Well I have to use a new button on the dashboard instead of being able to use the WP banner tool, but I’m back at what looks like my previous compose page. The “preview” and “proofread” buttons are both back in their familiar locations. I hope the rest of the composing tools are also functional. One thing that seems to be permanently gone is the share button, which means Gigi won’t be able to log in from where ever she’s logging in from to leave links back from her page. And snarky comments, she was really good at leaving snarky comments. I never saw anybody that clicked on those links to read the post, but it felt better when she would come over and leave the snarky comment on her page, yannow?
Up first another scourge of modern times, the sleepy driver. Police: Driver hit and killed cyclist after falling asleep at the wheel There is not much a cyclist can do in a situation like this, even if they had been riding where they could be seen and avoided by the driver, the driver’s eyes would have to be open for that to happen. Infrastructure to Dutch standards would prevent wreck like this. For one thing there would be some serious rumble strips capable of stopping the car between the motorway and the cycle highway.
Closer to home in OK a cyclist is hit in a more urban environment. Car hits bicyclist near OCU campus The wreckage of the bike is so torn up I can’t tell which direction the cyclist was hit first. I mean the seat post is laying alongside the handlebars and you can plainly see the rear reflector jauntily next to what appears to be the top tube of the frame with one pedal visible from a crank that starts from somewhere out of frame… Drunk driver so nothing the cyclist could have done, infrastructure to Dutch CROW standards would probably have kept the cyclist away from the drunk driver and might even have convinced the drunk to not drive a car that night.
A needless wreck in KS as a driver passing another car hits a cyclist head on. Cyclist killed in Douglas County crash Umm, nope. Not a wreck that human reflexes and reactions could avoid. Get infrastructure that’s “up to Dutch” to prevent.
A driver assaults several IL cyclists on a group ride, in different groups around town. Police investigating motorist, cyclist incident Anyone seen the mayor of Sunset Hills MO lately? Being serious now, there is very little more than what the cyclists did that could be done to avoid a homicidal maniac like this dude. Segregated infrastructure paid for by crazy drivers like him would be the only way to prevent it. Still serious, you want to be crazy, you can be crazy, but it will cost you dearly.
The geometry of this IN wreck seriously troubles me. Lafayette doctor killed in cycling crash involving truck Seriously, they really think the cyclist right-hooked the truck?
Update on an Aussie killed in IN. Aust cyclist killed during ‘dream’ US trip I believe when I covered this back in July I pegged this as a hit-from-behind wreck, so protocols to avoid, infrastructure to prevent.
From CA more about the (drunk and high on meth) driver that went the wrong way on a one way loop road commonly used by cyclists to train. Wrong-Way Driver Hits Group of Cyclists on Fiesta Island This again shows why sometimes having access to motor vehicles is a Bad Thing for bicycle infrastructure. This was not bicycle infrastructure, just a nice road with no oncoming traffic and a speed limit that serious athletes had no problem maintaining or exceeding (within the 10 MPH+10% “tolerance” given to motor vehicles), but it does show what can happen when you make really good bike infra. Second thing to point out, that car is most likely totaled. Both A-pillars are bent and the windshield frame is buckled in the middle. The only way to repair it would be to cut the roof from an identical model and weld it to the unibody of that car, and I don’t think that car is worth the effort not to mention the costs involved.
Another wreck in CA, this one appears to be a cyclist that ran a stop sign or misjudged the closing speed of the weapon vehicle. Bicycle rider injured near downtown Woodland and Cyclist badly injured in minivan vs. bike crash in Woodland The driver was on a through street and the cyclist had a stop sign which leaves only the two possibilities I laid out. Infrastructure might have helped but I’m going to be honest on this one, I don’t think so if the bike path doesn’t have the priority at the intersection.
A SWCC from CA. 10-year old bike rider killed in Hesperia There is a possibility the cyclist was riding on the sidewalk which only adds to the information that confirms what a bad idea this is. Intersection protocols to avoid or reduce injury, and get the kids off sidewalks and on to “Dutch quality” bike paths to prevent.
A fatal buzz job from CA. Recumbent Cyclist Killed Was UCSB Grad Student Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid or to reduce damages, and get the infrastructure up to Dutch CROW standards to prevent.
