mike.m-@obra.org

John Bravard [mailto:j-bra-@comcast.net] wrote:

"The last two kilometers of the Cherry Pie RR were pretty dicey. There were

a

lot of people charging hard and going every which way for 4th through 54th

place. The road was open for the last 200m, but folks were all over the

centerline for the last 2km. I hope the guy who crashed recovers quickly and

completely, but one thing I noticed is that he crashed in the oncoming lane.

We race on open roads, and adding a car to this mishap would likely have

made the injuries he sustained look pretty minor."



For those that have not been around as long as I have I should remind you

that this has already happened. In 1982 in Oregon a rider crossed the

centerline, struck an oncoming car and was killed. He was about a kilometer

out from the finish. The road was straight and he should have been able to

see ahead easily. He was in a small group, not a huge sprinting pack. I

had to participate in the fruitless resuscitation attempt. I can give you

the gory details of the event, the subsequent liability action, etc. if you

like.



The centerline rule is not just a sports rule. It is an absolute

requirement for safety. It is more like not repelling from a single piece

of protection then it is like taking too many steps with a basketball.

Unfortunately it is a difficult rule for officials to enforce, especially if

it is ignored by large numbers of riders near the end of a race. Imagine

yourself in a car behind a field of 100 riders, many with poorly pinned

numbers, trying to figure out who were the 20 guys at the front that went

over the line. Mostly the enforcement needs to come from the riders through

their own self discipline and chastising others.



Hopefully people will be getting the message on this subject. I really

don't want to see any more dead bike racers.



Mike Murray