan. Coroner probes cyclist’s death on causeway This was the woman who was knocked in front of a bus by a passing pedestrian on the MUP.

Lifestyle in CA. Hit-and-Run Mars Otherwise Low-Key CicLAvia Even when LA tries to do the right thing Angelenos try to ruin it.

I hope this thief is found and his body dumped in several places. Seriously. Thief takes custom-made bike made for double amputee veteran

And those are all the links still alive to give me fits. It has been a very long day.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

I have all morning free today on Wreck-Free Sunday

Well my church has gone to Summer Mode as of this week with no morning service, just evening service. That means I have all morning to do whatever I want to do. That means I blog, naturally. I’m a writer, so I write even when “writing” means tapping on a laptop computer keyboard. I also read, lots. I just got 3 new books about building cars, tech manuals on building specific car kits that I have been thinking about building.

One kit I have eliminated after finding out the “trunk” is a 6″ space behind the seat back that has to be shared with the battery. Also there is only room for a 9 gallon gas tank to feed a V8 engine, the 4 cylinder version has a 10.8 gallon tank which gives about 1/3 more range compared to the V8 version. That still isn’t much, less than 300 miles on the highway where the V8 version gets just at 200. So this car is out for both lack of range and zero luggage space. The same body can be used on a different frame to get both a trunk and a bigger gas tank so the look is still available but in a more practical package. The only thing that you have to give up is the other frame has slightly less cornering grip than the frame with no trunk and the tiny gas tank.

The cornering difficulties with the other kit I can deal with, I have had years of experience with chassis tuning to get the most out of a car in a turn. Another advantage of the “other” kit is I can put much bigger brakes on it. I won’t say I have an obsession about brakes since most of my racing experience was in small engine race cars that required learning how to drive with as little braking as possible, but I do have an obsession about having good stopping power available at all times. The brakes I can put on the “other” kit were originally designed for a 4200 pound car, but they will be stopping a 1700 pound car. That means that if I install the brakes properly and do a little work at getting air to the center of the vented discs to keep them slightly cooler I will have no problems with brakes giving up from overuse on a long downhill run, for example (or if I take this car racing, like I plan to do). The front brakes will use the ’69-’77 GM mid size front caliper squeezing 11.75″ discs, while the rears will be the GM Metric rear caliper with emergency brake , which is basically the same pads and hydraulics as the Metric front caliper but with a mechanical actuator that allows it to be used as a parking brake, and another set of those 11.75″ discs. While this seems like the brakes are small by the current fashion, those brakes will be more than enough for the car I want. Like I put it earlier, these are brakes that were originally designed for a 4200 pound car installed on a 1700 pound car.

Now the cornering part will be tricky. The suspension is beam axles on both ends which eliminates one of the tuning adjustments I used to rely on, camber. That leaves toe and castor at the wheel, and shocks and springs with ride height adjustments at the point where the suspension connects to the frame. I can order the axles with a bit of negative camber installed at the factory to get a bit more mechanical grip at the expense of a bit more tire wear. I can adjust the toe to fix that and also improve the turn-in response, a happy bit of serendipity for handling for “spirited” driving, but it also has the effect of making the car a bit unstable in a straight line so there is a balance that has to be reached and maintained, or possibly I will adjust the toe as I get to a race for race conditions then return the adjustment to the best setting for the street after the race. Adjusting the toe on this car is about a 5 minute job and does not even require jacking the car up to get to the adjusters, just backing off the jam nuts on the tie rod and twisting the tie rod until the desired toe is reached and tightening up the jam nuts once the right setting is reached. Easy peasy. Other adjustments are a little more involved than toe, but still much easier than for a “regular” car. Basically jack it up and take off the tire, the support the frame and adjust the: ride height, caster, shocks and springs, or the square of the axle to the frame. To do those adjustments on 99% of production cars would require a trip to a frame shop or major modifications to the car. That is one of the reasons why I like this kit. I can drastically change the personality of the car for a few hundred dollars and at most a couple of hours work. I can completely change the car with those parts and a different set of wheels and tires.

Continuing on that theme, I can pack a small trailer with 4 tires and pre-set coil-over shock-spring units and go from a mild-mannered street car to a race car that can relocate eyeballs to the same side of the face from lateral Gs or put spots on your glasses from the grip under braking, all in about 1 hour each way. Try doing that with your unmodified production car. On second thought don’t, all you will do is make a mess and not get anything much actually done towards changing the car.

So with all the gigs I have been getting and the money I get from the trust my parents left me it looks like I might actually be driving again for the first time since 1995. I know, scary thought. One thing about this is all the time I spend riding my bike will make me a more cautious driver when I get back behind the wheel, because I pay more attention to what is around me and I know what a hazard I am to other road users just because I’m driving a WMD that can wipe out buildings as well as people.

Speaking of having gigs, I have an overnight gig coming up that will prevent my posting to the blog Monday and Tuesday, with a post on Wednesday, maybe a post on Thursday as I get ready to go on vacation. The widow woman is going to be upset as I won’t be available for her to cry on my shoulder because of this other gig. But money is money, and the widow woman gig is a free food gig while this other gig I can’t talk about is a money gig.

PSA, Opus

Another rush post, and the Feed

I have a gig helping someone move again today and my last RPG session tonight before I depart for my vacation, and I need to set up my Warlock6 for the new adventure we are having (our huge party has split up into several small groups to try to take down a gang that is interfering with the local couriers’ guild and disrupting commerce and I’m going undercover in the guild with the help of potions that increase my long-distance speed to 25% faster than my normal sprint). So I have a couple of hours before the moving gig that I’m going to use to post the blog.

Update on the ND wreck that killed a kid. North Dakota Highway Patrol releases name of boy killed in bicycle accident The kid was turning left, and the intersection had obscured sight lines. So if the kid is in the middle of the intersection and can’t see the van or vice versa, shouldn’t someone be getting a ticket for overgrown landscaping? There is an odor of dead fish about this one. More Boy killed on bicycle in Hettinger remembered

From the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike comes more information about a head on wreck between a bike and a car. Jacksonville police identify bicyclist killed in Sunday crash The motor vehicle pushed the cyclist into the side of a house and crushed him. I think the person riding salmon probably wasn’t the cyclist in this wreck. This puts this wreck into the “not avoidable by human cyclists” category, and probably not too affected by bicycle infrastructure, either…

Another head-on crash where the cyclist wasn’t doing anything wrong, this time in IN. Man dies after crash on bicycle in Elkhart County Wednesday Again this falls under that “not avoidable by human cyclists”. It should also be stated just to make the obvious even more so that even wearing a motorcycle helmet will only make it possible to have an open casket at the funeral. You will die in a head-on wreck with a motor vehicle moving at highway speeds even if your head is completely unharmed.

A cyclist in Northern Ireland is still off the bike approaching a year after his wreck. Cyclist Noel still recovering months after being hit by car Intersection wreck that shows even if you do everything right someone making just a small mistake in a motor vehicle can change your life forever.

E-assist in the UK. Electric bike championships in Bristol this Sunday

Last link is to a video from a bike chain in the UK that is very funny. Every so often, it’s time to remember why we get on our bikes again and again. Well done Halfords. Thanks to BikingInLA for the link.

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

Billed@€0.02, Opus

Out and back early today, and the Feed

I had a trip to my massage therapist today to work out some of the kinks and soreness of the last two days, and she commented that I felt dehydrated to her hands, so that was probably a big part of the soreness and lethargy I have been feeling. She gave me 2 20 oz. bottles of water and refilled the bottle on Blue so a total of 64 oz. of water for the trip back to the house. I managed to almost finish the big bottle on Blue on the way home by having a drink at every stop sign and red light, but I’m still a bit off my game…

Way down the road about 3 day’s ride from WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell a cyclist can’t even go shopping without being in mortal peril. Bicyclist critically injured after being hit by SUV in Walmart parking lot I will say that it’s possible the cyclist did cut the driver off, but having been in Walmart parking lots I also know that people in TX treat parking lots a lot like they treat streets “I’m going to get there as fast as I can”.

Update on a SC bike wreck involving a DUI. Man Charged With DWI After Deadly Bike Stationed At Cherry Point That’s right, the killer was allowed to check himself out of the drunk tank and go home with nothing more than a promise to return for his court date, after killing a cyclist. The guy that killed a dog on the other hand is still in jail…

A really strange NC wreck. Cyclist begins road to recovery after being struck by tree Note that, the cyclist didn’t hit the tree, the tree hit the cyclist. Literally the tree hit the cyclist, as in fell in such a way that the cyclist was impacted… If you can figure out how a cyclist is supposed to dodge falling trees than you’re better at this than I am.

From CA a cyclist is hit by a delivery truck turning on to the street she was riding on. FedEx Truck Hits, Kills Female Bicyclist in Fullerton From the position of the bicycle after the wreck and accounting for some movement caused by the impact it appears the cyclist was hit inside her own lane of travel as the truck cut the corner, incidentally running the stop sign while the cyclist was riding a through street. More Bicyclist Killed After Collision With FedEx Truck In Fullerton also Fullerton bicyclist struck, killed by FedEx truck

Still in CA we have a cyclist suddenly deciding to cross a busy street mid-block in front of several witnesses and getting hit. Boy, 12, struck and killed on bike Since this account is based on several witness accounts including the cyclist’s riding companions I’ll accept it as true. IOW this is very much not a SWSS. Unfortunately the root cause of this wreck appears to be that the cyclist was a 12YO boy with poor impulse control…

A wreck in NM as a cyclist stops short and falls into oncoming traffic. Police investigate 3 overnight crashes From the Street View of the scene it looks like the intersection is light controlled with the initial report having the cyclist stopped behind the stop bar but then falling into the cross traffic for some reason. This report does not pass the smell test right now, there is information missing as to how the cyclist got all the way past the crosswalk and into the crossing traffic. There is also the issue of how and why she fell. Anyway, intersection wreck, intersection protocols to avoid or mitigate and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

A wreck in MA. Bicyclist seriously injured in Hopkinton accident Not much in the original link but a comment from someone claiming to be a witness said the driver was exceeding the speed limit by a substantial margin based on the length of the skid marks left at the scene and that several other drivers had managed to pass the cyclist safely immediately prior to the wreck. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that this was a hit-from-behind wreck and using the protocols would mitigate the effects of the wreck, and that getting the infrastructure right would prevent it. And try not to read too many of the early comments from stupid people. It reminds me of a “Sixth Sense” parody I saw many years ago: “I see stupid people, and most of them don’t even know they’re stupid.”

A cyclist outside NYC is seriously injured. Boy, 16, on Bike in Serious Condition After Colliding With Car on Long Island: Police Something is missing from this report as they say the cyclist hit the car, then they say the car is impounded for a safety check. The wreck was reported as being near an intersection and the narrative is consistent with a right hook as reported by someone that hates bikes. If that’s true (the right hook, not the “hates bikes”) then intersection protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent. Something else that is glaringly absent is the nearly ubiquitous “no criminality suspected” quote.

A serious wreck in the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike, nine years running. Bicyclist Injured After Collision With Car in Coral Springs There is nothing I can glean from this report that even gives me a glimmer as to what happened and how to not let it happen again.

A right-hook wreck in MS. Bicyclist runs into truck in Biloxi The usual idiot comments about riding on the sidewalk at the top of the queue. Use the intersection protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right (in MS?) to prevent.

Hit-and-run in IL. Boy Riding Bike Seriously Injured In Aurora Hit-And-Run If I am reading this report correctly the driver targeted the victim including increasing speed when the victim was in front of her. Since this was an intersection wreck intersection protocols might be used to mitigate the results, but I don’t think even great bike infrastructure would have prevented this wreck if at-grade crossings were in use. That driver be crazy.

An OK cyclist is hit head-on. P.M. UPDATE: Boy injured while riding bike on highway in Tahlequah This is a strange report that admits the two vehicles were going in opposite directions but does not immediately blame he cyclist for riding salmon. Usually that’s the first thing in the report in wrecks like this. From the report either one is a likely candidate for wrong side of the road-ism, one a kid and the driver being 70. I don’t know how the cyclist could have avoided this wreck until I know which one was on the wrong side of the road, but I can say that infrastructure that gets the cyclist on a separated bike path (rural location) would have prevented the wreck no matter which one as at fault.

Here’s a listing and review of panniers that work with the battery racks on most e-assist bikes. Guide to Rear Rack Bags (Panniers) for Electric Bikes Some of the bags are not so good, but most will serve well for a long time.

And those are all the links that gave me fits (or not) today.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

I forgot I was moving books today, and the Feed

I forgot I was supposed to be helping someone move books today, so I’m getting another late start on the blog. At least the AC was working, even at the low level it was set to. I admit that 81°F doesn’t sound all that cold, but compared to the outside temperature and the inside of the storage space 81 was chilly. I’m still trying to rehydrate from all the sweating I have been doing.

That kid hit a half-mile from my house has died. Bike Friendly Garland Facebook page I blame this death on previous city council’s zoning and planning that allowed a highway in everything but name to be placed in the middle of a residential area. And there’s another one just like it a half-mile away in another direction and the two intersect less than a quarter-mile from the wreck site.

A wreck just down the road from WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell makes steam come out my ears. Driver admits taking Ambien before striking firefighter The cyclist was hit-from-behind in the bike lane, so use the protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent. And dig a deep hole to drop the “driver” into so I don’t find him… More Affidavit: Man who hit firefighter took sleeping pill

A wreck with no details in CA. Cyclist killed in collision with van in Carson Other than the age of the victim LEO seem to be sitting hard on this one. Intersection wreck from the few details released so far, so intersection protocols to avoid, and as (almost) always, get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Another CA wreck with lots more information. Cyclist Claims Police Officer was Distracted During Crash Drivers don’t look for anything on the roads smaller than a Mini, especially coming the wrong way, which this cyclist did. But apparently the LEO was also breaking the law but since the cyclist’s offense overrides the driver’s, no charges will be filed against the driver

A wreck on OR gets paired with a restaurant review? Cyclist injured in hit-and-run; critics choose best North Portland restaurants: North Portland news Somewhere in that long list there is a reward being offered for the scalp of the hit-and-run driver. Here’s a real link. Reward offered for hit-and-run driver who critically injured cyclist

An OH cyclist gets hit running a stop sign. Teen seriously injured in car-bike crash “But Opus, how can you be sure the girl ran the stop sign and not the driver?” Because there was an Ohio Driver’s License examiner in the passenger seat who said so, that’s how. And if the driver taking the test had run a stop sign and hit a little girl then that would be an automatic fail, or the examiner could lose his job. Intersection protocols to avoid, especially the bits about following traffic controls. It doesn’t look like infrastructure changes would have had any effect on preventing this wreck.

A double hit-and-run in VA kills a cyclist. Friends remember father of three killed in double hit and run I’m not 100% certain about the mode of this wreck, but it appears the state of VA has been handing out CDL with taxi endorsements in breakfast cereal, instead of the usual method of Cracker Jacks boxes.

A cyclist in MI gets killed when she gets hit from behind. Hopkins woman on bicycle hit and killed in car crash Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid, getting the infrastructure right including getting the idiots out from behind the controls of WMDs to prevent.

Another MI cyclist gets $45K for injuries sustained when he was riding on what looked like a bike path. Kalamazoo City Commission approves $45,000 settlement with man injured riding bicycle at Spring Valley Park The man was riding on what looked like a winding path through the park when he hit a cable stretched across the pavement and was severely injured. The pavement has been removed.

Well that was thoughty of them. American Lung Association retires number of cyclist killed in Trek Across Maine This was the cyclist that died after being passed by a semi as he took a drink of water.

A cyclist in the Great White North gets hit with a car. Cyclist hurt in collision with car And at the moment we don’t know who made the statement that the cyclist failed to stop, as the investigation is continuing. Anyway intersection protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent. More Cyclist seriously injured after colliding with car

A UK driver invokes the universal get-out-of-jail-free card in the death of a cyclist. ‘I didn’t see death mile bike victim’ Truck driver’s inquest claim as mother of cyclist Paula Jurek looks on All charges against the driver of the WMD were dropped after the driver made this statement… More Cyclist Paula Jurek family’s two years of hell as legal case collapsed on eve of trial

More UK “justice”… Careless driving fine branded ‘ridiculous’ after cyclist injured Might I remind people that this fine is less than the fixed penalty given for cyclists riding on the sidewalk without hitting anyone?

Speaking of which, why is a cyclist hitting a driver an automatic assault charge, but the other way is an “accident”? GBH charge after Oxford road rage attack in which motorist hospitalised in row with cyclist The comments are amusing with this one.

Your Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot, interrogative, moment for the day. Family apologises to driver who killed son Their son was killed by a driver and they apologized to the killer.

Once is not enough so here’s a second Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot, interrobang moment as the media rediscovers that people get hurt mostly by motor vehicles when riding bikes. Bike accidents cause of 86,000 head injuries in 2009 and Head Injuries from bike riding also Riding a bike causes more head injuries than football, baseball Where this “study” goes wrong is every cycling injury is classified as sports-related. That would be like classifying every motor vehicle wreck as “sports related” because of NASCAR…

Infrastructure! news from Oz. Mary Safe – mother of Olympic cyclist Amy Gillet who was killed in Germany – wants Bill making it an offence for motorists to drive within 1m of cyclists. This is roughly the same as the 3-foot passing laws in the US, except with fangs instead of gums.

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

Billed @€0.02, Opus

No post today, big post tomorrow

I spent most of the day going to and from the NCTCOG and taking two classes on bikeway design, and didn’t get home until nearly 1930, making it almost 2100 before I could even begin the post tonight. So I will do a Monday on Thursday and combine the Feeds for Wednesday and Thursday into a single post. Now I’m going to take a hot shower and lay down with one of my new books that finally showed up almost 3 weeks after I ordered them.

PSA, Opus

Not on time again today and probably not tomorrow either, and the Feed

I had another busy day today with my weekly gig as a crying towel for the widow women, followed by getting the tickets for the last leg of our vacation, with a trip to church to plan the rituals for this weekend that will probably happen some time in the middle. So if this doesn’t post until nearly midnight, now you know why.

Up first, another hit-and-run fatality from the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike 9 years running, FL. Katherine A. Rigby killed while riding bicycle in hit and run crash in Royal Palm Beach From the narrative it seems possible the cyclist was targeted by the driver. Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent. And send this driver through the car shredder in his stupid SUV when they catch him. More Mother struck, killed in hit-and-run while riding bicycle with son and Roommate of woman killed by hit-and-run driver as son looked on: ‘He never knew his father. That’s all he had.”

Lots of links on this story from CA. San Jose: Bicyclist killed by hit-and-run driver at busy Hwy. 87 overcrossing and Cyclist Killed By Hit-And-Run Driver In San Jose also Bicyclist Killed by Hit and Run Driver: San Jose Police What little is known about the wreck so far is the driver was way over the speed limit as witnessed by the cyclist’s body being found 50 feet further down the road than his shoes. Mega-hit-from-behind, no chance to avoid and completely crappy infrastructure. As on the San Diego wreck I place at least 90% of the fault on the infrastructure with all the rest of the blame on the driver who was going too fast for conditions and exceeding the speed limit. Add hit-and-run to that and we get another candidate for driving through the car shredder…

A wreck outside NYC. East Hampton teen, Anna Lytton, struck and killed while riding bike Nothing on the mode but like all good reports from the NYC area involving someone hit by a motor vehicle no criminality is suspected. Because Cars, cars über Alles.

