My BP meds are getting cut in half because reasons, and the Feed

What a day! First the cat tries to apologize for clawing huge gashes in my hand and arm by waking me up after only 1 hour of sleep and crawling into the bed to purr loudly at me, then I spent all day getting to and from the Lab Rat Keeper, then I find out my meds are getting cut because my BP is a bit on the low side, like 100/60. For a guy whose pressures topped out at 200/145 10 years ago this could lead to dizziness, confusion, and loss of consciousness. None of that is especially good. The good news is if my pressures come back up with lower dosages I get to participate in another side-effect study before the end of this year.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Reminder to expect the unexpected on bike trails; Feds decide bike/ped safety matters, too

Still in CA. Bicyclist killed in Santa Ana hit-and-run identified

From my neck of the woods. How tracking police data by race can make unfair laws look like the cops’ fault Among other things this article identifies one of the main problems of the Metroplex: People don’t work where they live nor live where they work in the main. When only 5% of drivers stopped in a town are residents of that town, you have a problem with sprawl, and auto-centrism because everyone drives even if they don’t want to. So much of this area is a transit desert where if you don’t have a car you are trapped.

Remember that girl driving drunk and backwards when she ran over a cyclist in AK? Anchorage woman will finish college semester before going to jail for cyclist’s death Really? Let her finish school before a summer (maybe) in jail?!? Oh the ignominy. Have to finish college before prison…

Do you feel like you are not welcome among other bike riders? Project highlights stories of people who feel like outsiders in bike scene

Infrastructure in America’s Copenhagen. Active Transportation Summit dispatch: Vision Zero and the myth of freight Except for a tiny few places that are import centers like Long Beach or Houston or Corpus Christie truck traffic just is not that vital to the economy. And even Houston is trying to make more of its street network bike friendly.

If you don’t know where you’re coming from how can you know where you’re going? Unearthed: 1975 City of Portland “From here to there by bicycle” map

More infrastructure news from NYC. Prospect Park West Bike Lane War Continues: “New York City Is Not Amsterdam” and IT’S ALIVE: Judge Revives 5-Year-Old Prospect Park Bike Lane Lawsuit They LOVE bike lanes, just not the one in front of their building, which has raised the value of the units in said building substantially. Maybe that’s the problem, their taxes went up with the rise in property values…

Another dead pedestrian in NYC. Woman Fatally Struck By Sanitation Truck Driver On Upper East Side And for all those wondering why I have so many links from Gothamist and Bike Portland,it’s because I visit those web sites pretty much daily. Anywho, this was another blind driver just proceeding into space that was already occupied, and killing said occupant. And the Universal Get Out of Jail Free card shall be used, “I didn’t see her” and all will be forgiven.

More on the MA hit-and-run killing of a cyclist. Man charged with DUI in hit-and-run that injured cyclist

PA infrastructure story. Holly residents drill council for answers over roundabouts Seriously, you can’t figure out how to use a roundabout?

Another link to the guy looking to ride from BC to Panama getting taken out ²/₃ of the way through WA. Cyclist on B.C. to Panama ride injured in crash Interesting picture they used for the “touring bike”.

More on the CO man getting prison for killing a cyclist. Man gets 10 years for DUI crash that killed bicyclist And I hope he has to do every day of it.

It’s just better reporting on the wrecks, honest! Alan Solot: Tucson bike vs. car crashes aren’t increasing

It’s not really good news, it is a symptom of austerity. Fall in road offences due to reduction in traffic police says Transport Committee

And while we are on the site. Barbed wire booby trap found on Kent cycle trail Either some farmer is missing a section of fence, or all they need to do is ask who bought barbed wire recently at nearby farm supply stores.

And I got this video sent to me by several people from many different sources. Video: How to teach bus drivers to give cyclists space I thought the ones where the “riders” clothes wer actually ruffled by contact with the bus were good, unless the driver was not actually trying to get that close in which case they were fucking terrifying.

Speaking of close passing, this was also terrifying over on the Emerald Isle. Cyclist was thrown over the bonnet of car Cold they have gotten any closer without actually killing the cyclist? I think not.

Another link to the guy who killed a well-liked cyclist going to jail. JAILED: Driver who mowed down Oxford graduate cyclist in head-on-crash

[Facepalm]Cyclists maimed and killed by blind driver, but it’s OK because a cyclist ran a stop sign once.[/Facepalm] Pontevedra cycling tragedy raises concerns over elderly drivers

More on the Ozzie drunk driver killing a cyclist. Cyclist killed by allegedly drunk driver and Qld cyclist killed by intoxicated driver

A really ugly wreck in Oz, more than one link. Port Pirie cyclist killed when truck and riders collide near city and Truck crashes into three cyclists on Germein Rd at Solomontown near Port Pirie You can see the impact site on the passenger side of the truck bumper where the bumper was bent.

And this was just wrong. Holiday blues after woman arrives home from overseas trip to find a parking ticket because her street was rezoned while she was away There were no permits available before leaving, and tickets papering the car when she got back. I mean they hadn’t even decided on the date it was to be implemented when she left…

And have you heard the latest scandal in the pro peloton? Professional cycling’s latest scandal: unshaved legs I used to shave my legs back before I rode a bike with fenders.

And it’s 0430, I have been up 19 hours now on 1 hour of sleep. I’m going to bed, and the cat is staying in the bathroom with his food and litterbox until I get up.

Billed @$0.02, Opus

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Another ugly day, and the Feed

If anything today is even worse than yesterday, in that it is raining harder than the light mist falling intermittently after I wrote yesterday’s opening paragraph, and it is about 10°F colder than yesterday and feels even worse because of the damp. I got an interesting ad late yesterday in my e-mail inviting me to move to Cape Breton Isle on the east coast of Canada. Seems they are having a housing deflation and you can get nice houses for about the cost of a fancy new car. I’m checking on getting broadband out there. BTW the ad headline was “If Trump Wins, where will you go?” so I might avoid the rush and buy now. Then I will take a long bike ride to the Great White North. It would not be the first time I moved to Canada, but it would be the first time I didn’t move to a military base. The first place I lived in Canada is now a Superfund environmental site, something I sincerely wish to avoid this time. The second place I lived in has been classified as “Never Existed” and I can’t find it on Google Earth either. It was near Abbotsford, but I don’t see any of the buildings there anymore from the mid 1960s. Very strange, but the only thing left from the first place I lived in Canada is the runway and the docks, even the hangars are gone.

Up first is a TX wreck between a bike and a cop car. Cyclist injured in officer-involved accident Again, until I can see the wrecked bicycle I’m taking the “salmon” rider description with a block of salt the weight of the cop car. I admit it happens but I have seen too many wrecks that the drivers and cops claimed were caused by salmon cyclists that the bikes and riders would have had to been riding backwards to get the damage and injuries they got. In fact we had an article about that very thing linked here since the start of the year.

The Big Story is the ridiculous fines about to go into effect in Oz next week. Sydney boosts fines for cyclist violations and Editorial – February 24: Licence to ride or laughing stock? also Cyclists hit by world’s harshest laws

The next biggest story is the distracted (?) driver who ran over 4 NC cyclists. Troopers: 4 cyclists hit by car on NC road and Cyclist disputes driver’s account also ‘Was she texting?’ injured bike rider asks after driver hits 4 Johnston Co. bicyclists The driver’s statement that the wreck happened “so quick” makes distraction or other inattention a serious consideration.

Our Daily Ted, part 1. Morning Links: Prize winner’s new bike, Burbank considers bike/ped bridge, and Ventura tow truck driver ID’d I’m really happy for the winner, she seems to have deserved the bike.

Ted Part 2. Breaking news: Covina bike rider killed in collision with Metrolink train

Also in CA. San Diego Is Ready to Go Big on Biking and Walking There is some re-purposing of “car space” to bike and ped space but this is not “anti-car”, just anti car supremacy.

Still in CA more on the proposal to get Zero-carbon subsidies to HPV for poor neighborhoods. Should California give subsidies to people buying bicycles?

Still in CA (lots of wrecks this time of year in CA for some reason). Authorities identify tow truck driver, officially name boy killed in Ventura hit-and-run crash

Over one state in NV. Bicyclist killed after being struck by off-road vehicle identified and Off-road driver charged in crash that killed bicyclist Driving drunk, without a license, in an unregistered vehicle…

More on the trial of the OH dude who couldn’t see 5 cyclists on the road because he had the sun in his eyes, and turned more than a hundred feet before the road he was trying to turn on. Trial begins for Brecksville man charged in crash that killed cyclists and Cyclists recall deadly Brecksville crash during driver’s trial I would think that pointing out the first cyclist was hit more than 100 feet from the intersection, and the truck stopped after hitting the last cyclist still short of the intersection would be more than enough to show the driver was driving well below “standard of care” and possibly was deliberately trying to kill the cyclists. But IANAL.

Over in AR one cyclist had a dog problem. Cyclist Mauled by Pit Bull I have known pits that were just big slobber machines that were more likely to lick you to death and drown you in slobber than to bite, and I have known pits that would attack anything that moved in what they considered to be their territory, it all depends on how the animal was socialized.

Not sure if this was a cyclist or what, but it was in the “cyclist injured” section of the Feed folder. Man Shot In Groin During Brooklyn Road Rage Outburst

I know this wasn’t a cyclist, but how could I resist putting in a link about a guy run over by a parked car? Park Slope Food Coop Member Struck By Runaway Parked Car I mean really? Pass up a juicy opportunity like that?

Some more good news from America’s Copenhagen. City of Portland considering protected intersections, bike-only lanes for West Burnside project Don’t “consider” just “do”. Doo Eeet!

It might not seem like it at first glance, but this is an important infrastructure article. Portland Bike Theft Task Force receives $4,000 donation from local bike club

Important infrastructure news from WI. $62.6 Million Requested to Improve Walking and Biking Across Wisconsin

LEO wants everyone to know they haven’t stopped looking for a CO hit-and-run driver. Search continues for driver who struck cyclist in hit-and-run north of Boulder And I still say they should be looking for front end damage (and probably a busted windshield) instead of a missing mirror.

That passing bill in IA moves along through the Lege. New bill offers protections for Iowa cyclists

PA wreck involving an ICE-assisted bike. Man on motorized bike killed in Lehigh County hit-and-run crash Bike was hit head-on by a driver cutting the left turn, not mentioned in the article but there was a comment that speculated it was a cyclist riding such a bike in “dark clothes” and a very dim or missing headlight who had been seen riding earlier.

FloriDUH strikes again. Bicyclist injured in crash at Roosevelt Boulevard and Bicyclist dies after Westside crash Interesting thing is LEO still haven’t blamed the cyclist on this one, mostly because they can’t figure out where the bike was hit or which way it was going when it was hit, and the person who could have told them that died overnight…

Cyclist killed in a truly bizarre accident is memorialized in far West Canuckistan. Memorial set for cyclist killed on False Creek seawall They’re still looking for the guy digging in the trash can where the cyclist was hit, even though it looks now like there is nothing they could charge him with.

I’m glad to see I’m not the only one who gets hot about this. War breaks out on Twitter after police and ambulance blame cyclist for #NoHelmet

What would you do if your mother was placed in this amount of danger? Chris Boardman’s horror at video of lorry close-passing his mother Since my Mother died in 2004 I probably wouldn’t have any problem with it. There is a very large tree between the road and Mom’s grave site.

Well if you ever needed a reason to visit a porn site before, here’s a good reason. World’s 3rd biggest porn site sponsors Italian cycling team I just checked and it’s free to use.

Well they are part of the way there on this one in Oz. Woman charged over fatal cyclist crash

Last link shows Amsterdam wasn’t always what it is now. Look How Much Better a City Can Be When It Designs for People Not Cars The difference between before and after are just…

And I’m outta links, and Gigi is going to be upset because it’s after 0300 and she’s lost her Internet for the night so she won’t be able to read today’s post until after midnight tomorrow.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Another long day on the road, and the Feed

I had another long day out paying bills today, but I’m finally through for the month. Now all I have to dump money on is getting the plumbing fixed. And the day-to-day living expenses, like the $15 I dropped on dinner last night. That’s a lot of money on our budget, but lordy that was a lot of food! Something else I dropped some $$ on was renewing my membership in the HRC, supporting them as they move on from marriage equality to other forms of discrimination (did you know a person can be fired for being gay in TX?)

Up first is Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Beach bike path closed, slap on wrist in Glendale hit-and-run, and six years for drunken OC driver

Still in CA a story that originally had the weapon vehicle posted as a motorcycle. Cyclist critically injured by suspected DUI driver in Berkeley I’m not sure if this was deliberate or just a slight error in editing: “Police said witnesses who saw the crash stayed with the woman until help arrived, and were able to provide statements.
“Unfortunately this circumstance is more common than we’d like,” observed Lt. Montgomery.” I’m glad they caught the driver immediately, but that might have had more to do with the weapon vehicle being rendered undrivable by the wreck, than anything the driver intended to do.

Also in CA 5 Things Cyclists Do You Didn’t Know Are Perfectly Legal Well I knew, but that is partially because I see stuff about one or more of the list every year.

Meanwhile in NYC they finally get bike lanes and traffic calming on one of their most deadly streets. Amsterdam Ave Bike Lane Approved After Heated UWS Community Meeting Gotta love the tears shed for parking while arguing over people getting killed.

Speaking of people getting killed over infrastructure here’s a report from America’s Copenhagen. Victim of collision at notorious Greeley/I-5 intersection comes forward That has to be the worst bike lane crossing I have ever seen either IRL or on the Internets.

More on the dangerous and ADA non-compliant swing gates at a railroad crossing in Portland. Activists (temporarily) take the swing out of TriMet’s swing gates TriMet was complaining about this disrupting their “data gathering”, so I’m wondering what kind of data they are gathering and how.

And after all that crap infrastructure here’s some done right. Detour done right: 21st and Belmont shows how construction zones should work

Opinion piece in OH Please give cyclists more room on the road OH drivers are about the same as drivers in every other anglophone country.

And some good news from WI for a change. Traffic deaths in January were the second lowest since WWII Of course there is also the statistic that road fatalities mirror the local economy…

Over in Jolly Olde is a none-too-jolly cyclist. Call for review into EMAS after injured cyclist left 2 hours at roadside I was left in the road for only a few minutes after my wreck back in 2001. But then they thought I was dead until I told them I had a broken femur.

I think about the only thing that can be as bad as being in a wreck is being the first person on-scene after one, particularly when the victim dies or bleeds profusely. UPDATE: Driver traced after man killed in lorry hit-and-run in Greenwich And in this wreck the victim did both for the cyclist waiting in line directly behind the weapon vehicle. Condolences to the victim’s family and the cyclist who saw the wreck.

This cyclist shows a lot of heart after almost getting killed. Cyclist consoles woman driver seconds after she almost kills him

Another good-hearted cyclist. Cyclist’s 1,000-mile trek in memory of tragic cousin

And this one just makes my blood boil. Elderly driver who killed charity cyclist is spared jail due to age and Elderly driver who killed mother-of-two cyclist spared jail So she was old. That shouldn’t hamper making an example out of her.

And I’m out of links finally, so proof, tag, and publish then off to bed sometime after 0300 since it’s 0311 now.

Billed @$0.02, Opus

Another mass shooting in the US, and the Feed

I’m going to open by saying that there was a cyclist involved somehow with the shooting in San Bernadino because I saw the news of the shooting on my Feed first. Beyond that I’m watching CNN for developing news as it happens. I dearly wish that I knew this was something from The Onion and not really involving multiple dead people. This was the link I got first ’20-Victim Shooting’ Reported In California; Shooter At Large I had to quit Twitter early tonight because the timeline has been completely overtaken by this shooting.

The rest of the Feed is a desert because of the shooting, but I did find this in Twitter

Picking up a fresh cut tree by bicycle has become one of our favourite Christmas traditions. #bikeYVR #cargobike pic.twitter.com/da3E3OM1dm

— Chris Bruntlett (@modacitylife) November 30, 2015

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Up first because Houston is in the same state as WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. A ride, a death, a city figuring out its cycling future

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Good news for Silver Lake TraJoe’s cyclist, LACBC Open House, and more bighearted people

Still in LA. Eyes On the Street: Cars Parking On Sidewalks I am firmly in the camp that cars parked in bike lanes or on sidewalks should get a road flare through the window.

Also in CA. Policeman Runs Down Two People, Media Focus on Cop’s Good Looks Speaking as someone who was in the business for a couple of years, he takes a good picture. Whether he will still look as good after he gets out of prison…

A MA cyclist gets sideswiped because of a combination of not checking oncoming traffic and not getting seen by the traffic. Cyclist draws warning after collision with car

More on a MI cyclist killed on the roads. Police release name of bicyclist killed in Ann Arbor crash The cyclist had a rear reflector but no headlight and the wreck did not appear to be a hit from behind, I’m assuming a left cross or some other intersection wreck where the weapon vehicle should have yielded but didn’t because the driver didn’t see the cyclist.

Another take on the London die-in protest. Protest highlights road cyclist deaths

Infrastructure from Finland. Helsinki’s bicycle highway and other great innovations to build healthier cities

Infrastructure in Enn Zed as they take advantage of rebuilding after a recent earthquake to install bike/ped infrastructure. Video fly-by of Auckland’s new Nelson St cycleway Unfortunately this is shared bike/ped infrastructure that neglects the differences between bicycles and pedestrians.

A long article about something that could end all cyclist and pedestrian deaths that aren’t suicide. The High-Stakes Race to Rid the World of Human Drivers There are some wrecks that are not suicides that would not be prevented by autonomous cars but they would be a tiny percentage of the 30+K deaths and 4 Million injured every year now with unaided humans.

And when that happens more of us can be saving energy with one of these. Rise of the e-bike

I bought a car today off Amazon 1925 FORD T FRUIT WAGON. I will make the stock C-cab, the Bucket Hot Rod, and before I build the rod use the bucket portion of the kit to make a mold to pull a vacuformed body to make a Mini Sprint-T. One of the reasons I want to go the vacuformed body route is I still haven’t decided on how to mount the body to the completed frame since the frame goes on the outside of the body instead of under like it does on the Speedway kit. Since I lack access to a 3D scanner and I want something to refer to during construction tha easy way to go is build the frame in scale then cut up a vacuformed body and snake it through the frame to see how best to get the body ontoinside the frame without breaking the body.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Another day playing Kinky D&D, and the feed

I have sad news from the dungeon. My Warlock8 was killed by a party member under a geas-like compulsion to love my apprentice and kill all other suitors. Even with the -5 penalty for a called shot while the target was in grapple with the person the geas required her to save, our half-ogre barbarian managed to behead my Warlock. At the moment I’m kibbutzing the party as a spirit that is only half heard, making suggestions from vantage points no one else in the party can get to, dispensing advice from the Great Beyond, until we find out if there is any chance at resurrecting my body. If we find that there is no way to bring me back in a timely manner my “spirit” will pass beyond the veil, and I’ll have to roll a new character.

Up first today, the worst injured victim of a serial hit-and-run driver has died. Cyclist in hit-and-run crash has died and Report: Driver accused of hitting cyclist nearly 3 times over limit also Cyclist in weekend hit-and-run on life support You know someone at the DA’s office is going to get two brain cells bumping together and connect 3 separate hit-and-runs against cyclists, and the probablity THAT IT WAS DONE ON PURPOSE and upgrade the charges to attempted murder on behalf of the surviving victims, and murder for the cyclist who died.

This just showed in my Twitter: Jeffrey Rowland ‏@wigu 9 hours ago
Chasing a flying bat down a hallway on my bike was a thing I did today. So, I guess that’s a thing now.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: LAPD handcuff South LA cyclist over traffic ticket; Taylor Phinney makes amazing comeback

Update on a wreck in NYC that just became fatal. 24-Year-Old Woman Dies One Week After Being Pinned To Light Pole By Midtown Driver This was a pedestrian, but because of the weapon vehicle crossing the bike lane it could just as easily have been a cyclist.

How much evidence does LEO need to arrest someone for hit-and-run? How Much Evidence Does The NYPD Need To Arrest A Hit & Run Driver? Well, apparently having video of the weapon vehicle, and a piece of the weapon vehicle that has been matched by forensic evidence that was left at the scene isn’t enough if the victim was a cyclist.

Update on the NY cyclist left-crossed by a bus last week. Congers bicyclist killed by bus was artist, musician And a fellow UU.

Meanwhile over in CT. Police say injured cyclist was at fault I suppose it is possible that a cyclist ran the red in the crosswalk.

A MI cyclist is injured by a drunk driver in this article I can’t finish because of the paywall. Bicyclist injured; man arrested after crash Yeah, drunk drivers still need to lose their cars, and also spend the rest of their lives in prison when they kill. If I were Emperor they would get taken out in a mass execution with a semi with a reinforced bumper once a month until they started getting the message and STOPPED DRIVING DRUNK! How many years do you think that would take?

An IL cyclist is hit so hard the driver had to go to hospital for treatment of injuries. 2 injured after crash involving bicycle, car in Grand Tower That requires either an older model car that does not have the second layer of transparent vinyl on the inside to prevent flying glass shards on the inside of the vehicle, or the cyclist is as tough as the writer of this blog when it comes to a heavy impact.

A western WA cyclist gets clobbered with a motor vehicle. Female Kirkland cyclist hit by truck on Market Street, in critical condition Yeah, there ain’t no “gentle taps” with a big truck. This was the “other” kind of crossing wreck, the cyclist was on the through street and the weapon vehicle was turning left from the cross street.

In the most deadliest state to walk or ride a bike. Bicyclist killed in North Fort Myers crash This one reads like two separate wrecks, one where the cyclist was hit by a vehicle that lost control in the bad weather and drove up on the sidewalk, and the other where the cyclist was crossing the road mid block and one driver stopped and the other driver went around the stopped vehicle and hit the cyclist as he came outt from the front of the stopped vehicle. And now the link has changed again removing the part about the cyclist crossing the road. Given that the weapon vehicle is sitting on its side there is a strong possibility that the “lost control in the rain and wrecked on the sidewalk” part of the report that is still up is the narrative that LEO are going with. And good luck trying to avoid that kind of wreck.

A little infrastructure news from Portland. City settles on diagonal design for diverter on NE Rodney This means one diverter can stop ratrunning on both streets of the intersection, reducing traffic volume through residential areas, for cheap.

Paradise says “What is your opinion?”. Honolulu Bike-Share Asks Users to Help With System Design

Remember that cyclist trapped under a car in Jolly Olde? Update on critically injured cyclist freed from beneath car on organised bike ride in Cotswolds Turns out getting stuck under a car is not good for your health.

Terrible drivers and terrible roads and what have you got? Why Manchester is a terrible cycling city

Some cities get that bicycles are not cars. The city that lets cyclists jump red lights

I’m not sure if this was an attempt at humor, or just a troll. Cyclist education would help to prevent accidents The reason I mention humor and trolling is the comments section pointed out the intersection mentioned in the letter does not exist.

And this is just so… special. Wes Anderson Spotted Riding Citibicycle Around Manhattan

And I’m outta links again.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Unkillable Badass Poet (11 more shopping days until my Death day)

Gonna go dance to drums tonight, and the Feed

Tonight is the monthly drum circle at my church, so I’m going to stop and take a break in the middle of composing this post to get my Pagan on and shake it to the beats. I meditate to polyrhythmic drumming, so this is a calming experience for me. Just FYI, my favorite meditation CD is the first Blue Man Group CD, Audio. I pick out the different rhythms from the music as focal points for my meditation. It sure beats how I learned to meditate, focussing on my arthritis pains as a kid. Now I barely feel pain…

Up first, have you ever looked at pictures or videos from places like anywhere in the Netherlands or Copenhagen and just drooled? Lane Envy

Rough day at work for Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Good news on Mt. Hollywood Dr; Calabasas driver busted for DUI after injuring two cyclists

The Stoopid is strong with this one. Officials ID Cyclist Killed in Carlsbad Crash “No fault has been determined” means “we still haven’t figured out a way to blame a cyclist for using the infrastructure the way it was designed for him to use it, without also blaming the poor defenseless driver”.

Someone must have hit WY LEO with a clue-by-four. Authorities charge Casper man for hit-and-run that injured bicyclist This is the third wreck in a row where criminal charges have been filed against the driver in an injury wreck with a cyclist. This was the idiot that claimed he wasn’t driving when it happened when two passengers said he did, and made the claims on Facebook… Speaking of Stoopid, this one is death-penalty Stoopid except for the grace of his victim surviving the wreck.

OH LEO aren’t quite up to RCMP standards, but the got their man this time. Troopers identify suspect in hit-and-run of VeloSano cyclist As someone suspected, he was driving illegally when the crime happened. “He’s charged with false statements, tampering with evidence, driving under suspension, fictitious registration and leaving the scene of the accident.” Basically there was not one thing legal in his being there to hit the cyclist.

When a driver swerves off the road in front of you do you go to their aid? Albemarle Co. Cyclists Happen Upon and Help Driver After Accident Well these cyclists did, but I check the license plate against my list of drivers that buzzed me before I do anything… 😛

And after that Monday report we got all the way through to Thursday before another report of a wreck at RAGBRAI. RAGBRAI riders injured in separate Linn County crashes One was a cyclist hitting the back of a truck that stopped unexpectedly, the other a hit-and-run.

This wreck was about a half day’s ride to the east of WoaB World HQ in the beautiful suburbs of Hell. Teenager killed on bicycle identified Another hit-and-run on a barrier to human-powered transportation.

Cyclists in NOLA protest bad infrastructure and worse drivers. Bicyclists memorialize killed bikers No word on how many of the deaths were due to bad infrastructure and how many were due to bad driving, my guess is about 50/50.

This was a hard article to read. Two bikers harassed by driver on Butler Street, biking advocates seek improvements Yelled at and pushed to the ground, or “assault and battery” in the “throw the book at him” language.

Update on a VA wreck. Stratford Hall’s executive director dies from injuries suffered in accident I can’t believe it has taken so long to charge the truck driver. VA has a 3 foot law. I think this is definitely a chargeable wreck, if you hit a cyclist you obviously did not have the required clearance.

If you think hit-and-run is bad for cyclists in the US… Revealed: 1,000 cyclists injured and two killed in London hit-and-runs in last year alone and More than 1,000 cyclists in London injured in hit-and-run collisions in 2014 this, too Number of cyclists injured in London hit-and-runs up 13% More than 20% of all London cyclist collisions were hit and run, higher than any US location except CA.

Talk about victim blaming. Cyclists banned from stretch of A19 after several serious accidents in last few years Do they make women stay indoors so as to not get raped in the streets? Geez that is offensive to the victims and their survivors, especially when all the victims were hit from behind while riding legally. Basically they are punishing an entire class of road users because other classes can’t stop hitting them.

Drivers in OR are getting quite the shock. Injured cyclist sues driver who waved truck through Since drivers who “direct traffic” from inside the vehicle are going to be blamed for resulting wrecks, I see a good chance that not many will continue to do it.

I can think of a couple of dozen things that drivers do that are wrong and could get cyclists killed…The dangerous mistakes bicyclists (and drivers) make on the road The main thing is that when drivers make mistakes cyclists and pedestrians die. When cyclists make mistakes cyclists and (rarely) pedestrians die.

Sometimes it really does feel like a war zone out there. ‘Real Sports’ Examines the War Between Cyclists and Drivers Between the potholes and the crumbling road surface, and the small but not zero number of drivers that want to kill cyclists, it is a wonder that anybody rides in the streets and roads.

Speaking of riding in a war zone. Bike Rider Describes Perimeter Built By Marines During Shooting

One Of Us. Patricia Keenan, killed cyclist, honoured in Critical Mass ride

Infrastructure from S.F.CA. S.F. Spends $5 Million to Make Pedestrian-Friendly Freeway Fix It is a small thing, but it is a thing that makes both human-powered modes (cycling and walking) safer.

I keep saying this and posting this, and writing letters to the editor about this, and finally someone who has the credentials to back it up agrees with me, sorta. #CityCycling: ‘There are accidents where helmets are a great thing. There are others where a helmet doesn’t work’ – hospital consultant A bicycle helmet is built to a 20 km/hr impact standard when human skulls can normally endure a 15 km/hr impact without breaking. That does not require a great deal of impact protection, and the soft shells on most modern (cheaply made) helmets don’t slide like the separate shells of the helmets used in the ’80s and ’90s that a lot of studies used in determining relative safety. I want everyone to know that when I get my neck mobility back I will be wearing a full face BMX helmet with a heavy polycarbonate plastic shell that can slide over pavement on every ride I don’t need my ears free to troubleshoot a problem.

And I’m outta links, patience, and my back hurts. See you Sunday.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

And diphenhydramine helped the swollen foot problem now I have a staying awake problem, and the Feed

I tried an experiment last night and took a generic Benadryl before going to bed, and woke up with a normal-sized foot. The problem is as soon as the diphenhydramine wore off the foot went “poof” and started swelling again because whatever made it swell in the first place is still active. So I am slightly sedated by allergy meds as I compose this… (What is the code for a yawn smiley?)

Up first is Our Daily Ted Part 1. Morning Links: Lawyer disputes unarmed, bike-fixing Hawaiian Gardens man reached for deputy’s gun

And Daily Ted Part 2. Guest Post: Provoking, Scaring and Piercing, the (Driver’s) Reptile Brain Part 2

Possible infrastructure improvements in NYC. Renderings Show What A Greener South Bronx Waterfront Might Look Like Gee more people standing in the bile path, quelle suprize.

While we are in NY here’s another link to the disgusting story of a killer driver getting essentially no punishment. DMV: Six-Month Suspension for Driver Who Killed Sammy Cohen Eckstein Suspending the license he didn’t have for 6 months is not even a slap on the wrist, it’s a stern finger shaking.

More on the NYC biking gender gap. Why More Men than Women Participate in NYC’s Bike Share Program The answer is found in the Good Book (no, not that one, the CROW manual).

More on the CO death of a cyclist following an unsafe pass. Fort Collins driver who killed cyclist charged Dang, the cyclist was in a bike lane? Why isn’t this a murder charge then?

More on the NOLA hit-and-run cyclist killing. NOPD releases vehicle description in fatal hit-and-run Another blasted Ghost Bike for another cyclist killed while following the dictates of the law.

More on a cyclist hit and killed in the Great White North. Students of Ontario cyclist killed during hit-and-run offer support through GoFundMe campaign

And more on a hit-and-run in the Great White North. Deinsberg St-Hilaire charged after Andy Nevin killed in hit and run on Leitrim Road Finally…

You might want to remember that cameras are everywhere these days before you assault someone with a deadly weapon. Caught on camera – the furious clash between a parish councillor and the group of cyclists who say he ran them off the road Yep, they have a video of the whole thing, but because of UK media laws can’t show anything but a few screen caps from it.

Something happened in the Emerald Isle. Man held over Clontarf hit-and-run released without charge Usually the Irish are very strict and harsh about hit-and-run, what happened this time? I suspect that the recent sharp rise in the fines and prison sentences associated with hit-and-run may have had something to do with it, but I’m just guessing.

