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I'm I Becoming Paranoid??

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I'm I Becoming Paranoid??

Old 03-19-21, 09:53 AM
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dhender02
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I'm I Becoming Paranoid??

With the recent news of Shawn Bradley being paralyzed due to his bike accident, it seems we're hearing about more biking accidents than we did just 10 or so years ago. Wondering are there actually more biking accidents occuring, or is it just a function of the 24 hour news cycle that we're living in now? In any case, I'm becoming more paranoid, honestly fearful, when cycling whereas I was never fearful nor paranoid. Is anyone else experiencing this?
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Old 03-19-21, 10:00 AM
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Nope.
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Old 03-19-21, 10:01 AM
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stop watching the news.
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Old 03-19-21, 10:02 AM
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No. Like many things, it's probably not a symptom of bike crashes occurring. It's more likely that we're just hearing about more due to technology and social media. We're hearing more about more things and hearing it sooner than ever before. As a senior, I'm not so certain that this is a good thing.
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Old 03-19-21, 10:10 AM
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Most accidents happen within a mile of your home, so why are you at home?
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Old 03-19-21, 10:15 AM
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You can look up the stats if you want.
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Old 03-19-21, 01:39 PM
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Originally Posted by Iride01
Most accidents happen within a mile of your home, so why are you at home?
LOL!!! But on my return, onceI get within a mile of the house I may have a panic attack...

Last edited by dhender02; 03-19-21 at 06:08 PM. Reason: grammar correction...
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Old 03-19-21, 01:45 PM
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Originally Posted by freeranger
No. Like many things, it's probably not a symptom of bike crashes occurring. It's more likely that we're just hearing about more due to technology and social media. We're hearing more about more things and hearing it sooner than ever before. As a senior, I'm not so certain that this is a good thing.
This is what I keep thinking and telling myself, crashes were always happening at same rate as now, but we hear more because of new news cycle due to technology and social media.... Just when I hear about a bad accident, I just have a fleeting thought if my number will be pulled one day.... The quarantine is probably doing a number on me have me thinking about things that I never gave the time day.... LOL!!!
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Old 03-19-21, 02:05 PM
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I'm not concerned. I've never ridden any where near Shawn Bradley's house.
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Old 03-19-21, 02:27 PM
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The per-capita occurrences (not the total occurrences) of bike crashes are what we need to pay attention to, if we want to be properly informed of a perceived upward trend. Simply hearing about "more" incidents, could just be a factor of "more" people riding, therefore more total crashes occurring, or it could be "more" news sources covering "more" of the crashes. Yet I recall reading somewhere in the past year (probably a source linked here at BF) that we now have less per-capita bike crashes/fatalities than ever before. Sorry, no source for that, but it should be easy to find.

Last edited by Riveting; 03-22-21 at 09:05 AM.
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Old 03-19-21, 03:43 PM
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Originally Posted by Iride01
Most accidents happen within a mile of your home, so why are you at home?
Yeah I’d just move somewhere else.
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Old 03-19-21, 04:40 PM
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Originally Posted by Iride01
Most accidents happen within a mile of your home...
Some time ago I read most car trips are less than 3 miles & most accidents were within 1 mile. All I could think was, "Well, Duh. If you never go more than a couple miles that's where the accidents will be."

In other news, no matter where you go, there you are.
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Old 03-19-21, 06:09 PM
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Originally Posted by caloso
I'm not concerned. I've never ridden any where near Shawn Bradley's house.
Too soon?
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Old 03-19-21, 06:13 PM
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No. OTOH as we said in the 60's, if you're not paranoid, you're simply not paying attention.

A total non-sequitur, but that old saying brought it to mind: I you haven't seen the film The Diary of a Teenage Girl, you're missing a huge treat. I think it's the most brilliant piece of writing and film making I've seen in quite a while. It owes a lot to the graphic novel of the same name on which it is based. Enjoy it even more if you have a teenage daughter.
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Old 03-19-21, 07:53 PM
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Originally Posted by dhender02
With the recent news of Shawn Bradley being paralyzed due to his bike accident, it seems we're hearing about more biking accidents than we did just 10 or so years ago. Wondering are there actually more biking accidents occuring, or is it just a function of the 24 hour news cycle that we're living in now? In any case, I'm becoming more paranoid, honestly fearful, when cycling whereas I was never fearful nor paranoid. Is anyone else experiencing this?
I agree with your take on the current situation, here in North Florida traffic is scary, many of my bicycling friends, long time road riders most of them, are opting for the rails to trails bike paths. I can go to at least five "white bikes" in a few mile radius of my house. A number of them reflect one of the local hobbies, hit and run incidents.

Distracted driving is the wild card that has changed the risk factor in road riding. Over the years I have bicycled on roads from Maine to Florida and always felt relaxed and somewhat safe. I don't feel so safe anymore. It is reasonable to assume many of the drivers approaching you are sharing their limited attention span with at least one electronic device. To believe otherwise may be delusional.

I'll still ride the road, I'm loath to leave what I love, but the risk is real and it has, make no mistake, increased over time. This incident, a few miles from my house was years ago but still very fresh in our minds. Empty, rural road, hit and run.

Many , many since.

Mother still seeking answers 6 years after crash killed St. Augustine cyclist Bryan Wrigley - News - The Florida Times-Union - Jacksonville, FL
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Old 03-19-21, 08:47 PM
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Tiger Woods got jacked up. You paranoid about driving?
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Old 03-19-21, 08:51 PM
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Old 03-19-21, 09:13 PM
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Many more people bought bikes during the pandemic. More people on bikes increases the likelihood of more accidents, especially if they are novices or very rusty. If you fit into neither category, I would ignore the news.
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Old 03-19-21, 09:32 PM
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Distracted driving is trending up, speeding is trending up both as a norm and mph over posted, road rage is trending up, running stop signs and stop lights is trending up. Just saw a red light run while driving this evening. This afternoon heard someone burning rubber around our neighborhood of 25 mph. Not just once but for extended period. Hit and runs in general are trending up. Can't forget the right turn/u-turn left turn. I'd be shocked if these don't have an impact on number of bike crashes, I don't know how many non fatal ones even get reported in the news. My perception is law enforcement personnel numbers are down and possibly willingness to engage. As side note, not sure if national or just STL; but the number of expired plates and temp tags is ridiculous. It's not a COVID thing, it's been prevalent for at least 3 - 5 yrs.

Still riding is what I do. I pick my routes carefully, stay vigilant, and hope for the best.

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Old 03-19-21, 09:51 PM
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Life is and always has been risky. Minimize unnecessary risks and live it to the fullest while you can.
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Old 03-20-21, 12:23 AM
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Originally Posted by dhender02
With the recent news of Shawn Bradley being paralyzed due to his bike accident, it seems we're hearing about more biking accidents than we did just 10 or so years ago. Wondering are there actually more biking accidents occuring, or is it just a function of the 24 hour news cycle that we're living in now? In any case, I'm becoming more paranoid, honestly fearful, when cycling whereas I was never fearful nor paranoid. Is anyone else experiencing this?
Yes.
Everyone currently on Xanax feels the exact same way.
About everything. Go figure
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Old 03-20-21, 06:09 AM
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I would guess that accidents are up because more people are riding bikes and many of them are pandemic newbies. That said, I have become more cautious in recent years. I'm 72 and broke my hip in a bike crash a few years ago. With each passing year the likely consequences of a fall go up and so does my level of caution on turns, downhills, intersections, etc.
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Old 03-20-21, 09:33 AM
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Also the talking heads on the news like to report news that scares/panics people. As others have said exercise care and caution, above all pay attention to your surroundings when riding.
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Old 03-20-21, 09:45 AM
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Who told you i'm paranoid? Forget a crash, i'm worried about the NFL satellites reading my mind, 5G and the government putting microchips in the Corona vaccine.

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Old 03-20-21, 11:02 AM
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Originally Posted by bykemike
I'll still ride the road, I'm loath to leave what I love, but the risk is real and it has, make no mistake, increased over time.
Yep, the risk is real... But I luv riding, the healthy benefits I get from it is immeasurable. So I still ride the roads too...
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