Sleep deprivation is a &(%$&, and the Feed

I signed off last night about 0500 after finishing the writing part shortly after 0430. Yes it takes me about 25-30 minutes to proof spelling and links and tag after I finish the creative part. And then it usually takes a minimum of an hour to shut the brain down so I can sleep, usually closer to two hours. I was wakened slightly after noon by a loud vehicle (I’m assuming it was a garbage truck) and Mrs. the Poet yelling at “bad cats” and quit fighting to get back to sleep about 1400 and checked the mail. I’m still bleary-eyed as I type this at 1700.

And I’m watching the Sprint Cup practice when this commercial for Marathon gas comes on with the jingle about a “full tank of Freedom”. “Freedumb” indeed. 😛

Speaking of Sprint Cup, some of the drivers are some of us. NASCAR drivers pedal from St. Augustine for bike safety Four hour ride, so about 100km away from the track. I’m betting that lap around the track lasted a lot longer than the 45-47 seconds it took during final practice today…

Ted was a bit busy today with all the news coming at him. Morning Links: Temple City shoots down safe streets on Las Tunas; ridiculous and sublime new bike offerings

Part 2 of Daily Ted. Formerly homeless man dies five weeks after Yorba Linda collision

And an incredible Part 3. Fontana bike rider killed in early morning collision; no details available Poor Ted, this is what happens when you have lots of subscriptions to local media sites, you get to report the bad news quicker.

Still in CA. BART Struggles to Balance Current Needs with Vision for Future BART gets people off the streets in S.F. making a huge impact on bike and pedestrian safety. So this might not seem to be a bike link, but it’s totally a bike link.

Up in America’s Copenhagen, DIY DOT to the rescue! Bike lane in danger? Cone power to the rescue! Riders replace the cones when they get knocked over, unlike plastic bollards that require equipment and chemicals most cyclists don’t carry on their bikes.

Also from Portland, someone said something Really Stoopid. GOP candidate promises to end gridlock forever by adding a lane to each freeway There are no words for how Stoopid this is. This guy has literally never heard of Induced Demand until this article posted and someone emailed him a link on the subject.

And crap infrastructure is never so bad that it can’t be made worse, even in Portland. City proposes shifting future downtown bikeway from Alder to Taylor/Salmon Changing a direct, mostly flat route to one that adds about a mile to the total trip and completely routes the cyclist away from retail and other commercial destinations.

FloriDUH! strikes again. Bicyclist injured in Charlotte hit-and-run crash I’m sorry, but what do you call it when a driver swerves into an occupied bike lane, hits a cyclist, and then leaves the scene without stopping? Aside from attempted murder or assault with a deadly weapon that is.

Continuing on the “Stoopid driver” theme for the moment. NYPD: Cyclist fatally struck by car, driver arrested Driver impaired by drugs, not mentioned if they were medication or recreational drugs. But still “Stoopid” either way. More Allegedly Stoned Driver Charged With Manslaughter After Fatally Striking Staten Island Cyclist The later link says the driver was on pot at the time of the wreck.

And infrastructure news from NYC that will flat-out floor you. It did me. Astoria Will Get Three Protected Bike Lanes Despite Local Drivers’ Objections Yep, bike lanes in spite of driver’s complaints, because too many people were getting killed or injured. and to the idiot that said “at some point traffic calming becomes traffic impeding.” boo, hoo, hoo. You were extremely lucky your death machines were not banned outright, because that was on the table.

Good infrastructure news from IA. Bicycle safe passing bill clears Iowa Senate committee This is the most radical concept in bicycle safety that I have seen in a long time. “Change lanes to pass”, like you would a car or tractor or combine. Radical, I tell you.

A mandatory helmet bill in VA is killed in committee. Why bicycling advocates are happy legislators killed a helmet bill Combined with the studies that show that mandatory helmets don’t actually decrease the rate of head injury, just move it to a different part of the head that isn’t covered by the helmet or by impacts that exceed the survival envelope of the helmet.

Crap infrastructure in VT. A VICIOUS CIRCLE? STATE WANTS SAFER ROTARY IN BRATTLEBORO Note the comment that all the problems are caused by bicycles. SMH.

From Jolly Olde, really they are calling this a hit-and-run and not assault with a deadly weapon or attempted murder? Cyclist left seriously injured after hit-and-run following row with driver Motor vehicles are the only weapon that an obvious assault would be called an “accident”

And this cyclist has a case for police negligence as they refused to take a report for his wreck that smashed his bike. Cyclist feels he’s had a rough ride despite lucky escape in road smash The bike was rendered unridable, that makes this a reportable wreck under UK laws. Both vehicles were not able to leave the scene under their own power, that raises the wreck to reportable status.

And I am finishing up too late for Gigi to even read it before she loses her internet at 0300 my time. I mean it’s almost 0300 right now and I haven’t even proofed, much less tagged.

