sirtirithon

This morning i took my long route to work, a 20 mile loop that takes me along the river. Was having a great time and met up with a co worker to ride the rest of the way into work. We were rounding a blind corner on the MUP and I was taking the center of the path my buddy on the right and out of no where comes a roadie in full gear on the aero bars about 12 mph around the corner. I tried to swerve right but not fast enough and she clipped my bars and left leg and just flew over her bars taking her bike along. I emerged unscathed and ran back to where she landed and had to unclip her feet. She was in bad shape but managed to ride off.
She admitted being at fault for speeding around a blind corner and she had no brake access on the aero bars. I was partially at fault for not being on the far right. Made for an interesting commute to say the least.

woodway

Wow, glad you are OK.

I see people riding aerobars on the MUP I commute on. At 6am when the MUP is empty, no problem, but in the evening when the MUP is crowded with kids, rollerbladers, joggers, etc., I just shake my head.

Surrealdeal

Glad you're OK. I've seen people using aerobars on the MUP too. I don't get it.

FrenchFit 

MUPs with blind curves are effing dangerous; frankly, all MUPs are risky. It's like biking on a two way sidewalk used by every sort of noob imagineable, plus dogs and kids.

keystothekid

Glad you're ok. On the MUP trail I occasionally take there are some tricky spots where instead of directly crossing a street (on a bridge) you go backwards and sort of cloverleaf around to the other side. Usually very sharp and steep but short distances, I had a guy pass me on the beginning descent once. I mean the whole length of the turn is maybe 30 yards if it was straight. Ridiculous. MUP riding is like mario kart biking. You never know when a turtle shell (dog on a long leash) is just going whack ya!

Scheherezade 

I wouldn't say all MUPs are risky.

https://www.skinnymoose.com/thinkingo...6/midtown1.jpg

MNBikeCommuter

Just a different kind of risk:

https://www.tcdailyplanet.net/column/...polis-greenway

ckaspar

Mines not either. Pretty wide open and clear. Can see for long distances in front of you.

chefisaac

12 mph with aerobars. Interesting.

I am glad you are ok.

Scheherezade 

There's crime in every part of every city. The Greenway is a favorite target of sensationalist news because it's new and well-loved by its users. How many crimes do think have occurred on the adjacent Lake Street stretch in the past year?

Jaye

I'll be the unpopular voice I suppose. I think you were at fault. I treat my bike like a car, which means holding my "lane". If you went around a corner in the middle of the street on a 2 lane road and clipped the car coming the other way it wouldn't matter if they were a driving instructor doing everything picture perfect or a circus performer juggling bowling pins. They were in their lane, you weren't, your fault. While aerobars on a MUP is probably not the best plan in this case they are irrelevant.

sirtirithon

She was acting like she was on the final leg of a race. Kind of odd. She was trapped in her bike after the crash and i had to go unclip her feet. I feel pretty bad about it. Hopefully she recovers quickly.

JiveTurkey

+1 Local MUPs don't have a dividing line except around turns so people will stay in their lane even if it was ignored during the straight stretches, which is fine.

MNBikeCommuter

Exactly. As a frequent rider on the Greenway, I don't agree with your conclusion that it has model traffic. I've regularly had the usual MUP-related incidents on it and certainly wouldn't hold it up as a shining example of "something better."

Scheherezade 

It's the widest MUP in Minneapolis from Hiawatha to it's western connection. Plus, it has uninterrupted right of way, clear sight lines and on/off ramps. There is plenty of bone-headed behavior by pedestrians and cyclists alike, but the extra room and vision make it a much safer option than Lake Street IMO.

dhiltonp

MUPs are the 3rd most dangerous type of riding listed here... about 2-3 times more dangerous than a road. Of course, sidewalks and off-road stuff is the most dangerous.

terrapin44

Interesting. Of course this study doesn't seem to take into account the severity of a crash. Still, not surprised. On my commute in the morning the MUP is great. There are less people and for whatever reason the ones there seem to be more aware of there surroundings. However, in the evening if it is a nice day I won't take the MUP. All too often a kid, a dog, a mother, a roller bladder ... will do something dangerous. I really haven't had any real close calls that would have hurt me but I did almost choke a little dog on a retractable leash that ran across the path (the choking would have been from caused from running over the really skinny leash). That was the last straw. I don't want to kill or injury a little dog because its owner can't take care of it properly.

zonatandem

We ride the road . . .
MUPs are not the best place to ride double or with aerobars.

Burton

Gotta agree with Jaye. Don't know about where you live, but here in Montreal the rules for bicycles are single file. Lots of people ride side by side anyway or in closely bunched groups. I guess thats OK if you and your friends are the only ones you put at risk - but riding in a public place - that just doesn't happen.

Was the girl partly at fault for riding with aerobars alone in the middle of her own lane? Maybe. But only because she was unable to avoid an obstacle in her lane in a blind corner because he didn't switch to the drops for a few moments as a defensive driving manouver. 12mph ain't exactly race speeds and being clipped in isn't irresponsible or illegal - in fact its perfectly normal for most roadies.

But the riders that actually caused the accident were you and your buddy. And apparently you got off a lot lighter than the girl you hit.

sirtirithon

After thinking it over today at work I do feel more at fault. I should have used more caution when rounding the blind corner and kept to the far right. As it was, the lady and I were both traveling in the middle of the path and this is what really caused the accident. That and the fact she could not use her brakes like I was able to. Let this incident be a lesson/reminder to everyone to use caution whenever you take a blind corner. I became complacent after taking this corner hundreds of times without incident or even seeing someone at 5am.

wphamilton

I believe it. I know I feel far safer when I'm commuting on the road than when I take the MUP. Ironically the most dangerous thing I encounter, and frequently, are other cyclists riding double around a blind curve or passing someone around a blind curve.

a1penguin

Sorry, but yes, you were at fault if you were on her side of the MUP. You are one of the people on MUPs who I hope never to encounter. Seeing people riding side by side in a single lane so they can chat really irks me. And I've seen instances where this happens on a real road where cars are going 50 mph where one rider is no longer in the bike lane but riding over the line in the auto lane. This is dangerous and gives a bad name to cyclists.

If the girl was in her own lane, it doesn't matter if she is using aero bars or not; it is still your fault. 12 mph isn't all that fast. I've learned to not trust people on MUPs; they often do crazy things and I've dropped my speed down a lot on the MUP.

You are very fortunate this time. Next time, follow the rules of the road.

Erick L

Seems to me that streets with no bike facilities are more risky, more so if you lump all "roads" together.

Shawn Gossman

Glad you made it out okay I bet it will make you edgy around those corners in the future I know it would me!

sirtirithon

To those of you who keep lecturing me about being at fault here, I did not post my story to get a lecture on rules of the road. Both of us were traveling in the center of the path, with my buddy to the right of me. So yes, had either the lady or myself been traveling in our appropriate lane this would have been avoided. I am fully aware of this. Im no longer new to bike commuting.