Another link to that highly unlikely SWSS wreck in GA. Cyclist injured after slamming into car in Gillsville Again a cyclist “swerving” all the way across the centerline to get hit by a car is stretching credulity. Use hit-from-behind protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Another SWSS in VT. Girl is hurt in collision of truck and bike Hit-from-behind wreck, protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Another child cyclist is injured this time in MD. Child Struck By Vehicle, Injured Nothing about the mode of wreck but there is a slight suggestion that the driver may have been at fault in the wreck, just a hint.

A rare type of wreck in NJ. Two hurt in Sunday motorcyle vs. bicycle accident in Vineland No mode given, but no matter who was at fault everyone involved was injured to one degree or another. So this is the impact of two vulnerable road users.

Another update, this time on the CO cyclist killed in a hit-and-run. Video: David Hernandez, cyclist, dies after hit-and-run, cops seek driver who took his life If when they catch this driver we have another candidate to use the drive-through car shredder.

Today’s special seems to be hit-and-run, this one in MN. 69-year-old Esko woman arrested in connection with hit-and-run of cyclist The mode of wreck was not given, but from the rest of the narrative it seems possible that hit-from-behind or a right hook was the mode of the wreck.

Update on a CA wreck. Man killed while riding bike in Pasadena identified The driver hit one cyclist and Jerry Browned another and LEO can’t figure out if he did anything wrong? What’s wrong with this picture? Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Another hit-and-run, this time in OR. Witnesses aid cyclist after Portland hit-and-run Hit-from-behind by a driver that may have been impaired, use the protocols to avoid but there doesn’t appear to be much room to avoid the wreck from looking at the Google Street View of the scene. The infrastructure could use some work as well.

More on that rider killed on a charity ride in Western WA. Family of cyclist killed on cancer fundraising ride remember Victoria teen as gentle and caring and Private B.C. school identifies cyclist killed during weekend cancer fundraiser The narrative now is that the cyclist lost control as he passed a group of other participants in the ride for an unknown reason and went across the road trying to regain control and hit oncoming traffic. I suspect a rumble strip or a raised reflective marker may have played a part in the process.

Speaking of charity rides LEO have determined the chain of events in that ME charity ride wreck. Maine police: Cyclist probably fell into truck The cyclist was taking a drink as the truck passed and the turbulence from the truck caused him to fall under the truck. This requires a variation on the hit-from-behind protocols to not be using a water bottle when being passed by a semi.

A wreck in Oz. Cyclist killed in crash with truck at intersection of Wattle St and Fullarton Rd This is the equivalent of a right hook wreck for those that drive on the wrong side of the road. Intersection wreck so the protocols apply to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Update on a wreck in Oz where a driver hit a cyclist riding on a sidewalk. Witnesses tell of shock after boy is killed by car in Nollamara Drivers need to pay more attention to what is in front of them especially while crossing a sidewalk.

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

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Running way late again, and the Feed

At least this time I have a really good excuse for being late even though I was at my house. We changed our internet/cable bundle and we lost all outside communications at Casa de El Poeta except the cell phones. No TV, internet, or telephone service for all morning and half the afternoon. I could have gotten the internet up sooner except that the internet provider’s interface did not like the browser on my laptop. I’m sure that will change in the future as Chromebooks become more common (or Google starts downgrading this ISP’s search standings). We got a lot more channels on our TV, and increased our download speed by a factor of five (which means my webcomics will load in 1/5 a blink of an eye as opposed to the whole blink it takes now). And I do notice a difference in the speed the articles I link to load and open, not to mention the videos.

From the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike 9 years running, another cyclist is killed by an idiot at the controls of a WMD. Bicyclist killed in Arlington crash The driver appears to have been exceeding the speed limit, not to mention the limits of common sense, when he lost control of the vehicle and hit the cyclist on the sidewalk and crushed him against a building before continuing to crash against another building and ending up in someone’s front yard. From the description of the wreck nothing short of a firing squad at the DMV when this guy applied for his license would have prevented this wreck. The cyclist was riding on the sidewalk away from the traffic lane and was crushed against a building and then the van continued on to crash into another building and a wall. There is no known bicycle infrastructure that will prevent this from happening and is still suitable for the area where the wreck happened.