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Still just plugging along and nothing much happening, and the Feed

I’m still prowling the web for raw stock to build the Mini Sprint-T after failing to find local sources for single-project size lots of sheet, rod/tube, and strip polystyrene. None of the local hobby stores carry anything in plastic raw stock, and the local plastics distributors won’t sell anything resembling hobby lots of supplies. Deja vu all over again, this was the same thing that happened a few years ago when I was buying raw stock for making custom bicycles that I couldn’t get by cannibalizing bikes left on the side of the street.

Up first, NYPD decides hit-and-run is legal. Cyclist killed in Brooklyn hit-and-run and Brooklyn Cyclist Killed By Hit-And-Run Rental Truck Driver also NYPD: Still Defending Hit-and-Run Drivers to the Press [Updated] Why is it that when a crime is committed with a car NYPD falls all over itself to absolve the driver of criminal charges? This wreck was a hit-from-behind wreck after the cyclist crossed the intersection with no escape route. the way to the left was blocked by the truck, the way to the right was blocked by a high curb.

Still in NYC is this counting of accumulated death and injury for last month. DOT: 1,445 Pedestrians and Cyclists Injured, 16 Killed in December [Updated] Vision Zero only works when LEO is signed on to enforce laws, but as we saw in the previous paragraph NYPD actively works to not enforce traffic laws that protect vulnerable users.

Our Daily Ted part one. Morning Links: Possible murder on Irvine bike path; public meeting tonight to discuss traffic in Griffith Park

That murder Ted was talking about. Police: Irvine man’s death on bike path is investigated as a homicide

Daily Ted part two. 69-year old bike rider killed in Calexico; first bicycling fatality in Imperial County since 2012

Still in CA. Caltrans seeks 5,000 volunteer motorists for mileage fee pilot program The proposed program will extract user fees from vehicles proportional to the damages done by the vehicle without depending on a gas tax since electric vehicles don’t use gas.

Also still in CA, red light running cyclists are a menace, drivers doing the same thing… [Update] State Senator Seeks To Reduce Fine For Red-Light Violation So the year after raising the red light fine on cyclists they reduce it for drivers who actually killed dozens of people in CA from failing to stop before making a right on red. RIiiiGHT

Seeing the MO flag on a 15 foot pole bill as the victim blaming it really is. WHY THE MISSOURI BICYCLE FLAG BILL IS NOT AS FUNNY AS YOU THINK

Up in the Great White North. Quebec coroner issues 3 recommendations after 2014 cyclist death

From Jolly Olde what appears to be a punishment pass. Maidstone cyclist captures near miss in Dean Street

Still in Jolly Olde, today’s our day for murder/attempted murder on the roads. Man arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after woman found injured in the road Don’t you just hate when the news outlet feels compelled to tell people that the person inside the light armored vehicle used to seriously injure someone was unharmed during the commission of the mayhem?

And burying the Big Story way down in the post, deliberate assault in Oz. Female cyclist injured in road rage attack on Beach Rd, Beaumaris and Coke bottles thrown at cyclists in shocking Beach Road attack also Woman hospitalised after shocking road rage incident Chuck a full bottle of cola soft drink at someone’s head should be classified as an assault, if not a terroristic act.

Are you worried that you are not as green as you could be on your bike? Is there such a thing as eco-friendly bike lube? As pointed out in the article, riding a bike is already seriously green even using the “worst” bike lubes, there is only a tiny bit to be gained by going to another kind of bike lube.

One thing heavily touted about driverless cars is eliminating drunk driving, but now you’re telling me that won’t happen? Are self-driving cars legal? And if so, can I drive home drunk in one?

More stupid infrastructure tricks. 12 of America’s Biggest Highway Boondoggles There are an uncomfortably large number of TXDoT projects on that list.

High hopes for e-assist bikes’ future. 1 in 3 bicycles will be an e-bike by 2023: Study Possibly too high hopes, the projections seem unrealistic.

Last link is something that is on every parent’s mind when their kid(s) is(are) out on two wheels. What to Do When Your Kid Crashes a Bike

And that’s all I got today. Apparently I missed Penguin Awareness Day, not that I need any more awareness of penguins with my name. More tomorrow.

Billed @$0.02, Opus

My car is shipping east, and the Feed

According to the Amazon Package Tracker my model kit left Anaheim headed east in a slow semi trailer at 0508 PST, but my take is it went into said trailer at 0508 and probably is leaving as I type this. Now it is possible that they loaded the trailers yesterday and it left this morning but as I am always prepared for the worst while hoping for the best I’m gonna stick with “tossed into the trailer at 0508” scenario. That and the fact that I worked in such a facility many moons ago back when I was a strapping young poet with few marketable skills besides the ability to run a MS-DOS computer and muscles to here. And for those not old enough to remember MS-DOS was a text-based OS with a command line interface, and you had to remember the commands to use to get the computer to do things. And also which floppy disk was program and which one was data for that program. I’m going to let you Google what a floppy disk is. It was a dark time when the internet was still controlled by DARPA and BBS ruled the cyberscape… Again they are not supposed to have the package with my car here any sooner than Wednesday, and no later than next Monday, so there is still lots of time yet.

And 74 years ago today because of a paperwork error that caused Japan’s Declaration of War to be delivered late, Pearl Harbor was attacked without warning. When you read the links today you’ll know why I made “paperwork error” a thing in that paragraph.

Up first because FloriDUH! Driver ‘killed cyclist while receiving sex act from female passenger at the wheel’ There was a news outlet local to the wreck with another article about the wreck but oddly enough the web page was “not responding” when I tried to load the article… Now this definitely falls under the heading of “things cyclists have no control over”.

Closer to home, a convicted underage drunk driver is caught on video at a drunken party violating his parole. ‘Affluenza’ teen who killed four in drunk driving case seen partying it up in new video My loathing of this particular walking canker-on-the-ass-of-society is exceeded only by my loathing of the judge who accepted the “affluenza” defense and basically let him go.

Our Daily Ted expounds on crap bicycle parking amongst other things. Weekend Links: Deplorable Gold Line bike locker, distracted beach biking, and a 17-mile non-CicLAvia ciclovía

Meanwhile in NYC. SUV Driver Kills 30-Year-Old Woman On Fort Greene Sidewalk None of the charges reflect that he was driving on the sidewalk and hit 3 people, killing one.

Now in America’s Paradise they aren’t fooling around. Driver high on meth gets stiff sentence in cyclist’s death What I was heartened by were all the comments saying that the sentence was weak, not “stiff”. It makes me think that maybe killing a cyclist while sober will get treated the same way at some time in the future.

Now since this guy hit two people and killed one, maybe they put him away for a long time, too? Bicyclist Killed, Pedestrian Injured In Lawndale Crash Or maybe they just give the guy a stern talking-to and send him on his way?

What better way to honor a fallen cyclist than by replacing him or her with dozens more cyclists? Event honoring cyclist killed in Hanover donates 60 bikes to kids We are like they heads of the hydra… Only worse.

Over in KS another gorram hit-and-run. Cyclist injured in hit-and-run on Topeka Boulevard If the location given on the map embedded in the article is accurate, all I can say is “why?” That location was shown as the frontage road for the major road, and the cyclist was hit from behind, then left to fend for himself. Standard diatribes against hit-and-run “drivers” apply.

Infrastructure in MD. Montgomery County pushing forward with Bicycle Master Plan A plan with no budget is nothing.

And this article is why I don’t see anything from the preceding paragraph ever actually getting built. Davidsonville man spared jail time for assault on cyclist after crash Only a $142.50 and 15 hours in community service for assault with a deadly weapon, assault, and leaving the scene of a wreck? And the second assault was after he broke the man’s arm with the deadly weapon, meaning he had no way to defend himself. Has everyone in the damned court gone absolutely bonkers?

Meanwhile in Canuckistan. Friends of cyclist killed on rural Alberta road raising money to benefit widow and young daughters If you’re local to this WoaB strongly encourages contributing to the event.

In the same city, 2 links of infrastructure news. Cycle track complaints have significantly decreased, 3-1-1 data shows The only ones left complaining are the severely entitled drivers.

And whaddya know, build it and they will come. Women cyclists already surpassing cycle track targets They seriously understate the increase in women cycling going from 23% to 32% as an increase of 9%, my calculations are that’s a 39% increase in women.

First link from outside North America is a bit strange. Taxi driver and passenger assaulted by cyclist in Govanhill OK the cyclist beat up two people. Two questions” 1) How could he beat up people inside a light armored vehicle? I’m assuming the doors were locked while the vehicle was in motion. 2) There were 2 of them and only the one “of slim build” cyclist how did the cyclist manage to beat up two against one? And again they were inside a light armored vehicle while he was out in the weather. Methinks there is much more to the story than is presented in the press. The delay in reporting the incident also raises red flags.

In the meanwhile, this wreck is being treated as attempted murder. Police treating cyclist being knocked down as attempted murder and Cyclist in critical condition after collision which police are treating as attempted murder The driver attempted to run over a LEO while escaping the initial wreck, which led LEO to decide the wreck may have been deliberate and no “accident”.

And more on the idiot doing more than 50 MPH on a curve posted as safe for 30 MPH and hitting a cyclist on the opposite side of the road. Dangerous driver who killed Ormskirk cyclist jailed for two years The “I was being tailgated” excuse is as flimsy as a wet Kleenex.

But they let this guy slide almost completely. Driving ban and curfew for driver who killed cyclist Again I would put the “ban” in quotes because it’s only a ban if someone is checking on him. Otherwise it’s a minor inconvenience at worst because he has to driver exactly within the laws to avoid getting pulled over.

But in this case where the driver was a danger to other drivers… Dash cam footage of dangerous overtaking lands driver in jail in UK first No one was killed, or even injured in this incident, but the driver got 8 months behind bars and a 4 month longer driving ban than the killer in the previous paragraph. TANJ!

Meanwhile in Oz… Cyclist killed in collision with car at Bennett Springs and Male cyclist dies after being hit by car in eastern Perth suburb of Bennet Springs

And as insane as it sounds I have run out of links.

