Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Apparently they attach their feet to their pedals and don’t want to take the effort to undo the connection. I learned this from the bicyclist who crashed into my car which was legally stopped at a stop light as he was almost run over by another bicyclist.

They should have license plates so they can be ticketed by red light cameras.

You know, I've known cyclists with those lock-in shoes, and never made the connection with why they don't want to stop. And in my experience (YMMV) the obnoxious cyclists on the paths are largely those with the lock-in shoes. If you want to ride around with those shoes and ride like a grande prix racer, you need to find a closed circuit course, and -- bikes with lock-in shoes should be banned from public paths if those riders continue to menace other people on the paths, and ride through crosswalks.

Can we then ban the vehicles responsible for 35,000 plus deaths on collisions a year (3500 of those to pedestrians) which also pollute the air (causing lung cancer, cardio vascular disease, etc) and which are a main contributor to global warming?

hey idiot two wrongs don't make a right. Obey the freaking rules

What I was responding to was not a call to obey rules but a call to ban a certain form of biking equipment.

We ban certain off road vehicles and race are because of their "equipment". We ban drivers from wearing headphones, using cell phones, etc. Why? Public safety. These clip-in shoes almost encourage cyclists to stay in motion rather deal with the hassle of taking a second to unclip and walk their bikes.

FWIW public thoroughfares are poorly planned and outmoded around here. Places like Falls Church with new buildings nearly abutting the streets with narrow sidewalks are a disaster. Want to encourage new and multiple forms of people-powered transit? Widen things up, so that cars (a small number of slow moving vehicles), bikes, pedestrians, scooters, etc can move more easily.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: They do, of course, but then they always have some reason why they can’t obey the traffic rules like stopping at stop signs,

Reason 1 - If I can get through BEFORE cars show up at the intersection, I will be safer (those cars do not always stop)
2. I can get away from the impatient driver on my tail
3. I can see well enough to know the intersection is clear, and can keep momentum (nothing to do with shoes)
4. I slow to a slower speed than the cars slow rolling the stop anyway, but you don't notice cause I was not going as fast to begin with.

What? So I'm driving a car, and I can just blow through a stop sign for those reasons. When the police officer stops me, how do you think the excuse "I could see well enough to know the intersection was clear" will fly?

The traffic rules are the rules!

+1

Cyclists never dismount on portions of the Mount Vernon trail, when they are supposed to (w/ signs), on very narrow portions. It's effing annoying.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: They do, of course, but then they always have some reason why they can’t obey the traffic rules like stopping at stop signs,

Reason 1 - If I can get through BEFORE cars show up at the intersection, I will be safer (those cars do not always stop)
2. I can get away from the impatient driver on my tail
3. I can see well enough to know the intersection is clear, and can keep momentum (nothing to do with shoes)
4. I slow to a slower speed than the cars slow rolling the stop anyway, but you don't notice cause I was not going as fast to begin with.

What? So I'm driving a car, and I can just blow through a stop sign for those reasons. When the police officer stops me, how do you think the excuse "I could see well enough to know the intersection was clear" will fly?

The traffic rules are the rules!

Anonymous wrote:Do you mean the intersection of a MacArthur and the entry into the Clara Barton? It’s a bit scary how they blow through there. I got yelled at by a cyclist who was behaving in just the manner you described. I posted about it a few weeks ago. I’m with you 100%. They’re going to cause an accident, and between a ton or so of metal and a dude on a bike, guess who’s going to fare better?

OP here - yes this exact location. I hope that no one gets hurt. but it's inevitable. Then everyone will blame the drivers.

Anonymous wrote: They do, of course, but then they always have some reason why they can’t obey the traffic rules like stopping at stop signs,

Reason 1 - If I can get through BEFORE cars show up at the intersection, I will be safer (those cars do not always stop)
2. I can get away from the impatient driver on my tail
3. I can see well enough to know the intersection is clear, and can keep momentum (nothing to do with shoes)
4. I slow to a slower speed than the cars slow rolling the stop anyway, but you don't notice cause I was not going as fast to begin with.

Scofflaw bikers are bad, but what about clueless motorized scooter and skateboard riders on sidewalks?!

Anonymous wrote: I want to really be supportive of people who are cycling, but I’ve had so many rude encounters with them. They just seem so entitled and obnoxious in their habits, and so aggressive towards drivers. I try to be careful but they too should be careful of cars. They breeze right through stop signs and act so indignant when a car stopping lawfully at a stop sign honks in protest. Obey the traffic laws and be mindful of the 3 ton vehicle attempting to legally make a right turn in front of you! The car waited their turn, why can’t the cyclist?

Last summer at a three way stop I saw a cyclist actually continue through the intersection without stopping in front of a car that was turning. The car slammed on its brakes so not to hit him, and the cyclist slammed his hand on the front of the car hood and continued on his way.

I do not approve of cars being aggressive with cyclists, either alone or in packs. I have seen myself or heard about many instances of cyclist being rude or aggressive towards drivers as well. I don’t think either is appropriate.

People get kind of worn out from A. Dangerous behavior by drivers (especially the many of us who have been hit due to a drivers error or recklessness) B. Seeing how many drivers do dangerous and/or illegal things that people ignore, while focusing on what cyclists do wrong
C. People who do not realize that SOME things cyclists do that are not legal, are actually done to be safer D. People who attack cyclists for doing things that are actually legal and proper - sometimes even demanding they BREAK the law "Go ride on the sidewalk!" E. discussions where cyclist behavior is used as an argument to not make things safer for people on bikes (an approach that would never be taken regarding drivers)

Now yeah, some cyclists are jerks. But guess what those same people are jerks when they drive. There is nothing about getting on a bike (other than the things I have listed above) that makes you a different person.

But people who drive and don't bike tend to notice bad behavior by cyclists more than bad behavior by drivers (or as I noted above, don't even understand biking, laws about biking, or how to side safely in traffic)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Apparently they attach their feet to their pedals and don’t want to take the effort to undo the connection. I learned this from the bicyclist who crashed into my car which was legally stopped at a stop light as he was almost run over by another bicyclist.

They should have license plates so they can be ticketed by red light cameras.

You know, I've known cyclists with those lock-in shoes, and never made the connection with why they don't want to stop. And in my experience (YMMV) the obnoxious cyclists on the paths are largely those with the lock-in shoes. If you want to ride around with those shoes and ride like a grande prix racer, you need to find a closed circuit course, and -- bikes with lock-in shoes should be banned from public paths if those riders continue to menace other people on the paths, and ride through crosswalks.

Can we then ban the vehicles responsible for 35,000 plus deaths on collisions a year (3500 of those to pedestrians) which also pollute the air (causing lung cancer, cardio vascular disease, etc) and which are a main contributor to global warming?

hey idiot two wrongs don't make a right. Obey the freaking rules

What I was responding to was not a call to obey rules but a call to ban a certain form of biking equipment.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why would you attach your feet to the pedals of a bike in an urban area? That sounds so dangerous.

That’s what professional competitive bike riders do. Same with wearing those brightly colored Lycra outfits in emblazoned with sponsorship logos, and riding in packs down scenic byways impeding traffic, just like they are in a real cycling race!

people wear the lycra because its more aerodynamic, breathes better, and usually is high visibility. It is quite functional.

And of course they have the right to ride on scenic byways, and they ARE traffic.

They do, of course, but then they always have some reason about why they can’t obey the traffic like stopping at stop signs, or walking their bikes over one lane bridges Road and then traveling in car lanes. Usually those high tech clip-on shoes that they wear!

There are plenty of good reasons for the Delaware Yield (which is why its law in Delaware, Idaho and now Arkansas)

Please post a street giew of the one lane bridge - I am not sure whats going on there.

I want to really be supportive of people who are cycling, but I’ve had so many rude encounters with them. They just seem so entitled and obnoxious in their habits, and so aggressive towards drivers. I try to be careful but they too should be careful of cars. They breeze right through stop signs and act so indignant when a car stopping lawfully at a stop sign honks in protest. Obey the traffic laws and be mindful of the 3 ton vehicle attempting to legally make a right turn in front of you! The car waited their turn, why can’t the cyclist?

Last summer at a three way stop I saw a cyclist actually continue through the intersection without stopping in front of a car that was turning. The car slammed on its brakes so not to hit him, and the cyclist slammed his hand on the front of the car hood and continued on his way.

I do not approve of cars being aggressive with cyclists, either alone or in packs. I have seen myself or heard about many instances of cyclist being rude or aggressive towards drivers as well. I don’t think either is appropriate.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Apparently they attach their feet to their pedals and don’t want to take the effort to undo the connection. I learned this from the bicyclist who crashed into my car which was legally stopped at a stop light as he was almost run over by another bicyclist.

They should have license plates so they can be ticketed by red light cameras.

You know, I've known cyclists with those lock-in shoes, and never made the connection with why they don't want to stop. And in my experience (YMMV) the obnoxious cyclists on the paths are largely those with the lock-in shoes. If you want to ride around with those shoes and ride like a grande prix racer, you need to find a closed circuit course, and -- bikes with lock-in shoes should be banned from public paths if those riders continue to menace other people on the paths, and ride through crosswalks.

Can we then ban the vehicles responsible for 35,000 plus deaths on collisions a year (3500 of those to pedestrians) which also pollute the air (causing lung cancer, cardio vascular disease, etc) and which are a main contributor to global warming?

hey idiot two wrongs don't make a right. Obey the freaking rules

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why would you attach your feet to the pedals of a bike in an urban area? That sounds so dangerous.

That’s what professional competitive bike riders do. Same with wearing those brightly colored Lycra outfits in emblazoned with sponsorship logos, and riding in packs down scenic byways impeding traffic, just like they are in a real cycling race!

people wear the lycra because its more aerodynamic, breathes better, and usually is high visibility. It is quite functional.

And of course they have the right to ride on scenic byways, and they ARE traffic.

They do, of course, but then they always have some reason about why they can’t obey the traffic like stopping at stop signs, or walking their bikes over one lane bridges Road and then traveling in car lanes. Usually those high tech clip-on shoes that they wear!

Sorry, that was garbled: They do, of course, but then they always have some reason why they can’t obey the traffic rules like stopping at stop signs, or walking their bikes over one lane bridges rather than traveling in car lanes. Usually it’s those high tech clip-on shoes that they wear!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why would you attach your feet to the pedals of a bike in an urban area? That sounds so dangerous.

That’s what professional competitive bike riders do. Same with wearing those brightly colored Lycra outfits in emblazoned with sponsorship logos, and riding in packs down scenic byways impeding traffic, just like they are in a real cycling race!

people wear the lycra because its more aerodynamic, breathes better, and usually is high visibility. It is quite functional.

And of course they have the right to ride on scenic byways, and they ARE traffic.

They do, of course, but then they always have some reason about why they can’t obey the traffic like stopping at stop signs, or walking their bikes over one lane bridges Road and then traveling in car lanes. Usually those high tech clip-on shoes that they wear!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why would you attach your feet to the pedals of a bike in an urban area? That sounds so dangerous.

1. You can go faster - plenty of places in this area where you don't need to unclip for a long stretch
2. It makes it easier to lift your pedal into the optimal position when you are stopped. Also helpful
3. Some bikes come with the pedals set for that, and if you want to ride flat pedals you need to change them - which a recreationl rider new to bike commuting might not have done yet

4. Its not that hard to unclip. Lots of riders who ride clipped in manage to unclip regularly. But in most of those places it not necessary to dismount and walk the bike.

Oh you are also less likely to have your feet slip off your pedals in wet weather.