Frazz by Jef Mallett for September 28, 2013

It does look like they have a bike lane.

Is the driver so upset that he doesn’t realize that he could have safely passed already? Does he prefer being angry?

The cool road from Cross Village to Bliss, (M-119 by name), can be ugly when the bikers don’t keep it to the right. Hey, even farmers on tractors pull over every once in while to let the seventy five cars behind them pass so they can go more than 5 MPH up a steep dune… Bikers, you don’t have to ride continuously…Pull over and let a body by…or be a jerky jerk the that acts like a jerk…..Anybody out there that hate jerks?

From yesterday:@mklangeAre you under the impression that cyclists are supposed to stay to the right of the line? Because, unless there is a bike lane there, that is completely wrong. Bikes have the right to the road, not just the shoulder.

I have occasionally pulled over when climbing a hill. I don’t want a bunch of vehicles behind me in the first place. In fact, well meaning people who hang behind me, when they could pass, bother me. The people behind them get irate, then angry people eventually have pass me. These new “3 feet” laws (4 or 5 feet in some places) also can cause traffic to back up behind me. I don’t like them.

Most of my biking involves roads without bike paths (they’re in the ‘master plan’ for the town, but heaven forbid they actually get funded). Although I stay as far right as possible, some roads don’t even have gravel break-down lanes. And yes, I have been honked at and sworn at by SUV drivers who actually COULD pass me if they wanted, but have no idea where their vehicle is.

Lucky for Frazz and his friend. If they lived in Florida, they would have been run over in no time.

I’m not sure who bugs me more – cyclists who feel they’re above-the-law ubermensch, or car drivers who tie up traffic because they’re utterly incapable of passing a cyclist at the edge of the road.

Read this. http://albertmcwilliams.com/post/54015994028/youre-going-to-kill-someone The man has some excellent points but the one that pertains most to this is the first one. I’ve been biking, mostly on roads, most of them quite rolling and some quite busy for almost 40 years. I have almost never had anyone have to wait more than 5 seconds to pass me in a reasonable manner and then only very near the top of a hill. “OH the terrible, terrible burden of having to slow down for 5 seconds. Get those horrible people off my road.”

It’s a bit hard to tell, but from what I can see, Frazz and friend are in the bike lane and the driver is being a jerk. Much like the video of the driver who honked and honked at two cyclists who had gone single file to let the driver by but he preferred to be a jerk and hold up traffic. Turned out there was plenty of room for him to pass, but other cars had to pass him, endangering themselves in the process. The result of that video, the police tracked him down and gave him a ticket. Haven’t heard what became of that.

I bike with my dog on very rural dirt farm and access roads surrounding my little town and have to contend with punks on dirt bikes roaring thru at excessive speeds. I hear them coming but sometimes barely have time to stop and pull over before they roar by.

Two tone beep?

Bicyclists are even lower than scooter trash IMO.

I started wearing an American flag-themed jersey when I ride. Now I get more friendly waves than nasty comments from drivers, especially on rural roads.

Again, farm tractors and horses and buggies are not out there for exercise, they’re trying to get from point A to point B. Bicyclists are out for exercise. What’s the point of stopping every few minutes to let cars pass? Cyclists have just as much right to the road as cars. It’s the passer’s job to pass responsibly and safely.

What bugs me most is drivers who go into a rage while driving, AND bikers who are too rude, too stubborn, and too stupid to get out of the way. Move over and let the car pass – no matter whose side the law is on! If the road is busy and you’re constantly in the way, bike on a different road. (I’m a biker – with no need to make people mad, and a reasonable wish to stay alive.)

If you saw yesterday’s strip, the cyclists are riding the line. The driver is being a jerk. And by the way, under the law, pedestrians following the law have the right of way over cyclists following the law who have the right of way over cars following the law. There is no reason for a law-abiding cyclist to get off the road just because a car won’t share it appropriately unless the cyclist’s life is endangered. Cyclists who don’t follow the law get what’s coming to them, just like drivers who don’t follow the law. Karma is a b****.

That doesn’t look like a bike lane to me — just the normal berm of the road.

I have been stopped in my car three times so far in 2013 for pulling over to let other cars pass. One demanded to know if I liked driving on the paved shoulder. When Texas changed their highway motto from the courteous “Drive Friendly” to the bellicose “Don’t Mess with Texas”, the accident rate went up 20% the following year.

Points that many of you are missing:

Not every rider can choose their route. (I have to go where I have to go.)

Stopping and starting again requires much time and effort, especially when going uphill. (I don’t want to be late for church, and I don’t want to arrive all sweaty.)

Pulling onto the shoulder can cause flats.

I’m the inconsiderate one?

Take a few deep breath and clam your enter anger.

You took the bait. Why should it be incumbent on the rider to make concessions? We are expending energy to get where we are going. So the equation is our time and energy vs your time. It costs us more.

