Timely

As I was saying... this morning's asshat should read this when he gets home from being a hazard to himself and others on the road today.

He can consult this, too, until he crosses back over the PA state line.

They don't get it

I really wish I could vent to people here at the office about the flaming sack of shit I was fortunate to cross paths with—literally—on my way to work this morning:

White GM SUV of some sort, PA plates that I'm kicking myself for not writing down, 50- to 60-something insecure asshole in the driver's seat with his assumed wife riding shotgun. He obviously had no clue where he was going, making illegal U-turns inside the Metro station Park-and-Ride complex, stopping dead in the middle of the lane fifty feet from a traffic intersection and then shouting at me to "GET THE FUCK OFF THE ROAD" when I pass in front of him to go on my merry way. You want to fuck with me, asshole? Really?

But they wouldn't understand.

Today would have been nice

My road rage gets much worse when I could be riding and am driving instead because I've overslept after being kept awake against my will the night before.

I get pedestrian rage, too.

Waving my advocacy hat

Inspired by EcoVelo:

I'm curious to know if there are any plans to install bicycle parking racks at the 7th Street Shopping Center. I frequently use my bicycle to get to the shopping center for dining and errands and am disappointed at the lack of available parking for my bicycle. Usually I have to resort to locking my bike to a sign post, and I've seen many other bicycles similarly parked against signs or trees, leading me to believe that a desire for adequate bike parking at your shopping center is shared by many people other than myself. Can you provide some information about whether this is being discussed and, if it isn't, share any available resources to contact in order to get that discussion started?

Thanks very much for your time!

PS: If you're interested in seeing what types of bicycle racks are available in commercial spaces like yours, this is a great place to start.

More of the same

If given the choice, I would NEVER trust my commute to an extended Red Line on Metro. With their safety and performance record and the persistent lack of adequate funding, Metro is the last thing I want to be relying on.

As for braving 270 by car, why waste four hours of your life every day in the all-consuming activity of leaning on the gas and slamming on the brake every ten seconds when you don't have to, thanks to other options that already exist? I need to make my way down to Gaithersburg/Rockville every morning along with everyone else, but instead of driving I ride the commuter bus to Shady Grove. Yes, we sit in traffic but we leave the driving to our driver and can sleep, read or just relax in that time instead. The overwhelming majority of the cars I see on 270 from my seat on the bus have a single driver in them, and nobody else. How much faster would that trip be for ALL of us if the number of cars on the road was cut in half by people sharing rides or riding the bus or the train?

I used to ride the MARC train to Rockville, and I think MARC's train service is in many ways an even better riding experience than the bus—more room and much less stop-and-go than on the bus. It's true that the route and current trip schedule aren't the most convenient for everyone, but with more demand from riders, the schedule can be improved. Right now Frederick has the lowest volume of passengers, the fewest trips per day and the least amount of clout, compared to customers traveling to Gaithersburg, Germantown or Brunswick and points west, not to mention the Penn Line, which has the system's best quality trains running all day long. Start showing up in greater numbers, make some noise and tell MTA we want more trips and better trains, and we will get them.

The bike rider

Another week light on riding: I got my social schedule mixed up and left my bike home on Tuesday for a thing downtown that turned out to be planned for Wednesday. More plans downtown tonight mean the bike sits at home for another day, collecting cat hair. It's heartbreaking, considering the gorgeous weather and cool temperatures we've had all week.

Last night at the aforementioned social engagement—happy hour with some friends from my last job—one relayed a conversation she had earlier in the day with a cyclist colleague and said she'd half-jokingly apologized to him for calling him a "bike rider." This morning I was nearly run off the sidewalk by one—a "bike rider," not a "cyclist."

The difference? Dude was barreling toward me down the middle of the sidewalk. Even though he didn't say a word as he approached, I heard his chain squealing from a hundred yards away.

I'm past the point of caring whether I'm an elitist snob in making a distinction based on those characteristics. What matters is that I have no patience for that shit. Sidewalks are for pedestrians, your bike is a vehicle, so ride it like one. If you can take to the road, take to the road.

Lube your chain while you're at it.

Sins of the driver

I haven't ridden to work in two days. Yesterday I had to leave work early for a doctor's appointment and drove. This morning I overslept and drove. With plans downtown for the evening, I won't be riding tomorrow either. This is bordering on habit, and it doesn't help to have such a nice, shiny, fuel-efficient car to enable me.

A dude rolled up to work on a folding bike this morning. That makes up for it, right?

LIVESTRONG

So I rode 70 miles instead of 100, and it kicked my ass. Farthest I've ever gone. I stopped frequently and walked up 1 1/2 hills, but I finished. No SAG wagon! Yay!

I know I crapped out on training for this—I take full responsibility for that. I want to say I'll take preparations for doing it next year much more seriously than I did this time and will actually be able to pull off the century. Only time will tell, as my slackitude and habits of procrastination know no bounds.

I'm exhausted.

Cooker

Don't particularly want to ride 50 miles on my beater bike tomorrow (technically today), but Dick's in the shop and they don't open until 10. With tomorrow's high forecast for 90°, setting out that late need not happen.

Oh well.

Kyle G. Brown's Near Death Experience

Gems of horror...

I had been riding my bike to do interviews for a pilot radio show. The roads were dry and the wind was with me. But as I powered ahead, one question kept nagging me: What is this van doing so close to me?

It was narrowing the already slim space to the curb, leaving me with little room. Then, after pulling away from an increasingly erratic driver, I turned to see he was coming straight at me. There was no time to move.

The truck not only ran me over, it dragged me under it—for 100 metres or so—before finally coming to a stop.

Followed by...

One year on, the driver who ran me over has yet to be tried. If convicted, he faces a maximum fine of $120 for making an unsafe turn.

How? How is this possible?

From The Globe and Mail: Facts & Arguments Podcast