Had my closest call in years
08-08-20, 07:46 AM
#1
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Had my closest call in years
Yesterday, most of my 5.5 hours looked like this.
Pretty safe unless you're an albino.
Near the end of the ride, I had to take a main road to the next exit out of town. I was a very short way down this road looking for a good spot to ramp onto the sidewalk. And I heard tires squealing behind me, as in I was nearly crushed from behind and the driver locked up his wheels at the last moment. Probably on his phone.
No shoulder but a big bicycle painted on the ground that nobody seems to notice.
I was pretty happy to get back onto the open road after that.
Pretty safe unless you're an albino.
Near the end of the ride, I had to take a main road to the next exit out of town. I was a very short way down this road looking for a good spot to ramp onto the sidewalk. And I heard tires squealing behind me, as in I was nearly crushed from behind and the driver locked up his wheels at the last moment. Probably on his phone.
No shoulder but a big bicycle painted on the ground that nobody seems to notice.
I was pretty happy to get back onto the open road after that.
08-08-20, 08:50 AM
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rosefarts Yikes! Glad you're okay.
08-08-20, 09:01 AM
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Beats feeling the heat of the headlights before they drive through you. Glad you are safe...
08-08-20, 09:30 AM
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Every cyclist's worst nightmare, being smashed from the rear by a speeding motor vehicle. I know of no strategies to reduce this risk, beyond riding safely, being highly visible with lights and clothing, and riding courteously. Glad you're ok, and I hope this doesn't affect your enthusiasm for cycling. It's a risk we all take.
08-08-20, 09:53 AM
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Wow, thats scary ! Glad you are OK !
I almost got smacked by a car passing me on the left as I was starting to turn into my driveway at the end of a ride. I got sloppy and didn't check my mirror before turning in. Almost zero traffic and I assumed there were no cars back there. He went by and I quickly turned to the right and toppled over. He saw me in his rear view mirror and stopped and came back to see if I was OK.
I told him I was fine and thanks for checking. I was tired after the ride and got sloppy on staying aware of the cars around me. Totally my fault, and it is a heads up for me to not drop my
guard !
I almost got smacked by a car passing me on the left as I was starting to turn into my driveway at the end of a ride. I got sloppy and didn't check my mirror before turning in. Almost zero traffic and I assumed there were no cars back there. He went by and I quickly turned to the right and toppled over. He saw me in his rear view mirror and stopped and came back to see if I was OK.
I told him I was fine and thanks for checking. I was tired after the ride and got sloppy on staying aware of the cars around me. Totally my fault, and it is a heads up for me to not drop my
guard !
08-08-20, 03:14 PM
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do you ride with helmet or bar mirrors ? would that have helped ??
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08-08-20, 05:31 PM
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Glad you're OK! I had not such luck with a drunk driver years ago.
08-09-20, 02:40 AM
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Every day, every ride. Including the guy who seemed to deliberately swerve into the shoulder where I was riding Saturday. And I choose routes with little or no traffic, so no driver has an excuse other than negligence or malice.
There's hardly a ride (or walk, for that matter) where I don't experience at least one driver who should be off the road. Which is why I run video every ride, usually front and rear. I've told my family and friends to be sure to tell the cops to check my video to see who killed me. I don't expect the cameras to do much of anything else useful.
Part of the problem is the part of town where I live. It was traditionally blue collar working class, then lower income redneck, then borderline impoverished as the traditional manufacturing jobs vanished and the community changed. But this side of town has never been friendly toward cyclists. The first mile or two immediately around where I live is always the most tense. Much of Fort Worth and surroundings are cycling friendly. But not so much the west side.
I save the short video clips of each incident. I used to post them on Facebook but I think my friends got tired of seeing that stuff almost every day, so I quit. I just save them on the PC. Eventually it'll make for about 3-5 minutes worth of horrors, a few seconds at a time.
And every day I remind myself that the vast majority of drivers are decent human beings who aren't trying to murder us, and many are downright friendly. When I see drivers approaching from behind on my usual two-lane rural blacktops, I'll wave to acknowledge I see them and if they appear to hesitate, I'll wave them ahead as soon as I can see it's safe to pass. Then we wave. All is well. Nobody is inconvenienced for more than a few moments. It should always be like that.
There's hardly a ride (or walk, for that matter) where I don't experience at least one driver who should be off the road. Which is why I run video every ride, usually front and rear. I've told my family and friends to be sure to tell the cops to check my video to see who killed me. I don't expect the cameras to do much of anything else useful.
Part of the problem is the part of town where I live. It was traditionally blue collar working class, then lower income redneck, then borderline impoverished as the traditional manufacturing jobs vanished and the community changed. But this side of town has never been friendly toward cyclists. The first mile or two immediately around where I live is always the most tense. Much of Fort Worth and surroundings are cycling friendly. But not so much the west side.
I save the short video clips of each incident. I used to post them on Facebook but I think my friends got tired of seeing that stuff almost every day, so I quit. I just save them on the PC. Eventually it'll make for about 3-5 minutes worth of horrors, a few seconds at a time.
And every day I remind myself that the vast majority of drivers are decent human beings who aren't trying to murder us, and many are downright friendly. When I see drivers approaching from behind on my usual two-lane rural blacktops, I'll wave to acknowledge I see them and if they appear to hesitate, I'll wave them ahead as soon as I can see it's safe to pass. Then we wave. All is well. Nobody is inconvenienced for more than a few moments. It should always be like that.
08-09-20, 05:49 AM
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Yesterday, most of my 5.5 hours looked like this.
Pretty safe unless you're an albino.
Near the end of the ride, I had to take a main road to the next exit out of town. I was a very short way down this road looking for a good spot to ramp onto the sidewalk. And I heard tires squealing behind me, as in I was nearly crushed from behind and the driver locked up his wheels at the last moment. Probably on his phone.
No shoulder but a big bicycle painted on the ground that nobody seems to notice.
I was pretty happy to get back onto the open road after that.
Pretty safe unless you're an albino.
Near the end of the ride, I had to take a main road to the next exit out of town. I was a very short way down this road looking for a good spot to ramp onto the sidewalk. And I heard tires squealing behind me, as in I was nearly crushed from behind and the driver locked up his wheels at the last moment. Probably on his phone.
No shoulder but a big bicycle painted on the ground that nobody seems to notice.
I was pretty happy to get back onto the open road after that.
Best regards
Barry, 74
New Jersey
08-09-20, 05:16 PM
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Had a midsized suv race up behind me on the shoulder to make there turn... they didn't see me & they were talking thru the vehicle's bluetooth to someone as i could hear the conversation as they locked up the brakes veering a hard right short of the turn & almost into the ditch. "Oh #### almost hit a biker!" Is what I heard....
that was yesterday.
Just 1 of many encounters.
that was yesterday.
Just 1 of many encounters.
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08-09-20, 08:22 PM
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Glad your ok. I have relatives in the Fort Worth area. South side was not bad years ago.
Would radar and a mirror help? I have a Zefal mirror under my left brake lever and glance at when the Garmin radar shows a car. There is supposed to be a color change when the speed is high but I’m not keen on it. Anyway have not had a car on the shoulder with me but twice pulled into the ditch on a narrow road just in case. The radar was $180 with a discount. Expensive but I so far worth it. In suburban or rural areas it works well. In a big city with constant traffic it may be more annoying. My cousin has an older one and I splurged on a Varia RT510 after a ride with him. The last model 510 I think is on sale because there is a newer one. They work with a Wahoo bike computers now. Wahoo has little car icons.
Would radar and a mirror help? I have a Zefal mirror under my left brake lever and glance at when the Garmin radar shows a car. There is supposed to be a color change when the speed is high but I’m not keen on it. Anyway have not had a car on the shoulder with me but twice pulled into the ditch on a narrow road just in case. The radar was $180 with a discount. Expensive but I so far worth it. In suburban or rural areas it works well. In a big city with constant traffic it may be more annoying. My cousin has an older one and I splurged on a Varia RT510 after a ride with him. The last model 510 I think is on sale because there is a newer one. They work with a Wahoo bike computers now. Wahoo has little car icons.
08-09-20, 08:37 PM
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I tried that radar once...
after a short period, I wanted a car to pull my number. Damn radar was annoying.
after a short period, I wanted a car to pull my number. Damn radar was annoying.
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