I was shanghaied Monday and the Feed is Huge

I was only supposed to be gone a couple of hours yesterday to create new characters for one of the D&D groups I play with that is starting a new campaign, over and done with by 1700 and home in time for dinner, but instead we got into debates about getting the best possible party and balancing the characters out against each other. This continued with point buy calculators going nonstop until everybody’s phones died and we had to quit about 2230. Anyway my Warlock died again last session as we had another TPK by cultists with mind control spells, except the one character who has so many ranks in hide and the hide-in-plain-sight feat that he is essentially invisible at will and who only joined the party for that session so not actually part of the party, just there when the rest of the party showed up. This time I created a Warblade character with huge hit points and incredible Dex, leading to a touch AC of 16 or regular AC of 20 and impossible to catch flat-footed unless unconscious so flat-footed AC is equal to regular AC. Part of my equipment includes +2 gloves of Dex that added to my already high Dex results in the Dex mod of 6. I also have a feat that adds another 2 to Dex for days when I’m going to not wear armor, like on diplomatic missions or other activities when armor is a faux pas, making my AC on those missions 17 touch 18 regular. My current status is part of the Town Guard near the site of the TPK, but on a provisional basis as a reservist when I’m not adventuring. I’m about to go off my reserve status as a monster has invaded the town…

Up first is a breaking story off my Twitter Feed. Ex-Bishop Who Killed Cyclist Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter Ten years for killing a person… And that is one of the harshest sentences I have seen for killing a cyclist in the US. I don’t know if I should be happy she’s getting one of the harshest sentences, or dismayed that 10 years for killing a cyclist is “harsh” when there are people serving life without parole for pot possession.

They are all stupid wrecks, but some moreso than others. Glen Allen woman killed in Hanover bike crash and Cyclist killed in Hanover called “a force for good” The cyclist was hit from behind on a straight road in the middle of the day. I can’t describe this in any other way than “stupid”.

This story is semi-local to me. Sorry, DWI Barbie car girl, drunken driving isn’t cute I hadn’t heard about this one before today, but there was a girl who lost her driving privileges after a DUI, not because a judge took them but because her daddy took the keys to the car back. Princess Spoiled Brat “protested” by driving a pink Barbie™ Jeep™ around campus because she didn’t want to ride a bicycle. I have nothing good to say about convicted DUI “drivers” who think they are “too good” to ride a bike on trips that a Barbie™ Jeep™ can do with ease. Take away the kid’s toy AND the bicycle and let her walk or die of starvation.

This one is a little closer and just as annoying but for different reasons. Mother speaks out on son killed in car/bicycle crash Same old story, LEO with windshield bias ignore evidence that cyclists are riding within the law because of imaginary laws that they think say cyclists shouldn’t be there to get hit.

Here’s a little Daily Ted because I need to cool off a bit before getting into the “other” parts of the feed. Morning Links: NY Times fumbles LA’s Mobility Plan, anti-Rowena road diet petition, and a CicLAvia sneak peek

A WI cyclist is killed but nobody is talking about the wreck. Cudahy man dies after he was struck by vehicle while riding a bicycle in Franklin and Cudahy man, 51, killed while bicycling in Franklin also Cudahy father killed riding his bike hat last link says it was a hit-from-behind wreck and the cyclist was lighted and reflectored far beyond legal minimums. And they can’t decide if the driver did anything wrong. TANJ! If the cyclist was hit from behind like that, the driver always did something wrong, especially in states with minimum passing clearance. This is lazy police work, pure and simple.

From the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike, a survivor. Boy,12, riding bike struck by vehicle in Lake Worth Oh, that explains it, he was hit riding in the parking lot of a C-Store. Getting hit at 10 MPH and below is only about 2% fatal.

Also in FL. Bicyclist critically injured after being hit by ambulance If the ambulance hit the cyclist on his right side he was more than halfway through the intersection, why do they think he ran the stop sign?

Another hit-from-behind, this one in VA. Family friend: Carrie Wortham, woman killed riding bike, made huge difference and Community mourns death of cyclist killed in Hanover crash This was a person who gave from the heart and was one of us. I am saddened to see her go,

Another DUI wreck in CA (this is why I’m so pissed at the DUI Princess in that article above). Cyclist killed by man who was arrested for drunk driving

Why? She was on a group ride, it’s not like she was invisible. Des Plaines woman riding bike struck by car, killed in Aurora If I’m reading this right she was crossing the road from a bike path or MUP and the traffic controls were either set improperly, or the sightlines were such that the rider was unable to complete her crossing.

LEO in NC are leaving no stone unturned in trying to blame this cyclist. Bicyclist dies in traffic accident on Highway 194 The picture of the weapon vehicle in impound with driver’s side front damage raises 2 questions: Which way was the cyclist hit, head on or from behind, and 2) since both vehicles were in their correct lanes how was the driver not at fault in this wreck? Blaming the rain is just another way of excusing the driver for not driving to conditions.

More than 500 riders in two different locations turn out for memorial rides. At least 500 cyclists honor Birminghamian who was killed last week while cycling and 500 rally in memory of bicyclist killed on the road When I filtered that first link there were several comments about all the cyclists on the road on the tail end of rush hour bolluxing the traffic. I just think they probably would not get 50 people to show up, much less 500. Anywho all the comments were removed.

A wreck just down the road from my in-laws. Update: Police ID LaGrange cyclist injured on Union Vale road Notice the quickness to blame the cyclist for being there… Then again this is NY State, where the cyclist is always wrong unless there is video.

Another link to a wreck from last month. Friend says Hammond cyclist killed in August was safety-minded

Another SWCC wreck with two injured, one fatally. Man killed, woman hospitalized after pickup hits bicycle

I can NOT relate how angry this link leaves me. Granville veterinarian dies in car-bicycle crash The cyclist was hit head-on by a sleeping driver around 1500. Was the driver a third-shift worker out too late?

IA is regarded as a decent but not exceptional state to ride a bike, but lately those with dogs on the fight have noticed there are more wrecks than there should be. Why does Iowa have so many bike-car crashes? Because you have a state full of Faux Nooz watchers? No? How about you have a bunch of spoiled brats who never learned to share and now are incensed that there is someone else using the roads?

Up in the Great White North another cyclist is splatted. Cyclist suffers life-threatening injuries after being struck by car in St. Catharines and St. Catharines cyclist seriously hurt in collision I call this a SWSS wreck, because there’s only the driver’s word on what the cyclist did and we all know how well drivers process the existence of a cyclist in front of the vehicle.

And if you’re falling-down drunk, you might want to wait a while before riding your bike home. Intoxicated cyclist struck, injured in Newmarket

You know when you pass a cyclist too close they get a little hyper? Driver hit in the face with rider’s helmet in road rage outburst I mean look at the evidence: “I got out and he swore at me and said people like me get cyclists killed. He then took his helmet off and smacked me in the face.” There were three other vehicles that passed before the one with the assaulted driver, and then the driver had to slam on the brakes to keep from hitting the cyclist. That is not how to do a safe pass. But don’t hit the driver with your helmet even when he gets out of the car to have an argument with you after almost killing you.

And dude, no, just no. Bicycles Don’t Belong on Busy City Streets The wrongness just oozes and drips from every word in this article. Seriously, I have been cycling since LBJ got sworn in and I’m wondering about all the taxes that I wasn’t supposed to pay. Where can I apply for the refund? That’s almost 50 years of refunds due…

And I’m outta links and patience and my back is killing me, I’m going to tag but not proof this because I have been staring at this computer for like 14 hours and I want to have a lie-down.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

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It’s hot in Texas and water is wet, and the Feed

Looking at my phone the temp just went to 103°F with the heat index “only” 102 because there is almost no humidity. Seriously the air in Phoenix is more humid than the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell, 22% in TX to 26% in AZ. And I actually go out and ride a bike in weather like this, wearing a full-face helmet. Well nobody has accused me of being “normal” lately. Speaking of that there are only 20 more shopping days to get me a Death Day present. I’m looking for RPG dice this year, especially d6 and d8. And I’m a vain geek, I want pretty dice that kinda match. And seriously about this, I’m playing a game now where I sometimes need as many as 10 d6 for damage rolls because my Warlock is heavily buffed with stacking magic items that both increase his “to hit” as well as his damage. I mean my to hit is now +13 against the touch AC of my opponent meaning against most non-monsters I hit every time, and I have better than even odds against pretty much all of the monsters. Currently it takes me longer to roll damage than most people take to play a turn because of my lack of d6. 😦

Right now it appears the Big Story is the woman hit by a semi in Boston on Friday morning. Cyclist Killed by Tractor Trailer Identified and Cyclist’s death spotlights Mass. Ave. peril also Recent fatal bike encounters with trucks, buses this too Police search for flatbed truck after bicyclist hit and killed at Boston more like this Bicycle rider killed in Back Bay crash in the previous link you can see the cyclist just before she was hit under the passenger side mirror of the picture of the weapon vehicle. Police Identify Bicyclist Killed In Back Bay Accident I’m going to make a 100% absolutely serious recommendation here: Ban large trucks like this from urban areas unless accompanied by bicyclist outriders front and rear to make sure that no pedestrians or cyclists get run over because drivers can’t see out of the right side or directly in front of the vehicle. The outriders’ responsibility would be to ensure that there was nothing and nobody in the way of the truck before allowing it to make a turning movement and hold the truck until the way had been cleared with the front outrider keeping people from turning across the truck and the back outrider making sure nobody comes from behind, and both making sure that the people who got there first have time to get out of the way, then the truck can make a turn. Obviously this is much more important when making a right turn because such large vehicles have to fade far to the left to clear such things as light poles and sidewalks, but there is still some issues with the left turns from a one-way street that require fading right for clearance. Using bicyclists as outriders means the forward speed is more or less limited to a safe speed. Late addition Surgeon Remembered After Being Struck and Killed on Bike

From a few hours ride east of WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. Calls for road safety after Longview cyclist crashes “It’s not if I’m going to get hit, it’s when,” which sounds pretty pessimistic, but this is TX, the state where the 2 biggest-selling vehicles are pickup trucks in spite of most of the population living in one of 6 urban areas.

A memorial ride south of WoaB about a day and a half ride. Memorial to honor teen killed in auto vs. bike crash “(H)e swerved and hit the side of a vehicle” tells me that he got buzzed and hit. Remember this victim of motor violence.

Ted had a good day. We interrupt this website for a view from Sunday’s successful CicLAvia

Well it was good for a little while, anyway. Bicyclist killed riding on I-15 in North San Diego County hit-and-run; victim may have been struck multiple times

Same area, slightly earlier. Mission Beach Cyclist Severely Injured in Hit-and-Run Area readers are encouraged to BOLO for the weapon vehicle, have SDPD non-emergency number on speed dial. And PD need to have the ability to get texts and attachments from cell phones so that vital information can be sent from people on the scene instead of trying to describe the situation verbally. Pictures are worth a thousand words.

From the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike catches a killer. FHP: Hit-and-run driver distracted by e-cig before killing teen cyclist and Arrest made in hit-and-run crash that killed 17-year-old He dropped his vaper on the floor and instead of pulling over and stopping while he searched for it, he just ducked down and drove blind.

NYC, you suck. 18-Year-Old Queens Cyclist Who Was Struck By Driver In Bike Lane Has Died The drunk driver has not yet been charged with anything, including not charged with drunk driving.

Upstate NY is only slightly better. Bike accident during Great Race sends two cyclists to Upstate University Hospital No motor vehicles involved, but it was a race/ride. Some people were just out to have a nice ride somewhat protected from motor vehicles.

More upstate NY hassles. No easy answers for rider-driver friction in Piermont Part of the problem is NY culture leads to confrontations (remember Pacino’s “Hey! I’m WALKING here!”?), and part of the problem is we cyclists get a trifle excited when some putz comes within inches of terminating our lives which does little to reduce tensions.

Meanwhile in Joisey. Charges filed in Mine Hill crash that left cyclist injured The driver has been charged with driving like a putz and failing to yield.

A bill in PA that deserves to get thrown under the bus. Pa. bill to demand cyclists wear reflective vests at night getting thrown under bus Seriously, instead of demanding that cyclists do all the work here, how about just enforcing the Basic Speed Law?

Are you Too Old To Drive? Mother of bicyclist killed in car accident helps educate elderly drivers I remember covering this wreck back then, the cyclist was hit with the front of the right front fender. The driver just did not even consider that there was a lane of traffic to the right of the vehicle before starting the turn.

Someone in MN has a serious hate on for cyclists. Answers Tough To Find After Cyclist Hit By Chunk Of Concrete and People are ruthlessly attacking Minneapolis cyclists, for some reason Seriously, this was a planned attack, as the driver was riding in some cyclist-heavy parts of the city and wearing PPE so as to not get hurt by the objects he was throwing at cyclists. If you see the weapon vehicle deploy spike strips and shoot to kill. The car that is, kill the car. We want the driver to be publicly humiliated for at least a decade or so and corpses don’t get humiliated easily.

Still in MN a left cross wreck injures a young girl. Minnesota Girl Injured On Bicycle After Car Struck Her This story is just so bizarre. The driver was the victim of random mob violence a few years ago that left him brain damaged and was just now starting to get something resembling a normal life back when he turned left into the cyclist. As a member of both groups, brain damaged and cyclist, I don’t know which I should feel more sorry for. But as a member of both groups I also need to say they should test the driver for his degree of perception to his left, as well as can he physically turn his head to see that direction. He may have undiscovered defects on that side of his body, that he may not even know about.

Another hit-from-behind wreck in WI. Bicyclist hurt in Sunday crash named Other than the fact the driver stayed at the scene and rendered aid to the cyclist until medical help arrived it was a common hit-from-behind wreck.

Another cyclist is killed in another hit-and-run, this time in MI. Bicyclist on trek across Michigan dies in hit-and-run crash and Woman cycling across Michigan killed in hit-and-run The driver of the pickup truck hit the last rider in a group and sped away because he was a person of low moral content. When they find the truck it should be crushed as soon as they finish processing it, possibly with the driver still in it.

A little girl is hurt in SD. Five-Year-Old Girl Injured In Car Vs. Bicycle Accident If a 5YO can’t play safely here then there isn’t a safe place to play in SD.

Our first international links come from the Great White North, as age is no defense against criminally bad driving. Charges pending against 83-year-old driver after cyclist hit And neither is “sun glare”. It’s not like you don’t know the sun is going to be there…

The father of a cyclist killed in a hit-and-run wants a mandatory minimum sentence for killing someone in a hit-and-run to deter DUIs from leaving the scene. Dead cyclist’s father wants jail time for hit-and-run drivers and Dead cyclist’s father wants jail time for hit-and-run drivers I suggest the minimum for a fatal hit-and-run be twice the minimum for death by DUI, whatever they call it in the statute. If leaving the guy to die is not worse than killing him outright, well…

Gawddammit! Cyclist seriously injured after being hit by a lorry in central London OK I know the drivers have at least some degree of driving ability to pass the test for the license, and the majority of the cyclists hit have been experienced and careful cyclists, which narrows it down to infrastructure and vehicle blind spots…

Road.cc is sorta like Gothamist except all bike and in England. They have two links in today’s Feed. The first one is the driver who had his pathetically weak sentence reduced further because victims’ impact statements don’t actually count, they’re just for show. Lorry driver who caused death of Denbighshire cyclist has driving ban reduced FFS.

Second link is the bus driver that hit a cyclist in plain view and dragging his body until there was no hope of survival and getting away with it. Bus driver who dragged cyclist to his death and failed to stop avoids jail That distance in American (formerly Imperial English) is almost 80 feet. And WTF?!? “Death by Dangerous Driving” is the most serious driving offense in the book, and he got probation?

I think the coppers are still looking for the murder weapon. 70 year-old man questioned over death of cyclist Yep, I’ almost positive that’s what they’re doing.

Last link. Sips For Cyclists Event To Benefit Injured Riders Go out there and benefit somebody.

And I’m tired and done composing, now comes proofing, editing, and tagging.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Unkillable Badass Poet

Happy New Year 2014, and the Feed

Well, most of us lived through 2013. Here’s hoping things will be a little less deadly in 2014 and that I will have less wrecks to write about and more and better infrastructure to write about. Especially since the Dutch have been so generous about sharing their bicycle infrastructure with those of us who are Anglophones.

Up first is my only US wreck, a head-on crash where it appears the cyclist crossed the centerline on a corner. Marin County: Bicyclist injured in head-on collision on Panoramic Highway Since I can’t get to any pictures of the bike or the weapon vehicle, or most importantly the crime scene I’ll have to accept the narrative as posited by LEO, that the cyclist had excessive speed for conditions and crossed the centerline on a turn. To avoid modulate your speed going downhill to remain on the correct side of the road. To prevent get the infrastructure right. There are very few wrecks that could not be prevented by getting the infrastructure right.

NM is not the only place where people set booby traps to injure or kill cyclists as is shown by this UK link. Police appeal after Hull cyclist injured by trap This wreck illustrates the hazards of leaving trash in the bike path as it can be used to disguise a booby trap as well as being a hazard in and of itself.

International Infrastructure! news. Can Radar and RFID Stop Drivers From Killing Cyclists? The RFID idea is dead in the water as it requires the victims to spend money to not get killed, which comes perilously close to being an extortion racket with no guarantee that the people driving the deadly weapons will face similar requirements to update their vehicles. Since we have seen how well trying to get side guards installed that actually pay for themselves in reduced fuel consumption in under a year has worked, how will requiring installing gear that identifies and alerts drivers to the presence of cyclists and pedestrians with no other benefits like reduced fuel costs go over? I have a suggestion for that, allow installation of alert systems that warn drivers about cyclists and pedestrians to be optional, but make all wrecks between vehicles not equipped with the alert systems and a cyclist or pedestrian automatically the fault of the truck driver because the systems failed to warn the driver because they were not there? IOW allow trucking companies to bet on not hitting any cyclists or pedestrians without installing the systems, but make losing that bet as financially painful as possible, with pain and suffering, medical bills, loss of income, and loss of enjoyment all being paid 100% by the trucking company (or their insurance, who would probably require installing the alert systems as part of getting insurance).

Last link is to one of the premier e-assist bike companies making a better but less-expensive version of their flagship bike. The All New SIMBB 29C Bike – “ The Electric Bike SIMBBlified” Through-the-gears means the power gets transferred to the wheel at the most efficient motor speed for the bike speed or IOW more to the ground and less to waste heat.

And those are all the links that gave me fits or otherwise on this first day of the new year.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

Some stuff happened, and misdirection by the NY Times

Yes, something happened yesterday, some of it to people that were riding bicycles at the time. I won’t talk about religious people re-enacting the Crucifixion, and other things that make no sense except in a very tiny window of perception, because my own religious practices probably don’t make a lot of sense when looked at from outside the religion. To wit I have guidelines about when to grow and cut my beard that make perfect sense to people in my religion, and are utterly impenetrable to those outside unless a detailed explanation is given of the symbolism involved.

As to what the NYT is up to I have no idea of the reasons, but I do know the what. Biking While Intoxicated As I said about the original article, the methodology was highly suspect, as there was no lower limit for the level of alcohol just that there was alcohol “present”. Well I looked it up and 3% of the population have intestinal flora that give them a permanent BAC of just at .01%, and members of this population can be determined during autopsy by testing contents of the lower intestine for alcohol. For these people this is not an issue as they are accommodated to this level of alcohol and it has no effect on them. Not specifying the lower limit on the alcohol would include these people as well and many more who would not be impaired by their levels of alcohol.

In what appears to be a SWCC wreck, the driver of a motorhome hits a cyclist hard enough to rip the bicycle in half. Greensburg cyclist struck, killed by motor home in Hempfield First of all an 86 YO man driving a vehicle the size of a city bus is just bad, second why LEO continue to believe they guy sitting with a smoking gun (damaged vehicle) with a corpse is a reliable witness I’ll never know. Anyway assuming the report is in fact correct and the rider was going the wrong way on a one-way street at a high rate of speed (for a bicycle) and pulled in front of the RV, the way to avoid this situation is to stop at intersections with major roads to determine if the way is clear.

From Jolly Olde comes 2 reports on wrecks where infrastructure is blamed. Calls for safety measures after cyclist’s crash death and Woman becomes latest cyclist killed on roads I find it interesting that when a cyclist is killed in the UK the official hue and cry is for more infrastructure spending, and helmets. Even if the victim dies from massive blunt trauma to the thorax, there is a cry for helmets, if not by public officials then by commenters on the web site. Lady gets run over by a cement mixer, at least one person is going to blame a lack of a helmet.

And that’s it for today, I’m going for a ride in the sun.

Billed @$.02, Opus

A practically non-existant Feed

Well there ain’t much to it, but here is the Feed. I waited until mid-afternoon but this was all I got, but you watch, now that I have posted what a weak useless Feed I had today, there will be scads of links pour into my inbox in additional Feed reports, that I will have to post in additional blog entries all night long…

From Jolly Olde, Wales to be precise, a 15 YO male was giving a 12 YO female a ride on his bike and got hit by a car. Cyclist, 15, seriously injured in North Wales collision Yes I know, that’s almost half the article in the intro, but if you have read any of my blogs for any length of time you know that is just the way things are with UK media. The story won’t come out until all the court cases are done, or the coroner’s inquest if there was a fatality, by which time nobody but me will care and media coverage will be limited to some obscure back section of some obscure newspaper that is the official record for that town and which doesn’t have a web site to be linked to, much less a searchable online archive. And so lessons on how to avoid winding up in the same situation are lost. And people wonder why so many wrecks in the UK seem to have the same pattern.

Disgustedly yours,

Billed @$.02, Opus