Happy Pi Day, and the Feed

For the non-geek non math nerds in my readership, today is Pi Day (3/14) where because the greek letter π is pronounced the same as the English name for a pastry crust baked in a pan with a filling we celebrate by eating pie. This year I’m having apple. Pi Day is like my fifth or sixth favorite holiday in the year, because I like pie! So go to your favorite gastro pub and have some pie! I hear the “Eat what I give you or I’ll go back in time and kill your grandparents as babies” pie is delicious.

Up first because OMG at the links. 1 Cyclist Dead, 7 Injured in Spain, Octogenarian Driver Held and Police say a 52-year-old cyclist has died and seven others have been injured, three of them seriously, after being slammed into by an SUV near the northwestern town of A Guarda also 1 Cyclist Dead, 7 Injured in Spain, Octogenarian Driver Held this too Police say a 52-year-old cyclist has died and seven others have been injured, three of them seriously, after being slammed into by an SUV near the northwestern town of A Guarda not done yet 1 cyclist dead, 7 injured in Spain, octogenarian driver held I would have really liked to know the nationality of the driver, or something besides “octogenerian”. I hope part of his new identity is “non-driver”.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Entrada Drive to get a little narrower, a call for safer driving, and your next bike may not need you

Still in CA, crap infrastructure. VIDEO: Magnolia Off Ramp – The Danger of Bad Design

Also in CA. Light Up the Night community ride teaches bike safety Nice bit of victim-blaming going on there, about the helmets and reflective clothing.

Still not out of CA. 2 Women Arrested For Hit-And-Run After Cyclist Struck In Sausalito One for driving under the influence and hit-and-run, the other for DUI and obstructing justice accessory to a felony. Guess which one is facing the greater amount of jail time?

This guy didn’t get very far on his trek across the US and Central America. Cyclist on B.C. to Panama ride injured in crash in Forks Another driverless car involved in a serious wreck? I though the only wreck like that was a bus hit at 2 MPH. Next-to-last paragraph of the article mentions the SUV had a driver… Anywho, hit-from-behind wreck, use the protocols to avoid. Crush and shred the SUV to prevent another wreck.

Wreck in AZ. Tolleson hit-and-run involving cyclist closes road There are no pictures, so I can’t determine the mode from evidence, and LEO aren’t saying. Hopefully the weapon vehicle shed some identifying parts so LEO can find it.

AZ infrastructure news. Tucson bicyclist using data to thwart fatal crashes Before the tumor took me off my bike I was getting a scary pass every time I rode, and a near-death experience about once a week. That might have something to do with the slow pace of my recovery.

Under age DUI killer sentenced in CO. Man Gets 10 Years For DUI Crash That Killed Bicyclist and 20-year-old drunk driver gets 10 years in death of cyclist I’m sorry but there is a terrible mistake in the first link, 0.204 is not more than twice the legal limit, it’s more than twice the legal limit for people old enough to drink. For a 20 YO it’s infinity times over the limit.

Another hit-and-run in OH this time. Teen bicyclist dies after struck by 3 vehicles on Harrisburg Pike The hit-and-run (or hit-skip as the call it in OH) was the first weapon vehicle involved, the one that hit the cyclist from behind with the left side of the vehicle. I know it was the driver’s side because the cyclist was launched into oncoming traffic. There are only two ways for that to happen, hit with the left side of the car or be sharply aimed to the left at the time of impact. Both require the cyclist to be riding primary as our UK brothers call it. Well I suppose the driver could go completely off the road and come back on right where the cyclist was riding at the edge, but how likely is that?

Hit-and-run in PA this time. Police: Suspect in custody in Harveys Lake hit-and-run At least the victim survived the wreck this time, and they have a suspect in custody.

Another hit-and-run, MA. Cyclist Injured In Hit & Run In Wellesley and Wellesley Man Charged With OUI After Hit And Run Seldom do I get the pleasing combination of posting a link to a hit-and-run wreck with injury, and the driver’s arrest on multiple charges in the same post.