A cyclist left-crosses himself in PA. Cyclist killed in Adams County crash Saturday Not much I can say about this, except that intersection protocols still apply even when you’re making the turn on your bike. Infrastructure could have prevented this wreck by physically separating motor vehicle and bicycle traffic.

A super SWSS wreck in GA. Unidentified cyclist seriously injured in Gillsville I find the driver’s story highly doubtful, moving completely over to the oncoming lane and still hitting the cyclist. Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid and get rid of stupid drivers to prevent.

Train/bicycle wreck in CA. Bicyclist killed by passing train This is entirely an avoidable wreck, just don’t cross the tracks when a train is coming.

Update on another wreck in CA. Investigation continues into death of bicyclist struck by car in Pasadena Hit from behind, use the protocols to avoid and get the infrastructure right to prevent.

Another CA update. Cyclist hospitalized after SUV collision I have been informed that with difficulty and some counter-intuitive maneuvers it is safe to cross an on-ramp. More Bicyclist hit by car seriously injured

The charges in a CO hit-and-run get upgraded after the cyclist involved dies. Westminster cyclist David Hernandez dies 1 week after being struck by hit-and-run driver I’m still calling this a hit-from-behind wreck. More Man hit by vehicle in Westminster while riding bicycle home from work dies

From the Great White North (thank you SCTV) comes a wreck that was 100% the fault of the driver not following directions provided by a traffic cop. Cyclist hit by car in Quebec triathlon If the cyclist hadn’t been hit the LEO would have because he was next in line. The driver failed to stop for the LEO. Intersection protocols would not have helped, and existing separation of the cyclist from motor vehicles by human directed traffic didn’t work either. I guess a stricter license exam would be the only way to prevent drivers from ignoring directions from a LEO… or immediate execution on the spot for ignoring a traffic cop.

From Western WA via far West Canuckistan many links on a cyclist hit during a charity ride. Teen cyclist killed in collision with car during Ride to Conquer Cancer and Teen cyclist from Victoria killed in collision with car during Ride to Conquer Cancer also Teenage cyclist killed in Ride to Conquer Cancer not done yet Teen cyclist from Victoria killed in cancer ride mishap at Arlington, Wash. I had a link to this wreck for the Saturday post, but the picture of what was supposed to be the debris of the wreck was of a Suzuki sports bike, so I ignored the link. Turns out the picture was wrong. I don’t know why the rider fell off the bike, but there are wildly different stories that range from his getting buzzed in one link to crossing the road and hitting the weapon vehicle head on, and to be honest either or both of those stories could be true the buzz job could have caused the cyclist to cross the centerline trying to regain control over the bike. Without a reliable cause for the wreck I can’t say how to avoid, but getting the infrastructure right would have prevented this wreck.

Another sidewalk cyclist is killed this time in Oz. Schoolboy cyclist, 11, killed in morning crash in Nollamara apparently the driver was not paying any attention to the existence of the sidewalk or anyone on it. The only thing that could prevent a similar wreck would be smarter drivers paying attention as they cross sidewalks and bicycle paths. More Child on bike killed in Nollamara

Another wreck in Oz creates calls for tougher licensing standards. Husband of cyclist killed by epileptic nun calls for tougher licensing of older drivers

More CARnage from Oz. Cyclist fighting for life after crash Yet another hit-from-behind wreck, use the protocols to avoid, get the infrastructure right to prevent.

A sort of infrastructure article from Oz. Surge in cyclists’ injuries, deaths on Adelaide roads The “safety in numbers” hypothesis rests upon the ability of licensed drivers to learn that cyclists are sharing the roads and that drivers need to be careful. There must be something in Oz that prevents this from taking place as drivers are increasingly at fault for an increasing number of wrecks.

Last link, one of the many advantages of riding over driving from Bikeyface. THE REAL WORLD Yes, there is a real world out there, and riding a bike puts you right in the middle of it.

And those are all the links that gave me fits.

Billed @€0.02, Opus