This has not been a good day for CA cyclists as one carrying a passenger is cut off by a FedEx truck. Serious Injuries After FedEx Driver Strikes Cyclist And Passenger On Handlebars The way the narrative reads now the truck pulled out of a parking space directly into the side of the bike, and as you know the thing that sticks out the farthest on a bike are the handlebars. And what happens when the handlebars get hit? Yep the bike goes down, hard. Not sure if riding further out in the lane will prevent a similar wreck, but the area is already a mixed transport area quite similar to the Dutch Urban model, so about the only thing that could be changed would be the presumed liability law, motor vehicles are automatically at fault when hitting a pedestrian or cyclist in the street.
Another one of those limited information wrecks from GA. Bicyclist hit by car on Cobb Parkway Now the report reads the cyclist was “crossing” the highway when hit making this a SWCC wreck. There is an extremely low-res picture of the bike but I can’t get the “zoom in” feature to let me see the higher resolution picture so I can’t say anything for sure except that it is a bike in the road, or at least part of a bike. Since so many SWCC bike wrecks turn out to be hit-from-behind I’m going to go with those protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.
Get drunk and kill a cyclist and the worst that can happen is a 5 year prison term. Georgia man sentenced in fatal DUI crash that killed deaf cyclist The driver deliberately drove drunk in spite of being told twice he was too drunk to drive, commits hit-and-run leaving another human to die in the streets, and they only give him 5 years in prison and a $9K fine? It sucks to be a cyclist in GA, but it’s great to be a driver.
From the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike an apparent medical emergency causes a cyclist to ride across 2 lanes of traffic and into the side of a car. Weston Cyclist Killed After Being Hit by a Car The narrative is derived from several of the people riding with the victim, that he suddenly veered to the left and across an empty lane from the bicycle lane and hit a car in an inside lane. IOW this is the exact opposite of a SWSS, this may be the last act of a dying man.
One of the hazards of riding a group ride, from MA. Bicycle crash results in head trauma This is another one of those wrecks where bike infrastructure would not have done much except change the location of the wreck.
Another SWCC wreck (seems to be a theme today) in MI. Cyclist, 16, struck by vehicle, seriously injured Cyclist not able to tell LEO what happened from his point of view, and the only other witness was the driver of the weapon vehicle. Hit from behind protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.
Update on a hit-and-run in the Great White North. Man, 25, turns himself in after cyclist struck and killed: police The weapon vehicle was one that was not licensed for use on the streets…
Another Great White North wreck of unknown cause as of this posting. Elderly male cyclist struck and killed in Mississauga The picture shows a bike hit from the left front. At this point the only thing LEO are releasing are the vehicle types (bike and cube van) and the intersection where the wreck took place. So intersection means intersection protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and update infrastructure using the CROW manual to prevent.
And another update on a hit-and-run from West Canuckistan. Pickup driver in hit-and-run that injured Coquitlam cyclist turns himself in
This wreck report from Oz has been sanitized from the original which was quoted in the Feed. Doctors battle to save injured cyclist’s leg “He was so badly injured that a portion of his thigh bone was found at the…” and the less gory second sentence were both missing from the link that existed this morning. The geometry of the wreck is totally the cause from the first driver failing to wait until it was clear to pass, as the weapon vehicle came over the brow of the hill and dodged right to avoid the car in his lane and did not see the cyclists already in that lane (looking for where other cars were not there). No way for a cyclist to avoid something like this without superhuman reaction times. Infrastructure that was “up to Dutch” would not have required the first vehicle (the one that caused the wreck) to have to change lanes to pass the cyclists because they would have been on a separate road, thereby eliminating the cause of the wreck.
Another report from Oz. Teen fined over crash which left cyclist injured The driver right crossed (remember they drive on the wrong side of the road in Oz) the cyclist and left him permanently injured, but because she hadn’t been driving very long and had a “clean record” the violation will be struck from her record if she completes her probation successfully.
Our Daily Ted. A big bike weekend, with the Grand Opening of Timbuk2 and Aika Trading, and Amoeba’s Hot August Bikes
Infrastructure! news from VT. Video raises bike law questions Yep, when the law is so complex that the people paid to enforce it don’t understand it, that law needs to be scrapped.
