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Thread: Anyone else?

  1. #16
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    North Carolina
    Posts
    97

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    that's just plain scary!!! You're right - what if he'd pulled you under the vehicle? People can be so stupid!!

    So far the only thing that's happened to me is a guy that kept turning around and riding by me - he did it several times and waved each time. It was wierding me out but luckily I got to a fairly busy street quickly and I don't ride that road anymore.

  2. #17
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Location
    NW AR
    Posts
    11
    I have had a car load of guys try to knock me off by opening a door into me-I got the tag # only to be told that our state has no numbers like that. I have also had people spit at me. But the absolute stupidest one is the person that I was waving around me, who stopped and got out of his car to yell at me. He then got rear-ended and got to explain why he was out of his car at an intersection screaming obscenities at a bicyclist. (Who, I might add, was very glad to ride back and talk to the police)

  3. #18
    Join Date
    May 2003
    Location
    IN
    Posts
    24

    Wink one more crazy driver story to share

    Hi girls! Been a long time for me to be back at this board. Boy, all of us at some point will have ugly stories concerning crazy drivers, but don't let it keep you from doing what you love!!!
    ...mine all seem to have happened early on when I was new to the road- nothing recent, thank goodness....
    Once, the passenger in a car threw out a large gatorade bottle at me. Hit my front wheels and just rattled me a bit. I got mad, swore and kept on riding....should have gotten the plate# though. I remember the vehicle and think I've seen it since(I live in a reeealllly small town). Had a Suburban-load of pubescent males slow to my speed and scare the living h*** out of me yelling. For that one, I stopped. They had to keep going because of other traffic. While concentrating up a difficult climb, a man once slowed down to make stupid kissy sounds. Creep. I determined not to let him break my climb. Swore some more and kept on.
    All these things didn't actually scare me as made me mad. I wanted to beat the c*** out of them.
    Chrisanna

  4. #19
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    Queensland, Australia
    Posts
    82
    That is pretty bad AussieVic! The worst I've ever had are morons who yell and swear at you. I've been slapped on the bum a few times, but that was by another cyclist that I was training with and he was going my speed and I knew he just meant it as a joke. One really bad group of people though is the army. When they are passing through town on the way to do training exercises their trucks are slow and take up the whole road so they slow everyone down, and on top of that each tank or vehicle might have a guy hanging out of it yelling rude stuff at you.

  5. #20
    Join Date
    Oct 2001
    Location
    Houston TX
    Posts
    5

    Crazy Drivers sometimes kill cyclists

    Phyllis Hassan



    Who she is

    Phyllis Hassan, former president of Greater Dallas Bicyclists and member of Lone Star Cyclists was hit by a vehicle Saturday during a country ride near Granbury and died Sunday evening, Mother’s Day. She was like a mother to many of us, and was certainly a best, dear friend. Phyllis was a former president, activities director, Spokesman editor, ride leader, and rider of GDB; Leader, and newsletter editor for Lone Star cyclists; and active coordinator for the Tour de Italia ride.



    Phyllis is an amazing person. Born in England, she retained that beautiful British accent even after living in the US for over 50 years, and the Dallas-area for almost 20 years. She is someone we all can only hope to be like when we reach our mature years. Phyllis never told us her age, but some of us calculated that she was in her mid-70s. What’s more amazing, the hospital staff tending to her after her accident calculated she was in her 50s based on her healthy condition.



    Some Details

    The details are still a bit sketchy as I write this note, but it seems Phyllis was riding ‘off the back’ of a group ride as she liked to do and often did. Because she is one of the safest and most conservative riders I know, she was not concerned if the pack/herd got ahead. The route included FM51 in the area near Granbury, Paluxy, Tolar, Rainbow, Brushy, and Glenrose, and was probably 40-70 miles in length. It’s a beautiful country area where many of us have ridden many times. The ride was with the Lone Star club who tend to look for more rural (and safer) routes than the middle-of-North-Dallas rides many of us ride by necessity.



    She was struck Saturday at about 12:35 pm by the right-side, outside rear-view mirror of a passing mid-size Ford Bronco. I have no facts, but it seems that the driver had a moment of inattention to the road. The driver stopped and called 911. Phyllis was taken by CareFlight to Harris Methodist hospital in Ft Worth. While investigating the event, police found the rest of the group down the road. After confirming that they knew Phyllis, the police told them about the accident and where she had been sent.

    The folks at the hospital gave her the best possible care. Her skull was not fractured, so the vehicle speed was probably not excessive, but the impact was sufficient to inflict severe brain trauma. The neuro-surgeons said she did not suffer. The hospital was very accommodating for the 10-20 folks who were there round-the-clock.





    Some key points in her life:

    -married for many years to Mo and maintained their friendship

    -raised two beautiful children – David and Andrew

    -a proud grandmother

    -active in GDB leadership in 1988-1994

    -Ride across America 2001 Seattle to Norfolk VA (a major portion of it solo)

    -Ride across Nova Scotia summer 2003

    -Texas 200

    -Ride across Arizona

    -Tyler-Jefferson-Tyler ride

    -Numerous hikes and mountain bike rides in Big Bend

    -Hiked across the mountains of Uzbekistan in the late 90s

    -Provided trail maintenance on off-road trails in Colorado

    -Coordinated a ride to Cloudcroft NM that led to life-long friendships

    -creator of the ‘Cool-as-a-Cucumber’ ride as an alternative to HHH

    -One of the key staff for the ‘Porta-Potty-Queen’ at Autumn-in-Bonham

    -Organizer of Tour de Italia where she loved serving as the parking-meister

    -Thursday night dinner ride; HHH several times

    -Knee replacement earlier this spring, and was riding within 2 months.

    -I know there is more, but this is what I can recall just now.



    She encouraged everyone to do things while they still could, because one never knew what might be around the corner. She lived life to the fullest and will live on with all of us. She subscribed to an organ donation program, so Phyllis will continue to be with us as she saves and/or improves the lives of others.



    My thoughts on accidents

    The majority of accidents can be prevented. In fact, in my humble opinion, most accidents are avoided everyday. Think about the times you had the ‘near-miss’. What prevented the accident? Someone or all involved anticipated an approaching condition and ‘slowed-down’. They were prepared and avoided the incident. Being prepared doesn’t always prevent an accident, as in this case; but it helps.

    You can ‘get-away’ with single instances of carelessness on numerous

    occasions. (Just ask NASA)

    • When it is a single instance of failure, the results are inconsequential. But it only takes one intersection of multiple failures for a catastrophe. (Just ask NASA)

    • Think of that the next time you follow the pack into an intersection or down the shoulder of a highway.

    • Think of that the next time you run a yellow light in your car

    • Think of that the next time you pick up your cell phone in the car

    • Think of that the next time you flip your visor down and lose sight of the road

    • Think of that the next time you exceed the speed limit.

    • Think of that the next time you take a bite of hamburger, answer the cell phone, come over a hill, into a blinding sun at dawn, while going 10mph over the speed limit, and are listening to a very important something on the radio, and find something unexpected. We’ve all lost a friend. Let’s not lose the lesson of safety.

    • It’s a no-contest when your 19.5 or 27 lb bicycle plus your 150-200lb body intersect with a 3000-6000 lb car or 75,000-200,000 lb semi-truck.

    • Think of that.

    • THINK





    Keep Riding
    Despite all your preparations, accidents do happen, but we have to keep riding. If I quit driving my car because someone was killed in Dallas in a car accident, or stopped going to grocery/convenience stores or banks because of someone
    killed during a robbery, I would have been isolated long ago. LIFE IS A RISK AND YOU ONLY GET THE JOYS WHEN YOU TAKE THE RISKS. RETAIN YOUR STRENGTH TO KEEP RIDING. Phyllis would have wanted it that way. She would also want you to do something about Bike Safety.

    See the note about Phyllis at:
    http://www.biketexas.org/ and http://gdbclub.org/gdb/index.shtml and a note about her Cross-Country trip at:
    http://grannygears.com


    * Accident, from Dictionary.com
    1.
    a. An unexpected and undesirable event, especially one resulting in damage or harm: car accidents on icy roads.
    b. An unforeseen incident: A series of happy accidents led to his promotion.
    c. An instance of involuntary urination or defecation in one's clothing.
    2. Lack of intention; chance: ran into an old friend by accident.
    3. Logic. A circumstance or attribute that is not essential to the nature of something.
    [Middle English, chance event, from Old French, from Latin accid ns, accidentpresent
    participle of accidere, to happen : ad-, ad- + cadere, to fall; see kad- in
    Indo-European Roots.]

    JEN

  6. #21
    Join Date
    May 2003
    Location
    IN
    Posts
    24
    I don't know about other ladies out there, but this post really touched me. It's made me think about my ride home today and my next one out tomorrow....Also, made me think back to just a few years ago when I finally got up the courage to actually get out there and ride on the road for the first time ever. I have come a lonnnnng way in gaining road confidence since that time. The close calls or even road deaths I hear about seem to make me more aware about safety - or lack of it out on the road. You're so right though - don't let the scary things out there keep us from pursuing what has given us strength, skills, confidence or simple joy.
    Chrisanna

  7. #22
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Location
    Brisbane, Australia
    Posts
    35

    Thanks All...

    i can't believe that its been almost a year since this happened to me. To be honest it did put me off riding for a bit. Just the anger that it created in me - proper incredible hulk levels......

    Thanks also longnblonde for the news on Phyllis. Such a waste when something like an accident takes an incredible lady like that from the world.

    Well, I'm currently in France as part of my trip home to Australia. My husband is chilling in the tent reading The Three Musketeers whilst I'm in the reception checking my mail. was it worth getting back on my bike?? You betta bloody believe it!!!

    Stay safe everyone
    Vic
    Stockton-on-Tees, UK to Brisbane, Australia - It's the Big Trip - www.bigtrip.blogspot.com

  8. #23
    Join Date
    Oct 2001
    Location
    Houston TX
    Posts
    5
    WOW! aussievic
    Writing to us from "somewhere in Europe" how exciting does that sound to those of us who are tied to a desk and only ride locally. I am proud that wonderful women ride bikes...and you certainly sound like a wonderful woman.
    I often think that riders are much safer in Europe, they actually use bicycles as a mode of transport and the sport of cycling gets much respect. Have a great time over there.

    longnblond
    JEN

  9. #24
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Location
    Brisbane, Australia
    Posts
    35

    Red face Awww shucks...

    Thanks longnblonde

    I think the attitude in North America is very similar to the attitude in England. When I lived in London and rode my bike, people thought that I couldn't afford a car, therefore I must be a second class citizen.

    In Belgium and France, pretty much everyone respects the bike and is curious about where you're going, where you've been. We're also using a BoB at the moment as we're doing a lot of camping and people are really intrigued by that. We were at a train station the other day and an official came out and was asking all sorts of questions about it and how it was attached to the bike and what our route was and will be. He then went back inside and started talking to his colleagues and pointing back out to us.

    I'd really recommend France to anyone who wanted to cycle tour. Lots of secondary roads with very few cars and really friendly people and very yummy food.

    Have people and their attitude in North America changed since the price of oil started heading skywards??

    Vic
    Stockton-on-Tees, UK to Brisbane, Australia - It's the Big Trip - www.bigtrip.blogspot.com

  10. #25
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Fairfax Virginia, US
    Posts
    5

    Re: Awww shucks...

    Originally posted by aussievic

    Have people and their attitude in North America changed since the price of oil started heading skywards??

    Vic
    Of course Not!!!

    I saw a roadie almost get hit by a Jaguar this past Saturday.

    And the person driving the Jaguar had the audacity to lay on the horn!!!


    I try to stay off the road as much as possible in the US....drivers here believe that the road is their god given right.

    Maybe that is why MtBiking is so popular here.

    *********************
    on another note-
    My dumb cousin of mine got 3 DUIs, so they took his license.

    He went out riding on his bike (can't drive, now), and some teenagers threw a bottle at him.
    He caught up to the teenagers and started yelling at them for endangering his life!
    Trying to keep the rubber side down.

  11. #26
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    Queensland, Australia
    Posts
    82
    I try to stay off the road as much as possible in the US....drivers here believe that the road is their god given right.
    That's not just in the US! I can't speak for the rest of Australia, but here in Queensland a lot of drivers have that attitude. Especially in a rural area where people come in from out of town and aren't used to dealing with the traffic of a small city.

    Luckily for us, with 120+ club members and some making the headlines in the newspaper and local news - the result is that we've got a high profile and people with any sense would think twice about giving us much trouble. We still get horns beeped and rude things yelled at us by stupid boys who think they are funny.

  12. #27
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Fairfax Virginia, US
    Posts
    5
    I lived in Germany for four years, and found that rather friendly. It was a given on Sunday that there would be tons of bikers out and about.

    I loved it.
    Trying to keep the rubber side down.

  13. #28
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Put Your Hands up for Detroit. Our Lovely City!
    Posts
    54

    expensive oil = bike friendly? I wish!

    I wish the skyrocketing cost of gasoline made for a more bike-friendly America, but sadly, I don't think it does.



    PS: MudGrrl, I completely *heart* your sig file!
    "A day without coffee is like... sucky."

    http://cathleen1977.blogspot.com

 

 

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