I have a confession. I ride a bicycle. I ride it on the
road. I ride it for fun and for my commute and sometimes for fun on my commute.
I have come to realize that riding a bicycle on the road can be a little
polarizing.
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| Pictured: Rolling rage-maker |
There’s a laundry list of things that make some people
less than happy about the non-motorized two-wheeled vehicles whizzing around on
roads. They say that bikes don’t follow the rules of the road and are hazardous
to pedestrians. They say bikes don’t belong on the road because bikes don’t pay
for the roads. They say that cyclists look ridiculous in those spandex things
they wear.
I’d like to take a moment to say that I totally get it.
The frustration with cyclists, that is. Not all cyclists obey the rules of the
road. And when cyclists aren’t obeying traffic laws, they’re putting
themselves, pedestrians, and cars at risk. That’s uncool. And I appreciate that
bicycles don’t pay vehicle tabs, so that makes it look like we’re getting to
ride for free on the hard-earned tax dollars of drivers. And the clothes. I get
it. They’re skin tight and weirdly colored and why can’t cyclists just… put on
pants or something.
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| Dear cyclists: These are pants. |
But there is more to this story than we’ve discussed. Not
all cyclists ignore the rules of the road. I try to obey the law when I’m
riding, and I feel dutifully ashamed when I fail to do so. I would wager that
most cyclists fall into that camp: Mostly obedient road users. And most
motorists fall under that label as well. Because sometimes people roll stop
signs or gun it through a yellow-red light or speed a bit. Things happen.
And then there’s the money issue. Nobody likes a freeloader.
I’d like to argue here that very few cyclists can be called freeloaders in the
strictest sense. Most cyclists own a car as well as a bike. So they pay for
their tabs like other God-fearing tax payers. Add to that the fact that bikes
put significantly less wear on roads than cars and that the majority of road
funding in most states doesn’t actually come from vehicle tabs, and we can make
a good argument that bike riders are at least equal partners in this funding-the-roads
deal.
Which leaves the clothing issue. All I can do is apologize
for the sight. There are good reasons for cyclists riding around on roads
wearing clothing that makes them look like over-stuffed sausages. I’ll probably
write a post about that later. For now though: I’m sorry you have to see that.
I’d like to end by trying to make this something other
than an us-or-them dichotomy because life is rarely us-or-them. Why is it that
when some people think of cyclists, they define all cyclists by the actions of
a minority? Further, why is it that “cyclist” becomes the defining feature
about that person (like Jeff the cyclist from Pearls Before Swine)?
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| Presented without comment. |
I was nearly run off the road a few weeks ago by a sedan that
failed to look for traffic when turning into my lane. When that happened, I did
not immediately think, “Curse that sedan driver! All sedan drivers are
inattentive nincompoops!” I was upset at the driver of the car, not the drivers
of all cars.
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| Hyundai, for the inattentive nincompoop in your life |
Next time a cyclist does something stupid around you,
please don’t blame all of us for his/her actions. Blame them. And maybe try to
forgive them because we all mess up now and then. We all need a little grace. Also, don't be like Jef the cyclists or the automobile driving version of him.
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