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Old 05-28-2015, 12:09 PM
Status: "**** YOU IBGINNIE, NAZI" (set 16 days ago)
 
2,401 posts, read 2,101,983 times
Reputation: 2321

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Quote:
Originally Posted by charisb View Post
I just bought my first bike in about 20 years so I that will have another commuting option (besides busing or walking). I am pretty excited but also a little nervous.
This thread is great! I am looking forward to interaction with my fellow cyclists.
That's awesome, it's never too late to get back into riding. I think some people view it as something they had to give up in childhood, or once they obtained a car that the bike became unnecessary. Just take it slow and watch for everything. Something maybe not mentioned; cycling gives one keen situational awareness.
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Old 05-28-2015, 08:20 PM
 
1,782 posts, read 2,085,704 times
Reputation: 1366
Quote:
Originally Posted by szug-bot View Post
[i]Well, I have anxiety of a different kind...like, possibly getting killed at times when there is a lot going on around me. Recently, I had a speeder to my left going down California Avenue. To my right, someone in a car swung open the driver door...than, with all the precision and cat like reflexes he could muster, reached over and pulled that door closed in a split second. I had nowhere to go (moving car was on the left) and would have run right into that door had it not been for the miraculous glimpse and simultaneous reflex.
I describe that feeling as more of an adrenaline rush. I need all of my senses working overtime to avoid getting hit by people driving their 2 ton tanks with impunity. Yes, I have been doored before, it's not fun but it's also not the end of the world either.

Quote:
I don't have that, unfortunately - not as much. I do chat with some people on bikes, but rarely the hotshots with the skinny tires and the skin tights - they might be deaf, or just don't care to acknowledge anyone who isn't of the same appearance.
I didn't just mean other bikers though, I have more opportunities to talk to anyone when on a bike. It's easier to talk to people in cars too. Also, since I am patronizing more establishments when on a bike ride, I can meet and talk to the people in those places that I would otherwise have skipped past when in a car.
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Old 05-28-2015, 08:25 PM
 
1,782 posts, read 2,085,704 times
Reputation: 1366
Quote:
Originally Posted by Merge View Post
This is my biggest problem with bikers... why do so many feel a need to wear such idiotic clothes? You're not racing the freakin' tour de france. No reason to dress like a choad.

Ha! Other than that, I support infrastructure for bikers!
Are you serious? I see people walking and driving every day with more ridiculous clothes on than what roadies wear. At least the roadies' bike clothes serve a purpose.
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Old 05-28-2015, 08:57 PM
 
1,947 posts, read 2,243,863 times
Reputation: 1292
Quote:
Originally Posted by charisb View Post
I just bought my first bike in about 20 years so I that will have another commuting option (besides busing or walking). I am pretty excited but also a little nervous.
This thread is great! I am looking forward to interaction with my fellow cyclists.
Just as I leave, eh?

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Old 05-28-2015, 09:04 PM
 
1,947 posts, read 2,243,863 times
Reputation: 1292
Quote:
Originally Posted by norcider View Post
That's awesome, it's never too late to get back into riding. I think some people view it as something they had to give up in childhood, or once they obtained a car that the bike became unnecessary. Just take it slow and watch for everything. Something maybe not mentioned; cycling gives one keen situational awareness.
Yep - the golden rule of staying alive cycling is to assume everyone on the road is dangerous, and even if you have the right of way, somebody else's mistake could hurt you as you are on a bike and they are not. for example, always be very carefully when cars are turning left across you. My danger intersection is Beacon/Hobart as I head down the hill. It's amazing how often cars only see you at the last second. I'm always ready to brake/swerve ... always. I never trust them to stop.

And wear bike shorts/tights. Your butt will hurt less
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Old 05-28-2015, 09:59 PM
gg
 
Location: Pittsburgh
26,137 posts, read 25,977,619 times
Reputation: 17378
Quote:
Originally Posted by tclifton View Post
Here's one I can share. Just today at lunch, I was walking across 5th Ave near Macy's at the crosswalk and a guy on a bike came streaming down against and through his red light and missed knocking me over by about 6 inches.
I can share this with you. I was in a crosswalk and almost got killed today by an idiot in a Lexus. Cars are deadly. To be killed by a bike riding would be the equivalent as getting stuck by lightening. It has happened, but almost never.

Next.
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Old 05-29-2015, 06:11 AM
 
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
1,106 posts, read 1,163,995 times
Reputation: 3071
Quote:
Originally Posted by gortonator View Post
Just as I leave, eh?

I know. I was looking forward to passing you on the road. Or parking my bike next to yours down by the Independent.
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Old 05-29-2015, 06:22 AM
 
1,947 posts, read 2,243,863 times
Reputation: 1292
Quote:
Originally Posted by charisb View Post
I know. I was looking forward to passing you on the road. Or parking my bike next to yours down by the Independent.
There's a memorial plaque for me on the bike racks at the IBC

I'm bikeless for next 3 days. It hurts ...
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Old 05-29-2015, 06:26 AM
 
831 posts, read 878,923 times
Reputation: 676
Quote:
Originally Posted by gg View Post
I can share this with you. I was in a crosswalk and almost got killed today by an idiot in a Lexus. Cars are deadly. To be killed by a bike riding would be the equivalent as getting stuck by lightening. It has happened, but almost never.

Next.
You know, you turned me around on this. How silly I am for overreacting. I should have just let him hit me. It most likely would have felt like kittens swatting me with pillows.
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Old 05-29-2015, 06:28 AM
 
Location: Marshall-Shadeland, Pittsburgh, PA
32,617 posts, read 77,614,858 times
Reputation: 19102
Quote:
Originally Posted by tclifton View Post
Here's one I can share. Just today at lunch, I was walking across 5th Ave near Macy's at the crosswalk and a guy on a bike came streaming down against and through his red light and missed knocking me over by about 6 inches.
To be fair to cyclists last night I saw an elderly man jaywalking with his dog across Wilkins Avenue near Barnesdale Street. He created an awkward situation when he had to stop to let a cyclist rightfully pass by him in the eastbound bike lane and then had to scurry out of the way of an oncoming bus in the eastbound lane that was rounding the curve.

I find pedestrians to be the worst lawbreakers in this city. They expect everyone---buses, cars, trucks, taxis, scooters, bikes, unicycles, etc. to yield to them when THEY cross streets illegally. I'm glad the cyclist didn't yield to him. I wouldn't have either. This isn't suburbia. This is a city with marked crosswalks and signalized intersections. If you're going to jaywalk, then fine. Do what I do, though, and make sure you won't be impeding anyone else's flow and then hoof it like you're outrunning Godzilla!
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