Hello my name is Dario.  I am typing this one handed because of an injury sustained while biking.  Obviously I did not die but if you want people to read your story you have to have a headline that grabs attention.  I am/was a year round cyclist who started commuting to work at the age of 32 (nearly 3 years now).  I know I am late to the party.  I started riding to lose weight but ended up loving it.  I love riding in Critical Mass, the clarity it gives me in the morning, and the way the way stress falls away on the ride home.  I love it so much I strong armed my best friend to follow me in biking.  It was easy to do when he saw my weight loss.  At first it bothered me to be the “crazy bike rider” who rides in the winter, but I got over it and now wear it like a badge of courage.  Besides I was never one to go with the flow.  I am a bit of a safety nerd.  While I don’t wear lime green spandex I always have lights and wear my helmet (not that it should matter).   I am extremely cautious and courteous.  I stop at stop signs,  don’t salmon, ride on side streets to minimize my interaction with “cagers”, and yell on your left when I pass people.  Yesterday while riding on the lake path a rollerblader (are they really still around), stepped in front of me after I shouted “on your left” and I ran into her.  I fell and separated my left shoulder. I have never felt pain like this.   She walked away.  In pain and furious I screamed at her to “get the fuck away from me before I beat your ass”, so I did not get her info.  Thank  God I have insurance.  Through no fault of my own, I will be out of commission for about a month.  

My wife and I brought home our newborn son Tuesday the 26th, and I can’t even hold him in my arms.  That hurts some much more than my shoulder.   This injury has saddled her with extra chores since I can do so little with one hand.  At the time in our lives when she needs me most I am a burden.  This is so unfair.  She has always been supportive(despite her reservations) and even liked buying me workout/cycling clothes.  

I cannot in good conscience continue to risk my well being with so many ignorant, discourteous, self centered, and just plain stupid people out there.  When it was just me I could rationalize it but I have a family now and I don’t want to miss any of it.  In short I am hanging it up, throwing in the towel, and giving up.   I did not write this for sympathy, or to hear people try and change my mind, i just needed to vent to like minded people.  Will I still bike, probably, but not as much.  If you’ve been a cyclist for a day you’ve probably had a close call, so you know what i mean.  I can not justify the risk any longer.  Thank you for reading this.  Goodbye.

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I disagree with the whole "on your left" deal. More times then not people will look over their left shoulder and swerve left. I try to just leave plenty of room as I pass, if I see them start to veer off the line they were on I shout out the word "careful", It seems to work better then "hey".  I also try to only use the lfp early in the am. Once summer comes I am off the path more and more. My largest issues is with runners who reach that imaginary turn around point and just do a U turn. Crashes happen, they are kinda like flats, if you never crash or flat, you are just not riding enough.  I am happy to hear that your injuries were minor and that you should fully recover in a reasonable amount of time. Just remember biking is great for rehab.

I almost had a horrible crash this week but I'm not gonna quit cyclin'. Just getting a bike that's a bit shorter now and getting back on the road as soon as possible. I am nowhere near parenthood but I can see how cycling may feel like a risk now that you're a dad.

 

Hopefully sometime before your kid gets a big wheel you'll be back out on the roads.

Get a bell. Don't go to pass someone until you see they acknowledge your position by physically changing their cadence, moving over. Leave a layer of safety, leave space to stop for when they do swing over in front of you. Or at least be going slow enough you can stop in time.

 

Always leave space to respond with an appropriate action for the "unexpected". Constantly challenge your brain for the "what ifs". Give yourself an "out".

 

I am amazed when I am on the Lakefront Path how many people on very expensive carbon or even whatever bikes are regularly interrupting the cadence of their breathing to mutter in a macho or whatever voice "on your left". People need to get bells. Why? because they are like a sonar ping. You should ring it twice, from a good distance, to allow other people to recognize your distance, speed and location. They are also high pitched, and carry further than a low pitched "on your left, dude".

 

When I ride the Lakefront Path, I find it annoying and rude that most "On your left" people wait until the last second to make their call. Why? because it's harder to hear it from any further away.

 

I hope get a bell and get back on your bike.  : )

Bye

"On your left" works OK with other riders -but even then some newFreds don't get it either.  The Bell works almost all the time with nearly all people.  It's almost Pavlovian...

 

But what it comes down to in the end is that the passer is in control and the passee doesn't have eyes in the back of their head so the passer has the responsibility to make a safe pass with enough room to leave a safety margin in case the worst happens.  If that means slowing down or waiting for a better place to pass then that is what it going to take to be safe and do the RIGHT thing. 

 

Just because someone is a stronger rider (or in a bigger hurry) doesn't give them the right of way over those in front of them.  They are not "in your way" as much as you are riding too fast.    On a open road or wide bike lane it is safer to ride faster because it isn't as tightly packed and there are safer passing widths available.  But on the LFP or other crowded mixed-used paths people are just going to have to understand that you can't push it that hard and zoom by people so close.  There just isn't enough safety margin to push it like that. 

 

This same advice goes for car-drivers as well.  It's not a race out there or a video game with infinate lives.  Those are real people you are buzzing by -not computer-generated obstacles on the way to a high score or low time.  

 

 

So sorry that this happened to you at this point in your life.  I totally understand where you are coming from.  I am a cautious rider as you are, I have grandchildren I think about.  The rollerblader?  My bet is on that she was wearing headphones and never heard you....the most FRUSTRATING thing ever!  p.s.  in one month, when your shoulder is better, there will still be dirty diapers to change, middle of the night feedings, etc., etc., etc.  If your wife needs help during your recoop time, feel free to contact me through here since I happen to have some free time in August that I can give her.

 

Michelle

Well said.

James BlackHeron said:

"[...]

But what it comes down to in the end is that the passer is in control and the passee doesn't have eyes in the back of their head so the passer has the responsibility to make a safe pass with enough room to leave a safety margin in case the worst happens.  If that means slowing down or waiting for a better place to pass then that is what it going to take to be safe and do the RIGHT thing. 

 

Just because someone is a stronger rider (or in a bigger hurry) doesn't give them the right of way over those in front of them.  They are not "in your way" as much as you are riding too fast.    On a open road or wide bike lane it is safer to ride faster because it isn't as tightly packed and there are safer passing widths available.  But on the LFP or other crowded mixed-used paths people are just going to have to understand that you can't push it that hard and zoom by people so close.  There just isn't enough safety margin to push it like that. 

[...]

Agreed. "On your left means they always seem to dodge to the left." Getting a bell felt so much less aggressive and of course I can still use my voice if needed. 

 

Regardless, someone needs to strangle that rollerblader. I can't believe someone would just skate off like that. Wow. 

iggi said:

they may think 'on your left' means to go left.  or they think we will stay close to the right as we do on the road so they should move to the left to let us by. (especially since cyclists are notorious for improperly passing on the right).

 

i have changed my tactic.  i slow down. i anticipate an issue.  especially on the lakefront path.

Carly said:

  I have discovered that yelling "on your left" only works with other cyclists.  For some strange phenomenal reason, peds will often step directly in front of you if you give them a warning from behind. I have no idea why.  I have read about this phenomena in a few different bicycling books and it has happened often enough personally to use different tactics.  I either dodge 'em silently if they're moving predictably enough, or I slow down enough to say, "excuse me please, can I get by you?".  If they're wearing headphones or something I yell "HEY!".  As a cyclist, I feel that I should treat peds as gently as I wish for autos to treat me.  

 

 

I can believe it, and everone on the LFP or other such mixed used paths better believe it too.  

 

THAT is how rollerbladers sk8.  It's just how it is and they can change direction in a fraction of an instant without slowing down.  Passing a blader should be an exercise in EXTREME caution or this kind of accident can and WILL eventually happen.  

 

It's like saying, "I can't believe that beer glass broke when I dropped it from 3 feet onto the concrete floor..."

 

Really?

Ruby Red said:

 I can't believe someone would just skate off like that. Wow. 

 

Congratulations on your son! I feel like I lost a fellow pioneer on the roads of velorution:(

 

If I ever end up giving up cycling, I would buy a car with a horn that sounds like WEAK! WEAK! every time I honk at those hipster cyclists =P

I think the Hipsters would already know you were WEAK without you having to audibly advertise the fact as you drove by. 

 

;)


Juan said:

Congratulations on your son! I feel like I lost a fellow pioneer on the roads of velorution:(

 

If I ever end up giving up cycling, I would buy a car with a horn that sounds like WEAK! WEAK! every time I honk at those hipster cyclists =P

swish!  fully agreed. 

 

too many Chicago commuters/travelers in general have what I call the "Chinese Puzzle Syndrome," they put all of this stress & energy into trying to go faster than circumstances allow & it actually slows them down.  Whereas if they just relaxed they'd get where they're going in about the same time, and would actually enjoy the trip. I'd say I did the same for years btw, it's probably a realization that comes with age.  But I love timing the lights properly and zipping by that goof who keeps running red lights and then gets flustered when they hit an intersection at exactly the wrong time.  By the end of the summer I usually have many of the major intersection "don't walk" signals memorized (or at least categorized) so I know exactly how much time I have once they start blinking.  The eastbound Diversey at Ashland is ridiculous, at last count I think the don't walk flashed about 20 times.

 

and very good idea on the bell, I think I'm going to get one of those while it's fresh in my mind.  I have always gone the "on your left!" method, but I also am cautious and don't try to pass three-wide groups of joggers with maniac rollerbladers approaching at the same time from the other direction.  in extreme moments an air horn has seemed like an attractive option, but I'd likely make myself deaf within a week. or less.

 

off-topic, is that crazy lady who rollerblades in the early mornings (7:30ish) while doing some sort of disco routine still out there?  haven't seen her for a few years, THAT drives me crazy, as even though it's mildly amusing, she's flailing her arms around and doing little twists and spins, I mean WTF, the lakefront is not the place for that (nor to learn how to rollerblade or bike - stick to a parking lot). 

 


James BlackHeron said:

"On your left" works OK with other riders -but even then some newFreds don't get it either.  The Bell works almost all the time with nearly all people.  It's almost Pavlovian...

 

But what it comes down to in the end is that the passer is in control and the passee doesn't have eyes in the back of their head so the passer has the responsibility to make a safe pass with enough room to leave a safety margin in case the worst happens.  If that means slowing down or waiting for a better place to pass then that is what it going to take to be safe and do the RIGHT thing. 

 

Just because someone is a stronger rider (or in a bigger hurry) doesn't give them the right of way over those in front of them.  They are not "in your way" as much as you are riding too fast.    On a open road or wide bike lane it is safer to ride faster because it isn't as tightly packed and there are safer passing widths available.  But on the LFP or other crowded mixed-used paths people are just going to have to understand that you can't push it that hard and zoom by people so close.  There just isn't enough safety margin to push it like that. 

 

This same advice goes for car-drivers as well.  It's not a race out there or a video game with infinate lives.  Those are real people you are buzzing by -not computer-generated obstacles on the way to a high score or low time.  

 

 

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