close encounter of the 3rd kind!

[Defietz]

So Saturday here was beautiful, and I head out for a nice couple hour ride. I decided to take a bike path that leads to the main roads I usually ride on. Unfortunately, there are backyards adjacent to the path, all fenced, some with 6 ft wooden fences, some with smaller chain link...anyway, Im only about 1 mile from home, thinking what a great day it was, blah, blah blah, when all of a sudden a SKATEBOARD comes flying over one of the fences right in front of me!! In the time it took for me to realize what it was, I was already face down on the asphalt!

I look back, and two teenage boys are standing there, almost as shocked as I was, asking me if I was alright--to which I replied "NO, that hurt really bad"
Thankfully, it only banged my knee up nicely, and my whole upper body feels like I got run over, but no serious damage to me or my bike.

Im a pretty new rider, and this was a huge lesson for me....I think I will take my chances on the open roads, where I have had much better luck!

Just wanted to share that not all dangers are on the roads, some idiots are on skateboards!!
Be safe!
Jayne

[CorsairMac]

don't give up on the bike paths tho - they are a wonderful way to ride, usually very peacefully! if it's any consolation - you probably scared the bejesus outta those boys, might make them think twice next time! I'm sorry to hear about your "close encounter" and I'm glad it didn't end up being something more serious!

[DeniseGoldberg]

Ouch! I'm glad to hear that you are OK, although rather bruised...

And people are surprised when I tell them I don't ride on bike paths.

My experience with bike paths is that they are not safe places to ride. (OK, OK, I know that's a generalization, and you all probably know where there are safe paths...) In my experience, bike paths are often overused, and the users of the paths often don't have a clue as to how to safely share the path. While I'm sure there are some places with good bike paths, I haven't encountered any in a long, long, time. The two I remember as safe and not overused were bike paths in the Anchorage, AK area, and a bike path between Spokane WA and Coeur d'Alene, ID. As for me? My bikes and I are quite happy in the road, thank you very much!

--- Denise

[SadieKate]

I ride very few of them. If we ride through campus and then out the bike path on the west side of town, we term it "riding the gauntlet." We even live in a bikie town and it's barely OK. I do my best to stay off the American River Bike Path in Sacatomato because of the congestion. I'm spoiled with all our open country roads.

Several years ago I had a kid launch a water balloon at my head from over the fence while I was inline skating. It was kind of fun to watch my usually mild-mannered hubby explain to the young teenager (13 or so) the definition of assault and battery. The boy's younger sister was vastly entertained also and, I'm sure, relayed the entire conversation verbatim to their parents when they got home.

[Trek420]

Defietz

soooo glad that you are ok! I'd have wanted to grab them by the ear (one per hand) and march them to their home for a nice chat with the parents about medical and repair costs.

I have a favorite bike path, I like to ride there when the weather is iffy, threatening to rain or very light rain, then I have it to myself. Nice weekend weather? Forgetaboutit.

Biggest problem there is you call out to pedestrians and they move RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU instead of yeilding to the right so I can just pass.

[nuthatch]

My area's bike paths are heavily used, too, which is really a wonderful thing because that's what they're for. I long for bike only paths that no one else can use but I'm lucky to have any paths at all. I'm with Trek - if the weather is lousy, it's smooth sailing for us cyclists!

What works well, is the rails to trails paths that take off away from the metro area and into the hinterland - miles of no backyards and no people once you clear the congestion zone. Just the occasional opossum or redwinged blackbird in attack mode!

[MomOnBike]

Does it seem to anyone else that we're discussing congestion in one form or another an awful lot recently?

Anyway, count me as a defender of bike trails. Yes, the bike trails around here can get crowded with - oh, you know, kids, dogs, rollerbladers, the odd kamakaze squirrel, etc. but I take the congestion as a sign that they are needed, wanted, and we might just get more. I've seen house For Sale signs set up along several paths. Good idea, they get more traffic than the street the houses are on.

I have been experimenting recently with the best way to get past some of these. With small children, I have been having luck with "Comin' through!" in a smiling, motherly sort of voice. The kids tend to scatter off the path at that. "On your left" always has a kid moving left. It's all but 100%.

I also put a bell on the bike. It helps sometimes.