Wreck in CT caused by AFRAP laws. Cyclist injured in Morris fall flown to hospital by Life Star What do I mean by this wreck was “caused” by As Far Right As Practicble laws? the cyclist was hugging the right side of the road and went over the edge and fell, which would not have happened if the cyclist was allowed to take the lane at all times.

Hit-from-behind in MS. Bicyclist killed on Highway 98 Most of the article is behind a paywall so what little I know says the cyclist was in no way at fault in this wreck: Daylight, hit from behind and not at an intersection (yet).

Ugh! FloriDUH! Tampa police search for driver in hit-and-run that injured bicyclist and Tampa Man Charged in Hit and Run of Bicyclist Two hit-and-runs with links to the arrests of the drivers in one day!

Still in FL, a SWCC wreck. Pompano Beach bicyclist, 57, killed in collision with car The geometry for this wreck is right for a stale green wreck.

Infrastructure from MD. Bicyclists and motorists sharing the roads

I thought I heard all the stupid excuses for hitting a cyclist. Jail sentence for driver who killed cyclist when he was ‘running late’ Well I heard that one before. Trying to get there just a fraction of a second faster so he cut the corner on a blind turn and hit a cyclist head on. And just what would have happened had there been a semi truck around the corner instead of a man on a bicycle?

Nothing about the wreck, but they got their man. Man charged over death of cyclist by ‘careless driving while under influence’ and ‘How I tried to save cyclist’s life in Outland Road tragedy’ – by photographer at the scene I’m still trying to wrap my head around any death caused by a DUI being “careless” instead of “dangerous” by definition.

So they weren’t hurt in the wreck but fell down after? Cyclists injured after incident Cut off by the driver pulling out in front of the group and wrecking trying to avoid hitting the car.

Almost no information about this wreck in Oz. Victoria’s road toll climbs as motorbike rider, cyclist and 88-year-old woman die in separate accidents “Went off the road” is not a very specific wreck narrative…

National US infrastructure! It’s Time for U.S. Cities to Ban Right Turns on Red
Actually I would like to see a nationwide ban at the state level (kind of how they got seatbelt laws passed).

Last link is preventing gentrification with bicycles. How I Stopped Gentrification in My Neighborhood

And I have to get up early to go to the Lab Rat Keeper tomorrow, so off to bed.

Billed @$0.02, Opus

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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

I paid bills and now my feet hurt, and the Feed

I spent most of the afternoon walking around Garland getting bills paid and banking done. My feet are killing me, especially that spot on my left big toe that always has a huge callous removed when I get my toes done. My feet feel like I have been beating on them, which tells me I need more shock absorption in my footwear. Oh, well, something else I need to spend money on. It will go somewhere in the middle of the list of things to spend money on.

Up first because links, and a cyclist killer gets prison time. Former Episcopal Bishop Heather Cook sentenced to seven years in drunk-driving death of cyclist and Bishop who killed cyclist while driving drunk gets 7 years also Judge sentences ex-bishop who killed cyclist while driving drunk this too Ex-Maryland Bishop Sentenced to 7 Years in DUI Death of Cyclist not done Bishop Who Killed Cyclist While Driving Drunk Gets 7 Years

Next because it’s strange and bizarre, and also has lots of links. Bicycle rider killed by container falling from truck and BICYCLIST KILLED AFTER CARGO CONTAINER SLIDES OFF FLATBED TRUCK, FALLS ON HIM IN LONG BEACH also BICYCLIST CRUSHED BY CARGO CONTAINER IN LONG BEACH IDENTIFIED AFAIK the wreck was caused by an improperly secured container on a trailer that was not designed to haul cargo containers being driven by a scab driver hired by a union-busting conglomerate. tl;dr The cyclist was killed by corporate greed.

This looks like a good place to put the link to Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Caltrans takes another step forward; CHP wants to improve bike safety, while cycling deaths up

Still in CA, more judicial bike news. Huntington Beach Man Convicted of Murder in DUI Hit-and-Run Death of Cyclist The minimum sentence is 16 years before parole.

More on the cop being in the right place at the right time to catch a DUI hit-and-run driver. Bicyclist killed in West Covina hit-and-run, driver arrested Pity he couldn’t have been in the right place and time to arrest her for DUI before she killed someone.

At least they didn’t call it a race this time. Injured veterans finish 500+ mile bike ride As a vet WoaB strongly supports our injured and wounded warriors.

Today seems to be the day for judicial news about bike wrecks, as this link from MI shows. Sentencing is Tuesday for Romulus woman who hit, killed boy riding his bike Killed while driving impaired by illegal drugs… Like the guy convicted of murder in CA a few paragraphs upstream.

Still in MI. Man on bike killed in hit and run in Ann Arbor overnight They are still examining the debris left from the weapon vehicle to try to identify it.

A couple of states over in MN they decided there wasn’t enough evidence to suspect another vehicle in the death of a cyclist. Ramsey Co. Sheriff: Vehicle No Longer Believed Involved In Cyclist’s Death “(D)octors determined that his injuries were not consistent with the bike accident.”

This CT link is just so full of “NO DUH!” Blunt trauma killed Torrington bike rider, state medical examiner says The guy was hit with a semi, that is pretty much the definition of blunt force trauma.

This NC wreck screams “assault with a deadly weapon” for the cyclist. Cyclist injured in Fayetteville crash Hit a cyclist, sideswipe a car, and hit a pole. The driver was either trying to kill the cyclist, or impaired.

Some Portland political news that could have an impact on other cities looking to Portland for guidance. Six bike-related issues that might take a turn with Hales out of the race

Still in Portland, something else that could impact bicycle safety in the rest of the country. At Wonk Night, County DA announces effort to change state law The change spoken of is the massive gap between a traffic ticket and vehicular homicide when someone with a car kills while breaking a traffic law. When the victim survives the gap is even worse as there is nothing that a driver can be criminally charged with.

Now this is an amenity. Portland Downtown Marriott adds in-room bike parking This would not work with Francis/es, but it might work with Blue or Gigi. I would bust a gut trying to get Francis/es up on that hook, cargo bikes are not meant to be lifted by the handlebars.

Infrastructure problems in SC. Charleston’s king tide floods are a sign of what the world will face as oceans rise Kinda hard to ride in the bike lane when the whole road is under water.

When they perfect driverless cars enough to replace human drivers, will they be allowed to drive? Will City Regulators Treat Driverless Cars Like They’ve Treated Uber?

Up north of Portland in far West Canuckistan. ICBC blames cyclist negligence for highway bike death Still trying to wrap my head around the concept that a cyclist hit head on by a vehicle driven by a drunk driver on the wrong side of the road while the cyclist is riding on the right side of the road with a chase vehicle(!) is at any way responsible for the wreck. The fact that the chase vehicle was hit and both occupants killed hasn’t even been entered into the equation yet.

Crap infrastructure is still crap in Jolly Olde. Killed Northumberland cyclist’s sister’s anguish as another bike rider hit This makes several cyclists severely injured since the wreck that killed the woman’s sister, all in the same intersection.

Surviving relatives of a UK cyclist killed by a driver who legally was banned from driving but the paperwork had not gone through yet speak out against what he did. Katy Charlton confronts driver Neil Urwin who killed her husband Andy

A rare cyclist-on-ped wreck in Jolly Olde. Schoolgirl injured after hit-and-run with cyclist in Sheffield DON’T HIT THE PEDESTRIANS! And especially don’t hit a pedestrian and leave the scene without making sure the pedestrian either isn’t injured or is getting care and you have left your contact information.

Last link is from Enn Zed. Cyclist critically injured in Tauranga crash This is the “We drive on the left side of the road” equivalent of the left cross.

And I really want to get to bed now and rest.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Happy Canada Day, and the Feed

First let me wish my Canadian Readers a happy independence day. I know I make fun of where you live (The Great White North, East Canuckistan, West Canuckistan, Far West Canuckistan) but believe me when I say I do it out of love. You guys are awesome (you had same-sex marriage 10 years before we did as just one example) and I have loved your country ever since my baby brother was born in it 53 years ago (St. John’s Newfoundland, right after it was declared a separate province) and every time we lived there since. I haven’t been back since the early ’70s, but I stay current as I can given how little news comes from north of the border. I mean besides Rob Ford, he’s sorta like your Chris Christie only on drugs, and not trying to take over the country.

Second the reason why this post is going up so late with so few links is I went to get “Arthur, Arthur Dent” rubbed on and transit to the new therapist killed about an hour each way, plus waiting for the bus, plus having to get money from the bank to pay for the massage, and then an hour for the massage. But it was worth it. My range of motion is temporarily only limited by the bones and ligaments in my neck, not by the muscle binding up and not allowing more contraction or extension. I can already feel the muscles starting to tighten back up, but for the moment it’s wonderful.

Since we started out talking about Canada and everything, here’s another link to that pinball wreck that caused a pole to fall on two cyclists. Greater Toronto Area cyclist dead after violent crash More Driver arrested after cyclist, 47, killed in Dufferin St. collision No new facts in the case, just new reports that makes it doubly sure that the cyclists were just waiting on traffic to clear and the lights to change when the power pole fell on them.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: 19-year old bike rider shot in Commerce; more naked folks on bikes; and mobile LA bike repair Included was a link to an attempted murder by motor vehicle on 3 cyclists hit near Sacramento. I’ll include that link if I see it in the Feed, but Ted gets CA news a day ahead of me.

Hey, a bunch of links about cops doing the right thing in Seattle. Police: Intoxicated driver killed cyclist Saturday night and Seattle police: Driver who hit and killed cyclist was intoxicated also DRIVER ARRESTED AFTER KILLING BICYCLE RIDER IN SEATTLE The driver stopped, was suspected of being drunk since he was falling down and other suspicious behavior, and he was arrested.

Another shocker as LEO are looking for “enhancements” to a hit-and-run in WY. Police still investigating Casper hit-and-run that injured bicyclist Find as many “enhancements” as you can, boys, hit-and-run should be treated like attempted murder when the victim survives, and murder if the victim dies…

Another WTF moment in Detroit. Man on bicycle shot and killed during robbery on Fenkell on Detroit’s west side Nothing you can do as a cyclist to avoid this, as you can’t outrun a bullet and unless there is heavy traffic you can’t outrun a motor vehicle.

Back to the Great White North for this little infrastructure blurb. THE QUICK, THE SAFE AND THE CYCLIST Another “death vs speed” chart to go with the hundreds of other charts that say pretty much the same thing.

The tide is turning against drunk and distracted drivers that kill cyclists in Jolly Olde. Jail for woman who killed cyclist after using phone while driving Now we have to hope that she doesn’t spend 6 months in jail and then go to a halfway house.

And just when it was starting to look like things are improving. Community order, driving ban and fine for driver who caused cyclist’s death Yep another round of “community service” for killing a cyclist.

So, who gets to go to jail for this death? Cancelled plans for a safe roundabout ‘could have prevented’ cyclist’s death, says politician The planned changes would have added at most a couple of seconds to clearing the junction while saving cyclists’ lives and bodies, but apparently a few seconds is too great a cost to pay for a cyclist’s life.

And they wonder why cyclists do this? Cyclists stage another mass ‘die-in’ protest at Bank in continuing battle to raise awareness of cycling safety in London

Or why they do this? Cyclist Jeremy Vine reveals he films bad drivers and sends footage to police This is the guy that says a camera is more important than a helmet for a cyclist in London.

Another useless “safety” gadget. Introducing the Varia™ Line of Smart Cycling Devices from Garmin® – Rearview Bike Radar and Smart Bike Lights to Help Create a Safer Riding Environment Alerting starting at 140 meters means the alert is going to be pretty much constant when I ride to church for example.

Bosch expands their crank assist motor line. Bosch Announces More Torque, More Battery and Other New eBike Technologies More power storage at the same weight/volume? How much empty space did they have with the old batteries?

A solar-assisted recumbent trike with a “swamp cooler” AC. Solar Assisted Air Conditioned Tricycle with Unlimited Range

When you get hit you need a good lawyer on your side. Meet the Chicago lawyer who represented cyclists before it was cool

And I’m out of links and patience as my legs decided they haven’t been annoying enough lately and just swelled up and started itching, so I’m going to finish this up and have a lie-down and then do dishes.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

This is gonna hurt, and the Feed

I am taking a break from filtering because 1) my butt is getting tired, and B. my brain is getting slightly crispy around the edges as I deal with some monumentally stupid/trollish comments left on some articles, and π) I need to go hit something. I figure a punch-a-pillow break is better than any of my alternatives.

Up first because “why not?” is Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Hollywood bike parking becomes a homeless site; a blogger argues bike lane air is bad for LA kids While bike lane air is “bad” the consequences of sitting in traffic in a light armored vehicle are orders of magnitude worse.

And Pt. 2 of Our Daily Ted. 22-year old alleged sidewalk rider killed in South LA hit-and-run How do they know the cyclist “swerved” off the sidewalk in a hit-and-run? And every time I see the word “Slauson” I think this. I used to watch that stuff when it was new. Yes, I already know I’m old…

Another link to the driver banned from owning a cell phone for 2 years. Cellphone ban for driver who killed cyclist is ‘a reminder every day,’ judge says The driver is allowed to use WiFi devices, but anything that directly connects to any cell phone system.

One of the most deeply held tenets of WoaB is “Don’t hit the pedestrians.” Pedestrian Suing Cyclist After Collision On Dearborn Street From the comments section the entire suit is a pack of lies intended to prey upon the prejudices of the (potential) jury, the pedestrian in question walked into the cyclist’s path while walking in the bike lane instead of crossing it, the equivalent of walking down the middle of a street, and the bike was equipped with two independent braking systems, fixie with a front brake. Still, DON’T HIT THE PEDESTRIANS!

OK this one is bizarre beyond words. Bicyclist injured in downtown Woodland accident Adrenaline can be a scary thing. It can make you really stupid, so that you get up and run away from getting hit with a car hard enough to smash the windshield hard enough to spray broken glass on the front seat occupants… Something got this cyclist wound up on adrenaline before he got hit, because there wasn’t enough time for any adrenaline from the wreck to kick in so that he could get up and run away from the wreck like that.

This IL story is a bit better than the one in an earlier paragraph. The ‘Wheel’ Deal: Flossmoor Cop Gifts Bike Crash Victim with a New Ride

I’m including this for a single sentence from LEO, the most sane thing I have ever read credited to a LEO. Cyclist killed by tractor trailer was on way home from work Did you see it, or has it been deleted? “Police say Goodrow was not wearing a helmet but suspect it would have made little difference.” Really, a styrofoam hat against 50K pounds or more of truck and trailer? And regarding the lights and reflectors the VA Vehicle code reads “… shall be equipped with a headlight on the front emitting a white light visible in clear weather from a distance of at least 500 feet to the front and a red reflector visible from a distance of at least 600 feet to the rear when directly in front of lawful lower beams of headlights on a motor vehicle.” So the rear reflector (without a light) was within the law, and the cyclist was hit from behind so the headlight was moot. The truck driver should have seen the cyclist but failed to pass safely.

From NYC another pedestrian is mowed down. 5-Year-Old Boy Struck By Driver On Prospect Park West

More on the Trek QR recall. 3 Reasons Why You May Have a Trek Bicycle Injury Lawsuit And I have one very good reason why you don’t have a valid lawsuit: in order for the “defective” QR to cause the problem it did you have to leave the QR in the open position. The equivalent would be to fail to tighten the lug nuts on your Chevy and then sue GM when the wheel falls off…

While we are in the figurative WI courtroom. Homicide charges loom for driver who hit, killed 2 bicyclists in Muskego I thought there must be foul play in order to hit 2 cyclists and kill them both…

More on the cyclist killed riding USBR 36 in IL. From the view of a cyclist The comments section was toxic. Literally toxic.

From the Great White North. Battlefield bike ride across Europe to aid injured soldiers If any of my Canadian reader$ feel $o inclined…

And court news from Jolly Olde. Bus driver in court over Washington cyclist’s death Still don’t know anything about what happened because of UK media laws, except that LEO think the bus driver “did it” whatever “it” was.

More on those detection systems planned for testing in London. Thermal cameras will watch for waiting cyclists and turn traffic lights green Typical comments about cyclists not paying a tax that hasn’t existed since 1937 in the comment section…

And one wonders what will happen to the program in the last paragraph in light of this report. Tories withdraw £23m of promised spending for cycling in latest cuts

Remembering a cyclist killed by an overloaded semi in Oz. Family honours Brisbane cyclist as memorial mural unveiled at accident site on Annerley Road The truck hit the underside of the bridge and fell on the cyclist riding to the side as the truck passed.

And trying to make the death mean something. Cyclist’s widow calls for inner city truck ban I see a workable compromise: Trucks move in the ban area by trip permit only with bicycle outriders fore and aft to keep the truck from running anyone over. Truck moves no faster than bicycle speed so no cyclists would be endangered by them. Make the permits non-profit (just administrative costs only) and the costs for the cyclists either on a per-mile rate or a per-job rate with a mileage or time limit per job and a new permit required for each trip in and out of the ban zone, each permit good for one round trip in and out of the ban zone. Cyclists get full employment, other road users are protected, and goods are still delivered to destinations inside the “no truck” zone.

And I’m outta links and patience. I wanna watch some tube and veg out.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Another caffeine-fueled day, and the Feed

Just not feeling the need to eat today, so I’m working the second half-gallon of coffee instead. I have to do something to maintain my “girlish” figure, right? I mean I have found where all the new pounds are going and there is literally nothing I can do about it short of starving myself periodically. The extra weight is coming in my chest and shoulders, unless Mrs. the Poet has found a way to make all my shirts tighter up top and looser in the middle. And I’m sure that lump on the back of my neck has something to do with the weight gain above and beyond the fact that I can’t ride a bike because it exists on my neck. The thing is huge now, and is seriously interfering with my daily life. And it has to weigh at least a pound all by itself.

Up first is an arrest in a drunken vehicular assault down in the RGV of TX. Three Cyclist Injured, Suspect Faces Charges I think whoever supplied the minor with alcohol needs to be charged in the crime also. And something needs to be done to keep drunks off the roads. I’m in favor of taking the cars away from drivers caught driving drunk, but I don’t know how that would keep people from driving drunk in the first place.

And over in Houston they are building something approximating Dutch-quality infrastructure. Take a Look at Houston’s First On-Street Protected Bike Lane and New Green Bike Lanes Downtown And they need to put another protected bi-directional lane on the other half of the couplet so that people can access destinations on the street going the other direction. But baby steps…

And some people are just scum. ‘GHOST BIKES’ VANISHING FROM HOUSTON STREETS

And from a link gleaned from the previous paragraph, Denton and Lewisville are going to get connected by bicycle infrastructure getting round the I35E blockage. Path offers ride alongside rails This fills a critical gap in getting around the north central part of the Metroplex. Until now cyclists wanting to get from Dallas County to Denton had to either take the A Train or go through Frisco and cross over on 380, neither of which is ideal.

Next state over is an update on a wreck from a few years back. Severly injured cyclist says his life was ruined by drunk driver in fatal 2012 Perkins Road crash This guy was messed up even worse than I was, and the other guy died. The driver had a BAC of 0.307% which means that if he wasn’t an alcoholic he would have been unconscious.

A little PR from CO. Crammer: You know me, I ride a bike Making cyclists “human” instead of “other” makes some drivers think twice about running one over. I hope so anyway.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: LA finally gets tough on hit-and-run, Calimesa driver convicted in fatal DUI hit-and-run

I question where the thrust of this “enforcement” push will be directed. UAPD awarded grant to patrol bike, pedestrian violations I’m thinking they will go after imaginary bike and pedestrian violations while ignoring motor vehicles because chasing down motor vehicles to issue tickets is dangerous while stopping pedestrians and cyclists is much safer.

The Chinese BSO Wal-Mart sells will get painted and partially assembled in the US before getting boxed and shipped to Wal-Marts. Made-in-America bikes hit Wal-Mart “Assembled in USA from components manufactured elsewhere” bikes come to Wal-Mart…

A “rah, rah” link from CA. Attorney Ramin Soofer of the Soofer Law Group Praises Operation Firefly Yay! Headlights.

A cyclist in Canuckistan gets an unpleasant surprise after a right hook. Cyclist Rylan Kafara gets $6,000 bill after collision with SUV

Another protest I was invited to attend and cover over in Jolly Olde. London Cyclists Stage Protest in Memory of Greek Bike Rider

Some infrastructure news from Jolly Olde that does not bode well for the future. Taking Cyclists Off Roads Is No Way to Improve Transit As the article points out there are a number of proposals that spend buckets of money to just get cyclists off the roads but not let them get to where they need to go.

And I have run out of links again.

Billed @ €0.02, Opus the Poet

Practically an all-infrastructure Feed today after taking a long trip to pay 2/3 of my taxes

Yep, I spent most of the day on the road and on my feet today standing around in lines to pay 2 out of 3 tax bills. I managed to cover the City and County taxes in about 2 hours plus travel time including walking between the two offices. I still have to hit GISD to pay those taxes, which will be a slightly quicker trip as I have to drop by the bank first to transfer money from the savings account we use to accumulate the money for taxes and insurance to the checking account so the check won’t bounce first, then walking 4 blocks to the tax office, and probably standing around in line for at least an hour if the lines today were any indication.

Up first, this is one of the main reasons why nobody likes the NYPD. Bike Cop Tickets Bicyclist For Biking On Bike Path The cyclist was ticketed for ignoring a sign and riding on the path while 10 feet away from a sign (caught in the picture the cyclist took of the officer writing the ticket) telling people that they were on a bike path. And yet even with photographic proof that the cyclist was riding on the bike path and not a pedestrian path this case will go to trial. The only thing I can think of is the judge has a deal to split the overtime with the cop.

A drunk driver is on trial for killing a cyclist in the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike. Trial continues for man charged in fatal crash with cyclist There are many reasons why FL kills more cyclist per capita than any other state in the US, the high rate of DUI is just one of them.

And along those lines come these thoughts. Florida Cities: “Unsafe at Any Speed” for Cyclists, Pedestrians? and South Florida roadways not just dangerous for cars Physical infrastructure, legal infrastructure, education, all are deficient with FL. The legal infrastructure is being addressed on the law side of the equation, but where it really falls down is on the LEO side when wrecks that were recorded by the cyclist and prove the cyclist was not at fault end up with no enforcement against the driver. Some of that failure is a result of the long-term failure in the education side. People just don’t know the laws, and LEO are people at the end of the day.

More of the same in MO. Man arrested for fatally striking bicycle rider in St. Louis County Fortunately there was nothing on the mode of the wreck.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: LA considers hit-and-run alert, Pacoima Wash Bikeway meeting, Glendale surrenders to traffic

More on the London glorified bike lanes. London is building Europe’s longest bike superhighway As far as the longest actual “superhighway” for bikes, I think that would be the recent 27 km or so long highway opened in Denmark might have that title. And it is a real superhighway, basically a divided highway in bicycle scale. More Cycling in Central London set to get safer with new superhighways

Why this is needed is illustrated in this infographic. How London’s streets became a death trap for cyclists: Every bicycle accident mapped All that money and they are still decades behind the Dutch.

And I’m fresh out of links.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Cyclist running red light t-bones family car and walks away from fiery wreck that leaves 5 dead, and the Feed

Everyone knows that “headline” is pure BS fantasy, right? Not even The Onion would post an article that stupid, but I get people searching for it who get sent to this blog… So I thought since they get sent here anyway, I would give them something to find and here it is: YOU’RE A BLOOMING IDIOT! The only mode of ground transport less deadly than riding a bicycle (to all other modes) is walking, and given the number of cyclists who die each year from getting knocked off their bikes by pedestrians it is almost tied. Cyclists kill very few pedestrians, and pedestrians kill very few cyclists. It’s the elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about most of the time that is the big killer, motor vehicles. Of course around here we talk about it all the time… Anyway, that should draw a few clicks to the site, and spread the word about bicycle safety.

Another link to that semi hitting a cyclist riding on the shoulder of a NM highway. Cyclist dies in crash near Three Rivers on Saturday Same basic report, cyclist was riding in the shoulder when he “got tapped” by the semi and fell under the front wheel. Problem is there isn’t enough room between the front bumper and the front tire for that to happen. So, either there was some kind of spatial anomaly following the truck around, or the driver ran off the road and right over the cyclist. I still haven’t seen any crime scene pictures so I can’t even speculate what caused LEO to make such an outrageous statement.

A north GA cyclist is wondering “what happened” after going on a bike ride and waking up in a hospital with multiple broken bones. Bob Richards seeks answer to cycling mystery I’m in the “buzz job” camp myself, but all the cyclist’s injuries were to the right side of the body, the tell-tale bruise to the back of the left arm wasn’t found or if found was not reported.

Another salmon cyclist is killed in the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bicycle. FHP: Cyclist hit by SUV dies in St. Johns County OK there is just so much “wrong” in this report I hardly know where to start… But yeah, don’t ride salmon for starters. Second drainage that leaves the bike lanes free of standing or moving water would be a help. Or just get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” in the first place.

A cyclist is seriously injured on the eastern side of the Great White North. Cyclist seriously injured in hit-and-run collision in N.B. and Cyclist seriously injured in hit and run in Berry Mills OK another salmon. That’s the first mistake. Second is infrastructure that apparently created a barrier to bicycle navigation with the highway that the cyclist thought using the highway was the best way to get around the obstruction. So don’t ride salmon to begin with, and get the infrastructure “up to Dutch” at least as far as getting bicycles over, across, or around whatever the cyclist took to the highway to get over, across, or around.

Not quite blaming the driver of the truck for the death, but yeah the guy driving the truck killed the girl. Cyclist Mathilde Blais’s death was avoidable: Coroner Notice the coroner didn’t state outright that the truck driver was the problem or place all blame on the driver, but mentioned that not moving over to the empty lane on the left was the primary cause of death.

Drunken hit-and-run in South Africa. Cyclist crushed but driver speeds off Drunks that leave the scene of an injury wreck should never be allowed to drive again. Drunks that leave the scene of a fatal wreck should never be allowed to breathe again. I’m still fond of the idea of running them and their cars through a car shredder on live TV with a camera inside the car.

And more of the flood of press surrounding the second person to die after getting hit by a bicycle this decade in NYC. Wall Street Cyclists Reassess Need for Speed After Death The cyclist’s GPS recorded a speed of 28.9 MPH shortly before the wreck or more than 6 MPH slower than required to get a speeding ticket in NYC (or about anyplace else), and more pedestrians died from motor vehicle wrecks in NYC since the wreck than have been killed by cyclists in NYC since the turn of the century. Remember that elephant in the room I mentioned at the top of the post? The one nobody else will talk about? Here is another article ignoring the elephant while screaming at the mouse.

And those were all the links about bicycles I could find.

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