August 12th rides

[Becky]

Man, what a crazy ride home we had today! I think it must be a full moon or something...

I'm not going to post the whole story....I wrote it, but it made me so angry that I erased it. The Reader's Digest version: we had a verbal exchange with a motorist regarding our right to a) be on the road and b) occupy the shoulder at a traffic light that culminated in him saying, "You'd better get on the sidewalk or you're gonna get hurt". As soon as it was safe to pull over, DH called the police to file a report. Fortunately, we had a description of him, the vehicle, and the plate number. DH received a call back from a trooper, just wanting to make sure that we were ok, and notifying us that a bulletin had been issued for the vehicle. Yay Delaware State Police!

On a much more positive note, we saw another bike commuter on the MUT down by the Riverfront. We've seen a couple of recreational riders, and the bike-mounted security patrol rolls through periodically, but I think this was the first other bike we'd seen with panniers and the whole commuter deal After the whole aggressive motorist thing, it was the kind of boost that I needed.

All in all, today gives me hope that law enforcement is willing to take cyclists seriously and that bicycling is catching on here. Delaware's got a big serious recreational cyclist population, but practical cycling and commuting are still somewhat of an enigma to many folks here. We've a long way to go before we'll come close to Portland or Seattle, but every little bit helps

[jesvetmed]

Good job calling the staters -- I'm so glad to hear that they actually took it seriously. Many do not. Yike! Hang in there!

[Blueberry]

Yay for responsive police officers. Might not hurt to put in a call to the chief thanking him for their response and/or writing a letter to the ed. I think too often we complain, and don't praise often enough.

Glad things turned out well for you!

CA

[arielmoon]

Yay for the staties! Sorry you had to deal with a rude driver!


Rain prevented me from riding today Rode my horse instead

[Becky]

Yay for responsive police officers. Might not hurt to put in a call to the chief thanking him for their response and/or writing a letter to the ed. I think too often we complain, and don't praise often enough.

Glad things turned out well for you!

CA

That's a really good point. I have no idea which Troop called us, but contact info for Headquarters is readily available.

[han-grrl]

finally tried out hubby's mod to my bike

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=24610

very nice road ride, along flattish section for 40 km...

[Aggie_Ama]

Did the 27 mile from work to home. I wasn't very strong and it was very humid but I enjoyed the ride. I startled a Mama Deer and her two fawns they are such beautiful animals to watch move. It never ceases to amaze me how they will clear a barbed wire fence. We had rain earlier in the afternoon and the birds were out in force.