Does a trike put me on a collision course with traffic?

ComandanteBanana

Having other types of bikes in my collection, I'm about to get off the
beaten path and get either a ROAD TANDEM BIKE or a FANCY UPRIGHT
TRIKE. Well, I like them both but the road tandem would necessarily
put me on the road AMONG THE BEASTS all the time, while the trike I
can use on the back streets and on a new path being built overlooking
the ocean (cool). But I'd be tempted to ride it on the streets
sometimes, squarely TAKING THE LANE because then I'd be more of a
vehicle.

What's your thought, I'd be safer in the trike than on the road
tandem, or should I start planning my funerals?

WHY THE BANANA REVOLUTION?
http://webspawner.com/users/bananarevolution

ComandanteBanana

On Mar 31, 1:41 pm, "Papa Tom" <TomMontalb...@optonline.net> wrote:
> Where I live, Long Island, New York, you'd barely get out of your garage on
> the trike without someone trying to run you off the road. When I ran my
> bike recycling program a few years ago, I had the opportunities to test ride
> a few trikes AND a quad. I thought riding the quad on the main street
> running through my town might raise some awareness of alternate
> transportation options, so off I went...only to return ten minutes later
> having been honked off the road and forced onto the sidewalk more than a
> dozen times.
>
> I guess the answer to your question is largely dependent on where you live
> and what the attitude toward cyclists is in that area.

It sounds like where I live...

But what would happen if I step off my door and into the three lane
road, where the marked speed is 30MPH, but the real speeds are closer
to 50MPH? Would I be able to stand my ground or just give in to the
law of the jungle?

ComandanteBanana

On Mar 31, 2:51 pm, "Papa Tom" <TomMontalb...@optonline.net> wrote:
> >>>>Would I be able to stand my ground or just give in to the law of the
> >>>>jungle?<<<<
>
> The speed limit on the road I described is 30mph. It has two schools and a
> 20mph speed limit in front of each. It also has a huge curve and a
> grade-level railroad crossing at the end of a mile-long straightaway.
> Still, the average speed driven on that road is 45, regardless of who is
> walking or biking along the shoulder. If your town is like mine, my guess
> is that you'd have to move AT LEAST 30mph on your trike (yeah, RIGHT!) or be
> physically driven off the road.

It sounds like a good reason for NONVIOLENT RESISTANCE. They push me
and I won't budge.

ComandanteBanana

On Mar 31, 4:03 pm, "Papa Tom" <TomMontalb...@optonline.net> wrote:
> I'm not one who believes "resistance" will ever work.
>
> There's something about bicyclists that people just don't like. Perhaps
> it's just jealousy. When the road was ruled by horse-drawn wagons, they
> cursed at us and threw sticks at our spokes because we were moving too fast.
> Now they do the same thing because we move too slowly.
>
> Perhaps when gas is $10 a gallon, drivers will start to see us in a
> different light. Right now, keep your trike off the road - or face having
> to pry it out of the grill of some jerk's Hummer.

Man, this is eerie. That's exactly what I thought.

But I think it also has to do with HATE. Yeah, they hate that other
people remain free and healthy while they remain enslaved to their
thirsty vehicles. They think, "Hey, if I paid 50 grands for my Hummer,
no one on a bike will slow me down." And they just try to squeeze that
oversized vehicle and a bike on the same lane...

One day, though, the stupid dinosaurs will become extinct, and the
small furry animals will reclaim the earth. Brain is better than size,
right?

donquijote1954

the beauty...

http://www.schwinnbike.com/heritage...achmentid=38628

and the beast...

http://www.marketingshift.com/image...SUV-7300cxt.gif

Jon

"ComandanteBanana" <nolionnoproblem@yahoo.com> wrote
> But I think it also has to do with HATE. Yeah, they hate that other
> people remain free and healthy while they remain enslaved to their
> thirsty vehicles. They think, "Hey, if I paid 50 grands for my Hummer,
> no one on a bike will slow me down."

Perhaps driver ire at cyclist does come into play, more some
places than others. But I just don't see it very often.

I ride in suburban and rural areas more than urban areas,
and I generally avoid cycling the main thoroughfares as
much as possible. Not because I don't feel safe there,
but where there are good alternative routes, why would I
want to?

But I do share the road with SUVs, pickups, minivans,
sedans, sports cars, 18-wheelers, etc, ... And when
it comes to danger for cyclists, the far larger and more
common threat than driver malice is driver (and.or
cyclist) incompetence, distraction, and error.

> And they just try to squeeze that
> oversized vehicle and a bike on the same lane...

Lane position "effectively" helps addresses this.

Over the years, I have had people tell me to "get out of the
road" in various unfriendly ways. In general I try to simply
ignore them. Sometimes you just can't...

Recently, while a friend and I were stopped side-by-side
in line behind three or four cars at a stop light, the
guy in the car behind us sticks his head out of the window
of his pickup and calmly tells us,

"I just want to let you know, it's illegal for bikes to be
in the road."

"No sir, I'm sorry you're mistaken, it's not illegal."

"Yes it is. My friend who's a cop says it is."

"No, that's not correct. But you call the police,
and we'll wait here with you."

He declined. %^)

Jon

ComandanteBanana

On Mar 31, 9:52 pm, "Speeders & Drunk Drivers are MURDERERS"
<beta...@earthlink.net> wrote:

> > WHY THE BANANA REVOLUTION?http://webspawner.com/users/bananarevolution
>
> Drivers don't hate cyclists. But Americans are all cowardly bullies
> who love to pick on those weaker and when they're in a car they are
> bigger and stronger than any cyclist.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

That has an element of truth, but I think the bullies only make up a
minority among the cowards.

ComandanteBanana

"Who said the good ol' times when they fought the beasts are over? Now
you can ride a bike and feel the same excitement --before you die."

http://www.zazzle.com/gladiator_shi...337870599597918

donquijote1954

Perhaps this is a better trike for a gladiator...

http://www.squidoo.com/triton

One speed though. How good would they be?

ComandanteBanana

You may say, "What the Banana Republic of Miami has to do with
bicycling?" But it does. The old people in Miami voted for issues
dealing with Castro, and not for bike facilities. They never will,
because only the young care about it. That's why we need a Banana
Revolution...

"I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to
die in." -George McGovern

A REVOLUTION FOR THE YOUNG?
Sorry, guys, but this revolution is for the young --or at least for
the young at heart-- who care about the future, and about a quality of
life surrounding their needs.

Regrettably, they are not being enticed into politics. Important
issues like building bike facilities are kept out of the political
discourse. Simply, cunning politicians lure the elderly, who are
easily duped with the politics of fear*. Remember the 2000 elections
in Miami-Dade County. In other words: the Banana Republic relies on
the old and ignorant, while the Banana Revolution appeals to the young
and hopeful...

*80% of the young who don't vote do not live in democracy.

"Well, there's no hiding the fact that bananas taste better, and don't
contribute to Global Warming and War."

http://www.zazzle.com/donquijote195...363034463138037