Things just keep getting better for my neck, and the Feed

I can’t believe how much better my neck is feeling just 3 days post-op. It is like a whole world of difference between Monday and Friday in terms of pain and mobility. I can stand up straight, no back pain, and only a tiny bit of discomfort on the incision site. I am so glad I finally got this thing done. Even sleeping is better now…

Up first are a bunch of links to more RoS articles, this being that time of year. Cyclists blessed, ride in silence also Cyclists hit the road to honor past victims and Ride of Silence to Commemorate Death of Maui Cyclist not done yet Cyclists share message for drivers and another report from South TX McAllen event honors injured, killed cyclists and Event honors injured, killed cyclists from MI Holland Ride of Silence remembers, honors local cyclists killed while riding a bicycle and this even Ride of Silence to honor injured or killed bicyclists still more Ride in Silence draws 250-300 to Clermont not done yet Bicyclists ride in remembrance of those killed another one from Maui Bicyclists conduct silent ride to remember slain Kihei cyclist

Remembering one of ours killed in a terrible way. Funeral Friday in Windsor for murdered cyclist John Jacoby, service at Faith United Church of Christ Now they are calling the death a murder, but why not when a cyclist is just left to die after getting hit with a much more deadly weapon, a motor vehicle? A later report Funeral held for Windsor cyclist found shot, killed More Race Canceled Amid Anxiety Over Colorado Roadway Shootings This was not just about the cyclist who was shot, but all the other vehicles that got shot, too.

Our Daily Ted. LA County DA rules Gardena police were justified to shoot and kill the unarmed brother of a bike theft victim

Still in CA, we get another person failing to look both ways before crossing a train track with the crossing arms down. Woman Riding Bicycle Killed By Train In Riverside Not getting hit by a train is easy, you just have to not be on the track when there is a train on the track.

More on the teen killed in a MA pinball wreck. Driver in crash that claimed young man’s life unlicensed and Boston man held on $250,000 bail in death of cyclist

Had he survived, the teen driver in a VT wreck that killed a cyclist and the driver while driving nearly three times the speed limit would have been facing murder charges. With raw candor, Hinesburg chief opens up

Does an intersection that encourages trucks to make right turns without stopping cause drivers to hit cyclists on the through route? Widow’s lawsuit aims to make Route 75 safer for bicyclists People are getting hit regularly, and the widow is offering to pay for a traffic signal to prevent another wreck but nobody is taking her up on the offer.

NYC continues to not meet their Vision Zero goals monthly. NYPD: Drivers Injured 991 Pedestrians and Cyclists in April, and Killed Seven They’re 7 shy of meeting the goal for April…

You can’t fix it when you don’t know where the problems are. Cyclists, pedestrians lack a good crash reporting system If you don’t know where people are getting hit…

This Canadian rider uses their legal system to get compensation for neglected infrastructure. Injured cyclist sues city for $152,500 over potholes The pothole had been reported repeatedly over a period of months and not fixed even after the cyclist wiped out…

A cyclist in Jolly Olde gets hurt in an attempted bike-jacking. Cyclist injured in attempted robbery in Doncaster

In NYC a cyclist uses a Citi Bike to maneuver through the streets and rob people. Video of Man Believed to Be Bike-Riding Thief Is Released

In other infrastructure news, this is why TX will never see Vision Zero as a priority. Speed limit signs installed around Denison High School Yes that is a 35 MPH “School Zone”. Moving cars quickly is much more important than keeping children alive in TX.

And the DIY DOT begins operations in TX. Residents of Big Lake Take Fixing Potholes Into Their Own Hands

Ghost Bike in the UK. “What happens if you don’t come home?” The White Bike script to debut at Edinburgh Festival of Cycling

Total waste of time and resources. Cyclist invents handlebar lights to signal safer future on roads For these to be effective drivers would have to be looking, and if drivers wre looking then we wouldn’t need to use flashers. These might work a bit better if only because the shape attracts attention. Cyclists attach testicle shaped Bike Balls to seats to improve road safety

And there probably won’t be a Sunday post because of 18 hours of televised motorsports, between Monaco, Indianapolis, and Charlotte… and the pre- and post-race shows… And 1400 miles of oval and road (street circuit) races… (drool)

And I’m out of links tonight.

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One of those days, and the Feed

Today is one of “those” days where I feel like strangling a politician, making it a good thing there aren’t any in reach. The Feed had a number of proposed bills for cyclists that did not actually do anything to protect cyclists but did make people feel like they had “done something”. Also Mrs. the Poet was out in the garage complaining about my stash of used bikes that I use to make art bikes and recumbents from. Then she started getting into some of the things that keep me from actually being able to use those bikes as I intended to when I got them, all the other people’s junk that keeps me from being able to get to my tools and workspace in the garage. Lots of cussing about that coming from the garage whilst I was trying to filter links.

Up first is one of those “What were they thinking?” laws I was reading about. Bill would require neon clothes, government ID for cyclists There are some things that would be a great idea, and others not so much. Rear lights, good idea, government ID, not so much. I see this bill being used mostly as a way to bludgeon the poor and homeless, not as an effective tool for bicycle safety.

A really bizarre case in NYC gets even weirder. Bag Of Rats Offers New Evidence In Fatal Williamsburg Hit & Run They recovered a plastic bag of “live frozen” rats from the weapon vehicle at the scene, with the defendant’s fingerprints on it. Also the defendant has a criminal history that includes killing people. The weapon vehicle was doing almost 70 in a 30 MPH zone when he hit the cab.

Another off-the-wall scene in an NYC court. Mother Of Unlicensed Teen Driver Who Killed 4-Year-Old Lashes Out In Court She’s lucky her unlicensed son was not charged with illegal possession of a deadly weapon.

Using mind-reading helmets to plan lower-stress cycling in NYC. NYC bike map based on riders’ brainwaves tells you which routes are the most stressful or relaxing How about building some Dutch-quality infrastructure for making low-stress routes?

Why has building infrastructure for active transportation become a political football? Koch-funded groups coalesce around axing all federal funding for walking, biking and transit and Koch-Funded Groups: Cut All Federal Funding for Walking, Biking, Transit I looked at the proposal and all it does is lock in transportation planning from 50 and 60 years ago to the exclusion of every other alternative, basically “Cars über alles”.

More on technical means of keeping drivers from running over cyclists and pedestrians. Here’s How Car Makers Are Trying to Make Streets Safer for Bicycle Commuters Some car-makers are using passive sensors that don’t require anything from the cyclist or pedestrian other than being there and potentially moving into conflict with the motor vehicle, while others are requiring vulnerable users to carry devices that warn the car of their presence, path, and velocity so the car can then warn the driver. If you don’t have these devices then the car doesn’t tell the driver you’re there…

Infrastructure news from America’s Amsterdam, Portland OR. Novick says PBOT will use state study to address speeding, lack of bikeway on Barbur The lane closures from the construction did not seriously affect the non-rush traffic except to slow it down slightly under the posted speed limit.

Some infrastructure news from OR. City issues bike parking code violation to Jantzen Beach Home Depot I am in awe and totally jealous that they even have a bike parking code. I have been lobbying the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell for a bike parking ordinance for almost 10 years now. We still don’t have one.

More infrastructure from across the Columbia from Portland OR. Damaged sections of waterfront trail reopen

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: January was a good month for SoCal cyclists, walkability survey and still more bike events

Still in SoCal we get this lifestyle event. SLAIN CYCLIST HONORED AT ORANGE COUNTY MEMORIAL RIDE RIP rider…

Struggling to provide a connection for two trans-continental bike routes. PLEASE SUPPORT BICYCLE ROUTE 66 This is a vital connection for both the Southern Tier bike route and the Heartland bike route. BR66 is also a potential major tourist bike route. Having a big unrideable gap like that just east of LA just cuts too many people off from the rest of the country.

And I seem to have run out of links again.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Finally paid all my property taxes, and the Feed

I made my final trip this year to pay my property taxes, at the GISD tax office. Now I understand why there was a line out the door when they stopped accepting payments Friday, there isn’t enough room inside for more than 2 people to be in line before they hit the door. There were 4 windows to pay at, but I don’t know how many people they had to take the money Friday. Today they only had 2 people working the 4 windows, but there was no line and I was in and out in seconds.

We are going to start out with a double dose of Our Daily Ted. Weekend Links: Burbank Sunday Funday ride; Spokane police bend over backward to blame bike riding victim and A rider fallen, family and friends shattered, and a young woman on the verge of hard time

And to go with that second Ted link… Bike ride to honor Irvine cyclist killed on Santiago Canyon Road

Another link to cycling lifestyle in FL, the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike. Critical Mass Comes a Week After Cyclist’s Death and another protest Cyclists Gather Over Concerns For Safety Amid Deaths

This was how things were when I was a kid. This Is How Normal Walking to School Used to Be For some reason they just left off things like sidewalks as subdivisions grew up in what used to be rural areas. And then there was the “Stranger Danger” panic, so now most kids only get to school by bus or by car, and some places will arrest parents trying to walk with their children.

More victim-blaming from NC. Being reminded of the ‘see and be seen’ mantra Heaven forfend that we should place any onus on drivers to not run their killing machines into cyclists and pedestrians using the roads with them.

A bit of infrastructure from Jolly Olde. Dramatic rise in road deaths as numbers of traffic police fall Surprise, surprise, when you don’t enforce the laws people ignore them.

Speaking of bad UK infrastructure, this updates at the beginning of every month. Cycle Facility of the Month Yes, that is a bollard-protected bike path that is just over a meter long.

I keep getting invited to these things, but I don’t know why exactly. Vigil and Die-In If someone could get with me (maybe by a FB message?) and tell me why I’m getting invited to a UK protest from TX.

More about the unconscious driver that ran over a cyclist during a diabetic episode. “…An accident waiting to happen ” – Diabetic who fell unconscious while driving jailed for seriously injuring cyclist and Diabetic crash driver jailed

When drivers break traffic laws they’re bad drivers/people. When cyclists break traffic laws all cyclists are “provocative”. Provocative cyclists

Sometimes advertisers have a “tin ear” when it comes to cyclists. Taxi advert shows cabbie running over a cyclist I’m absolutely convinced that many of not most cyclists get hit by taxis in search of a big payout, not because cabbies drive like maniacs. [/sarcasm].

Another veteran gets back into life thanks to the UK version of the Wounded Warrior Project. Injured veteran’s vow to join Help for Heroes cyclists set to be fulfilled

Some Ozzie cyclists remind a news media outlet that the plural of “anecdote” is not “data”. Cycling risks insurance This bit is about 2 Page Downs from the top of the page.

In bits and pieces, even sub-standard infrastructure can look great. The best cycling infrastructure in cities around the world – your pictures

And I’m fresh outta links.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet