Quote Originally Posted by Tuckervill View Post
I have to do it every day on one or two stretches of road. That's what I do, especially when I'm descending. It feels safer to me. The cars on this road cannot be going 55 coming around the curves, because they are on a CURVE.
Although I tend to agree with you, I'm afraid to say that you're never safe from one of the many (idiots) who do take curves at 55mph.

Terrifying (yet somewhat funny) story:
We have a long, winding hill near my place (I live right at the top) that cyclists and runners use all the time. The road winds on the side of a cliff leading into the ocean. Most drivers are well behaved going up it but last week some moron in a minivan was speeding up the hill at great speed, passed a car in a bend, missed the next turn and went right over the wooden fence. He probably didn't take the time to read the sign that says "CLIFF BELOW".

See the pic : http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-col...-accident.html

I could very well have been cycling up the hill at the time. Very scary. Taking the lane, however, would not have saved me from so much moronitude.

(The minivan remained hanging in trees up the cliff and he jumped out. He tried to "hide" on the nudist beach below by mixing in with the crowd of sunbathers. He wasn't too hard to identify with all his scrapes and bruises... He had to be airlifted out of there... Two firetrucks... Countless helicopters... One BIG moron.*sigh*)

Personally, I tend to take curves in the lane, then to go back on the shoulders as soon as it seems safe, i.e. when I am back of in the line of sight of drivers coming out of that same curve. By being closer to the middle of the road, I am more visible from a distance by drivers coming from behind me and I avoid being clipped by some truck's mirror (so many drivers totally ignore the white lines and just drive with two tires on the shoulder...).

But I'm not sure there's one safe way to do it.

Ok too long message. Back to work.