There are NO bike lanes around here. And there are seldom any good places to “pull over”, either to stop or just make room. The “shoulder” is usually just a few inches to maybe a little more than a foot. If I am in a place where there is a little room it won’t last long, and then I have to merge back into traffic. Dangerous, as many drivers would never expect me to have the audacity to exercise my right to the road. Best to just maintain my lane, rather then cutting in and out of it.

Wow, huge anger issues here – and presumptions. Given the narrow restraints of the comic, there’s not much to suggest the riders are, or aren’t single file (did Jef mean to overlap them, or was it just space constraints, because if perspective were really followed, they seem too close together to be realistic if they are riding side-by-side. We’re also missing half the road, certainly nothing to suggest a bike lane – that’s the shoulder more than likely, given bike lanes are uncommon, particularly on rural roads. And bikes, like cars, aren’t actually supposed to ride on the shoulder, and if it’s narrow, it is unsafe to do so, although cyclists will usually try to stay as far right as possible. I cycle and drive, and I’m afraid I see a lot more cars failing to follow the rules of the road than cyclists. That doesn’t mean cyclists who fail to do so – eg, blowing lights and stop signs – shouldn’t be subject to penalties – but I see lots of cars do the same, so it’s not particularly a cyclist issue. I do see cyclists often presuming they can use crosswalks – which is only true if they dismount and walk the bike across. The greater issue seems to be motorists who are both impatient, and frequently low skill – they have poor perception as to their vehicle’s placement and size, so they fail to pass (or allow room for cyclists) when they could safely do so.

Yes, it is true that some bikers have attitude problems, but ask yourself why. In many cases it is a response to the prejudice of drivers. Riders are constantly faced with drivers who think we should not even be on the road, and treat us that way. A glance back at this discussion will quickly confirm what I just said. The wonder is that there are so many bikers who don’t have bad attitudes. If that rider in front of you seems arrogant, it is because we have to ignore you if we are to enjoy our ride. Why should I let you steal my peace?

Those fat lazy jerks coming home from a hard day’s work, just wanting to get home so they can enjoy some of their own time? … or the ones on their way to a kid’s soccer game on Saturday morning, wanting to enjoy some of their own time off? Those fat lazy jerks? Why of course, your time is SOOO much more important than theirs, it’s absolutely a given that you should obstruct traffic and make them use their time waiting for you before they can have some time to enjoy on their own.

In many jurisdictions, it was a law that if more than a certain number of cars were piled up behind you, you had to pull over and let traffic pass. I don’t know if that is still in effect or not, but most construction or farm tractors I see do pull over when they can to let traffic pass.

For the same reason you don’t see me when I’m in the middle of the crosswalk

Bikes on the highway are supposed to ride single file. The driver has a right to be upset.

It is quite obvious that most of you don’t understand that bike riding is about keeping a steady effort while using the gears to convert that steady effort into keeping an optimum speed. No matter the speed, the effort stays pretty much the same. (Well, that is the goal, anyway.) We are already pushing our limits, and frequently breaking that pace will wear the rider out faster than anything else.

Jef, you should write a short book about attitudes on biking. You have a gold mine of examples here. (Not just this strip, there have been others.) If written with the right humor, it could be entertaining.

My pride and joy. (Sorry for the quality.) The third taillight is partially obscured by the panniers.

To hear it from these comments you’d think there was a war of attrition being fought on our nations roads between cyclists and motorists. I’ve lived in every corner of this coutry and for the past couple of months I haven’t had a car so I’ve used a bicycle exclusively. Still, as a cyclist I can’t remember the last time a motorist was demonstrably angry with me and when I was driving I can’t remember the last time I became angry or even exasperated with a cyclist. Just be courteous and drive/ride the way you’d want others to do it and you’ll be fine. I know, let’s argue politics.

“Just be courteous and drive/ride the way you’d want others to do it and you’ll be fine.”

That would be great if cyclists drove properly, as in single file on public streets, not a side-by-side group in multiple batches. And while we’re at it, how about NOT riding on the sidewalks or facing oncoming traffic? You want respect, play by the rules…er, laws, that is.

Both sides of this debate are using specific conditions and examples to bolster general arguments. This is specious logic, and hurts their own position. Any general point can be speciously “shot down” by some example or another. Cheap shots. The only thing that bothers me more than an opponent using this tactic is someone trying to use it to further my view. One person makes a statement about an action pertaining to certain conditions (e.g.; bike lanes), and someone else refutes that action, but changes the conditions (e.g.; no bike lanes), intentionally or not. As long as this continues, this debate is useless. We all need to be on the same page. (Impossible, I know.)

All this road rage, and they’re not even on the road.

I thought a link to the Michigan bike laws might be helpful here. http://www.lmb.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=21&Itemid=38