fluffy <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
ooh, people are talking about bikes, yay!in response to this:>2. Why are you in such a damned hurry? Cars aren't allowed to pass on the passenger side of a bus when it is taking on or >discharging passengers. Why do bikes do this? My daughter was seriously injured this way.i'd like to share a story from the other side. i was riding my bike east over the chestnut street bridge. some people may know there's a bus stop right at the end of the bridge. well, i was riding, and a septa bus came up behind me, passed me, and began to slow as it pulled over to the right. i was not riding on the sidewalk, but on the street like a good boy. well, i must have been in the driver's blind spot at that exact moment because he wedged me between his bus and the curb until i was forced to take a dive onto the sidewalk. fortunately, i fell and rolled in all the right ways and was only lightly bruised. i could see the horrified faces of riders who watched the whole thing through the windows. like pete, i was furious. how dare the pilot of a wrecking-ball drive so carelessly!? the guy got out and for a few minutes we argued, (oddly, each of us took "share the road" as our position). but... maybe i was just glad to not be seriously injured and maybe he was also glad to have not killed a person that day, because we eventually reconciled and even hugged! yes, it's true. we hugged! partly, i was aware that reporting such an incident would, at best, cost him his job, and the guy seemed to have come away from the experience with a lesson. well, to be sure, we both learned something. from that point on, i always rode in a hyper-paranoid state. always looking and listening like a bird in a backyard full of cats. ASSUME that NO ONE can see you and behave accordingly. i also never wore a helmet which always made me feel more aware of my environment. it's mostly about being very aware of your surroundings and moving in deliberate ways. it is a skill. riders should be prepared for the jungle if they wish to ride around in this town. also, there are times when riding on the sidewalk is a very good idea. pedestrians should be equally aware of their environment. i usually shout something like, "coming up on your right!". it doesn't matter much what you say so long as they have time to turn around and react.i was wondering, has anyone ever experienced a helmet-related incident? has a helmet ever saved you or has one ever gotten in the way?btw, to marianne, no disrespect intended. i'm sure whoever hit your daughter was in the wrong. but in general, regardless of liability, everyone (whether they ride, walk, or drive) should be aware of what's around them. just because a pedestrian is never wrong if a car hits them, doesn't mean they should cross the street blindly.-the lurking fluffy
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