You can everything right, and still lose your life
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
You can everything right, and still lose your life
Really sad. Just riding along in a bike lane, then bam, it's over. Not that it would make a difference for this man, but I ride with active bright blinker lights front and rear and a Take-A-Look mirror. I know if a vehicle sees me and moves over. If they don't I watch the vehicle all the way to me, ready to emergency ditch off the road if needed.
Teenage driver was apparently texting while driving......
--
Teenage driver was apparently texting while driving......
--
Last edited by drlogik; 07-23-21 at 10:10 AM.
#3
Live Healthy
Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 417
Bikes: Wabi Classic
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 183 Post(s)
Liked 137 Times
in
92 Posts
Really sad. Just riding along in a bike lane, then bam, it's over. Not that it would make a difference for this man, but I ride with active bright blinker lights front and rear and a Take-A-Look mirror. I know if a vehicle sees me and moves over. If they don't I watch the vehicle all the way to me, ready to emergency ditch off the road if needed.
Teenage driver was apparently texting while driving......
https://youtu.be/XrTbAPq2Xu8
Teenage driver was apparently texting while driving......
https://youtu.be/XrTbAPq2Xu8
Wow, so sad! This is why I avoid riding on the streets. Half of the drivers out here in California are on their phone while driving.
Last edited by jay4usc; 07-22-21 at 10:24 PM.
Likes For jay4usc:
#4
Grupetto Bob
Join Date: Sep 2020
Location: Seattle-ish
Posts: 6,215
Bikes: Bikey McBike Face
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2581 Post(s)
Liked 5,637 Times
in
2,921 Posts
Always considered sky diving and mountaineering inherently risky activities, but posts like the above really drives it home about our chosen passion. Enjoy life, enjoy cycling, enjoy it all.
__________________
Road 🚴🏾♂️ & Mountain 🚵🏾♂️
Road 🚴🏾♂️ & Mountain 🚵🏾♂️
#5
Me duelen las nalgas
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Texas
Posts: 13,513
Bikes: Centurion Ironman, Trek 5900, Univega Via Carisma, Globe Carmel
Mentioned: 199 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4560 Post(s)
Liked 2,802 Times
in
1,800 Posts
Nothing will change until we completely overhaul the current paradigm and use words like "negligence" instead of "accident," "crash" or "collision" to describe drivers who are indifferent, incompetent or outright hostile toward other people who are lawfully using shared public infrastructure.
The easiest way to get away with mayhem, assault and murder in the US is to hit a pedestrian or cyclist with a car, then invoke the magic words, "They came out of nowhere! I never saw them! The sun was in my eyes! I feared for my life and was just trying to escape!"
If you survive being hit, you'll be lucky if the cop doesn't write up the citation implying that the pedestrian or cyclist was partially at fault for failing to dodge the Dodge. Been there. Despite having the green light, pedestrian walk signal, and being established in the crosswalk, the cop implied I was partially at fault for not jumping out of the way of the driver who ignored the flashing yellow yield signal and was looking down rather than up.
I never ride a bike now without running video, usually front and rear facing.
The easiest way to get away with mayhem, assault and murder in the US is to hit a pedestrian or cyclist with a car, then invoke the magic words, "They came out of nowhere! I never saw them! The sun was in my eyes! I feared for my life and was just trying to escape!"
If you survive being hit, you'll be lucky if the cop doesn't write up the citation implying that the pedestrian or cyclist was partially at fault for failing to dodge the Dodge. Been there. Despite having the green light, pedestrian walk signal, and being established in the crosswalk, the cop implied I was partially at fault for not jumping out of the way of the driver who ignored the flashing yellow yield signal and was looking down rather than up.
I never ride a bike now without running video, usually front and rear facing.
#6
Full Member
I seek out rural roads as much as possible, to minimize the risk... like maybe 3 cars or less per mile. Also have a hypothesis that if a road is curvy, drivers won't be able to text and drive as much compared to a straight road.
Also use the Garmin Varia radar / light combo. That's an amazing piece of tech for rural roads... wouldn't want to ride without it.
Aside from that, safety is one of the reasons I'm getting into gravel riding more... at least on gravel, cars usually aren't moving quite as fast.
Also use the Garmin Varia radar / light combo. That's an amazing piece of tech for rural roads... wouldn't want to ride without it.
