Why won't you use a bell on a shared path?
#76
Airplanes, bikes, beer.
Join Date: Jan 2020
Location: Off the front
Posts: 763
Bikes: Road bikes, mountain bikes, a cx bike, a gravel bike…
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 398 Post(s)
Liked 788 Times
in
339 Posts
You must be annoyed with yourself. In your first post you said you’ll ring every 20 seconds, “Big deal.” So, which is it? Constant ringing is annoying, or you ring every 20 seconds? You can edit a post, but you can’t unring a bell.
#77
Full Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2021
Posts: 226
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 144 Post(s)
Liked 119 Times
in
70 Posts
You don't think that some cyclists sometimes are more concerned with the segment they're riding than the people around them? From what I've seen, that seems like a pretty reasonable conclusion. Definitely not complete garbage.
#78
Full Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2021
Posts: 226
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 144 Post(s)
Liked 119 Times
in
70 Posts
I would not drill away on my bell if there were a large unpassable bottleneck of peds in front of me. That would be annoying.
#79
Airplanes, bikes, beer.
Join Date: Jan 2020
Location: Off the front
Posts: 763
Bikes: Road bikes, mountain bikes, a cx bike, a gravel bike…
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 398 Post(s)
Liked 788 Times
in
339 Posts
Every 20 seconds ain't "constantly". And on the path I mainly have to use, the crowds thin out after a while. For me it really isn't a big deal.
I would not drill away on my bell if there were a large unpassable bottleneck of peds in front of me. That would be annoying.
I would not drill away on my bell if there were a large unpassable bottleneck of peds in front of me. That would be annoying.
#82
Full Member
All bikes should have a bell. Cyclists should also adjust their speed when approaching pedestrians. Especially if there isn't much room to pass or there are small children about. Cycling is like driving. You have a responsibility not to injure other people.
Likes For homeless in ca.:
#83
Junior Member
I don't have a bell on my road bike and I haven't mounted one because I rarely use it around town .. but all my other bikes have a bell and it's a rather essential thing to have
Likes For Gitane1:
#84
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2017
Posts: 7,767
Mentioned: 37 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6882 Post(s)
Liked 10,873 Times
in
4,637 Posts
That’s a pretty low standard.
#85
Full Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2021
Posts: 226
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 144 Post(s)
Liked 119 Times
in
70 Posts
The full quote:
Yes, I guess I feel morally superior to those folks, but that seems like a strange way to look at it, to me. Do you think of yourself as "morally superior" to people who e.g. litter or mistreat animals? Or do you just wish they'd stop and try to reason with them?
I guess another option is to do nothing, lest someone label you arrogant, or a troll, or something.
I guess another option is to do nothing, lest someone label you arrogant, or a troll, or something.
#86
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2018
Posts: 1,682
Mentioned: 9 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 980 Post(s)
Liked 776 Times
in
402 Posts
On the bike paths of Sydney my success rate seems to have been higher than yours. If my advanced warning(s) have gone unheeded, I automatically make some calculations/judgements: are they truly oblivious?; should I slow down?; can I safely go around offpath? Am I so close to them now that another dingding may startle them into doing something dumb?
Doing nothing isn't an option, because by using the path I agreed to share it.
Doing nothing isn't an option, because by using the path I agreed to share it.
You keep doing your Mary Poppins thing though
#87
Full Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2021
Posts: 226
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 144 Post(s)
Liked 119 Times
in
70 Posts
You keep reading about surprising people from behind though.
#88
Tragically Ignorant
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: New England
Posts: 15,613
Bikes: Serotta Atlanta; 1994 Specialized Allez Pro; Giant OCR A1; SOMA Double Cross Disc; 2022 Allez Elite mit der SRAM
Mentioned: 62 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 8186 Post(s)
Liked 9,094 Times
in
5,053 Posts
I'm a very fast rider on paths, and what you say about this only working when crawling is complete horsecrap. I can project my voice very well and am heard in time for the information to be useful and non-startling.You want to know what you're doing wrong in this thread? You've decided to make this a debate where you're going to show how everyone else is wrong even if you have to make up "facts."
And my esthetic sense is ding ding ding sounds stupid. That's a matter of taste, so not worth arguing.
If you ever ride on the Minuteman or similarly crowded urban path, there's definitely times where both way traffic make passing a completely irresponsible thing to do and I will slow to a crawl rather than choosing between putting myself in the face of an oncoming rider or slamming into the stroller in front of me.
#89
Tragically Ignorant
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: New England
Posts: 15,613
Bikes: Serotta Atlanta; 1994 Specialized Allez Pro; Giant OCR A1; SOMA Double Cross Disc; 2022 Allez Elite mit der SRAM
Mentioned: 62 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 8186 Post(s)
Liked 9,094 Times
in
5,053 Posts
I get that you don't like using your voice, what I don't get is why you are so arrogant as to think anyone else would think that's a reason to switch to a bell.
By the way, I suspect all you've actually accomplished here is to get your name on a bunch of ignore lists.
#90
Tragically Ignorant
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: New England
Posts: 15,613
Bikes: Serotta Atlanta; 1994 Specialized Allez Pro; Giant OCR A1; SOMA Double Cross Disc; 2022 Allez Elite mit der SRAM
Mentioned: 62 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 8186 Post(s)
Liked 9,094 Times
in
5,053 Posts
So if you agree it doesn't matter what noise you make and this all just your personal preference, you've just conceded the argument. Maybe have a discussion instead of a dumb debate?
Likes For JayKay3000:
#92
Full Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2021
Posts: 226
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 144 Post(s)
Liked 119 Times
in
70 Posts
I'm a very fast rider on paths, and what you say about this only working when crawling is complete horsecrap. I can project my voice very well and am heard in time for the information to be useful and non-startling.You want to know what you're doing wrong in this thread? You've decided to make this a debate where you're going to show how everyone else is wrong even if you have to make up "facts."
And my esthetic sense is ding ding ding sounds stupid. That's a matter of taste, so not worth arguing.
If you ever ride on the Minuteman or similarly crowded urban path, there's definitely times where both way traffic make passing a completely irresponsible thing to do and I will slow to a crawl rather than choosing between putting myself in the face of an oncoming rider or slamming into the stroller in front of me.
And my esthetic sense is ding ding ding sounds stupid. That's a matter of taste, so not worth arguing.
If you ever ride on the Minuteman or similarly crowded urban path, there's definitely times where both way traffic make passing a completely irresponsible thing to do and I will slow to a crawl rather than choosing between putting myself in the face of an oncoming rider or slamming into the stroller in front of me.
I don't believe I've "made up" any facts, but am happy to be corrected. Most of what I've said has been my opinion, and I've labeled it as such.
For me, the facts in this thread are:
- in my experience on the bike paths of Sydney, some cyclists frighten other people by suddenly whizzing past them;
- this unpleasantness could be alleviated by said cyclists somehow announcing their presence in a way that doesn't make things worse;
- for me, the most convenient way to make this announcement is with a bell.
Yes, de gustibus non est disputandum.- this unpleasantness could be alleviated by said cyclists somehow announcing their presence in a way that doesn't make things worse;
- for me, the most convenient way to make this announcement is with a bell.
As for what I've done wrong in this thread, I think my biggest mistake was the way I worded the opening post. It was meant to raise a laugh rather than hackles. Oh well.
#93
Tragically Ignorant
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: New England
Posts: 15,613
Bikes: Serotta Atlanta; 1994 Specialized Allez Pro; Giant OCR A1; SOMA Double Cross Disc; 2022 Allez Elite mit der SRAM
Mentioned: 62 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 8186 Post(s)
Liked 9,094 Times
in
5,053 Posts
On a MUP? Everywhere I've ridden on one, there's a law or a rule that states bicyclists must yield to pedestrians. I think we have the ninja passers to "thank" for an increasing number of posted speed limits on MUPs.
Holy inept analogy, Batman!
#94
For The Fun of It
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Louisissippi Coast
Posts: 5,844
Bikes: Lynskey GR300, Lynskey Backroad, Litespeed T6, Lynskey MT29, Burley Duet
Mentioned: 12 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2131 Post(s)
Liked 1,639 Times
in
822 Posts
I sneak up behind people and yell "coming right at you." That gets the attention of even those who have buds or headphones, and it makes me giggle to see them jump. More effective than a bell for getting attention and equally effective for communicating intention.
Last edited by Paul Barnard; 04-25-21 at 06:43 AM.
Likes For Paul Barnard:
#95
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 490
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 252 Post(s)
Liked 67 Times
in
48 Posts
Problem is that only pedestrian bikes have bells on them, also the bells are so few nowadays that hearing one startles the &*($% out of most folks, typically leading to unpredictable moves, sort of like a hen on a road.
Did anybody mention clicking your brake levers or just coasting your freewheel a bit? Either of these is mostly enough to alert people that something is coming from behind. And if you have noise cancelling earphones, at least you won't do the hen thing when I pass you.
And did I mention that having a bell these days puts you squarely into the liberal left activist carebear crowd, choose your own class bracket
Did anybody mention clicking your brake levers or just coasting your freewheel a bit? Either of these is mostly enough to alert people that something is coming from behind. And if you have noise cancelling earphones, at least you won't do the hen thing when I pass you.
And did I mention that having a bell these days puts you squarely into the liberal left activist carebear crowd, choose your own class bracket
Last edited by vane171; 04-25-21 at 07:17 AM.
#96
Happy With My Bikes
Join Date: Sep 2020
Location: Oklahoma
Posts: 2,185
Bikes: Hi-Ten bike boomers, a Trek Domane and some projects
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 868 Post(s)
Liked 2,278 Times
in
1,100 Posts
When passing a person on foot, I usually say "On your left.", which clearly lets them know that I intend to pass on their left. They still move to the left rather than the right about 20% of the time. If I use a bell, it's about 50% of the time that they move to the left.
My community has an excellent walking, running, cycling path that was installed sometime around 1976 I believe. Our local laws do not to my knowledge require bells or horns on bicycles, but common decency around here results in most people using an "on your left" verbal warning. On this quiet, wooded, riverside path, it does not require any more volume than what one would expect to gain someone's attention. For the most part in our town, walkers, runners and cyclists all coexist on this path using this system.
__________________
"It is the unknown around the corner that turns my wheels." -- Heinz Stücke
"It is the unknown around the corner that turns my wheels." -- Heinz Stücke
Likes For njkayaker:
#99
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
Posts: 5,962
Bikes: 2015 Charge Plug, 2007 Dahon Boardwalk, 1997 Nishiki Blazer, 1984 Nishiki International, 2006 Felt F65, 1989 Dahon Getaway V
Mentioned: 54 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1359 Post(s)
Liked 1,658 Times
in
822 Posts
On MUPS I like to toot my 115 dB AIrZound Airhorn from 50-75 yards back to give pedestrians, dog-walkers and slow meandering cyclists (usually families) as much time as possible to react and adapt before I get anywhere near them. And then I slow down if need be, because the MUP is not my personal raceway.
Likes For BobbyG: