On Friday, February 23, 2018 at 7:44:39 AM UTC-8, Joerg wrote:
On 2018-02-22 19:40, John B. wrote:
On Thu, 22 Feb 2018 12:53:24 -0500, Frank Krygowski
wrote:

On 2/22/2018 11:06 AM, Joerg wrote:


When neighbors hear about Green Valley Road and my
suggestion to join me for a ride the reactions are between "No" and
"Hell no!". When it's trucking the bikes to a trail head the answer is
often an enthusiastic "Yes". Trucking is something I personally do not
like, I prefer to ride from the garage and not use a car at all if
possible.

Those are the cold hard facts and sticking the head in the sand about
them isn't helpful. Yet that's what some folks do. Luckily few enough
that smart city leaders aren't influenced much by them.

Yet you try to refute the fact that riding bikes has been found time
after time, by study after study, to have benefits that GREATLY outweigh
its tiny risks. IOW you are literally safer riding a bike than not
riding a bike.

Do you give those facts to your neighbors? Of course not. Instead, you
perpetrate the "Danger! Danger!" myth every chance you get.


Nonsense. I have written many times that I tell them that Green Valley
Road is quite safe because it has a wide enough shoulder along most of
it. However, they won't have any of that. They absolutely refuse to ride
there. Many of them because they remember gruesome accidents on that
road such as a fatal one where a cyclist got rear-ended at full speed.


But Frank, given the dangers of riding a bicycle think how manly and
brave one appears when doing it. Why all the neighbors likely stand on
the edge of the road and applaud "the brave one".


No kidding, that is indeed the case. Not along the road though. A few
weeks ago I stopped at my usual pub. This time it was unusually crowded.
Someone asked "Who rides that vintage bike out there?" ... "That's me"
... "So how far do you still have to go?" ... "Cameron Park, only about
7mi" ... "But not on Green Valley Road, right?" ... "Sure, otherwise I
would be late" ... Almost everyone turned around and looked at me in
disbelief. Then came comments like that I must be a fearless dude and so

You drink with a bunch of rubes. Go to a real bike bar, and they won't give a sh** where you ride. https://companyweek.com/media/HUB_interior.jpg

Someone has died on my commute route every year for the last six years -- motorist, pedestrian or cyclist or some combination thereof. Even a frozen bum. Riding in this morning over ice-flows and errant left-over snow-heaps, I thought I was going to die (because I switched back to my usual commuter semi-slicks), but I turned on my flasher and DRL, and thereby avoided all issues with traction, traffic and weather. It was like a warm breeze blowing through my hair. I got to work, and everyone said, "oh my God, you rode in! You are such an awesome individual!" Actually, nobody said anything -- maybe some yawns.

Your life is so vivid with all the mountain lions and dangerous roads. You should get a reality TV show like Bear Grylls. "Death Road Cyclist!" On this episode, Joerg rides down the road and gets some beer. Patrons of the tavern are amazed. Roll credits.

-- Jay Beattie.