And a few crazy cyclists ...

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I'm convinced that a lot of people who used to ride bicycles when they were kids, and are just starting to get back into riding as adults- are just in some sort of mental time warp where in their mind anytime they get on their bike the world suddenly turns into Mayberry where everyone smiles and waves and pokes along with their fishing poles whistling and life is grand and kids run safely into the street after their ball, old Aunt Bea doesn't drive, Otis the lovable town drunk is always safely locked up, and nobody rushes or does dangerous things and nobody ever gets hit by cars.

Now mind you, I myself always feel like a kid when I get on my bike- it's one of the things I love most about biking.
BUT... I don't RIDE like a kid when I'm in traffic!
I see 'Sunday bikers' out riding around in traffic doing absolutely clueless dangerous things all the time- stuff I would expect careless little kids to do on their bikes on the sidewalk maybe, but not in traffic. Weaving around, not signaling when turning, paying no attention to cars backing out of driveways, riding along blithely in the 'Door Zone', passing cars on the right without thinking any of them might 'possibly' turn right directly in front of them because they are in the blind spot....generally riding as though nothing bad could ever possibly happen to them and riding as though they are quite sure that all car drivers see them and will be charmed by them and their bicycle, and will stop for them ....because after all this is Mayberry where nothing bad ever happens.