And crappy Infrastructure in the UK. Cycle path still not finished on 10th anniversary of cyclist’s death that secured council promise This was another example of “check-box” infrastructure, barely meeting minimums in width and going nowhere, basically just paint, and it still took 10 years and a lot of arm-twisting to get it done.
I keep mentioning “up to Dutch” as the standard for bicycle infrastructure and this link shows once again why that is. Pragmatism. When campaigners and planners should use it. How such things as car parking and beer delivery in the Netherlands are made to coexist with excellent cycling infrastructure Sometimes you have to get stuff to places that you can’t use a cargo bike, or you need to get cars put away in their garages, or tractors to and from their fields. It can be done! and without endangering anyone when bicycles are given first priority during the planning and design phases of the project.
And another e-assist bike hits the market. Riide plans to make D.C. a hub for electric bikes, so we gave one a spin Fast, but not much range, and an unknown on hills. The secret for building hub motor e-bikes is to adjust the motor winds and voltage so that it develops peak power just below the speed limit for that jurisdiction, then use a controller that limits the RPM of the motor to the maximum allowable speed. That way you don’t have to slow down as much going up hills and you are in the motor’s sweet spot for most cruising. And I’m giving away the secret for free. You’re welcome. 🙂
And I’m closing tonight with something I don’t normally do. I’m asking you to sign a petition. Mike Brown Law. Requires all state, county, and local police to wear a camera. We cyclists know the value of an unbiased observer on our sides, the unblinking eye of the video camera. I hear tell of one UK cyclist that has no less than 7 video cameras going at once every time he throws a leg over a bicycle. I figure if it’s good enough to protect cyclists against driver (most of the time, I’m not forgetting that VT video linked up above) then it should protect civilians against police violence and LEO against false accusations of police violence.
And those were all the links that gave me fits and giggles about bikes today.
Billed @€0.02, Opus
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Witch on a Bicycle 
I have to take a different route but I have my old compose page back, and the Feed
Well I have to use a new button on the dashboard instead of being able to use the WP banner tool, but I’m back at what looks like my previous compose page. The “preview” and “proofread” buttons are both back in their familiar locations. I hope the rest of the composing tools are also functional. One thing that seems to be permanently gone is the share button, which means Gigi won’t be able to log in from where ever she’s logging in from to leave links back from her page. And snarky comments, she was really good at leaving snarky comments. I never saw anybody that clicked on those links to read the post, but it felt better when she would come over and leave the snarky comment on her page, yannow?
Up first another scourge of modern times, the sleepy driver. Police: Driver hit and killed cyclist after falling asleep at the wheel There is not much a cyclist can do in a situation like this, even if they had been riding where they could be seen and avoided by the driver, the driver’s eyes would have to be open for that to happen. Infrastructure to Dutch standards would prevent wreck like this. For one thing there would be some serious rumble strips capable of stopping the car between the motorway and the cycle highway.
Closer to home in OK a cyclist is hit in a more urban environment. Car hits bicyclist near OCU campus The wreckage of the bike is so torn up I can’t tell which direction the cyclist was hit first. I mean the seat post is laying alongside the handlebars and you can plainly see the rear reflector jauntily next to what appears to be the top tube of the frame with one pedal visible from a crank that starts from somewhere out of frame… Drunk driver so nothing the cyclist could have done, infrastructure to Dutch CROW standards would probably have kept the cyclist away from the drunk driver and might even have convinced the drunk to not drive a car that night.
A needless wreck in KS as a driver passing another car hits a cyclist head on. Cyclist killed in Douglas County crash Umm, nope. Not a wreck that human reflexes and reactions could avoid. Get infrastructure that’s “up to Dutch” to prevent.
A driver assaults several IL cyclists on a group ride, in different groups around town. Police investigating motorist, cyclist incident Anyone seen the mayor of Sunset Hills MO lately? Being serious now, there is very little more than what the cyclists did that could be done to avoid a homicidal maniac like this dude. Segregated infrastructure paid for by crazy drivers like him would be the only way to prevent it. Still serious, you want to be crazy, you can be crazy, but it will cost you dearly.
The geometry of this IN wreck seriously troubles me. Lafayette doctor killed in cycling crash involving truck Seriously, they really think the cyclist right-hooked the truck?
Update on an Aussie killed in IN. Aust cyclist killed during ‘dream’ US trip I believe when I covered this back in July I pegged this as a hit-from-behind wreck, so protocols to avoid, infrastructure to prevent.
From CA more about the (drunk and high on meth) driver that went the wrong way on a one way loop road commonly used by cyclists to train. Wrong-Way Driver Hits Group of Cyclists on Fiesta Island This again shows why sometimes having access to motor vehicles is a Bad Thing for bicycle infrastructure. This was not bicycle infrastructure, just a nice road with no oncoming traffic and a speed limit that serious athletes had no problem maintaining or exceeding (within the 10 MPH+10% “tolerance” given to motor vehicles), but it does show what can happen when you make really good bike infra. Second thing to point out, that car is most likely totaled. Both A-pillars are bent and the windshield frame is buckled in the middle. The only way to repair it would be to cut the roof from an identical model and weld it to the unibody of that car, and I don’t think that car is worth the effort not to mention the costs involved.
Another wreck in CA, this one appears to be a cyclist that ran a stop sign or misjudged the closing speed of the weapon vehicle. Bicycle rider injured near downtown Woodland and Cyclist badly injured in minivan vs. bike crash in Woodland The driver was on a through street and the cyclist had a stop sign which leaves only the two possibilities I laid out. Infrastructure might have helped but I’m going to be honest on this one, I don’t think so if the bike path doesn’t have the priority at the intersection.
A SWCC from CA. 10-year old bike rider killed in Hesperia There is a possibility the cyclist was riding on the sidewalk which only adds to the information that confirms what a bad idea this is. Intersection protocols to avoid or reduce injury, and get the kids off sidewalks and on to “Dutch quality” bike paths to prevent.
A fatal buzz job from CA. Recumbent Cyclist Killed Was UCSB Grad Student Hit-from-behind protocols to avoid or to reduce damages, and get the infrastructure up to Dutch CROW standards to prevent.
This has not been a good day for CA cyclists as one carrying a passenger is cut off by a FedEx truck. Serious Injuries After FedEx Driver Strikes Cyclist And Passenger On Handlebars The way the narrative reads now the truck pulled out of a parking space directly into the side of the bike, and as you know the thing that sticks out the farthest on a bike are the handlebars. And what happens when the handlebars get hit? Yep the bike goes down, hard. Not sure if riding further out in the lane will prevent a similar wreck, but the area is already a mixed transport area quite similar to the Dutch Urban model, so about the only thing that could be changed would be the presumed liability law, motor vehicles are automatically at fault when hitting a pedestrian or cyclist in the street.
Another one of those limited information wrecks from GA. Bicyclist hit by car on Cobb Parkway Now the report reads the cyclist was “crossing” the highway when hit making this a SWCC wreck. There is an extremely low-res picture of the bike but I can’t get the “zoom in” feature to let me see the higher resolution picture so I can’t say anything for sure except that it is a bike in the road, or at least part of a bike. Since so many SWCC bike wrecks turn out to be hit-from-behind I’m going to go with those protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.
Get drunk and kill a cyclist and the worst that can happen is a 5 year prison term. Georgia man sentenced in fatal DUI crash that killed deaf cyclist The driver deliberately drove drunk in spite of being told twice he was too drunk to drive, commits hit-and-run leaving another human to die in the streets, and they only give him 5 years in prison and a $9K fine? It sucks to be a cyclist in GA, but it’s great to be a driver.
From the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike an apparent medical emergency causes a cyclist to ride across 2 lanes of traffic and into the side of a car. Weston Cyclist Killed After Being Hit by a Car The narrative is derived from several of the people riding with the victim, that he suddenly veered to the left and across an empty lane from the bicycle lane and hit a car in an inside lane. IOW this is the exact opposite of a SWSS, this may be the last act of a dying man.
One of the hazards of riding a group ride, from MA. Bicycle crash results in head trauma This is another one of those wrecks where bike infrastructure would not have done much except change the location of the wreck.
Another SWCC wreck (seems to be a theme today) in MI. Cyclist, 16, struck by vehicle, seriously injured Cyclist not able to tell LEO what happened from his point of view, and the only other witness was the driver of the weapon vehicle. Hit from behind protocols to avoid, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.
Update on a hit-and-run in the Great White North. Man, 25, turns himself in after cyclist struck and killed: police The weapon vehicle was one that was not licensed for use on the streets…
Another Great White North wreck of unknown cause as of this posting. Elderly male cyclist struck and killed in Mississauga The picture shows a bike hit from the left front. At this point the only thing LEO are releasing are the vehicle types (bike and cube van) and the intersection where the wreck took place. So intersection means intersection protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and update infrastructure using the CROW manual to prevent.
And another update on a hit-and-run from West Canuckistan. Pickup driver in hit-and-run that injured Coquitlam cyclist turns himself in
This wreck report from Oz has been sanitized from the original which was quoted in the Feed. Doctors battle to save injured cyclist’s leg “He was so badly injured that a portion of his thigh bone was found at the…” and the less gory second sentence were both missing from the link that existed this morning. The geometry of the wreck is totally the cause from the first driver failing to wait until it was clear to pass, as the weapon vehicle came over the brow of the hill and dodged right to avoid the car in his lane and did not see the cyclists already in that lane (looking for where other cars were not there). No way for a cyclist to avoid something like this without superhuman reaction times. Infrastructure that was “up to Dutch” would not have required the first vehicle (the one that caused the wreck) to have to change lanes to pass the cyclists because they would have been on a separate road, thereby eliminating the cause of the wreck.
Another report from Oz. Teen fined over crash which left cyclist injured The driver right crossed (remember they drive on the wrong side of the road in Oz) the cyclist and left him permanently injured, but because she hadn’t been driving very long and had a “clean record” the violation will be struck from her record if she completes her probation successfully.
Our Daily Ted. A big bike weekend, with the Grand Opening of Timbuk2 and Aika Trading, and Amoeba’s Hot August Bikes
Infrastructure! news from VT. Video raises bike law questions Yep, when the law is so complex that the people paid to enforce it don’t understand it, that law needs to be scrapped.
And crappy Infrastructure in the UK. Cycle path still not finished on 10th anniversary of cyclist’s death that secured council promise This was another example of “check-box” infrastructure, barely meeting minimums in width and going nowhere, basically just paint, and it still took 10 years and a lot of arm-twisting to get it done.
I keep mentioning “up to Dutch” as the standard for bicycle infrastructure and this link shows once again why that is. Pragmatism. When campaigners and planners should use it. How such things as car parking and beer delivery in the Netherlands are made to coexist with excellent cycling infrastructure Sometimes you have to get stuff to places that you can’t use a cargo bike, or you need to get cars put away in their garages, or tractors to and from their fields. It can be done! and without endangering anyone when bicycles are given first priority during the planning and design phases of the project.
And another e-assist bike hits the market. Riide plans to make D.C. a hub for electric bikes, so we gave one a spin Fast, but not much range, and an unknown on hills. The secret for building hub motor e-bikes is to adjust the motor winds and voltage so that it develops peak power just below the speed limit for that jurisdiction, then use a controller that limits the RPM of the motor to the maximum allowable speed. That way you don’t have to slow down as much going up hills and you are in the motor’s sweet spot for most cruising. And I’m giving away the secret for free. You’re welcome. 🙂
And I’m closing tonight with something I don’t normally do. I’m asking you to sign a petition. Mike Brown Law. Requires all state, county, and local police to wear a camera. We cyclists know the value of an unbiased observer on our sides, the unblinking eye of the video camera. I hear tell of one UK cyclist that has no less than 7 video cameras going at once every time he throws a leg over a bicycle. I figure if it’s good enough to protect cyclists against driver (most of the time, I’m not forgetting that VT video linked up above) then it should protect civilians against police violence and LEO against false accusations of police violence.
And those were all the links that gave me fits and giggles about bikes today.
Billed @€0.02, Opus
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