We had some wind damage to the trees, but are otherwise unscathed, and the Feed

Yep, it were windy out here in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell, with one tree losing a branch to the wind. Otherwise things are just fine. Still doing good on edibles, I have about a half pot of beans and rice seasoned to my preference, plus Pop Tarts, ramen, Spam (I’m having the teriyaki flavor tonight with my ramen), and a fresh jar of peanut butter that I just opened this morning to put on my bagel. So food I got, and Mrs. the Poet will be returning from NY tomorrow evening.

Up first is Our Daily Ted, Part 1. Morning Links: LACBC wins national award for work on Mobility Plan; Sadik-Khan says the bikes have won That’s right, we won! All that’s left now is mopping up isolated pockets of resistance. So I guess I can quit this blog and go build models…

Part 2. San Diego cyclist killed in pre-dawn trolley collision and Cyclist hit, killed by trolley in Barrio Logan Damnit people, what did I just tell you yesterday about staying off tracks? Don’t cross when the arm is down, how hard is that to do?

Still in CA, but covered in one of Ted’s posts yesterday. Bicyclist Hit, Killed by Moving Truck in Rancho Palos Verdes Right hook but the cyclist was riding hard in the bike lane. At least I think that was a bike lane. The cyclist’s speed had a great deal to do with this wreck, both in the fact that it happened and in the severity of the wreck as to how for under the truck the cyclist got squished in the initial impact. The fact the cyclist was dragged for miles under the truck more than likely only changed the condition of the body, he probably died in the initial impact.

More Portland infrastructure. Counting votes at Metro: Will the region invest in walking and biking near schools? Don’t want the kids getting too independent and thinking they don’t need a car to get around.

Another update on the MN cyclist injured in a hit-and-run. St. Thomas student critically injured in bike accident returns to class “The St. Paul Police say that since January of this year a pedestrian or cyclist is hit by a driver in St. Paul every other day. And they think it’s the cyclists and pedestrians are the problem?

A little CT infrastructure change might be in the works. Connecticut Cycling Advocates Urge Stiffer Penalty For Drivers Who Don’t Share The Road The comments section is in rare form today. I lost count of the times I saw people complaining about cyclists “not paying” for roads, like riding a bike gets you a tax refund or something like that.

From CT to MT, a fallen cyclist is remembered. Tuesday morning vigil honors cyclist killed in wreck, reminds riders of traffic danger

I think this was national but reported by a PA media outlet. Early data suggests pedestrian deaths surged in 2015 There were more deaths across the board but it looks like peds took a larger share than previously lending more ammunition to the need to get drivers out from behind the wheel because the cars are great at protecting people inside the car but utter crap at protecting people outside the car.

Ran red, killed cyclist, needs to spend rest of life working to repay victim’s family after long prison sentence in the Great White North. Trial begins for man accused of running red light and killing cyclist For those not fluent in metric, bystanders estimated the speed before the wreck at 55-65 MPH, the reconstructionist put the speed at 41.6 MPH at impact with heavy braking.

More on Canada’s helmet fetish. Bike helmets are safe, but here’s what really makes cycling safer

From Jolly Olde a car doesn’t stop at the sidewalk, but goes right inside the building. CCTV VIDEO: Man ‘lucky to be alive’ after Coleshill crash – watch footage I though it was from NYC with the car driving at such a high speed on the sidewalk. 😛

One of the 12 people likely to get killed by a cyclist in Jolly Olde this year (if this is an average year). ‘Wonderful’ woman killed after crash with a cyclist at Old Street Nothing on what happened because it’s a UK media outlet, but so far no charges have been filed.

Another cyclist memorial. Family pays tribute to cyclist killed in ‘hit-and-run’ accident

Trying to find answers in a cyclist’s death. Inquest opens into death of cyclist killed in Doncaster Road crash The UK version of a left cross since the drive on the wrong side of the road.

Another blind driver takes out a cyclist. Coach driver accused of killing cyclist on A9 heard ‘a bang’ Never saw the cyclist until they were scraping him out from under the bus.

Well this can’t be good. Police investigate spate of cyclists being pushed into London canals Getting wet in winter in the UK is not as bad as getting wet in winter in MN, but it’s still not pleasant.

This is a frequent symptom of TBI from a traffic crash. Young cyclist ‘cannot remember’ how she got facial injuries in Crawley Much of what I know of my wreck is from the police reports and witnesses who ran into me later. Except the being dead part, that I remembered on my own.

Over on the Emerald Isle. Garda appeal for witnesses after cyclist (19) killed in road collision The narrative sounds like a SWSS at the moment with the driver failing to process the cyclist in front of the car until impact.

This sounds more like pressing the gas thinking it is the brake than brake failure, but hey I’m just a hot-rodder doing a bike safety blog. UPDATE: Taxi that slammed into traffic light knocked down cyclist prior to major crash I think this was South Africa, but I’m not sure.

What’s 130 miles on a bike when you have done a full Ironman? NASCAR’s Jimmie Johnson to join PeopleForBikes’ Ride on Atlanta

And last link if you think mash-ups are a recent phenomenon, here’s a mashup of “Rock And Roll, Pt.2” with the theme for Doctor Who from the ’80s. The Timelords (The KLF) – Doctorin’ The Tardis (12-inch mix)

And that’s all I go tonight. I’m going to try to get to bed early.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

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Another grocery day, and another Feed

Life is continuing on. I got up Too Early this morning to get the stock for the stair railings for the church paid for and documented, and later this afternoon I’m going grocery shopping. So, Nothing New going on outside of the blog, just things continuing on. I’m two days out from getting the $1 gift card on that silly phone game I have been playing, and almost halfway to getting the $10 card.

Up first is a report on a cyclist killed several days ride south pf WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. Organ Donation Ceremony Held For Man Killed In Bicycle Accident I’m biased, but I think cyclist transplantable organs are of higher quality than your average couch potato.

Continuing in the “cyclists are better people” meme. LSU doctoral student killed Saturday night while riding bicycle remembered as focused, compassionate Once again a blind driver is given a free pass to kill. TANJ!

Our Daily Ted part 1. Morning Links: Confronting LA’s diabetic drivers, and bike thief’s mom gives back bike her son stole

And Ted part 2. Bike rider killed in Riverside; no details available

Still in CA. Cyclist injured, driver jailed in Marin County road-rage incident The cyclist was the victim of a “Swoop and Squat” something that used to be a favorite manuever for insurance scams. The driver admitting to it was unexpected, although it may have been more of “bragging about” than “admitting to”.

Unhappy update on the cyclist hit but a tree in NYC. Cyclist Dies Days After Tree Fell On Him In Red Hook The contractor completely ignored all safety protocols that might have prevented this tragedy.

Also in NYC. Speeding Hit & Run Driver Runs Red Light & Kills Brooklyn Woman The comments section blew up big time on this one.

More on the IL driver that killed a cyclist while DUI and got off with a gentle tap on the wrist. Stroger executive gets 100-day sentence for DUI, fatality of bicyclist Hospital exec with lots of political connections trumps middle-class veteran. So it wasn’t entirely the failure to wear the glow-in-the-dark clown suit by the victim that got this guy off of murder charges…

Meanwhile in Portland. Most of those new traffic victim memorials will be gone soon: Here’s why Again ODOT and PBOT don’t like reminders of how they failed to do their jobs.

They aren’t convinced yet that diverters are necessary? Let the city know (again) if you support diverters on SE Clinton For those not familiar SE Clinton is a bicycle boulevard that is seeing increasing motor vehicle traffic as a cut-through, placing cyclists at risk because the cars and trucks are going much faster than the speed limit.

Still in OR they have an app that allows them to ignore safety problems at a single place. State’s ORcycle app is now a one-stop shop for reporting road safety issues If you think I’m being overly cynical about this I suggest you go back to the first BikePortland link 2 paragraphs ago.

More crowd-sourcing of traffic information in the Great White North. CYCLISTS CROWD-SOURCE CLOSE CALLS ON TWITTER This is a job for the DiY DOT!

Not much information on this wreck in the Great White North. Cyclist in Bible Hill seriously injured after collision with vehicle At this point all we know is the wreck was at an intersection.

A permanent memorial to cyclist victims of motor vehicle violence in Canada. Permanent national monument for downed cyclists planned for Ottawa The idea is to somehow make cycling look fun and safe while remembering the people killed while doing it. That sounds like an oxymoron to me, too.

Meanwhile a cyclist is assaulted with a motor vehicle in Oz. Bunbury cyclist forced off the road in deliberate act The driver crossed the road and made a head-on pass at the cyclist in a deadly game of chicken.

Would you like to save your city tons of money? How Much Can Bicycling Help Fight Climate Change? A Lot, If Cities Try The benefits are more to coastal cities (especially closer to the equator), but everyone benefits from reduced noise and pollution from motor vehicles.

And that’s all I have tonight, be back tomorrow.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

It took a while but I got my neck rubbed, and the Feed

I got up early this morning to go to my massage appointment a few miles west of Casa de El Poeta, about an hour by bus. I could get there faster if I could ride my bike there, but if I could ride my bike there I wouldn’t need to go. Anywho, I get there and the office is locked and nobody is answering the phone. a few minutes later the other therapist gets there and says my therapist isn’t in (duh!) and she’s booked solid for the whole day, and BTW the price of the hour session I have been getting has gone from $60 to $100, no haggling. I barely have the budget to pay for the original price, the 67% increase is just not gonna work. The place where I get my toes done has a neck and shoulder massage for $30, but it ignores most of my muscles to concentrate on “Arthur, Arthur Dent” and supporting muscles. It is leaps and bounds better than nothing, but about the same distance away from the benefits of a full massage. I will have to see if I can get massage at a better location/price before next week.

Up first because of proximity and number of links initially during filtering is this wreck. SANTA FE POLICE RECOVER PICKUP BELIEVED TO HAVE FATALLY STRUCK TEEN ON BICYCLE That link was completely different when I was doing the filtering, and another link from the same source turned into this link after filtering. Teen bike rider struck, killed by hit-and-run driver Two things to note here: First is even though this was late at night LEO are not making an issue about the cyclist’s visibility, or helmet, second is there was a witness that reported the driver left the road to hit the cyclist before driving off. This was not a wreck that a cyclist could avoid, in fact the victim in this wreck had done everything in his power to not be in the wreck, other than not being there. And as he was returning from his girlfriend’s home to his there wasn’t anything he could have done to “not be there”.

More on another possible case of “affluenza” in AK. Anchorage teen who hit, killed cyclist in court Friday and Sentencing for killer of bicyclist begins in Anchorage This was the princess who “celebrated” getting out of drug rehab by throwing a party with alcohol, pot, “molly”, and cocaine. She was still drunk and high according to toxicology results of a blood draw taken almost 3 hours after the 1000 wreck.

Another link to that brutal hit-and-run a few hours west of WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. Bicyclist killed by hit-and-run driver in Haltom City Again, the bike in this wreck was so mangled by the driver driving away with it trapped under her vehicle that I can’t determine any useful information from it.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Reflections on crappy cyclist, sailor charged in fatal hit-and-run, and more Mobility madness

Another nighttime hit-and-run where cyclist visibility was not mentioned. Bicyclist killed in Phoenix hit-run crash In fact about the only thing known for sure in this wreck was the driver left the scene and left enough bits and pieces around that they were able to find the weapon vehicle in short order.

Another Upstate NY cyclist is killed. Cyclist Killed In Accident Identified and Update: No Charges in Hammond Bike Death Given the narrative I’m shocked! (not shocked) that there were no charges in this wreck. It’s as if nobody in this burg had ever heard about the oldest traffic law on the books, not to drive any faster than you could stop in the distance you could see clearly.

Update on the psychopath who has been assaulting Mpls cyclists with thrown objects, usually chunks of concrete, thrown from either a Ford Bronco or a short-bed pickup truck with a bed capper and one rear window replaced with plywood. Police reveal new clues in hunt for driver hitting Mpls. bicyclists with concrete and as People magazine discovers the story Spree of Attacks on Bicyclists in Minneapolis

Hey they caught the guy that killed the kid in NJ. Arrest Made in Hit-Run That Killed Teen Riding Bicycle in New Jersey It is no surprise that the killer did not have a valid license when he left the scene. Maybe this time they will take his vehicle instead of the license that he does not have.

I’m not the only one to notice that SFPD has different standards for people on bicycles and people in cars. The SFPD’s campaign against biking There have been 2 deaths caused by cyclists hitting pedestrians this century (or in the records of the SFPD going back to the big quake), but obviously the problem is bikes, not cars.

Just weeks before the World Cycling Championships, motor vehicle mayhem in Richmond VA. Cyclist injured after being hit by oncoming car The only witness never mentions seeing a weapon vehicle just the aftermath, so I’m going to say this was probably a hit-and-run, and since the bike was hit from the side at the back of the bike I’m thinking the driver of the weapon vehicle failed to obey a traffic control or they would have stayed at the scene.

Just because an idiot driver almost kills you and then jumps out of the weapon vehicle to make it personal doesn’t mean you should keep hitting him until he stops trying to hit back. Corte Madera man sues cyclist over road-rage beating in Mill Valley It gets even better, the driver of the truck that hit the cyclist was drinking the day he hit the cyclist.

Well, at least this GA cyclist gets a little compensation for her pain and disfigurement. Injured Athens cyclist lawsuit settled for $850,000 I wonder what my lawsuit would be worth, had they ever caught the driver tht almost killed me?

There may be some infrastructure changes coming for Beantown. After Fatal Bike Crash, One Expert On How To Make Boston Safer For Cyclists and Plans Underway to Revamp Boston’s Seaport Traffic If I make a small suggestion, severely restrict semis with long trailers, they seem to be over-represented in the death statistics. I would go with the bicycle outriders mentioned in earlier posts about the cyclist hit by the deadheading semi towing the flatbed trailer as the best compromise over an outright ban. Also this would lead to higher employment for people who can ride a bike fast.

While we are discussing infrastructure, here’s a shitty “deal” offered Portland by ODOT. State’s proposal to improve bike crossings of Powell: Remove bike lane from 26th

And thanks to helicopter parents the child death rate on bicycles has gone down. Report: Bicyclist Death Rates Fell for Kids, Rose for Men

Drivers in West Canuckistan forget they are supposed to be “nice” Canadians. Cyclist hit on Lower Springbank Road shows clashes are continuing with drivers Combine this with the several earlier reports of deliberate assault with motor vehicles, and things look grim.

Things are getting nasty over on the Emerald Isle, too. Experts warn 100 people could be killed on our roads before end of year If that seems like a rather low number remember that Ireland is about 3/5 the size of Arkansas (32,595 sq mi compared to 53,179 sq mi) and 100 deaths would be … not very much for Arkansas .

Are cyclists treated differently by the courts in Oz? Canberra cyclist appeals against order to pay fellow rider $1.7 million for crash Let me get this straight, a cyclist hits some road trash and wrecks out and takes a second cyclist with him and the second cyclist is hit by a car, and the first cyclist is out $1.7 MILLION?!? How much did the driver of the car have to pay?

An art installation/bicycle repair station honors a fallen CO cyclist. Duggan: Trail-side sculpture honors man gone too soon

And I’m outta links finally. Sleep now, Opus tired at 0346

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Unkillable Badass Poet

Really want/need to get my neck rubbed, and the Feed

I’m working around “Arthur, Arthur Dent” as much as I can, and constantly working my neck to extend my range of motion, but DAAAaaaannnnng! do I need a massage right now… I need to get out and pay some things tomorrow, so I might get it done then. It’s not like the problem will go away by itself overnight. Working on the blog does not help matters any, also. My posture while typing is practically guaranteed to cause a neck problem from supporting my head while I type.

And this just in Yr Fthfl Srvnt was declared Next City’s Smartest Reader of the Day yesterday for my comment on the Seattle commuter dilemma.

Up first because of the many links to the story, and because of the high WTF factor involved. Pedestrian killed by falling hydro pole following collision in Concord and Cyclist killed after pole topples in collision of 2 cars also Toronto man charged after cyclist killed in Vaughan crash This was a serious level of pinball wreck that got both cyclists almost square on, as you can see from the crushed bicycles in the pictures with the articles. From watching the videos it seems the cyclists were waiting at the corner for the light to change when the wreck began and dodged one of the cars only to be crushed by the falling power pole. The bike that I assume belonged to the fatality victim was caught right in front of the seat, I can’t tell where the other bike was struck because it was removed from under the pole to treat one of the victims.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: An early endorsement for state senate, registration gets bikes back, and OCTA swims upstream

A literal hit-and-run in Philly. Police seek suspect who struck, killed cyclist with car in Juniata Park And this is the first time I recall seeing a F-150 called a “car”.

Another Philly wreck, where the victim’s survivors are not vindictive. Cyclist’s Family Says They Have No Ill-Will Against Driver Who Killed Him

OR road users are concerned about a recent spike in wrecks. With 40% rise in roadway deaths, activists plan to target ODOT That is an unexplained jump at a time when trends have been sharply down, so what has changed?

A Ghost Bike for the victim of that SUV buzz job in CO. ‘Ghost bike’ memorial to be held for dead cyclist

More on the alligator wreck. Weston cycling crash caused by alligator carcass sidelines spirited two-sport competitor Wow, he really is in bad shape.

A notice to GA riders. Bryan County public safety brief – Agressive Pitbull injures bicycle rider

Some people in the Great White North understand physics. There’s so much more to bike safety than helmets

More from the Great White North. Bike monument and memorial ride honour fallen cyclists This was done at about the same time as the pinball wreck discussed above.

Still more as LEO search the Great White North for a hit-and-run driver. Police seek white pickup truck in fatal hit-and-run

Last Canadian link, is your insurance valid when you are riding a bicycle? Do You Have Insurance Coverage as a Cyclist?

I was wondering what took so long after the driver was found to be driving without a license while driving a big rig involved in a fatal wreck. Freight firm bosses banned after unlicensed, uninsured driver killed cyclist

Also from the UK is another protest at the intersection where crap infrastructure and a blind truck killed a cyclist. Stop Killing Cyclists stage vigil at ‘murderous’ junction and Stop Killing Cyclists to host candlelit vigil to honour life of cyclist killed in midnight crash in Forward Drive

Back a few months ago we all thought this waste of human skin was going to be off the roads for a decent amount of time, not true. Widow of Sheffield cyclist killed by drunk driver lashes out over jail time served Six months into a 4 year sentence and she’s already at a halfway house? TANJ!

They had the only vehicles that could get through, and they were already there. Nepal’s national mountain bike team turn rescuers Another tally in the plus column for bicycle disaster drills. Sometimes the only things moving on the ground are people on foot and bicycles. Give those bicycles some cargo capacity and a mission and see what can be done.

And I’m out of links and I need to go fix dinner.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet