Cellphone Cyclists

[onimity]

Does this get on anyone else's nerves? Maybe it's just that there are so many cyclists around here but at least every other day I see the telltale signs: a bike swerving a bit, going at an unpredictable pace. As I approach it becomes clear that the source of the erratic riding is the fact that the rider has a hand on the handlebars and another on the cellphone that they are happily chatting into. My sister almost got hit yesterday by a guy in race gear, careening down a huge hill (that she was climbing) on a MUT. He was making dinner plans on his phone.

Haven't we pushed multitasking far enough?

Maybe it's me, but I just don't think that talking on a phone works particularly well while driving OR riding a bike. At least half the time when a driver doesn't notice me and pulls out when I have the right of way on the road they are obliviously talking on their phone. Not only do they often have a reduced ability to control the vehicle, but they are distracted. On a bike, talking on a phone seems even more dangerous to me, particularly when riding in traffic. I thought about it the other day and guessed that I *could* use my earpiece to answer the phone if I *had* to, but why on earth would I want to?!? It seems to me as dangerous as an iPod, etc.; I rely on my sense of sound to keep myself safe.

It's just a pet peeve, but I wondered if anyone else has noticed this and if so, how do you respond. "HANG UP AND RIDE?!?" ??

Anne

[mimitabby]

we saw someone doing that. i thought she was drunk. Nope, she was on a cellphone. Sometimes my phone rings when i am riding. I slow down find a safe place to stop, then answer phone. Not hard at all.

[F8th637]

I haven't yet seen people talking on their cell phones on the trail but definitely the headphones. I just don't get it either. I get off the trail and answer my phone if it rings too. I hate when you see a driver who seems to be in a world of their own only to pass them and see them on their cell phones. It drives me nuts too!

[li10up]

Guilty as charged. I answer my cell when riding but I immediately tell the person that I'm riding my bike and that I'll call them back. I only do this when on a road with no traffic and/or a wide shoulder. Otherwise I just let it go to VM or pull over and then answer.

[Jo-n-NY]

I am happy to be spastic in this area. I cannot talk on a phone and ride at the same time. If it rings I pull over to the side and stop, otherwise, there is always vm.

~ JoAnn

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Most of the people I see on bikes while cell phone talking are wobbling. They are also oblivous to their surroundings, their minds are half somewhere else. You can tell from behind that they are on their cells phones just from their erratic path. Just as bad as driving a car while on the phone. I think they are dangerous to themselves and to the rest of us.

[Nokomis]

In our neighborhood last night, we saw a little boy (10 or under) rolling on a push scooter with a phone between his ear & shoulder - amazing he could do that with a helmet on - and drinking a can of soda all at the same time. Multi-multi-tasking, must have super-tasking role models!

[Hammer]

I haven't read the whole thread yet. I had been on a multiday ride the last couple days... I didn't get to finish because of a crash. I saw several people on the phone. Usually they seemed to stay straight and true. However, I watched someone ride across a set of railroad tracks while on the phone. The same tracks that I had just crashed on. That made me cringe.

I hate getting calls when I'm on my bike. Though sometimes it is necessary for me to have the ringer on. I do stop before I answer it though.