"On your left" works with most adults. I always try for my ultra-efficient secretary voice. Pleasant, but not taking "no" for an answer.

If I feel the need for speed, there are roads around that serve nicely, so I don't feel deprived slowing down for the little kids.

And yes, the bike trails (around here, at least) actually do lead to places I want to go.

[nicolezoie]

Biggest problem there is you call out to pedestrians and they move RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU instead of yeilding to the right so I can just pass.

I used to have a really big problem with people who didn't understand what "ON YOUR LEFT" meant... Part of my problem was I was waiting too long to yell this. Now I give myself enough space to hollar that and if people move to the wrong side, I have the chance to dodge without risking crashing..

The path I take most often can get really congested during certain times of day, but when I most like to ride (early AM) it's almost completely deserted except for the transients who are too hung over to comprehend what just flew by.

[latelatebloomer]

A whole new threat! (for me)

A couple evenings ago, I'm riding along on a country road and I spy 2 people doing this funny 2-steps forward, 3 steps back kind of thing back & forth across the road. As I get closer, I realize they're paying NO attention to traffic of any kind. Their movements are erratic, so it's not safe to pass in front or behind them. I give the S.P. YO and yell "Heads up!" - they both look at me with this expression . Then I see the aerosole can... "You spraying poison?" I cry out, imagining sucking it into my pretty pink lungs...

"No, bees."

I ride as fast as I can behind them and then away, leaving them, a hundred angry yellowjackets, and the theme from Deliverance playing in my wake.

No place is REALLY safe, I guess.

[CorsairMac]

I used to have a really big problem with people who didn't understand what "ON YOUR LEFT" meant... Part of my problem was I was waiting too long to yell this. Now I give myself enough space to hollar that and if people move to the wrong side, I have the chance to dodge without risking crashing..

Yup - I've got those too and yup - I've started yelling far enough back that I can change my direction to suit theirs. One thing I do that seems to ease that situation is I'll yell "rider on your left", if they Move left I'll laugh and say "ok rider on your right". if they move again: I'll slow down and laughingly tell them to pick a side and I'll be the rider on the Opposite side! That usually calms them down and gets them paying more attention to what they're doing in relationship to me.

[Deanna]

I'm another fan of bike paths. They can be crowded, but so are the roads they usually help you avoid and a 'bike path' incident will be less damaging then a road (read 'car') incident. Our local bike coalition is always fighting for more money for bike paths and lanes and often have to counter the argument that they aren't used that much, so I encourage their use whenever possible so they are used.

As for alerting other users I agree that early warning is best. A combination of a bell ring and "on your left" seems to work. Sometimes when you just say "on your left" they think you're pointing out something on that side of the road.

[xeney]

Oh, I love the American River Bike Trail. It's not bikes-only, but I really never have the problems I hear others complain about, with the rude runners who won't yield the trail (they are supposed to move to the shoulder). Sometimes it gets a little congested and you have to slow down for a bit before you can pass, but that is always for families, and I think it is so cool to see the kids out there that I definitely can't complain.

I change "on your left" to "coming up on the left" for kids, too, though, although most of the older kids seem familiar with the rule of moving to the right.

[crazycanuck]

We recently moved to Perth from Auckland and i'm so happy for the bike paths here.

In auckland you basically risk your life on the footpath and on the road as aucklanders just don't give a **** about cyclists.

Anyways, the move to perth has been a treat. Not only do i not have to ride with any traffic, all the bike paths are well used and well designed. They follow the train lines and are just the best thing since iced coffee.

I do have one problem...I hate people who wear their &&&#&#&& Ipods while walking or biking and can't hear me when i say "beep beep honk honk hello.."to let them know i'm there/here. Those people deserve to be run over...

c

[xeney]

Hmm. I suppose the laws are different there. Here, if it is a foot path, then generally it is a foot path, and bikes aren't supposed to be on it. Nothing irritates me more than having to step aside for an impatient cyclist who is not supposed to be on the foot path or sidewalk in the first place -- and if for some reason they have to be there, they should be traveling at a walking pace and not beep-beeping at anyone.

I alternate between walking and cycling to work, and I swear I am in more danger from bikes on the sidewalk when I walk than I am from cars on the street when I ride. It's depressing because my neighborhood is very bike friendly if you just stay on the streets.