Why the hate for Cyclists?

[MuttX7]

I used to ride a motorcycle. I want to again. But I refuse. Too many people trying to kill you by not paying any attention to the road.

This is why I never rode anywhere but offroad

 

[printcraft]

 

[yeahbaby]

I used to ride a motorcycle. I want to again. But I refuse. Too many people trying to kill you by not paying any attention to the road.

Same here, I used to ride. One of my riding buddies to into a serious accident. I was supposed to be riding with him that day. I came home after I visited him in the hospital and told my wife, I'm done with the motorcycle. She said I'm glad you said it. Because I was going to tell you the same thing.

 

[printcraft]

"I'm done with the motorcycle."

 

[indyk]

Not sure what DOT rules are for Bicycles - but Riding Single File should be one of them
I have come upon (45mph) groups of cyclists riding 2 or 3 abreast Chatting at 15 mph on 2 lane roads barely wide enough for 2 Cars
Choosing between a head-on with a semi and Running over a few Bicycles - is a No Win for the Bicycles ...

Yes, yielding for someones else’s recreation on a road is a bit ass backwards.
Get the hell off the road or yield to traffic imo.

 

[KittySlayer]

The link below does a good job of explaining many of the decisions cyclists make for safety reasons when riding.

Why Do You Ride Like That?

The answers to common questions motorists ask about roadway cycling.

cyclingsavvy.org

 

[JTKelly]

I'm 68 years old and been riding every kind of motorcycle there ever was since I was 12, bicycles since 5. I've seen in person just about every incident, attitude and suggestion in this thread, in action, in person at one time or another.

What I've recognized / learned from all that is it is all true to some degree or another but also each person is ultimately responsible for their OWN safety and well being. If you get hit on a bicycle, WALKING, jogging, or a motorcycle by a dump truck, bus, or a drunk illegal alien texting you are mighty darn lucky if who or what hit you is your biggest concern.

I've also noticed since I started just plain old following the rules of the road and the laws of they land and doing all these things as if I were doing them on public roads with laws and regulations and common customs rather than looking at every green light like it was a checkered flag and every curve like the last turn at Le Mans well the rest of society just suddenly doesn't seem like quite the morons I thought they all were for the most part.

 

[two70]

If God wanted people to ride bicycles He wouldn't have created motorcycles.

If the damn government hadn't banned Mr. Garrison's IT, then the cyclists would have had a safer more efficient mode of transportation.

 

[bwframe]

License plates should be required for all conveyances on our public roadways.

It's the beginning of holding All users accountable.

 

[Leo]

A man that worked in the same place as me commuted to work as much as possible, and it was at least 45 minutes each way. He was willing to put up with some pretty tough weather for his love of the bicycle. We have all seen the friction that people have, and both sides have good reason to hate the others. In conversation about this he stated he has very little trouble. He simply stated, the solution to both sides is to "not be a jerk" .

 

[bwframe]

"not be a jerk" .

Exactly!

ALL people should be accountable to not be a-holes.

We might want to start with our schools. Apparently we are teaching our youth to be terrorists, instead of having manners?

 

[Judamonster]

I don't understand why there could be a parallel walking/bike path along a road and the cyclist will choose to use the road. Vast amounts of money in my area were spent to create bike paths and convert old railroads to paths, and many people still choose to obstruct traffic. Nothing is more frustrating to have to almost stop on a 45 mph road (and watch the car behind you almost hit you) and realize its because a cyclist is using a road instead of a path that runs parallel less than 50' away. I have no problem sharing the road, woods, etc. with anyone. A little respect for others goes a long way in all settings. Most motorists don't care until they have their life affected by someone else's ignorance or entitlement or whatever you call it.

 

[miguel]

All these liquor cycles, atvs, and golf carts are way more problem than bicycles if you get out of Marion county.

Don't start me on the "golf cart approved communities"! Going down to Cicero to get gas (or ice cream) freaks me out. All at sundown, too.

I'd rather be behind a peleton of Belgians than a golf cart.

 

[flyingsquirrel]

I don't hate the cyclists, around Nappanee the gangs are starting to scare me. After school, the backroads are plugged with gangs two abreast wearing bright orange gang vests. Glad there is no one room schoolhouses around me.

 

[littletommy]

I don’t hate all cyclists, just the ones that are too cool to ride on the bike/pedestrian trail that (in my area) is sometimes less than 5 feet off the damn road! I guess the trails are too narrow for these dudes to ride side by side with their boyfriend or something?

I mean, I get it that sometimes you can’t ride the way you want on the trail, because there’s a lot of other bikes and joggers and walkers, but they ride in groups taking up the entire driving lane, at 10 mph talking and giggling to each other.

I always ride on the trail, way too many short fuses anymore to risk either getting shot in a road rage incident or simply ran over by someone not paying attention.

 

[BugI02]

I've known several avid cyclists who were great guys. I've also encountered many courteous, safe cyclists on the road. So I hadn't really understood the hate either.

However, it's stuff like this that makes me start to understand the frustration. For some cyclists (and those tend to be the ones who make themselves noticed the most) it really feels like there's just no winning with them; they'll always find a way to slow down traffic, make things more dangerous for themselves, and then complain about how dangerous it is for them.

Perfect example right here. You would think that coming to a full stop, which is much safer than just blowing through and assuming cars will stop for you, would be a plus. But no, that's not good enough for them, because it requires a "major energy expenditure." So, expending energy is now a minus, while engaged in an activity that is supposedly for exercise?

It isn't just that. If a cyclist is first at the light, do you assume because you can depart the light with a quicker acceleration they should move over and let you blow by them? Would you cut them any slack? Why would you think they should do so for you? How would you feel if semi drivers treated you the way you treat cyclists - same dynamic

You seem willing to put strangers at risk for bodily harm because of the stereotyped actions of others and because they are using some of their freedoms that the INGO drug users are always on about

 

[BugI02]

They are no better than motorists that drive slow in the left lane, dont maintain the speed limit, etc.

So, if it is a slow motorist, do you advocate running them off the road or breezing by them inches away or other unsafe behavior? If not, why not?

 

[BugI02]

The Bloomington hate comes from so many of them ignoring traffic laws.

And, of course, you never 'Chicago stop' at a stop sign, always full stop to turn right on red, never speed and never accelerate in order to make that yellow light, Yes?

You obey all the traffic laws so your hatred is justified?

 

[Cameramonkey]

So, if it is a slow motorist, do you advocate running them off the road or breezing by them inches away or other unsafe behavior? If not, why not?

Uh.... where did I say that? I think you are mixing up users. I never even IMPLIED that.

 

[BugI02]

The source issue seems to be the overlap of two incompatible modes of transportation. I can respect some of qualms that cyclists have as most of the time there isn't an easy option for them, ie: Cars have the road where as pedestrians have the sidewalk. This is where dedicated bike lanes or bigger shoulders would come into play I guess, but would more likely be present in the city rather than the country.

In the country is where you should be able to pass a cyclist safely with a minimum of lost time by slowing a bit and timing the pass exactly as you would a slower motor vehicle. that is where I get the '5 seconds' I talk about

Most serious cyclists do need to get to those country roads, though, and we usually ride to them which is why you see us on busier streets. We aren't really anxious to share the roads with motorized Hamas but we have little choice until we get out of town