Good advice from Oz. Awareness the key in keeping everyone safe on our roads Until the infrastructure improves cyclists will have to keep that head up and moving and alert for cars, because drivers are certainly not looking for bicycles.

Speaking of infrastructure… Paris to let cyclists skip red lights

And more infrastructure. ACT government spends big on cycling but safety concerns remain This could be used as a guide on “How To Waste Money on Bicycle Infrastructure”.

And a good article on more generalized infrastructure. Infrastructure vs Helmets

And now I’m outta links.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the swollen Poet

In pain and having a mild allergy attack, and the Feed

After getting the gas on Francis/es this morning because I got done too late to buy gas last night, I mowed the grass this afternoon. The good news: I rode Francis/es for 1.04 miles today in 92/93 degree weather. Bad news, I still need to make that extended stem so I can sit comfortably and see the road.

More bad news, as I was doing the filtering my feet started to swell a bit until I couldn’t put my shoes back on. I will still be able to put out the garbage and recycling tonight for trash pickup tomorrow, I just won’t be very graceful about it. I think the swelling is due to my lower legs getting peppered with cut grass as I was mowing this afternoon.

Up first is Our Daily Ted, part 1. Morning Links: DUI driver in Palos Verdes rampage gets three years; scofflaw cyclists no worse than drivers I think it might be just me, but when I read “no worse than drivers” the image that comes to my mind is the 30K+ people killed by motor vehicles annually. I don’t think that is exactly what we are to aspire for.

Daily Ted part 2. Guest Post: The Benefits of a Bicycle for Urban Transport A reasoned, sober look at the benefits of city cycling.

And my second favorite bike blog also had a guest post. Guest article: Biking on the cheap There’s getting by and then there is having a bike to be proud of. They are not mutually exclusive, but you would never see me sourcing my tires from a dumpster.

One of the great ironies of history is that protected American bike lanes and intersections were being planned and pilot installed back in the 1970s, before the Dutch influence began, in response to the OPEC oil boycott. America Could Have Been Building Protected Bike Lanes for the Last 40 Years But as is normal with things being done for the first time (integrating bike infra with motor vehicle infra) Sturgeon’s Law raised its ugly head, and instead of throwing out the crap 90% they threw out everything.

And while we are on the subject of US infrastructure, here’s Portland trying to get Dutch style residential streets. City says diverters possible on SE Clinton Street this summer Again had they read the CROW manual this would have already been done.

Speaking of consequences of bad infrastructure, a cyclist gets hit because the stop signs were facing the wrong direction. Troopers: Cyclist hurt after crashing into SUV Notice the completely blind intersection where the cyclist was hit? The cyclist could have come to a complete stop and not being able to see oncoming traffic pulled right in front of the SUV. Not saying that is what happened, just that that’s how it could have happened. That’s why the CROW manual puts the stop/yield signs on the motor vehicle side of the intersection with a bike path, because cars don’t fall down when they stop moving.

And WY starts enforcing a new law for cyclists this month. WHP enforces new “three-foot rule” for bicycle safety and Highway patrol to crack down on new bicycle safety law

A good bit of infrastructure news from NoCal. COMING TO CALTRAIN: MORE SPACE FOR BIKES ON BOARD Solving the “first/last mile” problem.

And a sad update on the cyclist hit by a dump truck making a close pass in CO. Cyclist Killed By Dump Truck It must have been a long, painful death to have taken this long. Pity his killer won’t take that long to die as well, but the Constitution forbids that, cruel and unusual punishment.

NYC is still having a gender discrepancy in their bike counts. Why Do So Few Women Bike In NYC? Infrastructure is a big part of the problem, followed closely by jerk drivers trying to force their way into the bike infrastructure.

And this is a big reason also why women don’t ride bicycles in NYC. Driver Who Killed Park Slope Boy Has License Suspended For 6 Months Six months of “don’t get caught driving” for killing a kid playing at a park in a residential area.

Speaking of drivers not getting what they deserve, here’s another link to that texting driver in Jolly Olde getting carted off to the hoosegow. St Albans cyclist death: John Michell jailed for killing Mark Greenwood Less than 2 years for killing someone leaves me with less than schadenfreude, more like schaedenfrumpy?

And WTF?!? Cyclist suffers fractures to face in London Colney attack Punch someone in the head as the cycle by in the street? What are you, a Daily Mail commenter?

Last link is a Canuck grump. Develop regulations for memorials “Don’t leave reminders of how deadly the thing I use to get around really is!”

Sorry this is going up so late but I had to stop and elevate my foot because of the sudden swelling after mowing the lawn.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet