can't post this in the crazy drivers section as...

[Susan126]

Have you read the comments? The hatred for cyclist people are strongly speaking their voices. Have you read some of them? Scary!

[Aggie_Ama]

When I mountain bike I use a loud bell and say "Bike Rider". People understand, sometimes are startled but usually we are both able to use the trail. I signal the bell when I first see them, not when I am right behind them. Also even if it is fun to go fast, I am mindful of my speed so I can stop quickly or control my bike. My favorite trail is open leash so there is another user that might not know what to do - a dog. When I run on MUTs I don't use noise cancelling headphones and keep my music down very low. I can hear bikes coming. Not to assign blame but we can all be more responsible users when one public trails. This is a very sad incident for the cyclist as well.

[OakLeaf]

Very sad. And impossible to know what really happened, but the witness account jibes with a lot of what happens to me. I can be going ten miles an hour hollering at the top of my voice (without exaggeration, on either count) and squeezing the horn on my hybrid, and they will step right in front of me at the last possible second. Forget parents not controlling their children and dog walkers not controlling their dogs, able-bodied adults don't even bother to control their own bodies.

I have enough experience with MUTs to know that I just have to cover my brakes and be able to come to an IMMEDIATE stop, at any time, for no apparent reason, due to a pedestrian's bizarre behavior. This rider may not have had that much experience. Or, they may just have not been paying attention.

Ultimately it's always the responsibility of the person overtaking, which in this case was apparently the cyclist. I just hope this doesn't turn into the kind of thing it always does when a cyclist gets hit by a car.

[LilBolt]

According to a coworker of mine who is part of the same volunteer organization as the woman; she was a very healthy & alert person. Accidents do happen, and I really hope the cyclist was riding responsibly.

The nicer the weather, the further away from the trails I stay. DH & I wanted a mellow ride on Sunday and picked up the local trail. After little more than 5 miles of the usual suspects (feral kids, dogs on super-long leashes, iPod wearing rollerbladers, idiots riding on their aerobars @ >20mph! ) we bailed off the trail. Decided it was safer to share the roads with people out for Sunday wine tasting.

On the other hand, I am grateful for the trails. Seeing so many families out doing something healthy together is fantastic. Hopefully the loss of this wonderful woman will wake people up to ride, run, & walk defensively & never lose situational awareness.

[XMcShiftersonX]

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...tories_section

Here's an article update about the lady that died. She sounds like she was a wonderful person.

[salsabike]

She does indeed sound very wonderful, as does her family.

[MM_QFC!]

The mayor goes to trail to pay his respects and gets hit by a cyclist too

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...nicole30m.html

[Biciclista]

Something tells me that people will be slowing WAY down on that trail, whether they want to or not....

[OakLeaf]

Oh, good.

[Fredwina]

I've also started saying "good morning" (or evening)
Not only does it get better attention, but to me at least, it sounds less imperious than the "on your left"
I had a good friend die a few months back on a mup (he was "training" on a single speed when some stepped in front of him)

[XMcShiftersonX]

I can't believe that the mayor got hit too! His response to the whole situation is priceless:

'Law was walking the trail with his wife last Sunday afternoon. A group of cyclists started coming toward them, while two other cyclists were coming up behind them. The two cyclists were trying to squeeze between the Laws and the oncoming group when the first guy changed his mind and braked. His buddy hit him, and they both toppled over — one of them, onto the mayor.'

"They were just stupid," Law said. "I guess you can't regulate common sense."

It's true though, they obviously were (or inexperienced) and not following the rules of the trail. Unlike the man that hit the lady who died...

'And, sadly, I heard from Steve West, who was riding the Cedar River Trail with his son the morning Mapelli was hit, and came upon the scene soon after hearing "a huge thump."

Witnesses described to West how the cyclist called, "On your left!" and how Mapelli didn't seem to know what to do. She "appeared agitated," one witness said, turned right and then darted left across the trail, directly in front of the lead cyclist. He made hard turn in a failed attempt to miss her, and they both landed off the trail.'

Unfortunately these two stories will likely get clumped together to fuel some pedestrians and motorists disdain for cyclists. But, I think there needs to be more education on trails about what the term "On your left" means for pedestrians because obviously there's a lot of confusion about this. They need to know when they hear that they either stay where they are or they move to the right.