Sculptor7

Lately I have been noticing a disturbing trend here in Maine. Several times I have come across banana peels on the road and/or the bike path. What's up with that? I thought we cyclists were environmentally friendly. Does it take so much effort to just toss it off to the side grass or woods where it will more quickly decompose?

coasting 

yup. i once hit a pedestrian trying to do that.

98TJ

I freaked out last fall when I saw one.

Damn you, Mario Kart!

alexvpaq

watch out for the turtle shells next time, we never really know...

Machka 

It'll probably decompose faster on the road ... cars may drive over it and help it to break down.

Banana peels take a very long time to decompose. If cyclists really cared about the environment, they would take the banana peel to an official rubbish bin, and not toss it at all.

thump55

A guy taking a morning walk here found a live newborn baby next to a dumpster.

Banana peels are not really that "disturbing".

(baby is doing well btw)

Velo Vol 

How do you know that a cyclist left them there?

KiuBWhy

It was likely Yoshi or Donkey Kong.

pallen

haha, I saw one in the road a few days back and just started laughing. The really are slippery too.

fishymamba

Exactly!
Maybe those evil banana peels are purposely leaving themselves there so we slip and fall!

Fugazi Dave

Maybe people have misunderstood being an athlete as being an æsthete, and as such have preferred to place banana peels on paved surfaces for increased visual impact.

Velo Vol 

I once started finding oranges along the road and was baffled where they were coming from until I discovered a table with them in front of the Buddhist temple.

coasting 

you left out the part where you shamelessly stole holy oranges from a religious shrine.

urbanknight

I disagree. I once forgot about a banana I had in a plastic bag at work. About a month later, the bag had nothing but liquid in it.

But that's besides the point. There are many environmental factors that we may or may not know about regarding leaving anything on the ground. Perhaps the banana will attract a certain animal that wouldn't otherwise venture into that area. I can't tell you how many stories I've heard about places having unwanted and permanent guests. Foreign frogs in Hawaii, trees that grow incorrectly because they were introduced on the other hemisphere, peacocks that inhabited a city and scratch the hell out of everybody's cars, etc.

coasting 

has anyone slipped on a peel on a bike?

achoo

How would the peel get on the bike in the first place?

coasting 

bikerjp

+1. Trash is trash. Put it where it belongs. I see gu packets here and there too. Pick up after yourselves.

jsharr

Fugazi Dave

Thank you for making that joke. You beat me to it.

alexvpaq

swerve around the peel, it's not like it was going to take 100000years to turn into compost unlike plastic or stuff like that.

And if you are still that concerned about it, pick it up -> trashcan.

Laminarman

Seriously??? This was a joke right??

njkayaker

The real problem is that it is ugly and, if a lot of people do it, it's a whole lot of ugly.

Plus, some things that people think biodegrade in a short time take longer (and it's ugly while the biodegrading happens). And, if people see other people chucking trash all over the place, they might be more inclined to do the same (and maybe with less discrimination).

The idea of disposing of garbage properly is to err on the side of making things less ugly rather than more ugly.

urbanknight

100% agreed there. Oh, and although it was all liquid, it smelled something fierce.

Leukybear 

Banana peels are nothing... just ride over it if you have to, it's not going to make you you spin of all sudden into a 720 like mario cart.... gum is the worse, it gets stringy and everywhere.

Did I mention I was hit by a blue shell from home one time for forgetting to take out the trash in the morning? Flip side was I got to buy a new bike.