tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4566824284133545729.post1806265265626227260..comments2023-10-17T21:23:27.543-07:00Comments on About pep: Ride of Silencepephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11930799869228188883noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4566824284133545729.post-12992690654274229332009-05-21T15:25:12.961-07:002009-05-21T15:25:12.961-07:00I certainly agree that cyclists should abide by th...I certainly agree that cyclists should abide by the rules of the road, and being as visible as possible can't hurt. Sadly, there is no defense against a driver who is impaired, falling asleep at the wheel, or distracted. The cyclists were not at fault.<br /><br />I was nearly run down a few months ago by a driver who swerved into the bike lane on a straight road, without signaling, to pass a left-turning car. Within two blocks, she pulled into a parking lot and I took the opportunity to chat with her. Despite having passed me before cutting me off, she had never seen me. At the time, I was commuting to work in broad daylight, wearing a neon-yellow jacket with blinking red lights mounted on my helmet and rear rack.<br /><br />There is no defense against a driver who is impaired, falling asleep at the wheel, or distracted.pephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11930799869228188883noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4566824284133545729.post-14443981301158304062009-05-21T14:43:11.514-07:002009-05-21T14:43:11.514-07:00Not to disparage this blog post, but many cyclists...Not to disparage this blog post, but many cyclists need to do more to be visible, too. We live up in the Skyline, near Portola State Park, on a very steep, curvy road that is popular with cyclists...who often do things like ride in dense fog with no lights of any sort. On a road where visibility is an issue on a sunny day. We live up here & know to be careful & have still had a few near-misses. Much of the weekend traffic up here, motorized or not, do NOT live here & do NOT know the roads. It's not a very safe road without cyclists, and, when you come around a blind curve to suddenly have 2 cyclists riding abreast (or other such unsafe practice) directly in front of you...well, drivers up here are very careful, or there would be a LOT of accidents.<br />Please, if you cycle up in the Santa Cruz Mts., be very careful, & come prepared for the fact that weather conditions (especially fog!) up here may be very different than down on the valley floor!<br />I am familiar with a couple of roads mentioned in this blog post, and, with at least one of them, road conditions are such that an accident could easily occur even if the driver was taking proper care. If you are going to cycle in places where visibility is bad (very steep, very curvy, foggy, etc.), you really do need to make sure to be very visible. Spending $6 on an LCD headlight & similar for the back of your bike could easily save your life!Heatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07067701162901440088noreply@blogger.com