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sometimes cyclists don’t do our collective image any favors…

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sometimes cyclists don’t do our collective image any favors…

Old 06-14-22, 11:50 PM
  #51  
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
I have been negotiating my way through my city's business district while more than half of the sidewalks have been blocked off for outdoor COVID-era dining. I don't think this guy using the sidewalk for a few minutes is even a molehill let alone something worth making a mountain of. The inconvenience is extremely minor, and it's not like the trip hazard the abandoned escooters were causing.

Also, I'm just tired of this ridiculous "this gives cyclists a bad name" nonsense. It's rampant Karenism and someone is posting about a thread a week making the same absurd claim.
you have sidewalks blocked off by outdoor covid dining? ours are almost all in the streets, replacing parking. it's not legal here to narrow the width of a sidewalk to less than 6 feet typically, and 4 feet is an absolute minimum in special circumstances. there is less than three feet clear with his trailer and bike, closer to two. in the 20 minutes i was sitting there eating pizza perhaps 100 people walked by, of which maybe 20 had to stop since someone was coming the other direction and it was effectively turned into a one way sidewalk.

no, not the end of the world. but very inconsiderate, and far out of the norm, at least in san francisco. obviously we disagree about what acceptable behavior is in busy-ish places, and that's fine. perhaps i'm overly sensitive to abuse of the shared public realm given the ridiculous amount of works it takes to build these things here.
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Old 06-15-22, 12:16 AM
  #52  
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The idea that a few bad apples are ruining the bunch and causing ire amongst cars is flawed reasoning, cars are annoyed by cyclists existence and it will always be that way.

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Old 06-15-22, 12:18 AM
  #53  
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Originally Posted by LarrySellerz
The idea that a few bad apples are ruining the bunch and causing ire amongst cars is flawed reasoning, cars are annoying by cyclists existence and it will always be that way.
i'm not sure what cars have to do with this. the only people irritated by this guy were pedestrians. no parking spaces, no driveways, no roads affected.
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Old 06-15-22, 12:22 AM
  #54  
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Originally Posted by mschwett
i'm not sure what cars have to do with this. the only people irritated by this guy were pedestrians. no parking spaces, no driveways, no roads affected.
yeah i was wondering about that, I don't think ive ever heard of people complaining about cyclists in relation to how we deal with pedestrians, maybe because they cant run us over. Pretty novel complaint
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Old 06-15-22, 12:25 AM
  #55  
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Originally Posted by LarrySellerz
yeah i was wondering about that, I don't think ive ever heard of people complaining about cyclists in relation to how we deal with pedestrians, maybe because they cant run us over. Pretty novel complaint
don't you live in the bay area?

in san francisco, pedestrians often complain about cyclists. "we" run stop signs and scare them when they're crossing, "we" ride on sidewalks and mixed use paths too fast, etc. i'm surprised you haven't been yelled at by people on SCT to slow down. i've had an elderly lady scream her head off at my (then) 9 year old daughter for riding 5mph uphill on a sidewalk, and then threaten to call the cops on us because "you're not supposed to be on the sidewalk with that thing." she was worried her off-leash-dog would get run over. the irony.
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Old 06-15-22, 01:01 AM
  #56  
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Originally Posted by MarcusT
It seems ironic how you accuse people of "Karenism", while you seem to be complaining the most about other members' posts

This is a fallacy. If you post an opinion on an internet forum, you should expect people to post their disagreement with your post. Posting a disagreement in a forum isn't karening. By your logic, you're now karening me. You really want to go there? I'm game for your infinite regression.

I don't think it's cyclists' role to define and enforce civil behavior of other cyclists, nor do I think this person's parking job will have any effect on how people view me or any other cyclists. So yeah, I think attempting the public shaming of people either by yelling them on the streets or posting pictures of them or their bikes is karening.
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Old 06-15-22, 01:06 AM
  #57  
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Originally Posted by mschwett
don't you live in the bay area?

in san francisco, pedestrians often complain about cyclists. "we" run stop signs and scare them when they're crossing, "we" ride on sidewalks and mixed use paths too fast, etc. i'm surprised you haven't been yelled at by people on SCT to slow down. i've had an elderly lady scream her head off at my (then) 9 year old daughter for riding 5mph uphill on a sidewalk, and then threaten to call the cops on us because "you're not supposed to be on the sidewalk with that thing." she was worried her off-leash-dog would get run over. the irony.
I can't help but note how well that story illustrates how futile and absurd it is to worry about how we can affect our "collective image".
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Old 06-15-22, 07:57 AM
  #58  
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
I can't help but note how well that story illustrates how futile and absurd it is to worry about how we can affect our "collective image".
well, i want to talk to the manager ! right away !!
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Old 06-15-22, 08:03 AM
  #59  
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Not all bicycle riders are “cyclists.” But the general public doesn’t see it that way. Anyone on a bicycle, cyclists or not, who doesn’t follow established rules, or disrupts the smooth flow of automobile traffic, and/or pedestrian traffic (including parking your bicycle in an obstructive manner), gives all bicycle riders a bad name.

Dan
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Old 06-15-22, 08:10 AM
  #60  
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I'd be more concerned with used syringes and feces on San Fran sidewalks than having to pause a second to pass a dad's kid trailer.

I have been noticing how kind and considerate drivers are to me more so than in years past. I ride a lot in a rural area, maybe they see the old dude who stops at stop signs, lights, and who does not slither up on traffic lights. I have no problem flipping off a driver who deserves it, but I have almost zero driver issues. If I am struggling up a narrow climb and cars are behind me, I stop to let them pass as wave with a smile.

I honestly do not see a big problem with how that bike is parked given the lousy infrastructure for bike parking and would never think, that dad is making me look bad.
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Old 06-15-22, 08:33 AM
  #61  
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Originally Posted by _ForceD_
Not all bicycle riders are “cyclists.” Anyone on a bicycle, cyclists or not....
I am confused. Are some bike riders cyclists, and some not?
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Old 06-15-22, 08:39 AM
  #62  
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Originally Posted by Reflector Guy
I am confused. Are some bike riders cyclists, and some not?
It’s just my opinion. But I think it may be shared by others.

Dan
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Old 06-15-22, 08:42 AM
  #63  
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Must be a "secret handshake" kind of thing.
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Old 06-15-22, 09:07 AM
  #64  
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Originally Posted by _ForceD_
Not all bicycle riders are “cyclists.” But the general public doesn’t see it that way. Anyone on a bicycle, cyclists or not, who doesn’t follow established rules, or disrupts the smooth flow of automobile traffic, and/or pedestrian traffic (including parking your bicycle in an obstructive manner), gives all bicycle riders a bad name.

Dan

I'm pretty well convinced that we could all be the paragons of legality and courtesy and we'd still be given a bad name because the infrastructure is set up to create conflict between cars, cycles and pedestrians over use of the same right of ways. I also believe that many if not almost all of the people who complain about the scofflaw cyclists are just succumbing to confirmation bias because they generally think the presence of bicycles on roads is unreasonable.
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Old 06-15-22, 10:11 AM
  #65  
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"Collective image"?

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Old 06-15-22, 10:18 AM
  #66  
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Originally Posted by _ForceD_
It’s just my opinion. But I think it may be shared by others.

Dan
Agreed

Mario Cipollini = cyclist

Homeless person with a bike = cyclist? By definition, yes, but a true dedicated bike rider? Probably not.

So shall we discuss the meaning of dedicated? Dedicated. = Wholly committed to a particular course of thought or action; devoted

And there is a secret handshake, and if you don’t know what it is, you are out.
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Old 06-15-22, 10:28 AM
  #67  
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Arguing over whether or not someone on a bike is a cyclist or not is incredibly obnoxious. Some homeless people ride around all the time and spend more time in the saddle than your average roadie. Ive gotten bike fit advice from a homeless guy on how to deal with a knee injury, took his advice too. Some people dont have any special equipment and ride their bikes to and from work 20 miles a day. Heck I don't look like a "cyclist" and have garnered the respect of the local road racers, saying someone isn't a cyclist is just nuts.
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Old 06-15-22, 10:40 AM
  #68  
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I wonder if there are folks who think Mario Andretti is a motorist, while their neighbor or some random guy driving to work is not.
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Old 06-15-22, 11:42 AM
  #69  
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If we dial out a little bit, these are the same people that exhibit these same careless behaviors in their cars, on a bike, on the trail. Most of us have developed our sense of situational awareness on the bike. We're always aware of our surroundings. I see these "other people" everyday that are oblivious to what's going on around them. They're alone in their heads.

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Old 06-15-22, 12:59 PM
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Originally Posted by Pinelander
If we dial out a little bit, these are the same people that exhibit these same careless behaviors in their cars, on a bike, on the trail. Most of us have developed our sense of situational awareness on the bike. We're always aware of our surroundings. I see these "other people" everyday that are oblivious to what's going on around them. They're alone in their heads.
If we dial it out even further, most of us could acknowledge that we are all *******s on occasion. When we're riding bikes, driving, walking, or posting online. Maybe a few angels in here, but even if so I doubt they'd identify themselves as such.

By some remarks in here, on those occasions when I'm acting like a responsible adult, I'm a cyclist. When on those (rare) occasions when I'm being a dick, I'm just a guy riding a bike. Or is there some unwritten rule that if you're a dick less than n% of the time, then you're a cyclist?
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Old 06-15-22, 05:00 PM
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I must have masochistic tendencies to have stuck it out through three pages of this blather.
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Old 06-15-22, 05:49 PM
  #72  
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Originally Posted by Pinelander
If we dial out a little bit, these are the same people that exhibit these same careless behaviors in their cars, on a bike, on the trail. Most of us have developed our sense of situational awareness on the bike. We're always aware of our surroundings. I see these "other people" everyday that are oblivious to what's going on around them. They're alone in their heads.
Or immersed in their phones. I saved a few people from walking into traffic here in the big city. One I grabbed by the shoulder as she stepped off the curb to cross the street against the light while cross traffic was coming.

Personally, I’m very conscious of my surroundings when with a bike. I think I attribute some of that to a sage ride organizer. I crossed Pennsylvania twice on his trips. He told us before the start of both to be mindful of the communities we pass through. Don’t do things like lean your bike against someone’s fence when you stop to enter a store. We got the same lesson at the start of a small, cross country group ride run by ACA.

Yesterday I finished a week long tour in Vermont. I always made sure my bike was not obstructing passage whenever I stopped.

Last edited by indyfabz; 06-15-22 at 05:59 PM.
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Old 06-15-22, 09:52 PM
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Originally Posted by honcho
The worse indoor behavio I've witnessed was a bike brought into a restroom.
Uh oh, I did it again in a state park. It was a uni-holer


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Old 06-16-22, 07:48 AM
  #74  
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Originally Posted by LarrySellerz
Arguing over whether or not someone on a bike is a cyclist or not is incredibly obnoxious.
I disagree…a little bit. Among a bunch of cyclists (all of us in this forum), in private (thinking this forum is “private” and doesn’t attract non-cyclists/bike riders)…it’s not obnoxious. But certainly if we were in a crowd of non-bike riding people, on a street corner, arguing with a “bike rider” which of the two of you is a “cyclist” and which is “a bike rider.”…yeah that’s obnoxious.

Dan
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Old 06-16-22, 01:34 PM
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Originally Posted by downtube42
If we dial it out even further, most of us could acknowledge that we are all *******s on occasion. When we're riding bikes, driving, walking, or posting online. Maybe a few angels in here, but even if so I doubt they'd identify themselves as such.

By some remarks in here, on those occasions when I'm acting like a responsible adult, I'm a cyclist. When on those (rare) occasions when I'm being a dick, I'm just a guy riding a bike. Or is there some unwritten rule that if you're a dick less than n% of the time, then you're a cyclist?

Cyclist=True Scotsman.
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