Aside from that, safety is one of the reasons I'm getting into gravel riding more... at least on gravel, cars usually aren't moving quite as fast.
Likes For jayp410:
#7
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 9,098 Times
in
5,054 Posts
Nothing will change until we completely overhaul the current paradigm and use words like "negligence" instead of "accident," "crash" or "collision" to describe drivers who are indifferent, incompetent or outright hostile toward other people who are lawfully using shared public infrastructure.
The easiest way to get away with mayhem, assault and murder in the US is to hit a pedestrian or cyclist with a car, then invoke the magic words, "They came out of nowhere! I never saw them! The sun was in my eyes! I feared for my life and was just trying to escape!"
If you survive being hit, you'll be lucky if the cop doesn't write up the citation implying that the pedestrian or cyclist was partially at fault for failing to dodge the Dodge. Been there. Despite having the green light, pedestrian walk signal, and being established in the crosswalk, the cop implied I was partially at fault for not jumping out of the way of the driver who ignored the flashing yellow yield signal and was looking down rather than up.
I never ride a bike now without running video, usually front and rear facing.
The easiest way to get away with mayhem, assault and murder in the US is to hit a pedestrian or cyclist with a car, then invoke the magic words, "They came out of nowhere! I never saw them! The sun was in my eyes! I feared for my life and was just trying to escape!"
If you survive being hit, you'll be lucky if the cop doesn't write up the citation implying that the pedestrian or cyclist was partially at fault for failing to dodge the Dodge. Been there. Despite having the green light, pedestrian walk signal, and being established in the crosswalk, the cop implied I was partially at fault for not jumping out of the way of the driver who ignored the flashing yellow yield signal and was looking down rather than up.
I never ride a bike now without running video, usually front and rear facing.
I don't care if they call it accident or crash, but what is galling about the language is the headline calls this a "bicycling accident". According to the story, the bicycling was fine. The driver swerved the car into the bike lane.
#8
Expired Member
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: TN
Posts: 11,540
Mentioned: 37 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3672 Post(s)
Liked 5,427 Times
in
2,757 Posts
Bummer. Lots more similar incidents here https://www.bikeforums.net/advocacy-safety/
#9
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2019
Posts: 938
Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 538 Post(s)
Liked 466 Times
in
259 Posts
I always hate to hear such tragedy. I live in rural Alabama and have to ride a mountain bike on the road so I can hit the ditch whenever necessary. I only ride my road bikes in town where vehicles are as slow as I am, and I still have to get out of the way. A mirror is absolutely a necessity. The closest bike lane is 1.5 hours away by car in the next big town.
Likes For RH Clark:
#10
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2021
Posts: 8,427
Mentioned: 12 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4405 Post(s)
Liked 4,856 Times
in
3,004 Posts
Amazing piece of kit and works flawlessly (which is not always the case with Garmin). Fortunately drivers in our local rural area are usually pretty good with bikes, but there's always a few idiots around. The Varia is a road riding essential for me.
#11
Sunshine
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Des Moines, IA
Posts: 16,614
Bikes: '18 class built steel roadbike, '19 Fairlight Secan, '88 Schwinn Premis , Black Mountain Cycles Monstercross V4, '89 Novara Trionfo
Mentioned: 123 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10963 Post(s)
Liked 7,490 Times
in
4,189 Posts
Also use the Garmin Varia radar / light combo. That's an amazing piece of tech for rural roads... wouldn't want to ride without it.
Aside from that, safety is one of the reasons I'm getting into gravel riding more... at least on gravel, cars usually aren't moving quite as fast.
Aside from that, safety is one of the reasons I'm getting into gravel riding more... at least on gravel, cars usually aren't moving quite as fast.
Mixed surface rides are what almost all my solo riding is at this point. 5mi of paved roads to hit gravel, then however many miles I want to ride that day, plus 5mi of paved roads home. The gravel roads are quieter, slower, and hillier. Its a win all the way around.
Likes For mstateglfr:
#12
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: Massachusetts
Posts: 763
Bikes: S-Works Stumpjumper HT Disc, Fuji Absolute, Kona Jake the Snake, '85 Cannondale SR900
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 219 Post(s)
Liked 217 Times
in
142 Posts
Really sad. Just riding along in a bike lane, then bam, it's over. Not that it would make a difference for this man, but I ride with active bright blinker lights front and rear and a Take-A-Look mirror. I know if a vehicle sees me and moves over. If they don't I watch the vehicle all the way to me, ready to emergency ditch off the road if needed.
Teenage driver was apparently texting while driving......
https://youtu.be/XrTbAPq2Xu8
Teenage driver was apparently texting while driving......
https://youtu.be/XrTbAPq2Xu8
Very sad, and enraging, actually.
The displayed link
#13
Full Member
I bought a Varia a couple weeks ago and love it. It provides yet another little bit of interest/entertainment to break up the miles by watching dots move on the screen. But really, I like that when riding gravel I can pick my line and more confidently know that I am not annoying a vehicle behind me if I am in the center of the road. Once a vehicle pops up on radar, I can move over and not slow them down.
Mixed surface rides are what almost all my solo riding is at this point. 5mi of paved roads to hit gravel, then however many miles I want to ride that day, plus 5mi of paved roads home. The gravel roads are quieter, slower, and hillier. Its a win all the way around.
Mixed surface rides are what almost all my solo riding is at this point. 5mi of paved roads to hit gravel, then however many miles I want to ride that day, plus 5mi of paved roads home. The gravel roads are quieter, slower, and hillier. Its a win all the way around.
The only false positives I've had with the Varia is when I pull off the road and the back end of the bike is pointed toward traffic, or after an intersection with cross traffic. The only false negatives have been when the car matches my speed for a while, but that's after the Varia has already alerted me.
#14
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2005
Location: northWET washington
Posts: 1,197
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 383 Post(s)
Liked 690 Times
in
396 Posts
Those that use the Garmin Varia: Do you use it with a Garmin device or your cellphone or both? Does it audibly alert so that if using a phone (android in my case) you can have the phone in a pocket or handlebar bag and still hear an alert - that is, if you don't want to mount phone/garmin on the handlebars? I was hit by a pickup truck from the rear many years ago and while he really dinged up my body, I managed to dent the entire length of the pickup truck bed with my butt!!!!
#15
Sunshine
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Des Moines, IA
Posts: 16,614
Bikes: '18 class built steel roadbike, '19 Fairlight Secan, '88 Schwinn Premis , Black Mountain Cycles Monstercross V4, '89 Novara Trionfo
Mentioned: 123 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10963 Post(s)
Liked 7,490 Times
in
4,189 Posts
Those that use the Garmin Varia: Do you use it with a Garmin device or your cellphone or both? Does it audibly alert so that if using a phone (android in my case) you can have the phone in a pocket or handlebar bag and still hear an alert - that is, if you don't want to mount phone/garmin on the handlebars? I was hit by a pickup truck from the rear many years ago and while he really dinged up my body, I managed to dent the entire length of the pickup truck bed with my butt!!!!
Likes For mstateglfr:
#16
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
Posts: 5,973
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: 1364 Post(s)
Liked 1,677 Times
in
827 Posts
But flashers are a must. And a take-a-look or helmet mirror greatly improves situational awareness!
But even after minimizing risks, there will still be unexpected factors beyond our control.
#17
Senior Member
Thread Starter
The Garmin Varia radar unit, how well does it recognize cars behind and either to the right or left of you? How about interference such as hills, signs, traffic lights etc? Any false positives, or is it pretty accurate?
I don't really want my bike to start looking like Batman's duty belt but these sound interesting. I also wear a Garmin Fenix 5x watch all the time and as my bike computer and it's compatible with the Varia.
I don't really want my bike to start looking like Batman's duty belt but these sound interesting. I also wear a Garmin Fenix 5x watch all the time and as my bike computer and it's compatible with the Varia.
#18
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2021
Posts: 8,427
Mentioned: 12 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4405 Post(s)
Liked 4,856 Times
in
3,004 Posts
Those that use the Garmin Varia: Do you use it with a Garmin device or your cellphone or both? Does it audibly alert so that if using a phone (android in my case) you can have the phone in a pocket or handlebar bag and still hear an alert - that is, if you don't want to mount phone/garmin on the handlebars? I was hit by a pickup truck from the rear many years ago and while he really dinged up my body, I managed to dent the entire length of the pickup truck bed with my butt!!!!
Likes For PeteHski:
#19
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2021
Posts: 8,427
Mentioned: 12 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4405 Post(s)
Liked 4,856 Times
in
3,004 Posts
The Garmin Varia radar unit, how well does it recognize cars behind and either to the right or left of you? How about interference such as hills, signs, traffic lights etc? Any false positives, or is it pretty accurate?
I don't really want my bike to start looking like Batman's duty belt but these sound interesting. I also wear a Garmin Fenix 5x watch all the time and as my bike computer and it's compatible with the Varia.
I don't really want my bike to start looking like Batman's duty belt but these sound interesting. I also wear a Garmin Fenix 5x watch all the time and as my bike computer and it's compatible with the Varia.
It really is one of those rare pieces of tech that exceeds expectations. It would maybe be of less use in an urban setting when cars are passing you literally every few seconds anyway, but out in a rural setting it is utterly brilliant!
Likes For PeteHski:
#21
Clark W. Griswold
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: ,location, location
Posts: 13,519
Bikes: Foundry Chilkoot Ti W/Ultegra Di2, Salsa Timberjack Ti, Cinelli Mash Work RandoCross Fun Time Machine, 1x9 XT Parts Hybrid, Co-Motion Cascadia, Specialized Langster, Phil Wood Apple VeloXS Frame (w/DA 7400), R+M Supercharger2 Rohloff, Habanero Ti 26
Mentioned: 54 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4353 Post(s)
Liked 3,993 Times
in
2,665 Posts
Flashers are a must for emergency vehicles traveling at high speeds. Solid front lights are great for all other road users especially those with a good brightness and beam pattern.
#22
Full Member
It is pretty flawless in my experience. It picks up any vehicle approaching from behind regardless of its positioning to your left or right. It picks them up very early too, usually well before you hear them so you get a good 10 seconds or more warning before they actually reach you. It can even see up to 3 cars approaching in a line behind you. Signs, traffic lights, hills etc don't seem to be an issue. It only drops out if it loses line of direct sight to the approaching vehicle, like if you are going into a very sharp bend where the approaching car goes out of sight again. But it will pick it up again once it regains line of sight. I can't honestly remember getting any false positives or negatives. It also alerts you more aggressively if something is approaching unusually fast.
It really is one of those rare pieces of tech that exceeds expectations. It would maybe be of less use in an urban setting when cars are passing you literally every few seconds anyway, but out in a rural setting it is utterly brilliant!
It really is one of those rare pieces of tech that exceeds expectations. It would maybe be of less use in an urban setting when cars are passing you literally every few seconds anyway, but out in a rural setting it is utterly brilliant!
Pretty good review of it here:
#23
Method to My Madness
Join Date: Nov 2020
Location: Orange County, California
Posts: 3,659
Bikes: Trek FX 2, Cannondale Synapse, Cannondale CAAD4, Santa Cruz Stigmata GRX
Mentioned: 4 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1947 Post(s)
Liked 1,468 Times
in
1,017 Posts
Sigh, so much to buy:
(1) Garmin Varia to alert me if a car is approaching; if only this device could tell whether the car is about to pass or run me over!
(2) Apple Watch with fall detection to alert my emergency contact and emergency services if #1 does not prevent someone from running me over.
(3) Front and rear cameras so that I (or my estate) can recover from the negligent or reckless driver who ran me over.
Total all three and it's more than what some people spend on their wheels.
(1) Garmin Varia to alert me if a car is approaching; if only this device could tell whether the car is about to pass or run me over!
(2) Apple Watch with fall detection to alert my emergency contact and emergency services if #1 does not prevent someone from running me over.
(3) Front and rear cameras so that I (or my estate) can recover from the negligent or reckless driver who ran me over.
Total all three and it's more than what some people spend on their wheels.
Likes For SoSmellyAir:
#24
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2021
Posts: 8,427
Mentioned: 12 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4405 Post(s)
Liked 4,856 Times
in
3,004 Posts
It gives you a LOT more awareness of what is travelling approx 10 seconds behind you and how fast it is approaching.
#25
Full Member
I enjoy that on most rural roads you can take the entire lane with confidence knowing that you have plenty of time and awareness to adjust for the occasional vehicle.
Likes For kayakindude: