Another huge Monday Feed

I took a look at the Feed Folder today and at a quick glance it looks huge (or YUUuuge). Now how many of those links are duplicates is an open question, there are some duplicates without a question. If I’m lucky most of the links will be dupes, otherwise I may be sitting at this computer for a long time tonight.

Up first because of proximity a cyclist is hit from behind by a driver making an illegal pass on the shoulder. Cyclist killed in Highway 12 crash The driver got impatient and tried to pass a car by driving on the shoulder, which is semi-legal in TX if the car being passed is stopped and there isn’t anyone to hit on the shoulder. There is nothing a cyclist can do in a situation like this.

Still in TX we get a six vehicle pileup that sends a cyclist to hospital without a single motor vehicle involved so far as we know. Six bicyclists involved in crash in Fulshear

Ted had Too Much Fun at CicLAvia in the first half of Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Images from Sunday’s CicLAvia, and a NY cyclist is bumped by an SUV, then threatened with arrest

Daily Ted part 2. Huntington Beach bike rider has died following last week’s bike lane collision

The most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike takes another victim. Man on bicycle dies after being hit by car SWCC wreck, except there were two people inside the weapon vehicle.

People who have never been chased by a dog are blaming the cyclist for shooting a dog outside of a fence in rural Wyoming. Decorated combat dog killed after allegedly attacking cyclist and Army Vet Mourns the Loss of Service Dog and Retired Military K-9 After He Was Fatally Shot by Cyclist From the various stories I have read that I can’t link to the cyclist carried a .41 Magnum revolver in a holster on the top tube of the bike loaded with .410 shotgun shells to be a mostly non-lethal means of dealing with feral animals and snakes while riding and does not understand how the bird shot in the shotgun shell could have killed the animal.

Back in CA a cyclist is injured “running” a red. Cyclist fighting for his life after Miramar crash That intersection is huge! There were “only” 6 traffic lanes, a left turn lane, and a right turn lane but I measured the width the cyclist had to cross at between 105 and 110 feet. Even going with the smaller of the two measurements that’s still an average lane width of more than 13 feet. If the cyclist was watching the oncoming traffic for a left cross more than the traffic signal he could have entered a second or two after the amber and been caught in the middle or outer through lanes when the light changed.

More on the CO cyclist critically injured in a hit-and-run. State Patrol Releases Name Of Cyclist Seriously Injured In Hit & Run Why in so many of these wrecks is the weapon vehicle a ratty pickup truck?

Not sure exactly how this wreck happened, just that it did. Cyclist killed by tractor-trailer in Botetourt County The driver left the scene but came back. So there is at least a hit-and-run charge involved, right?

A couple of states over from that wreck we get another serious wreck in DE. Delaware troopers investigating fatal crash in Long Neck that killed a cyclist Another fatal SWCC wreck. I would like to see the bike wreckage. The nose of the car was messed up by whatever else it ran into after hitting the cyclist, so the only possible reliable evidence in this wreck is the bicycle.

What is the best way to prevent winning the door prize? Not having anyone trying to give you one! Oregon Attorney Releases Bicycle Dooring Video PSA “Look For Cyclists” I think making dooring a cyclist a crime commensurate with the possible consequences would also help a lot. “If I open this door without looking I could possibly kill a cyclist and go to prison for a long time. I better take two looks just to make sure.”

Back in CA for a non-wreck story with two links. Injured Veterans Cycle Through Central Coast to Los Angeles and Palo Alto: 200 cycling vets take off on recovery ride As always WoaB suggests getting out and supporting these veterans.

A little MI infrastructure changes going on as Northern cities start to downsize after all their jobs were shipped overseas. A Plan in Progress for a Bike-Friendly Detroit Metro Area There seems to be an abundance of space even on the “Boulevard of Dreams” now that so many cars just flat aren’t there any more.

And in OH they are having the same situation, an excess of road capacity. A 40-Block Bike Path Could Be Coming to Cleveland “Back when Lorain Avenue was built, we had a million people in the city of Cleveland,” Tom McNair, director of the west side development group, Ohio City Incorporated, told WCRN. “We now have 400,000.” So with less than ½ the population you need less than ½ the street capacity that already exists, time for some quick road diets.

A Ghost bike goes up in SD. Local cyclists honor crash victim with ghost bike The driver of the weapon vehicle crossed a sidewalk fast enough to kill a cyclist…

Cyclist right-hooked in the Great White North. Cyclist injured in collision with vehicle Sunday

Aftermath of a hit-and-run in Jolly Olde. Cyclist narrowly avoided death after hit-and-run in Sunderland It’s a good thing the cyclist was able to crawl out of the road after getting hit and breaking his spine. It’s a bad thing that he had to.

Whee! The weapon vehicle burst into flames after hitting the cyclist. Cyclist critically injured, car in flames after collision This is the first time I remember a car going up in flames after hitting a cyclist. Did the broken bike tear loose a fuel line underneath the vehicle?

Last link is from Oz, as a cyclist and a van have a “meeting of the minds”. Cyclist, van in serious city crash near Victoria Park racecourse Any time a cyclist is hit it’s “serious”. Well almost any time, there’s “horrific” and “deadly” at one end of the scale, and “minor injuries” at the other, but how often do you see “minor injuries” in report about a motor vehicle and a bike wrecking. This report seems to be about the second half of the wreck as …”Early investigations indicate the man lost control negotiating a high kerb and veered into the path of the van, which was travelling east on Wakefield Rd.” Why would the cyclist have been trying to negotiate a high curb (American spelling) unless he was run off the road or trying to avoid getting hit?

And that’s all I got today.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

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I went for a massage today, and the Feed

Since the last file of links won’t show up in the Feed folder until after midnight Friday is a good day to go do things. So I went to get a massage to try to do something about my neck, which has stopped getting better about two weeks ago. My range of motion hasn’t improved much over the big jump I had on the day after surgery, and my neck still cracks every time I try looking up. The good thing today was after the massage I was able to turn the overhead light on without using Braille, I could look almost straight up to find the pull chain on the light. That won’t last, but I hope there will be some carryover until I get another massage.

Up first is Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: OC hit-and-run truck driver guilty; SGV bike rider found beaten to death; get ready for CicLAvia Didn’t that trial just start Tuesday?

From down the road a day’s ride. Memorial ride planned Saturday for bicyclist Brian Silva “This from Please Be Kind to Cyclists …”

And motor vehicles in NYC killed the same number of pedestrians in June as people on bicycles killed since 2000. NYPD: Drivers Injured 1,228 Pedestrians and Cyclists in June, and Killed 10 The 10 includes one dead cyclist…

This NYC wreck is just troubling. No Charges for Driver Who Killed 72-Year-Old Cyclist in Sunset Park and 72-Year-Old Brooklyn Cyclist Killed 1 Block From Home As was pointed out in the Streetsblog article, the cyclist or the driver could have run the red, or the cyclist could have entered with the green and gotten balked by pedestrian traffic and then the driver failed to yield. Only one of those scenarios has the cyclist at fault.

Update on a FL fatal hit-and-run. Suspect arrested in hit-and-run that killed teen on bike They did a database search for cars matching the description, narrowed it down by specifying a radius from the wreck and then went and looked at all the cars until they found the weapon vehicle. Exactly what I told the detective to do in my wreck, but he said it was “too hard”…

This Chicago cyclist isn’t fooling around. Cyclist avows injuries, sues three The driver that doored her, the driver that hit her when she got doored, because he shouldn’t have been driving, and the owner of the car that hit her for allowing a driver who was required to have “adult supervision” to drive alone. If she’d lucky she might get enough to pay her doctor and hospital bills and cover her lost income and maybe even the costs of moving after losing her apartment…

A cyclist in VA is found bleeding on the side of the road. Stuart man injured while riding bicycle Apparently they don’t think he was hit by anything, just fell down after getting dizzy or something.

The links to this Boston hit-and-run report keep changing as I write this, so I have no idea what you’re going to find when you click. Truck, driver connected to fatal bicycle crash located out of state That was originally a description of a bog-standard right hook, complete with a semi turning from the wrong lane across a bike lane. Police Find Driver After Fatal Bicycle Accident In Boston and this one Police locate truck that hit, killed bicyclist OK they found the driver and the weapon vehicle. and the comments from the first link are continuing to blame the cyclist even though they are saying the truck violated her right of way.

Another hit-and-run in Chuck. Judge sets bond for woman accused of DUI in fatal Hollywood crash OK that link changed and now the driver was “just” drunk.

I’m just flabbergasted with this link. Man charged in collision that seriously injured cyclist in Chapel Hill What surprised me the most is NC has a reputation of blaming cyclists for being there to get hit, and less than 4 days after the wreck they have criminally charged the driver for making a right hook.

The Mounties got their man! Oshawa man charged in Stouffville-area hit-and-run involving cyclist and Police arrest man in April hit-and-run that left cyclist seriously injured Is that the charges, or a laundry list?

A cyclist in the Great White North left-crosses herself. Cyclist seriously injured in Fort Erie and Senior cyclist serious hurt in Fort Erie collision What more can I say? Left turning vehicles must yield to through vehicles.

This tale from the Great White North sounds exactly like a Buzz Job. Cyclist injured in collision near Delhi, Ont.

This is about as far east as you can get in Canada without taking a ferry. Cyclist injured After looking at the front of that car, if the driver stopped it was only for a fraction of a second and it was burning rubber until contact with the cyclist. IOW this was a left cross at speed.

And Canadians can only stay polite for so long. It’s a mixed up, shook up world when pedestrians punch cyclists

[facepalm] Lorry driver who caused death of Denbighshire cyclist by careless driving has driving ban cut on appeal [/facepalm] Seriously?!? Only 5 years of not-driving for killing while driving and it was still too much? and he didn’t even get community service…

Part 2. County Durham bus driver spared jail after killing Washington cyclist Les Turnbull Another killer driver gets probation and a meaningless driving ban instead of something appropriate, like drawing and quartering.

Texting and driving is bad, umm kay? Deal Mum of teenage cyclist Daniel Squire features in emotional video for new phone app and Mum’s campaign to prevent texting at wheel after death of her son

Oh Ghisallo, fix this junction or direct large heavy vehicles away from it. Bank crash: Cyclist hit by van at notorious junction where Ying Tao was killed in lorry crash The only thing that prevented this from being a fatality was low speed and the weapon vehicle being comparatively light (compared to a semi that is).

Automating road surveys so they are done constantly instead of once or twice a year. Pittsburgh Program Looks to Seal the Cracks in Urban Road Management Good pavement looks textureless to the program, but as the pavement degrades it develops more and more texture, until it hits a point where it has to be replaced. Using this program will keep maintenance from getting behind the curve so that roads can be repaired instead of rebuilt and lower costs.

And when our robotic overlords take over the streets they will be polite to cyclists and pedestrians. This is why self-driving cars will be programmed to let cyclists rule the roads

And that was the last link, and I’m beat.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Unkillable Badass Poet (current time is 0227 )

Waiting on pins and needles, and the Feed

First, there will be some gaps in coverage this week for the blog. I have a trip to the Lab Rat Keeper coming Wednesday, and the consult with the surgeon Thursday, and the surgery could get scheduled at any time after that. Which leads us directly to today’s headline, about the dread and anticipation for this mess to be over. What I want is for this to just be an exceptionally ugly lump of fat sitting on the back of my neck. What I’m prepared for is for this to be something far worse. Hope for the best but prepare for the worst got me through the ’60s and ’70s alive and mostly unscarred (not the kind that you can show off to your GF and brag about). So, my will is written, insurance is paid up, bills are current, in case this turns out to be something worse than “Chris Christie” on my neck. It’s the waiting and not knowing that kills you. Maybe literally, but I have been doing a lot of meditation to reduce stress, and Hephaestus has been poking me about finding a Corvette donor vehicle from this century for the Sprint T to get the weight down to 1580 pounds with 8 gallons of gas on board (can you imagine what that would be like to drive with 380-635 HP on the street?!). All to try to reduce my stress levels to something I can deal with.

Up first is the response to a wreck in Portland OR, America’s Copenhagen. Sunday morning collision at 26th and Powell severs leg of man on bike (updated) is the wreck, what follows are the reactions Campaign looks to raise $50,000 for man who lost leg in Sunday’s collision and Local dad calls for ‘super-legal slow-down’ of Powell Boulevard during Monday rush hour last Protest planned after bicycle rider’s leg severed in Powell Blvd. crash

Speaking of fundraising for people hit by cars while riding bikes. Online fundraiser set for Cary boy killed on bike

Today’s Daily Ted. Morning Links: It’s Bike Week in LA, meet a real American hero, win a free book and ride a tiny new bike lane If they really wanted to show some tiny bike lanes there is a web site devoted to the subject in the UK. Notice how the bike path leads into a shared use bus stop.

In NYC they can’t even be bothered to enforce the law that says hitting a pedestrian in a crosswalk is against the law. Woman Fatally Struck By Taxi On Upper East Side

Still in NYC. Video: Intoxicated Driver Helpfully Takes Off Shirt For Cops After Houston Street Crash At least taking the shirt off makes it easier to get the blood draw for the DUI conviction.

And what it takes to get a conviction and prison time for killing a little girl in the streets of NYC is for the little girl to get hit riding in another car. Driver Who Killed 9-Year-Old While Fleeing Cops Gets At Least Four Years In Prison

A West Canuckistan bike rack that has a six-step locking procedure. A bicycle lockup stand that might be too complicated to use A saving grace to this stand is there appears to be room to lock a helmet inside the stand so you don’t have to carry it around or leave it unlocked with your bike.

These two links go together. First is this wreck. Bicyclist, 26, killed in North Philadelphia accident identified as Temple grad and filmmaker

And then there is this one. Philly Is Racking Up the Bike-Friendly Points Yes you can still count your city as “Bike Friendly” while it kills cyclists.

A Canadian crackdown on sidewalk cyclists is not accompanied by a crackdown on driver behaviors that necessitate sidewalk cyclists. Police ticket e-bike, bicycle riders on sidewalks

Silly season in the UK. MoD pays out £334,000 compensation to cyclists who injured themselves on military bases including £27,000 to one who slipped on mud

Gee the Oz driver that killed (and apparently murdered) a cyclist in a hit-and-run was bonkers angry at cyclists weeks before he actually killed one. Deadly hit and run driver in Geelong ‘harassed other cyclists’ Fascinating how that works, a driver is identified as having harassed cyclists for weeks and finally cracks and kills one.

You think Thai cyclists might be a bit peeved at the lax enforcement against drunk drivers? Cyclists equate drink-driving, murder Gee, ya think?

More about celebrity cyclist Bono. Bono Rides a Bike for the First Time Since His Accident – with a Little Help from Jimmy Fallon

A little Dutch infrastructure news. The solar road in the Netherlands is working even better than expected Yeah! Solar power from the street! And the street does not get potholes. Win-win situation.

Are you that cyclist? Don’t be THAT CYCLIST This is poor behavior to other cyclists for the most part, road rules was just an afterthought on the end of the article.

And this is something we cyclists have to be careful about. Candy company to kids: Don’t eat too much sugar! Wait a minute you say, how does this apply to cyclists? Have you read the nutrition labels on your energy gels?

And it looks like I’m out of links again.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

I think there was a song about this back in the ’70s, and the Feed

Yes there was a song about this back in the early ’80s. I have to wait until the surgeon gets the MRI to look at then talks to me and some time after the 14^th I will go to the hospital and get the lump cut out. I’m going to try to get pictures taken of the procedure or at the very least of the GOP presidential candidate useless lump of fat after it has been removed from my neck.

Up first, are you up to the challenge of National Bike Month? Welcome to the challenge | The National Bike Challenge If someone wants to name a team “Witch on a Bicycle” or “Witches on Bicycles” let me know and I’ll post your standings and progress in the blog every day.

A more local Bike Month celebration. MAY IS BIKE MONTH IN DENTON! Not exactly local, but a lot more “local” than the paragraph before.

Bike Month in NC. Bike Month offers variety of options for cyclists here in May Looks like they are having fun.

Some good news from MD. Episcopal Bishop Accused in Drunken-Driving Death Resigns I don’t know if she’s trying to use the Freddy Gray disturbances to fly this under the radar or what, but she can’t hide from the Witch on a Bicycle.

If this cyclist had been any more conspicuous she would have been mistaken for a UFO. Wrongful death suit filed in bicyclist’s death

A UK cyclist will probably still be in hospital by the end of National Bike Month. Cyclist remains in coma two weeks after his fall in Ingatestone

Infrastructure in Philly. ‘Spring Garden Greenway’ seen for cyclists, walkers Not so sure about the bike lanes replacing the median. That’s not in the CROW manual AFAIK, but we will see how that works.

Infrastructure in the Great White North. Group wants changes after cyclist hit by car near superhospital Really? a 6 second time for pedestrians and cyclists to go through the intersection with cars getting many times that just ain’t anything like fair.

A little non-bike infrastructure as they try to reduce car usage in car-sick South FL. Tampa Mayor Wants to Fix the Streetcar He Once Voted Against “I’m about to go to a meeting and I’m probably not going to take it … if I ride my bike, I’ll get there faster.” But it still gets people out of their cars, so that’s good.

The headline pretty much speaks for itself. In Portland, crime has plummeted in every major category except one Three guesses about which category didn’t go down, and the first two don’t count.

The Windy City wants to be something else. Why Chicago Is Claiming Bike-Share Bragging Rights

Another dubious “bicycle safety” article included for your amusement. SMART CYCLING: Kessler Institute Offers 10 Tips for Safe Riding Another article using that disgraced “85% reduction in head injury” helmet lie.

Speaking of helmet follies, this shattered helmet supposedly saved a cyclist’s life. SEE IT: British cyclist shows bloody helmet that saved his life after getting hit by van Looking at the second picture I see very little evidence of the crushing that is the ONLY way a bicycle helmet can absorb the energy applied to the cyclist’s skull in a wreck. What I do see is a shattered helmet that did not do much to protect the cyclist.

And another breathless panic piece terrifies pedestrians. Pedestrians need protection from illegal cyclists Really bicycles are scary because we conflate them with motor vehicles, because they are both fast-moving vehicles. This results in irrational fear.

And as this posts after the last submission to the Feed folder at midnight, I’m going to hope you had a happy Beltain.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Changes made to Francis/es, and the Feed

Well I swapped out the seat that came on Francis/es for something that fits my butt a little better. The Planet Bike seat that came with Francis/es was not a bad seat, it was just the wrong seat for my butt. This is no more a criticism of the bike than saying the shoes they gave you with a uniform were the wrong size is a criticism of the shoes. The seat did not fit my butt, YMMV as your butt is not the same size/shape as my butt. Now the problem is my knees hit the handlebars and I have them as high up as they can go and the seat as far back as it can go, so now I have to build that extended stem so I can sit up straight and not hit my knees on the handlebars. 😛

Murder by motor vehicle in Houston. DEADLY HIT-AND-RUN: PICKUP DRIVER SOUGHT AFTER CYCLIST KILLED IN NORTH HOUSTON Hit-and-run is a felony in TX, any death that happens during the course of a felony is murder in TX, therefore hit-and-run that kills a cyclist is murder by motor vehicle. QED. No mode given in the article or in the video, and I couldn’t see enough of the wrecked bike to even take a wild guess at the mode.

A semi kills a cyclist in NM. Cyclist killed by semi-trailer near Tularosa and Semi hits, kills bicyclist in Otero County The narrative on this one makes zero sense, they are claiming it was a sideswipe but also that the cyclist was hit by the front tire of the semi. The two statements are geometrically impossible. By the time the front bumper of a semi is even with the handlebars of a cyclist in drop bars the front of the tire is roughly even with his hip. There is not enough space for a cyclist to get hit by the tire if the trigger event is the bumper hitting the handlebars causing the cyclist to fall in front of the tire. I suspect distracted driving or deliberate assault. The cyclist was riding on the shoulder of a lightly-travelled US highway. Even the most paranoid of cyclists would slack off a bit riding there. Hot-from-behind protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

And the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike claims another one. Hit and Run: Bicyclist found dead in Lakeland ditch Assumed hit-from-behind it’s the most common way to commit hit-and-run. Protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent. And crush any vehicle used to commit hit-and-run, with the driver inside if the victim dies. Yes, I’m a little “testy” after filtering the Feed today. I think the most disturbing thing in the link was the notice that killing a cyclist is a $164 ticket as long as you’re sober and remain at the scene, license not required.

And from one FL death we segue to the aftermath of another death. Friends, John Carroll classmates mourn Vero teen at Fort Pierce prayer service They’re killing them so fast they don’t even have time to bury the last one before the next one gets killed. The cyclist was hit from behind while riding in the bike lane and forced over the guard rail into the water below where he drowned. I place this one in the classification of “murder” because the driver had to leave the road to even get to the cyclist, and because of that guard rail that the cyclist was knocked over this becomes a wreck that was “unavoidable by human cyclists”. If they find the murdererdriver they need to throw him over the side of a tall bridge into deep water.

An injury wreck in L.A. CA. 2 bicyclists injured in Los Angeles collision The cyclist were hit by a vehicle that ran the red light, making the number of people on the one bike immaterial compared to the running the red light and nearly destroying two human beings. Not something that can be avoided by human cyclists and as the existing infrastructure was ignored by the driver of the weapon vehicle changing the physical infrastructure won’t help either unless the changes made hitting the cyclists physically impossible at any time. I’m thinking bollards that rise up out of the road in all directions completely blocking the intersection during a separate “scramble” phase for cyclists so that red light runners only destroy their own vehicles, not fragile human bodies.

Still in CA LEO publically identified the cyclist killed in a hit-and-run. POLICE IDENTIFY DRIVER, CYCLIST IN FATAL OCEANSIDE HIT-AND-RUN Now if they would just arrest that driver, or “discreetly” release name and address and normal time of driving to work…

Still rocking it in CA with “What good is a law with a mandatory penalty that isn’t enforced?” At least one Bay Area cyclist has died since the three-feet law went into effect Not only died, but died in exactly the kind of wreck the passing law was supposed to prevent, or punish if not prevented.

Yeah, all those scary “speeding cyclists” in Central Park would not even qualify for a ticket. Many Racing Cyclists Are Still Under Central Park’s Speed Limit Even the ones exceeding the limit are only going about 5 over and tickets don’t start until more than 10 over…

Still in NYC. Lower East Side Grease Spill Causes Trouble For Cyclists Nasty smelly mess that was bringing down cyclists by the bus loads until someone did something about it. As for what you can do in the same situation, you will fall down so try to stay tucked up so you don’t break an arm or hand.

Lots of links to this improbable report from MA. Cyclist killed after crashing into truck in Wrentham and Cyclist Struck And Killed By Dump Truck In Wrentham also Cyclist Dies After Getting Hit By Truck In Wrentham I’m going to classify this as a SWCC because the cyclist did not live through the impact, much less long enough to let anyone know his side of the story. The driver could have drifted into the cyclist’s lane and hit him before swerving off the road and into that tree or pole or whatever. Looking at the scene in Google Street View I’m going to go out on a limb here and say it is quite likely that the truck driver swerved when he hit the cyclist in his own lane because that utility pole is right at the corner meaning the truck would have had to start swerving well before getting to the intersection to wipe the pole and a tree. Even the excuse about “The cyclist may have been blinded by the sun” doesn’t seem to fit unless that was the world’s quietest dump truck. The geometry just doesn’t fit the narrative.

Drivers want to hit cyclists in the UK so bad they drive off the road to hit Ghost Bikes. Memorial to cyclist killed at Mancunian Way junction destroyed after car smashes into it Seriously, this is the third time in 13 months that something bad has happened at this intersection, first the cyclist was hit using the crosswalk, then someone coming to tidy the memorial was brushed back in the crosswalk, and now the memorial itself was smashed. Cars are driving too fast for this intersection and someone has already been killed, how big a body count do they need?

And even the best riders in the world are no match for an idiot with a motor vehicle. St Helens cycle-crash victim named as former international cyclist David Hitchin

Not much on this one from Oz. Cyclist left with serious injuries after crash south of Sydney

Another wreck in Oz. Tributes flow for stalwart killed in cycling crash The slight bit of information on the actual wreck sounds like a buzz job. Hit from behind protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

Left hook in Enn Zed. Christchurch cyclist dies under a truck Even the cop that showed up incidentally knows this was just the driver driving into a space he couldn’t see was safe to drive into. I suppose if the cyclist was really good on the bike and had extraordinary levels of SA intersection protocols might have resulted in a survivable wreck. Dutch levels of infrastructure would have resulted in a semi truck never getting anywhere near a cyclist.

Our Daily Ted is not good news today. Morning Links: Victim and suspect identified in Oceanside hit-and-run, charges filed in PV road rampage It may be a few days until we get another Daily Ted.

Speaking of that infrastructure. Deaths Expose Chaos of Central Park’s Loop

A little bit of lifestyle from MA. Falmouth bike ride is a new mission for an injured vet

And I have managed to run out of links before I ran out of sanity, hurray!

Billed@€0.02, Opus the unkillable badass Poet

It’s finally HERE!! and the Feed

Yeah, I am a little excited now, if I was physically capable I would be doing the Snoopy dance now. I’m in the process of uploading the pictures from my phone to my computer and thence to the media center for this blog as I’m composing this part of the post. Fortunately I’m near the end of my phone month so I won’t wipe out my data limit for too long. Not that I do anything with the data part of my plan except send pictures to myself to post on the blog anyway, but there are a lot of pictures this time. The main thing this does for me is I now have the ability to create an accurate 3D model of the body for the cosmetic portion of the sim file, and for the CAD program to use for planning the frame.

It’s here!!

All the best presents come strapped to a pallet.

In the driveway.

Fra-geel-eh, must be from Italy

First peek.

Freed from the box.

In the house

Everyone needs a car body in their living room.

What was in the other box, or the rest of my B-day present to myself.

How it fits. Mrs. the Poet is not the world’s best photographer.

The body was delivered covered in sanding dust and dried mold release, which I wiped off with a damp rag before sitting in it, after using the vacuum cleaner to suck up the piles of it in the various crevices of the body.

Up first is an update on a wreck a half-day’s ride east of WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. Exclusive: Cyclist hit by SUV speaks out The article pretty much speaks for itself.

Hit-from-behind in AZ. Tucson hit-and-run kills cyclist; woman arrested Cyclist was hit from behind in a bike lane and then left for dead, charge that driver with murder. Obviously this is a serious infrastructure problem, because bicycle infrastructure done to the Dutch model keeps bikes away from motor vehicles as much as possible.

Wreck in CO is blamed on the victim. Denver Police: 10-year-old girl riding bike hit by car in Stapleton That’s interesting, the first version of the report blamed the cyclist for “swerving”, but the updated version doesn’t blame anybody and leaves the mode of the wreck out of the report.

A WY wreck has some interesting geometry. Man injured in car-bicycle crash early today in Riverton on Webbwood Road The narrative and the damages to the weapon vehicle suggest a hit-from-behind wreck, but the damages to the bike show more sideways damage than hit-from-behind damage, as do the resting points for the bike and the victim. They suggest the weapon vehicle was moving at an angle to the cyclist as if the driver swerved suddenly as he passed the cyclist. Notice the damage to the front wheel only with the rest of the bike looking pretty good, but the driver is claiming the sun was in his eyes so it will probably be an “accident”

Kill a cyclist, get a ticket? in OR. Pickup driver in Tillamook County crash that killed cyclist won’t face criminal charges So, only careless operation of a weapon of mass destruction?

Another hit-from-behind wreck in the Great White North. 62-year-old cyclist killed near Alexandria identified The shoulder of a road is not bicycle infrastructure. Protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

Still in the GWN a wreck with no mode listed. Friends, neighbours mourn 62-year-old cyclist killed in South Glengarry Well, it has been established the cyclist knew what he was doing there, but the same can’t be said about the driver of the weapon vehicle.

Lots from the Great White North today as a cyclist left-crosses herself. Guelph cyclist injured and facing charges following a collision north of downtown Intersection protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and getting that infrastructure “up to Dutch” would prevent cyclists from sharing a traffic light phase with motor vehicles.

Our Daily Ted. Don’t miss this weekend’s most exciting bike event — the Huntington Park Gran Prix This looks like pure D fun.

Opening the Infrastructure! news with this tidbit from WA. Rules of the road: reducing stress for cyclists and drivers I like the bit about drivers needing to chill about things that are not only legal but required for cyclist safety.

And speaking about chilling out… Diane Savino: “Hey, Find a F—ing Bike Lane and Get in It” If I had Danny MacAskills’ skills I could ride in an NYC bike lane. Assuming I could tell it was there under all the parked cars…

Back to the left coast with this bit of infrastructure. Motorists ticketed if driving within 3 feet of cyclists

Infrastructure from the UK. Cycling deaths and serious injuries down in 2013, says DfT They’re running out of cyclists… 😛

Different part of the UK. Series of cyclist deaths spurs on road campaigners

And those are all the applicable links and pictures for today.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the unkillable badass Poet

My birthday present to me is coming, and the Feed

I went ahead and bought the body for the Sprint T (or the simulator for same) and the e-mail came in the order was shipped this morning and should be on my driveway by this evening. Yay! I will take many pictures of the box and contents when they arrive. And if it gets delivered before I finish the post they will be at the bottom of this post. I’m so excited I’m practically “squeeing” and jumping up and down, which is kind of silly for a person of my advanced years. Yes, I’m admitting I’m getting too old to act like a kid getting a new toy, but I’m still acting like a kid with a new toy anyway. So there! 😉

Up first is a report from Oz of a cyclist going off the road and into a tree, because there were so many links to the story. Well known doctor critically injured in cycling accident also Alstonville cyclist critical after crashing into tree and GP fighting for his life after bicycle crash at Alstonville Right now the cause of the wreck is practically a state secret, but such wrecks are very seldom this serious without a motor vehicle in the works somewhere. It looks like a “punishment pass” or maybe a “buzz job” that caused the cyclist to leave the road (not much difference between the two in practice, it’s just a different intent prior to the wreck) and they cyclist found a tree in his escape route while employing hit-from-behind protocols. Unfortunately life is not like Hollywood, where the stunts are planned in advance to the nth degree. Real Life™ is a constant series of “winging it” and hoping for the best, and sometimes that means you run into trees trying to get away from hoons in cars. Get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

Next is from someplace I haven’t lived for at least 53 years… Bicycle rider killed in hit and run in Clarksville and Police find vehicle in Clarksville cyclist fatality Again LEO are not releasing the mode of the wreck, but the location suggests a hit-from-behind wreck, so protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

Update on the bike-on-ped wreck from last week from the paper of record. Woman Hit by a Bicyclist in Central Park Dies OK now seriously, I would dearly love to see this much attention paid to any of the other pedestrians killed that week, but they were killed with motor vehicles.

A PA wreck from the police blotter. Sentinel police log for Sept. 23 You have to look for the report, but being a blotter report there isn’t much on the mode or anything else. The driver appeared to be sober at least.

A rash of wrecks in Chucktown SC. Pedestrian and bicyclist injured in downtown hit-and-runs The cyclist was hit by a right hook, so intersection protocols to avoid or reduce damages, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

A CO wreck approaches closure. Driver who injured ex-pro cyclist pleads guilty Now a suitable sentence… like crushing his car and pulling his license for life.

A wreck in AK. Cyclist injured in Fairbanks bike-truck collision This report is so biased I don’t know what happened except the cyclist was hit riding on the road, “outside the area designated for bicyclists“, whatever that is supposed to mean.

Serious wreck in Canuckistan. Cyclist injured in crash on Sargent Avenue in Winnipeg It looks like the cyclist ran the stop sign, or stopped and went without seeing the car that hit her. That would indicate intersection protocols to avoid in particular the part about stopping at stop signs, and getting the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent. The geometry and physics of this wreck are interesting. Notice the front wheel was separated from the bike in the wreck but there was little to no damage to that wheel, the lack of damage to the front of the weapon vehicle, the proximity of the weapon vehicle to the intersection where the cyclist was riding, and the cyclist’s shoe sitting in the street. Some of those point to a high speed at impact (front wheel separation, cyclist’s shoe) and others strongly indicate a low speed for the weapon vehicle. And all those cans with no damage are also an indication that the weapon vehicle was not going very fast at impact. I counted 11 of 12 cans with no damage in the picture. Very strange…

There is some question of was the rider even where he was supposed to be in this wreck in the Great White North. Five injured when Gatineau bus collides with cyclist I think the wreck was hit-from-behind, but no confirmation on that. I strongly feel that this wreck showed how badly this city needs infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent wrecks.

LEO on bike wreck in the GWN. SIU called in after Brampton cyclist seriously injured Because of LEO involvement the only thing we know is it was at an intersection so assume something in the intersection protocols will help avoiding or reducing damages, and getting the infrastructure “up to Dutch” will prevent a similar wreck.

This little gadget could make a difference in the aftermath of a wreck. Polaroid’s Teensy, Cheap, and Durable “Cube” Camera Is Good News for NYC Bikers

Closing with this link. What to do if you’re hit by a car while riding your bike

And as of right now my order from Speedway hasn’t showed up yet.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the unkillable badass Poet

Working late on my birthday, and the Feed

I normally work late on Monday to catch up from the weekend of not posting links, but I will be working even later today because I was “doing stuff” this afternoon. I did a wire transfer from my bank to Wells Fargo in San Francisco so that I would have a paper trail in case they tried to claim we “stopped paying” on our paid-off mortgage and foreclose on us like they did to several people in FL who paid off their mortgages early. I also went to my local Whataburger to have a “Green Chile Double”, one of Whataburger’s seasonal specials. That’s half a pound of ground beef, two slices of cheese, and a thick coating of diced green chili peppers over the top. I’m indeed fortunate that my cholesterol is naturally low so that I can eat meals like this safely. I then picked up the makings for a double batch of “Bacon Jalapeño Poppers” and walked home from the grocery store. For the curious the makings for a double batch of “Bacon Jalapeño Poppers” consists of a dozen large jalapeño peppers, 2 6oz. packages of cream cheese, and a pound of bacon. Soften the cheese, halve and seed the peppers, fill the half peppers with the cheese, wrap a slice of bacon around each half pepper, and either broil or grill until the bacon is crispy.

BTW It’s my birthday and You say it’s your birthday? and with moar creepy babies and dancing kittens

Up first is another fatal bike-ped wreck, that wreck in Central Park last week just turned fatal for the pedestrian. Pedestrian Dies Days After Collision With Central Park Cyclist I hate this, because I have done the work and the cyclist had very little chance of avoiding this wreck after avoiding the pedestrians in the bike lane. Sure, if he trained at making the second move for a few weeks and then practiced at it once a week or so he might have been able to make that second move, but then again maybe not. I keep looking at this wreck and I keep coming up with the same answer, that mixing pedestrians and cyclists in the only area to train as a cyclist for more than 8 million people without providing segregated infrastructure and this will happen again and again. The Dutch solution is to make everyday bicycle infrastructure that is “training worthy”, where cyclists can maintain >20 MPH for miles without having to worry about hitting any pedestrians. Build bicycle infrastructure with sight lines and curves that will support riding at race speed, and cyclists will train away from pedestrians and cars. More Bicycle rider not charged in Central Park collision that put pedestrian on ventilator

Moving to just south of WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. Female cyclist seriously injured in Friday collision AFAIK it’s another hit-from-behind wreck but this time near an intersection. It was also very near a bike trail which the cyclist may have either been coming from or going to.

A wreck in LA that I don’t have the slightest clue how to avoid. Crash leaves cyclist dead, offier injured I mean there was a cop there and presumably a cop car with the lights going, the cop was pushing a car that was hit as well as the cop and the cyclist. The driver was suspected of being “chemically impaired” by synthetic marijuana.

A CA wreck in Ted Rogers’ ballpark. Update: Cyclist found dead following apparent hit-and-run in Oceanside and Dead bicyclist found in Oceanside Cyclist was hit riding in a cul-de-sac meaning the driver had to really work at it to get up to lethal speed in the limited amount of space. ordinarily I would say hit-from-behind protocols but I’m thinking this is way too much like my wreck for a human cyclist to get away from it. Segregated infrastructure would prevent it, but I’m thinking that this would be shared space in the Dutch model.

Moving north to OR we get another hit-from-behind wreck. Serious injury bicycle-involved crash on Highway 131 between Netarts and Tillamook Protocols to avoid or reduce injury, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

A DC wreck that I’m not sure of the mode of the wreck. D.C. police seek driver who killed bicyclist in hit-and-run The damage description suggests hit-from-behind, but the location suggests straightforward intersection protocols. The actions of the driver suggest a lynch mob…

Back in NYC a cyclist runs a red light on video and gets hit by a bus. NYPD: NICE bus that crashed into Queens pizza store swerved to avoid cyclist Intersection protocols to avoid, especially the part about not running the red light if there’s traffic, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

Up in the Great White North a cyclist is hit in an intersection. Cyclist struck, seriously injured in west end See how the bike shows the directionality of the impact from the right? That’s how I know it was an intersection wreck before I even read the article. The video stated the cyclist’s head went through the rear window of the weapon vehicle. Nothing on which one had the right of way. Intersection protocols maybe would be of use in avoiding or reducing damages in this wreck. Getting the infrastructure “up to Dutch” would most likely prevent a repeat of this wreck.

I want to make copies of this wreck report and shove them in the faces of all those people who keep telling me that I should get off my bike and walk it through intersections. Man wheeling bike killed after collision with car and van at Tapleys Hill Rd, Seaton and a different URL Man wheeling bike killed after collision with car and van at Tapleys Hill Rd, Seaton This wreck was in Oz, BTW.

LifeStyle in NH. Bicyclists remember women killed in crash and Cyclists Killed in Crash Remembered

From the City of Broad Shoulders. North Shore Century Ride for a Great Cause

Another Wounded Warrior ride. Wounded Warrior riders bike 164 miles to Fort Campbell

I has a birthday Google Doodle.

And those were all the links that gave me fits or giggles.

Opus the unkillable badass Poet

This post will definitely go up late, and the Feed

Howdy folks! As we approach the Autumnal Equinox things get a little busy around Casa de El Poeta aka WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. For one thing there are all the rituals celebrating the holiday that I have to attend because I have friends and circle-mates who follow different traditions and all want me to be a part of their celebrations. For another thing there is the minor fact that I was born on this particular Pagan holiday. That means More Parties to attend. Add the third thing that I have become involved with electoral politics (without the swords and machine guns in this reality) and things are ramping up now, and well I’m just pulled in so many directions I almost look like a cartoon character. And I forgot I will be going to Dallas Pride Day to sign people up to support marriage equality this Sunday morning, well forgot until just now.

Speaking of birthdays, I have been asked to post what I want for mine. Simple enough, I need a steering wheel controller for my PS2 that will work with GT4, meaning (probably) something from Logitech. I can use Amazon gift certificates to buy one or someone could just send one to the church and I will take it home from there. Address it to Opus the Poet c/o Sacred Journey Fellowship UU, 1215 Main St. Garland TX 75040 and I will get it. Seems kind of silly that I get video game stuff for my 56th Birthday, but that’s what I need to make the Sprint T simulator.

And another birthday gift that won’t cost anything is signing this petition to make an Interstate Highway system for bicycles and pedestrians.

Up first is this ID hit-from-behind wreck. Female cyclist hit by car, seriously injured and Local athlete critically injured while biking The crime scene looks to be one of those that sure you can get away from the weapon vehicle but you’re likely to suffer serious injury when you do, but still less than getting hit with a car. Infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

A cyclist hits one of a group of jay-walkers in Central Park in NYC. Pedestrian Critically Injured In Accident With Cyclist In Central Park and Bicycle rider not charged in Central Park collision that put pedestrian on ventilator also Woman In Critical Condition After Getting Run Over By Cyclist In Central Park The Post (holding nose) Woman brain-dead after getting hit by cyclist in Central Park Not done yet After Woman Is Struck, Debate on Cycling in City Is Revived The crazies are calling for this guy to get the death penalty for something that only merits a $122 ticket if it happens with a car instead of a bicycle. Granted it should be a lot more strict than a $122 ticket in a car, but why all the venom for cyclists? BTW Don’t Hit The Pedestrians!

This is the second cyclist hit from behind in the bike lane since the 3-feet-to-pass law went into effect in CA. Freeport Boulevard closed after fatal bike crash The law requires a $220 ticket that with fees and costs comes to $980 for hitting a cyclist from behind, something I have yet to see with either of the wrecks since the law went into effect.

Still in CA a driver is sentenced in a wreck with a cyclist. Point Reyes Station man sentenced in DUI hit-and-run that injured cyclists I seriously doubt he would have gotten much of anything in the way of jail had he not taken down the telephone pole. Still 9 months is way more than he would have gotten had this wreck been in NY state.

A drunk driver kills a cyclist and gets 45 weekends in jail in the Great White North. Truck driver going to jail for killing elderly cyclist

A cyclist in Enn Zed is seriously injured in a single bike wreck? Cyclist seriously injured in Wellington OK there has to be some information missing from hit report, New Zeeland is a mandatory helmet country and head injury is pretty much the only way the wreck as described in the narrative could seriously injure a person.

Lifestyle for the DE cyclist hit head on by a suspected drunk driver on the wrong side of the road. Bicyclists ride to Phillip Bishop’s viewing The ride was treated much like a funeral procession except they went to the deceased instead of going with the deceased to his final rest.

Not sure how to classify this, closest thing I could think of is sorta kinda LifeStyle. Boston Scientific Helps Turn Wounded Warrior Into Competetive Cyclist The guy has a stim unit that changes neuropathy pain into a mild tingle? I could use one of those.

More on the CA passing law that recently went into effect. Hey, I’m Bikin’ Here! A Buffer Zone Is Now Law for California Cyclists Yes this is still Infrastructure! news.

Gothamist links a video showing how NOT to ride a bicycle in NYC. Video: Area Dude Demonstrates The Wrong Way To Bike In NYC

Presented without classification after 3 people sent links in my e-mail this morning. Death on a Bike

Ad for the people who built Francis/es. E is for Electric C is for Canopy Sometimes it’s nice to get a little help when riding, especially when you have nearly 100 pounds of empty bike to push along.

Our Daily Ted. Weekend Links: Free ice cream when you Bike to the Bowl; KY cyclist arrested, and Jens shatters the hour

Last link is the largest Human Powered Vehicle race in the world. Murray Bridge alive with pedal prix power this weekend Mixed and segregated 8-person teams of kids and adults trying to just keep the vehicle going all night and day.

I think I’m done now, because I’m damned near finished.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the unkillable badass Poet

Overloaded with links and covered up in other obligations, and the Feed

Things have been a bit busy this week, and this is only Monday. Among things I can talk about I have a consultation with a surgeon this Thursday for removing the thing on the back of my neck that is making drinking soda from the can a painful and difficult proposition lately, and I had a discussion of volunteering for the Wendy Davis campaign this afternoon as well as a trip to the bank to pay for the new hat I’m giving myself for my birthday. The new hat is being custom-made by an Etsy vendor called “Steezy Workz” and hopefully will be ready by year’s end. And my spell checker thought “Steezy” was spelled right but not the “Workz” part of the name? WTF?!? Anywho, I’m having to order the hat over the Internet because there are no local vendors still making the hat I want. Also I am up to my eyeballs in the NDA project that is burning up tons of time as well. For a guy who doesn’t have a steady job I sure seem to have a lot to do…

Up first, despite all the predictions of mass carnage when bike share went into effect just about everywhere in North America it has been tried, those predictions have all come up negative. Why? Ideas why 0 bikers have been killed on bike-sharing bikes The hypothesis have been as many and as varied as the color schemes of the shared bikes, more so even. But as it stands now it’s all guesswork.

A NM cyclist is killed making a left turn. Cyclist killed in hit-and-run near NM 528 and Coors Bypass Apparent drunk driver runs over a cyclist moving to the turn lane as required by NM law to make that left turn, then left for dead. Modify the hit-from-behind protocols to take moving to the left into account to avoid or reduce damages, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” to prevent.

Two links to a DE hit-and-run. Police ID bicyclist killed in Hockessin hit-and-run and Bicyclist killed less than mile from home Cyclist was hit head-on apparently riding on his side of the road, and from user descriptions of the road may have had less than a second to react to the oncoming vehicle. There are no protocols that will help you avoid a wreck like this and getting the infrastructure “up to Dutch” would only have helped if the cyclist was struck away from a residential area so that he would not be sharing the roads with a suspected DUI.

Wasting the court’s time in ID. Trial set for man accused of killing cyclist Changing your plea at the sentencing hearing is a serious “no class” move.

A drunk cyclist in PA. Sentinel police log for Sept. 12 Not a good idea but still better than driving while falling-down drunk.

Aftermath of a drunk driver hitting 4 cyclists head on driving on their side of the road. Cyclists stress awareness to stay safe I’m still at a loss how watching what’s going on where there is no escape route and a drunk driver is driving on your side of the road is going to do anything but leave you all tensed up when you get killed, like for those guys who died.

A hit-and-run in the Great White North leaves an injured cyclist in its wake. Police seeking driver after Dartmouth hit-and-run The driver just drove right through the cyclist leaving the stop sign. That’s not a wreck a human cyclist can avoid, and as the location appears to be the boundary between shared space and where cyclists would head to segregated infrastructure, so getting the infrastructure “up to Dutch” is kind of a tossup depending on where the segregated infrastructure began.

Infrastructure! news from CA. Give cyclists 3 feet: It’s the law now The comments section is a war zone.

Infrastructure worries after a wreck on a group ride in the Great White North. Laurie Strano’s death sparks caution at Gatineau cycling event

Infrastructure worries in the UK. Shocking road stats warn of dangers for cyclists in Sevenoaks I think people are starting to get the message that recent reductions in overall KSI are the result of changes to cars and advancements in medical care and drivers are still as bad as they ever were.

Infrastructure news from Oz, as a driver comes to the shocking revelation that they are guiding tons of killing machine around fragile human beings. Peace offer in cycle war

Infrastructure news from Enn Zed. Cyclists, drivers urged to share the road and Cyclists get the helmet message The “message” received is that unless you exceed all legal requirements to make yourself visible and protected, even if those requirements don’t actually provide any protection aside from the placebo effect (for drivers). So every square inch covered in HiViz and a silly styrofoam hat, and maybe you won’t get blamed for the drunk driver that slams into you and crushes your fragile internal organs with 2-3 tons of speeding projectile.

Lifestyle news from the RGV of TX. Son of cyclist will ride in his honor

Lifestyle from GA. Atlanta police officers join charity night bike ride

Last link, the bike to have in the garage when the zombie apocalypse hits. Bug Out Bike – Apocalypse Bicycle Maybe painting the chain isn’t such a bright idea… but having a MTB with reliable components and lots of cargo capacity with medical supplies, food, and water pre-loaded along with shelter is a good idea for anything short of a kaiju invasion, and if you’re lucky enough to know which way the kaiju is headed then even for that. Good XC tires with airless tubes gives you the lowest possible rolling resistance with no flats. I need to get Francis/es sorted out (we are down to getting the fit right now) and then all I would need would be having all those things in one area with tiedowns to secure the load ready to go.

And those were all the links I got before 1800, those I’m saving for tomorrow.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the unkillable badass Poet