i bet! i've been commuting for 17 yrs now with no car and i have seen the
best in motorist here in oregon....i'm in sellwood and i have ran into some
wiredos lemme tell you!! i had a guy and 3 of his children chase me from
sellwood to hawthorn bridge trying to run me over and telling me he was
going to kick my ass and other wonderful words to go along with it....it was
his fault in the beginning and all i did was wave to him for not killing me.
but everyday it's always something......and when i was in europe i saw a
group of bike friday's passing me by and i said those bikes are great and
that i lived in eugene and they had no idea what i was talking about
haha...anyways biking over there is awesome!
ricky
----- Original Message -----
From: "Nathan Spear" <n-@nathanspear.com>
To: <cmur-@obra.org>; "'obra'" <ob-@topica.com>
Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2004 11:14 AM
Subject: RE: [OBRA Chat] the last note on etiquette
Candi,
I am not surprised.
I have taken note of a social difference between motorist in America,
Europe
and South America while on my bike. American's are so competitive.
Commuters coming across the Hawthorne Bridge race me to a stop light. I
always find this puzzling. European's live a more balanced and steadier
life. While they drive fast they respect the cyclist on the road. There
are bike lanes everywhere, and the cyclists don't feel obligated to look
over their shoulders when coming to a crossing. They know that the
motorists have both eyes open, do see them and won't pretend that they
didn't when you are forced to shot a star at them as the come oh so close
to
taking you out. When I have been in Europe the people I am around ride
the
mile or two on their cruisers to the bakery and pharmacy, leaving the cars
in the drive. I bet more people here would too if our gas was $4 a
gallon.
South America is a wonderful place to ride. They also drive fast in their
little cars, but they seemed to totally respect cyclists. Often you would
hear a short horn beep (just like the cyclist heard on Sat) and you would
know to hold your line. Never did I have a horn laid on. Cycles and
autos
live in harmony on that continent.
-Nathan
-----Original Message-----
From: Candi Murray/Oregon Bicycle Racing Assn [mailto:cmur-@obra.org]
Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2004 10:25 AM
To: obra
Subject: [OBRA Chat] the last note on etiquette
As we close this topic off I also wanted to comment on another type of
etiquette. While I was timing the Built for Speed, a very nice member of
the motoring public (this is a sincere statement not sarcasm) stopped to
mention his experience as he passes one of the competitors. It seems that
he tapped on the horn as he passed the rider, who was occupying the whole
lane. As he passed the rider flipped him off. Please guys, use all your
fingers! Wave and smile, we do not need any more antagonism out there.
If
we can convert just one driver each race we are ahead of the game.
My two cents
Candi
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