Yep, after a slight recovery yesterday I had a slight relapse today, but I got nagged out of bed and consumed calories so I’m able to filter links and do the blog. And yes, that was Mrs. the Poet doing the nagging. I still feel like crap, but I feel like I have enough functioning brain cells to compose a post without looking too stupid, or as Gigi puts it in her blog critiques, “Stoopid”. The timeline so far is that I slept until 1600 or so yesterday, was wiped out and back asleep by 0200 and did not wake back up until around 1330 today and still felt like cold crap even then. I had the breakfast that was left over from yesterday, re-heated, then about an hour later (1500) Mrs. the Poet fixed soup and sandwiches for lunch that I finally finished about 1600, and it is now 1745 as I type this and aside from having to wrap my legs in a blanket I’m mostly alert and active. I’m just getting ready to filter the Feed for relevant links, but I REALLY need to take a shower…
Up first is another bit of Schadenfreude about a killer driver. Bishop charged in cyclist death to remain in Baltimore jail Drunk driver blows 3 times the legal limit with a previous DUI and FINALLY gets some serious bail imposed after she kills someone. And while I feel some righteous indignation that the victim was a cyclist, I would feel almost the same had she killed a pedestrian, not quite the same had she killed another driver because there would be a strong possibility that killing another driver would result in serious injury for her. But yes, I’m having lots of schadenfreude about her having to stay in jail until trial, which might be in another 2 or 3 years.
And while we are in the legal infrastructure side of things, another driver gets a caress on the wrist for hitting 3 people and killing the one riding the bicycle. Distracted Driver Gets 1 Year In Minn. Crash That Killed Cyclist Mom Actually 360 days in local jail with time out for attending drill with his National Guard unit, so it’s an “interrupted” year.
This bill could potentially provide us with an endless stream of physical infrastructure, or be used to prevent federal funds from ever being used to build bicycle infrastructure. All Bill Information (Except Text) for H.R.199 – To authorize the Secretary of Transportation to establish a pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure credit assistance pilot program, and for other purposes.
Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: New hope for North Fig and Santa Monica Blvd; bike rider attacked on San Gabriel River trail
Another link from Oz that conflates wearing a bicycle helmet with avoiding injury on a bike. Cyclists’ injuries getting worse The article is about being dragged under a large vehicle like a semi, something that is so far out of the envelope of a bicycle helmet’s protection that it might as well be circling the rings of Saturn… but yet they still manage to mention wearing helmets while also talking about massive internal injuries that require weeks if not months of bed rest to recover from. Last I checked helmets only covered the top part of the head and did nothing to prevent internal injuries.
I don’t know why this article on passing cyclists safely includes a picture of the 2014 TdF peloton riding in the rain. RSA urges passing drivers to stay clear of cyclists The people in charge of suggesting rules have the right idea, but what are the editors of the media outlet trying to do?
Cyclists generally have big hearts, and not (just) because we are endurance athletes. Cyclists get on their bikes in support of injured rugby player Owen Williams
Another link about that useless “safety” app from Volvo. Volvo’s Next Safety Frontier: Tech To Help Drivers Share The Road With Cyclists As I pointed out before, this thing only works if you have a compatible cell phone with you as you ride, and for the foreseeable future only applies to Volvos driven with the app activated by the driver. Every other vehicle is still just as blind to you as before. Which is pretty much everybody.
And last link, bicycles and handcycles are a vehicle to recovery for physically and mentally damaged veterans. Wounded Warriors Interact With Dolphins, Bike Across Keys Bridge
And those were all the links I could find.
Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet
Witch on a Bicycle 