And this isn't helping...

Clued in by my daily look at BikePortland.org, found this website full of vitriol and hate, along with some ideas that actually do make sense: Bike Free Portland.

Somethings I do completely understand, like the idiots running lights, running without lights, entering areas that say, "NO BIKES", but the rest is just hate filled ranting. This is NOT the way to make things better for cyclists (she purports to be a cyclist herself!). Spewing this putrid crap in the name of making things better is a fulfillment of what I keep saying: the few are ruining it for the rest of us.

Is she wrong that there are a multitude of stupid cyclists in Portland? Nope. Is she wrong in saying that the cyclists here in Portland are horrible? Not really - there are good ones and bad ones, but seemingly more bad ones.

But calling them Bikenazis and making your symbol reminiscent of the Swastika makes it even worse. So Myra, stop adding fuel to the fire. If you had constructive things to add, feel free, but c'mon being hateful will make things worse and furthering the whole us v. them mentality adds nothing to the debate.

Me: All you ever wanted to know

I read Bike Commuters.com on a near daily basis. And when I read they were soliciting profiles, I just had to submit mine. So read all about my commuting life here.

And for those disinclined, here's a montage to fill you in.

The Reason:
The Bike:


The Ride:
Questions?

An Open Letter to the Cyclists of Portland

Dear Fellow Cyclists,

As a dedicated cyclist and resident of our fair city I have a couple of things to say to y'all. Please take this in the manner it is intended: outright and blatant criticism.

Too many of you are giving the rest of us a very, very bad name. You cry and moan that you get no respect, that you are constantly under attack and it's you versus the city. Guess what? You're absolutely correct. And you know what else? You have brought it on yourself. I am so fed up with the entitled attitude y'all bring to the table. Just because you cycle doesn't mean your shit doesn't stink or that you can walk on water. Believe me, your halo, er, aura is pretty much tarnished as well. After seeing my pedestrian friends nearly hit innumerable times yesterday, I almost feel ashamed to call myself a cyclist in this city.

Example 1: Thanks to the wonderful people at Trimet, we were walking across the Willamette via the Steel Bridge. Along with quite a few others. Yet there was a constant stream of cyclists trying to get across that way as well, some at a fair clip. Ringing a bell, shouting, "On your left!" as you zip past does not absolve you of the common courtesy expected of folks sharing the sidewalk. And getting an attitude about it makes it even worse. Either join the flow, get off and walk your bike when there is heavy pedestrian traffic, or, gasp...go another route!. It's not like there isn't any other way across the river.

Example 2: Don't expect to ride fast on the waterfront on a busy Saturday morning. When there is a festical about and thousands of people walking to it, bobbing and weaving in and out of people as you try to get there faster is a recipie for disaster. How about wising up and using the bike lanes on Naito instead? Or if you persist on using the boardwalk, slowing down, or walking like the rest of us?

Basically put, I am so incredibly tired of dealing with this bullshit. In our small group yesterday at the Flugtag, we had 3 near misses from cyclists inthe above examples. I guess the whole "Yield to pedestrians" is only a suggestion. How about thinking about waht may be hapening out in the city when deciding how to get to where you're going and choosing an alternative route to get there? There are more than a few ways to get across the river, other than the Steel Bridge. There are other ways down the waterfront than the boardwalk. If you ask me, there woldn't be such as rising backlash against cyclists if we took it upon ourselves to express the common courtesies of life.

Look, I'm no saint either. I run stop signs, turn without signaling and don't stop for pedestrians crossing my lane of travel. But if I'm headed out by bike to a large event, I'm not going to expect to be given the right-of-way over pedestrians. I'll find an alternative route and when the situation warrants it, walk the bloody bike.

To close this out, let me reiterate: just beacue you're on a bike doesn't make you any better than the next person. We're all in this together and a little bit of courtesy can go a long way to making our great city even better. Or, quit your bitching, you reap what you sow. Take whichever way you want.

Bikes v. Cars

The new "war" between cars and bicycles erupts anew in Portland, with the local media stoking the fires in a vain attempt to sell papers, increase viewership and to continue the strife. All the while, the cycling community feels more and more under attack from various angles. As a cyclists, we're used to being under attack. Everyday is a challenge and adventure between motorized traffic, other cyclists, the traffic environment (i.e. roads) and the weather, being under attack is a normal thing. But this new spate in incidents really takes to task the issues facing cyclists and drivers in a city with a burgeoning cycling culture.

Sparked by an incident over the weekend where a cyclist started beating a car of a man who had cautioned him to not blow stoplights, then this week where a driver responded in turn running down a cyclist who yelled at him to slow down. And the local media jumped all over it. From local bike blog Bikeportland.org, to the Oregonian and local TV news, like Pavlov's dogs they jumped on the story pointing fingers at cyclists and drivers to explain to odd change of situations. Most have backed off, toning down the inflammatory nature, some even trying to look at each side of the story. one evn going so far to showcase how in spite of the increasing numbers of cyclists in our fair town, the accient rate has actually been going down (dilution effect).

So what is the answer to the strife? Let me share...

1st: Everyone needs to calm down. Being uptight and ina rush to get everywhere does no one any good. In fact that entitled "me first" attitude has contributed to both cases above. We all need to realize that we all share the road, and not just between cars and bicycles, but pedestrians, scooters, wheelchairs, donkeys and porter chairs.

2nd: Cyclists need to get off their high entitled horse. Yes, it sucks to have to follow the laws, especially when it is things like stop signs and signaling to turn, but we are smaller, less protected and need to be more aware. Do I blow stop signs? On occasion. Do I blow stop lights? Are you crazy? By being the bigger person, we can show that not every cyclist is a stuck-up urban hipster who flaunts the law when the feel like it. So do the right thing: ride on the corect side of the road, use the bike lane when present, ride single-file when neccessary, follow things like stop signs and stop lights along with traffic control devices, ride like it is a privelege - not you right and try to follow that Golden Rule: do unto others...as you would ahve them do to you.

3rd: Drivers, pull your head out of your butts when you get behind the wheel. Put away the cell phone, make-up and fast food and pay attention to one thing: driving. Too often we see peole doing far too many things behind the wheel to the detriment of what they should be concentrating on. Realize that there are other people sharing the road with you, people who are less protected and more vulnerable than anyone in a car. Show these folks the common courtesy
that you would to other car, and in that same vein, show the other drivers that courtesy as well. But mostly, slow down. Getting there 2 minutes faster will not make true difference (unless you're heart surgeon or an ER doc) and by doing so you may negatively impact someone's life beyond what you believe.

I'm mostly a cyclist, I commute by bike and try to do errands as able the same way, but I also drive. I see things from both sides of the complaint, but am more biased towards those on bikes so I tend tosee things in that light. Mostly though I think folks need to take a step back, calm down, take a deep breath and get back to what really matters in life. Settle down folks, a little courtesy goes a long ways and karma is a bitch.

Be safe out there!