Dork bikers.

[lendaddy]

OK, I know many of you here ride bicycles so this will probably not go over real well but I cannot let the jerseys go without comment. I bet I saw 40 Lance Armstrongs today including a couple wearing the yellow!!! It's the latte drinking crowds "Earnhardt #3 1951-2001"in the back window. I can't help but be both embarrassed for and laugh at these guys. One of these days I'm going to stop after I pass them and hold out cups of water

Oh well, just feeling cranky

[Dan in Pasadena]

len,
I get what you're saying, I used to feel that way...till I started riding but...I stopped two years ago after having an old man turned left, RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME while I had the green light and was making about 25mph on my road bike. I braked as hard as I could and jerked HARD to avoid him but slapped into his right side and barely avoided having him run over my legs as I went down. He NEVER saw me, he never stopped! I always thought it was stupid the outlandishly loud colors the jerseys are but now I understand. Looking like a freaking glowing neon sign is not important - it is life saving. I keep thinking of riding again, but I am frankly afraid to ride on the street. I will probably re-start by riding the Rose Bowl perimeter.

[nostatic]

I always rode the brightest stuff I could. Because dork car drivers don't pay attention and could care less about running a bicycle off the road.

I never wore yellow though...just didn't seem right. I had chartreuse and orange though. Sassy!

[lendaddy]

OK I concede the safety aspect. I always wondered how all those 40 something softies got all those sponsors though

[bell]

i don't mind bikers as long as they stay in their lanes, our "valley" has many many miles of marked lanes next to the roads for bikes......what gets me is when they ride side by side 4 deep and take up half the road making cars go around, that REALLY pisses me off........rant over.

[jriera]

.. or when 'they' consider that Stop signs or red lights are not for them. I do ride a bit and I will never understand how some people (cyclists) can be so dumb or inconsiderate, they are vehicles and should observe all the rules and regulations like the rest of vehicles.

Originally posted by bell
i don't mind bikers as long as they stay in their lanes, our "valley" has many many miles of marked lanes next to the roads for bikes......what gets me is when they ride side by side 4 deep and take up half the road making cars go around, that REALLY pisses me off........rant over.

[Moses]

Quoting myself from a few years back. Biking is the ultimate poser sport.

Originally posted by Moses
I just gotta say this Northern California bicycle thing is making me NUTS! I don't mind a group of Lance Armstrong wannabes decorating our roadways, but it has become ridiculous. One of their favorite roads is Danville Blvd., a 2-lane road with well marked wide bike lanes going both ways. You would think that would be adequate, but NO! They have to congeal together in some great wiggly pack like a herd of sperm covering the entire roadway. A motorist has a choice of hitting the brakes or swerving into oncoming traffic to avoid the huge technicolor ejaculate oozing out of the bike lane. What's up with that?

And another thing; Why do they all stuff their asses into those stupid outfits? They look like Spandex sausages. And of course the little Spandex leotards are decorated with the names of all their sponsors! Sponsors? Give me a break! If I drove my 911 around the city wearing a racing suit emblazoned with exotic advertizing folks would rightfully think I was a few bricks short of a load. These leg-shaving, spandex wearing road hazards are really starting to piss me off.

If the good folks of this State have given you a bike lane, stay the hell in it!

[Dan in Pasadena]

Moses, I have never shaved my legs and their are plenty of spandex jerseys and shorts available with bright colors and without sponsors names on them. On the other hand, without all the writing they are less noticeable to the eye. Wear loose pants and ride awhile and you'll see why spandex is necessary. A pair of regular shorts will literally rub the skin right off you.

[Shuie]

Originally posted by lendaddy
One of these days I'm going to stop after I pass them and hold out cups of water

Thats the funniest thing thats been said for weeks around here. Thanks!

[Moneyguy1]

Tucson is BIG on cycling, nearly evey major roadway has a bike lane. It helps if you are driving to have your head on a swivel.

[cantdrv55]

Spandex sausage here. I not only wear them for the safety aspect, I wear them because they wick sweat off pretty efficiently. They keep me cool so I could do the miles. Try riding 50 miles wearing a cotton T and gym shorts. You'll overheat and your a$$ and nuts will fall off.

[cantdrv55]

For the record, I don't wear a yellow jersey either.

[TheMentat]

If you start to get bored one day when parallel parked waiting for somebody, just watch your mirror and wait for a cyclist. Right before he passes, "door fake" him by pretending to almost swing your door open right in front of him. The look on his face will be enough to make you not mind sharing the road with them.

[Dantilla]

I wear bright T-shirts, but never yellow. Solid colors- No logos allowed.

[stuartj]

Originally posted by TheMentat
If you start to get bored one day when parallel parked waiting for somebody, just watch your mirror and wait for a cyclist. Right before he passes, "door fake" him by pretending to almost swing your door open right in front of him. The look on his face will be enough to make you not mind sharing the road with them.

Ho ho, too funny. I know someone who did that, although not as a prank. He just swung his door open. The bike swerved, was hit by a cement truck, the rider killed instantly.

The guy I know got three years jail. He was a policeman, off duty at the time.

[stuartj]

Originally posted by lendaddy
OK I concede the safety aspect. I always wondered how all those 40 something softies got all those sponsors though

LOL. Apparently its illegal to ride a bike now without full fluro licra and $50,000 worth of carbon fibre. Its pretty funny- the new golf.

[nostatic]

yeah, its really funny when someone uses part of a 2-ton vehicle as a weapon against a human on a 20-lb bicycle.

In CA, a bicycle has as much right to the road as a car. It is perfectly legal for a bike to take the entire lane. And in fact it is safer if a bike isn't all the way in the gutter. Having trained in LA for quite a few years back in the day, I can say that there are some motorists who should be forced to walk. "Oh, I'm in such a hurry...I can't wait for a safe place to pass this bicyclist, I'll just force him into the curb because I'm late."

That being said, bikes also have the same responsibilities as cars, meaning stop signs and lights.

[gchappel]

Wearing a bike jersey covered with sponsers is no different than wearing a NFL or NBA or NHL jersey with a players number and often a sponser (Nike) or two on the side. Oh, and wonder why we riders are a little nervous- sure sounds like fun to scare the he!!! out of us with your nice porsches. Kind of like scaring the jersey wearing football fans by taking a machine gun to the game and pulling it out in the crowd. Don't fire it, but waving it around and having everyone run in panic sounds like it would really be a hoot! I hate the fact that after an NFL game the roads are crowded and I have to drive slow- so I'll weave and swerve all through the traffic - I'll show them. By the way, I bet none of the bikers you rant about are drunk- unlike the crowds coming from the other game.
You laugh at riders because you don't ride. The clothes or uniforms that you don't understand look funny, but they are functional- just like other sports gear.
You rant at riders because you don't ride- and they slow you down for a few minutes of your precious porsche time.
You laugh at the equipment- yet we drive expensive porsche's on the street. You could get by with a Hyandi. A great bike is expensive, and many of us think it is worth it. The engineering in a great bike is remarkable- on the same level as our cars.
Yes there is a small but real percentage of riders that give the rest of us riders a bad name- but I can say the same about drivers.
Ride for a couple of years and you will understand.
Going on 30 years of riding and racing myself- don't race anymore. Almost don't ride on the roads anymore because there are too many jerks driving. I see some of them are on this board.
Gary

[on2wheels52]

How far would I have to go to observe this phenomenon? I guess we're a little behind thigs here.
Jim

I consider red lights and stop signs more of a suggestion than a rule.