Bicyclists, Grrrrr!

When Things Go Sideways

By TLS

Many, maybe even all, bicyclists may be the nicest, kindest, friendliest, most cooperative people ever. However, that is until they get on their bikes and transform into self-righteous douche-bags.

OMG! Bicyclists send me through the roof! Public campaigns push for “share the road.” Apparently bicyclists don’t realize this is supposed to apply to them as well.

In my experience, bicyclists are a danger to everyone. They don’t, or rarely, follow the rules of the road, and that’s in places where there are actually bike lanes and spaces and places for bikes.

I live several miles out an uphill country road. Bicyclists love to ride that road. Sure, I can understand why. But, the road is curvy, narrow, and dangerous (for cars, never mind bikes!) with many blind curves. There is also nowhere on the side of the road for bikes, it’s just ditch or cliffs. The road also has quite a bit of traffic; ya know, people coming and going to and from work or the grocery store?

People have died on this road in the dozen-plus years we’ve lived here. Presumably none attributed to bicycles, but I don’t know how not. This is a 55 MPH road too. Some corners require slowing down a bit but not a lot. Then, as you come around a corner, and a car is coming from the other way, there is a damn bicyclist in the middle of your lane. You’re doing 45 MPH, he’s doing 5 MPH. Brake slam!

This is all over the area too, not just on the road I live. Occasionally I’ll see someone in town who is actually following road rules and bike rules. Great! But I still growl simply because of the conditioning I’ve received from all the other bicyclists on the road.

If you ride, drive, or just try to survive the roads we all share, let’s talk about it. Are cyclists misunderstood heroes, or two-wheeled chaos agents? Drop your thoughts below and let’s see who really owns the road.

Image

<a href="https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/cyclist-man-riding-bike-road_11357721.htm#fromView=search&page=1&position=44&uuid=283a20f0-9eb3-4560-8f81-c83a8e82f98c">Image by bublikhaus on Freepik</a>