Billed @€0.02, Opus (I may switch that back to US$ if the exchange rate keeps changing).

Rain again, and the Feed

This has been a very rainy October for the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell, we are getting wet again as I type this. The rain today has been the steady drizzle kind of rain locally as we get the fringes of more severe downpours that go to the north or south of Casa de El Poeta. That part has been mostly good. The dull light, and cool temps are mostly bad.

Up first is a wreck close to home, by TX standards. Local Teen Injured after Getting Hit While Riding Bike Claim is the cyclist ran the stop sign. If the impact was from the side then I would have to agree, if the cyclist was hit from behind by a driver not paying attention…

Infrastructure from down the road a bit in Austin. Postcard from Austin: curb extensions that don’t block bikes Make things easy for the pedestrians and cyclists while not making drivers too mad.

That insurance company in BC has gotten international attention from blaming the cyclist for getting hit head-on by a drunk driver driving on the wrong side of the road. Cyclist to blame for his own death near Whistler in May: British Columbia insurance authorities and ICBC blames highway bike death near Whistler on cyclist’s negligence also B.C.’s public auto insurer blames ‘careless’ cyclist for his own death in crash with alleged drunk driver Guys, you probably want to settle this quickly, and big, if you like keeping your jobs. Public opinion is turning against you very rapidly.

Also making news is the cargo container that crushed a cyclist in CA. Authorities Probe How Big Rig Container Became Loose, Crushed Cyclist To Death and Authorities offer clues in the case of bicyclist crushed by shipping container The company line fails to mention the truck driver’s strike at the port and the fact that scab drivers were hired from other companies not equipped to handle cargo containers properly, and that the combination of flatbed and cargo container is about 6″ taller than cargo containers on their proper trailer. When the cargo container struck the underside of the bridge it destroyed most of the straps holding it to the trailer with the few that remained unable to restrain the load. which would not have happened with the proper trailer designed to move the container because 1) it is shorter by about 6″ and 2) it does not use straps over the top of the container to restrain the load.

Another story still making the news is the former Episcopalian bishop in MD going to prison for killing a cyclist while DUI and texting while driving in the bike lane. Bishop who killed cyclist while driving drunk gets 7 years and Bishop Who Killed Cyclist While Driving Drunk Will Serve Seven Years

The news from NYC is don’t hit NYPD with your car even when they wander in the street not paying attention to traffic. Video: NYPD Traffic Agent Struck By Driver In Clinton Hill Well now we know what it takes to get a non-fatal pedestrian wreck taken seriously.

Update from the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike. Dough bakery rallying around injured co-worker Commuting should not be an extreme sport with possible deadly outcomes. For those readers local to the fundraiser tell me how the Bee doughnuts taste.

The Show Me state takes out another cyclist. Cyclist injured after being struck by pickup Hit-from-behind, the cyclist was lucky it wasn’t more serious.

More on the death of a PA cyclist in a pinball wreck. Blaming bicyclists There were 3 motor vehicles involved besides the cyclist who was waiting on a red light between the last two motor vehicles when the last motor vehicle was struck from behind and pushed into the motor vehicle in front, crushing the cyclist.

A CO cyclist is remembered and money raised in his honor. Cyclist’s death inspires 24-hour ride

Cyclist killed in the other Portland. Bicyclist seriously injured after being hit by pickup in Portland It was a cross or a hook, without directions of travel it is impossible to know.

The most deadliest state in the US tries to shed that title. New effort aims for zero pedestrian, bicycle deaths in Tampa

IL infrastructure news. CHICAGO BUILT THE BEST BIKE LANE OF 2013 OVER ITS STATE’S OBJECTIONS

Wounded Warriors roll through AZ. Injured Service Members Cycle toward Recovery and Healing

Hit-and-run in the Great White North. Male cyclist killed in hit and run in Brampton Why are they making excuses for the killer before they even start looking for him or her?

Disgusting infrastructure news from the GWN. City wants three-month limit on memorials for traffic victims This specifically includes Ghost Bikes.

UK man killed cycling in Turkey. Bradford man, 52, killed in cycling accident in Turkey

In spite of numerous witnesses not including the victim, they let this weasel go free. Halling man did not drive van into young cyclist, court rules WTF?!?

More magnanimous than I could manage. Widow’s court message: I forgive you This was the driver who was not supposed to be driving because of a medical condition that caused him to fall asleep at the wheel.

This wreck in Oz looks like a left hook, the “drive on the wrong side of the road” equivalent of the right hook. Cyclist suffers head injuries, fractures after collision with truck in Hobart

Nothing on the mode of this deadly wreck in Oz. NSW cyclist dies after crash

Another wreck not very far from the one in the paragraph above. Cyclist injured in crash – North Wollongong I put both wrecks in the sama paragraph at first because they were both in the same suburb of North Wollongong. I mean, what are the odds they would have two cyclist fatalities in the same rather small town within a couple of days of each other?

Terrible wreck in Enn Zed. Cyclist’s wife arrives minutes after Tauranga crash

Recall on a bike trailer for kid hauling. RECALL: Child bicycle trailers due to possible injury risk

Last link, even these bicycle designers say that the best bicycle design in the world is not as good at increasing mode share as getting the infrastructure right. Will A Better-Designed Electric Bike Change Commuting Habits? Biomega Thinks So

And I’m done for the week, Yay! See you Sunday.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Large hunks of links are from Twitter, and the rest of the Feed

It takes longer to filter, but I’m finding more and better links on Twitter than I do in my Feed Folder in my e-mail. I think that may be due to having humans directly sending me the links from the articles as they post. Whatever the reason, I’m glad I can give you better links than I used to.

Up first, LEO have found the driver who killed a cyclist earlier this week. PD: Police identify woman who struck, killed bicyclist in Pasadena They haven’t arrested her, just “talked” to her.

More on the cyclist killed in MN by a driver who crossed the entire road to hit him. UMD mourns staff member killed while bicycling in Hermantown and SUV fatally hits bicyclist in Hermantown heading other way on shoulder I’m still trying to figure out why the driver is not in jail for this.

Since we are in “old wreck” mode at the moment, more on the cyclist killed in CA during a time trial event. In the News: Cyclist killed by car in California TT race and CHP Finds a New Way to Blame the Bicycle Rider Yep, getting blamed for the driver that hit you in your lane is pretty low, even for the CHP. Seriously, what would Jon and Ponch say? More Cyclist killed in Esparto was experienced Foster City rider

Still in CA, a hit-and-run driver attempts murder when the victim catches back up to him. Driver charges at cyclist, carries him on hood and Caught On Camera: San Francisco Cyclist Ends Up On Windshield In Apparent Hit-And-Run So two hit-and-run incidents, one that might have only cost the driver a ticket for violating the 3-feet-to-pass law, and a second that might end up with assault charges.

Another AZ cyclist hit from behind in the bike lane. Bicyclist killed in northwest Tucson collision I have lost count of the number of cyclists hit from behind in the bike lanes of AZ this year, but it seems to be too common even if there were only two. The danger zone in this wreck was the mixing zone before the turn lane. The driver failed to yield to the vehicle in front (the cyclist) and killed the cyclist as a result. I know what will stop wrecks like this, but I don’t know how well it would fly in the current legislative climate. When you hit a cyclist you lose your car, 90 days if there was no or non-serious levels of injury, a year for transport to hospital wrecks, and forever if the cyclist dies from injuries or in case of hit-and-run.

Not a bicycle wreck, but indicative of what you could expect as a cyclist if you get hit. NYPD: “No Criminality” as Cab Driver Runs Over Kids on Bronx Sidewalk and TLC: Driver Who Hit Children on Bronx Sidewalk Works for Uber [Updated] The car went completely across the sidewalk and bounced off the building that a commenter stated was 20-25 feet away from the curb, and in the video I thought I saw the left front wheel pointed towards the camera which means the suspension was broken when it hit the curb. I estimate the vehicle speed at 40-50 MPH. But the NYPD doesn’t suspect any criminality for driving 40-50 MPH on the sidewalk full of kids… TANJ!

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Cedillo condemns calls for safer streets, Coronado madness round 3, and more bighearted people Cedillo needs to be charged as an accessory for all the people killed and maimed since he stopped the North Figueroa project literally days before it was to begin for no apparent reason. I still say follow the money.

A restaurant named after the great Eddy Merckx. The Cannibal, a restaurant and butcher shop coming to Culver City, with bike valet Free beer when you wear your bike kit into the establishment.

A CT cyclist gets injured and he’s the guy responsible for getting other people to live more healthy. Norwalk Director of Public Health injured in bicycle accident over weekend This sounds like a buzz job to me. Or maybe a “punishment pass” for daring to ride in the street.

There are good people in this world. Woman injured riding bike wants to thank stranger who helped her Fortunately they filled the pothole but unfortunately not until after her wreck.

Another buzz job in NC kills another NC cyclist. Cyclist dies in road accident Another driver driving too fast to stop in the distance he could see clearly blames the victim for not wearing a glow-in-the-dark clown suit with body armor.

If you are going to carry cocaine on your person, know that you don’t have to submit to a search until after you get arrested, and put some lights on your bike. Bicycle stop leads to cocaine arrest “The pill bottle contained 0.2 grams of powder cocaine” or not enough to get a chihuahua high, much less an adult human being.

Another Wounded Warrior ride north of WoaB. Injured Service Members Ride toward Recovery in Oklahoma’s Capital City If you’re in the area give these guys a cheer when they ride by.

A wreck in Oz involving two cyclists and a car and they can’t figure out who was where and which way they were going. Cyclists injured in Monaro Highway crash How crazy is that?

Also in Oz they have another wreck they are trying to decipher. Police appeal for witnesses after cyclist injured – Dora Creek

Last link, I’m sure you are the kind of person who always makes sure the quick releases on your bike are done up tight, but you brother-in-law hasn’t checked his since Clinton was in office so he might want to check this out. Thirteen bike companies recall models over disc brake/QR concern This is the same QR as the Trek recall only on other manufacturer’s bikes.

And I’m out of links again for the day. Grocery day tomorrow.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

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

Looking at another long day, and the Feed

Well, the computer crashed twice during filtering. So I know it’s going to be a long day when that happens. Usually that means I had too many pages with Flash ads running on them for the available memory on my Chromebook which has 2GB of memory. So when you read the links, only open one at a time, s’il vous plaît. OK, maybe two. [Monty Python]Four is right out[/Monty Python]

Up first because the injured (killed?) cyclist was pretty much ignored in the other casualties and because the number of dead and injured in this one incident was so high. Three Killed As Car Ploughs Into Shoppers and Man kills 3 driving into crowd in Austria — on purpose, authorities say also Car ploughs into crowd in Graz, Austria Sorry about the auto-play videos on those. So as it appears as I post this, the guy went off his rocker after getting kicked out of the house by his wife and starts looking for someone to take it out on and these people were handy as he drove into a car-free section of town (roads still passable because delivery vehicles were needed for shops in the district). Either the cyclist was not among the named dead or the fact that the dead person was the cyclist mentioned earlier did not make it into the article.

Our Daily Ted. LA bike rider attacked with machete, bad news from Hemet, plus Bicycle Coffee and pleasant private bike cops

And another link to the machete attack. 18-Year-Old Bicycle Rider in Critical Condition With Skull Fracture, May Lose Hand After Late-Night Machete Attack

Still in CA. Family of Rady Children’s CFO killed in bike crash wants answers, apology If the airbags were deployed this indicates a very severe impact for hitting a person riding a bike, an impact where there was a significant force transmitted to the car by the body of the cyclist. That is a BIG hit.

Not out of CA yet, would you rather have this drunk on a bicycle or behind the wheel? Cyclist falls, gravely injured in Chula Vista As it is, the falling-down-drunk cyclist hurt exactly one person in this wreck, himself. Most drunk drivers manage to avoid hurting themselves while injuring or killing others.

Machete attacks seem to be the rage this weekend. Brooklyn Man Arrested For Road Rage Machete Attack In Holland Tunnel Road rage, that is… I know, it is a bad pun but in my defense I saw 30 deaths in links that won’t get posted here. Interesting that he was charged with assault when all he hit was the car… are cars people now, too?

Not sure about this report from Seattle. UPDATE: Woman hospitalized after bicycle/car collision at Delridge/Dakota AFAIK this seems to be infrastructure related because the cyclist was hit in a bike lane but the driver did not hit-and-run.

Holding a hit-and-run driver accountable in the Great White North. Woman charged in hit-run death of cyclist remains behind bars

Lifestyle news from the Great White North after another hit-and-run death. Tribute held for cyclist, 26, killed in hit-and-run and Vigil held for cyclist killed in Yorkville hit-and-run

Don’t hit puppies either! Puppy owner thought cyclist had killed dog in ‘hit-and-run’ collision Off-leash dog runs under the cyclist and gets run over, not the cyclist’s fault, but you could hang around for a few minutes to show compassion for the owner.

Not again… Cyclist killed in crash with tipper truck at Bank junction in the City of London That makes 8 dead, 7 caused by trucks, and 6 victims have been women. Is there something in the water? or does it have more to do with the state of the infrastructure that places cyclists in the blind spots of trucks at intersections where neither party can see what the other is going to do?

Does it seem like every time a tiny bit of paved space is taken back from cars it’s a big news item? Closing Streets to Cars for Walkers and Cyclists Is Getting More Popular by the Minute

Infrastructure news in ME. Leg Work: Seeking safe passage in Maine crosswalks, on foot and on wheels A vulnerable road user bill is long overdue in most states.

More infrastructure news from VT. Another View: Our goal is zero deaths

First of several infrastructure articles from north of the border. Brian Dexter: Cyclists, get on the sidewalks! Basically what this guy is saying is if you aren’t going to provide safe infrastructure for cyclists, let them use the spaces for pedestrians even if it’s sub-optimal. Better than they should get killed.

And more blame the victim from Canuckistan. Motorists, cyclists share responsibility — improved weather often means rates of fatalities on roadways increase

This is the time of year when cyclists ride in honor of people not killed or injured riding bicycles. Wounded Warriors Canada Battlefield Bike Ride Participants Raise $500,000 for Ill and Injured Veterans and their Families As a vet and a cyclist you know I am endorsing this one.

This truck makes a better window than a door. The Safety Truck Could Revolutionize Road Safety I can personally think of several bike wrecks where something like this could have made a difference.

And I’m all out of links. And sanity, but that was pretty much a given years ago.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the unkillable badass Poet

i’m surrounded by distractions, and the Feed

That Muslim thing that went down a couple of miles away Sunday continues to be a distraction and disruption. It is even disrupting the local bus service. I’m just going to stay home today and not go out. And there is stuff going on at Casa de El Poeta that is also distracting, but when it’s done I will be able to work in peace and quiet for a long time. It’s the getting there that is the hassle.

Up first is Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Ride SaMo’s Breeze bikes, Seth says thumbs down to PCH bike lanes, & an 8 y.o. hit-and-run perp

I refuse to believe this was an “accident”, the driver left because there was no way he was not going to get charged for assault for hitting 3 lighted and reflectorized cyclists riding in the middle of the lane as they prepared to make a left turn. Engine sounds, then 3 ‘thunks’: Bicyclist describes frightening Nicholson Drive crash, and how the driver who caused it just drove away If this had just been a single cyclist I might buy the excuse of “not seeing” a tiny bit, but this was 3 cyclists lighted and reflectorized like Mardi Gras floats riding in the middle of the lane where they couldn’t have been more visible. this was an assault with a deadly weapon, nothing less.

A cyclist in GA succumbs to injury after the wreck. Cyclist Dies From Injuries Following Crash This is another article about the smirking man who couldn’t wait for a truck to make a right turn so he passed in a no-passing zone and hit 2 cycoists head on.

Still in GA, another wreck with another (almost) drunk driver in a pickup truck. Gainesville man arrested after bicyclist killed I had to compare names of the drivers to tell these apart. Well before reading the charges anyway as the driver in this wreck “was charged with first-degree homicide, driving under the influence-less safe (meaning he had less alcohol than the legal limit), open container, leaving the scene of an accident with a death, following too closely, failure to leave sufficient distance for bicycle and operating a vehicle with improperly transferred license plate.” And littering, don’t forget littering. And I think driving on the shoulder is also illegal in GA, so they left that one off, too.

Another AK teen is convicted for killing a cyclist. Anchorage teen pleads guilty in hit-and-run death of cyclist Didn’t we have a 16 YO pleading guilty to Hit-and-Run just a few months ago? And now a 17 YO with a DUI/Hit-and-Run? Is there something in the water, or what?

Remembering a cyclist killed in Canuckistan. Cyclist killed near Okotoks was married father, avid member of cycling community I just can’t be angry enough about this

Over in Jolly Olde we get another blind driver killing another cyclist on a straight and level road with outstanding visibility. Motorist who killed cyclist told police he thought he hit a wheelie bin Ah, not blind, hallucinating. Lifetime ban on driving then?

Maybe this driver needs to talk to the driver in the previous paragraph. Cyclist pushed along Grays road by ‘hit-and-run’ van driver They found the van burned out a few miles from the scene… The cyclist was riding on the housing access road next to the main road.

The cyclist hit a pedestrian on a 60 MPH speed limit road, remember that. Cyclist killed pensioner by crashing into him while doing 25mph along narrow country lane on dark and rainy night I think the reason the victim died was because “Mr Jones was taken to hospital but had to wait 50 minutes to be admitted” with a skull fracture and broken ribs.

I’m sure you have been reading about the huge number of cyclists hit and killed in the last 2 weeks by drunk drivers in Thailand. Tragic cyclist deaths prompt drink driving crackdown in Thailand They have not just been hitting single cyclists, but entire tour groups with HiViz and blinky lights and killing multiple riders in a single wreck. I have gotten so many reports I can no longer keep them all straight. And really, they have to tell police to NOT accept bribes? How about they take the bribe, charge them with the drunk driving anyway and then add bribing a police officer to the charges?

In some countries there are more things to worry about than just the other vehicles on the road. When cyclists and animals collide – videos Ouch! And ouch again.

A little NYC infrastructure. First Avenue Bike Lane Will Get Much-Needed Expansion One shared lane gone, replaced by a buffered and parking protected bike track.

More NYC infrastructure. Cartoon Shows How East River Bridge Tolls Could Save NYC

And last link is a competitor to the ELF. Combo Cycle Lives Life in the Bike Lane This is actually more “car” than most people need, pity it isn’t legal in all states.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Heard from the surgeon’s office today, and the Feed

The earliest date they could schedule a consult was 5/14 because the doctor is “overbooked” through then at the office I can get to and I can’t get to the offices where he’s not overbooked. The thing is this doctor is serving a very large area, his territory extends from Rowlett all the way to Greenville. That used to be sparsely settled until recently when it became the newest outer ring suburb of Hell. This is another symptom of the severe sprawl facing the Metromess, which is now more populated than the entire state of MA and almost the same area.

I thought I would open the links with someone having a much better day than I am, with our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Turning private tragedy into help for others, and a 3-decade old AG opinion on sidewalk riding

Another case of assault with a deadly weapon going undercharged. Syracuse woman drives car into ex-girlfriend riding bicycle, court papers say “Attempted assault“? Sounds to me a whole lot like the attempt was successful as the bike was totalled.

Crap infrastructure in Upstate NY. Kingston man, 57, critically injured in bicycle accident on U.S. Route 209 in Ulster The cyclist hit a patch of bad pavement in the dark under an overpass, the very definition of crap infrastructure.

Still in NY state, another case of bad infrastructure causing injury. Queens Man Seriously Injured By Vehicle While Riding A Bike

This makes 2 cyclists shot within a 7 day span. Gary teen shot while riding bike near home Fortunately this cyclist looks like he will survive. I don’t know about the kid hiding in the bushes though.

The widow of a murdered cyclist asks the killer to reveal where he hid the murder weapon. Widow of cyclist calls on man to reveal hit-and-run vehicle Ran all the way to Oz from Ireland, what did he do with the vehicle? If he sold it there would be some kind of record of the sale, which Irish LEO have been unable to unearth. So, where did he stash it?

A UK driver gets a laughable sentence for killing a cyclist waiting at a stop light. HGV driver receives 12 month jail term after the death of 65-year-old Wistaston man Gee, a whole year in jail, not even prison, and then another year where he will have to mind his p’s and q’s while he drives without a license. For killing a man standing plainly in the street waiting for the light to change and then driving off leaving the crushed corpse in the middle of the street?

And another cyclist is left injured in the street in the Emerald Isle. Omagh cyclist appeals to motorists after being hit by car At least in this wreck the cyclist was left in the street because it wasn’t safe to move him, not because the driver left the scene.

Need something a bit warmer than a tent bike camping this winter? This Well-Insulated $150 DIY Bicycle Camper Is Perfect For Year-Round Solo Trips It needs a fly over it for a TX summer shade, but it looks OK otherwise. I would suggest a welded light steel or Al frame rather than the wooden frame, but that’s just my conservative structural engineer side speaking, I’m sure the wooden frame in the video is adequate. The floor would be more bug tight if the wheels were on the outside of the trailer.

After decades of neglect FL starts building bike/ped infrastructure. Good news abounds for Lee County cyclists, pedestrians Maybe in another decade FL will not lead the country in bike/ped deaths per capita.

Is your infrastructure a disaster area? Are you sure one way or the other? State of Emergency: Two Cities Strategize to Fix Infrastructure Fast I have been to MS, “disaster area” is one of the kinder things you can say about the state of their roads.

When you need to add weight to meet that minimum something that will make your bike faster up a hill might be just the thing. Hidden electric motor for bicycles Change from a straight bevel to a spiral bevel gear and a glass or Kevlar reinforced nylon ring gear and the carbon frame may be enough to deaden the remaining noise from the installation. You could even make a hidden connector in the water bottle cage to swap out the battery so that only an X-ray inspection could find the motor system.

Last link, Bono may never play the guitar again after his bike wreck. U2’s Flight to Now (Turbulence Included) The band is not what they were when they released “Where the Streets Have No Names” or “Sunday, Bloody Sunday”, but they don’t sound too bad, either.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Grocery day again, and the Feed

This is another week of short rations until we get more money coming in later in the month. The taxes just about wiped us out this year. Fortunately we will have more money coming in later to cover such things as taxes and cable bills, etc. but for the moment we are diving into the strategic ramen reserves and the $1 frozen pizzas until that happens. That also means I get to make more than one pot of beans and rice per week, so yay? for that.

Up first is another link to the impact statement from the surviving cyclist of a pair hit by an insanely drunk driver. Cyclist who survived deadly crash gives victim impact statement The cyclist was still nearly wiped out and barely able to ride more than 3 years later, and the driver was still more than 3½ times the legal limit for being drunk and at the point that non-alcoholics would be unconscious. That is the part that gets me the most mad, because you KNOW this turd had to have made a habit of driving drunk to be capable of starting the vehicle and putting it in gear with that much alcohol in his system. How many times was he caught and let go before he killed one cyclist and destroyed the life of the other? More Cyclist says his life was ruined by crash

This strongly reminds me of the guy that tried to kill me, fortunately he is safely dead and buried. Salinas cyclist intentionally doored In case you didn’t see it the driver in this case drove over a curbed median in the process of crossing 4 lanes of traffic to get to the bike lane on the other side of the street just to assault the cyclist with the driver’s side door.

Another assault with a motor vehicle and then a second assault after knocking the cyclist down, this time in FL. Woman alleged to have hit then spit at cyclist arrested The bail on this was only $5K for what amounts to an assault with a deadly weapon. And somehow it took from November to February to act on the arrest warrant. Is it any wonder that FL is the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike.

Misdemeanor charges have been filed in the death of a cyclist outside DC. WSSC driver charged in crash that killed bike rider Oops, I’m sorry, those are traffic tickets, so he may get fined a couple to a few hundred dollars for killing another human being with a light armored vehicle.

And a legislator in CA wants to have the first statewide helmet law. Senator calls for mandatory helmets for California cyclists Now get a helmet law for drivers and we’ll be all set.

And last link is a change to some CA infrastructure so that people not in motor vehicles can use it, too. Bike path gets green light on Richmond Bridge The really annoying thing is they are piggybacking another car lane in on this which costs twice as much as the bike/ped part of the deal, and barely mentioning that part of it.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet