Frazz by Jef Mallett for September 03, 2016

There are terrible drivers and also terrible cyclists. there tends to be a polarisation whereby drivers claim all cyclists are bad (and, boy, there are many who do run lights, cycle like maniacs on footpaths etc.) but at the same time there are drivers who don’t give cyclists the room the should and cut them up or act with extreme impatience rather than waiting two seconds to pass them. The attitude that all people should b cautious and respectful of other road users is a good one and if everyone acted that way rather than acting like only they have right of way then the roads would be far better.

It’s the extremes (the small minority of idiots) that stand out, and this in turn creates the stereotype.

Survivors was the one thing I hadn’t expected.All of our training had presumed suicidal berserkers.

Billboard wisdom on any highway: “Obey The Rules of the Road. Remember that swearing isn’t illegal, but it’s still disrespectful”.

With the people I used to ride with, someone NOT obeying the rules of the road got flak. And drivers obey the rules of the road whenever it’s convenient for them. I’m a professional driver now in a tourist area. I see bikes all the time obeying the rules. And I see cars/trucks doing whatever they want. One of them just ignored a stop sign while coming off a side street and tried to kill me. I get flak for stopping at stop signs when people drive with me or behind me. And I get flak for doing the speed limit or near the speed limit. Anyone saying there are mostly good drivers with a straight face has got to be taking some funky stuff.

From these few comments, I can see that in America it is always the other person who is wrong.

in marin county california, allegedly the birthplace of the mountain bike, it is the majority of bicyclists that ride in the middle of the lanes, sometimes three or four wide, and demand that drivers pass them in the opposite direction lane, where there are often bicycle riders right on the double yellow line. frazz must live in some town where there are only four bicycle riders.

A different perspective from a cyclist here. One way to understand that stopping at red lights can get you killed became very clear to me one day. I was stopped all by myself at a red light and there was no traffic in or close to the intersection. I could have crossed the intersection safely without taking anyone’s right of way. Then the light turned green, there I was sitting in the intersection with newly arrived traffic coming up behind me at 70 km/h. Darned near killed me and lots of irate drivers behind me. Needless to say I don’t do this anymore. Here is some interesting reading on one way to fix this issue:

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2009/08/02/do_cyclists_need_to_stop_at_a_stop_sign.html

Regards.

I’m so sorry for your loss Mr. Mallet.

I can only speak to what I’ve personally seen or not seen. And I have never, ever seen a bicycle rider stop for a stop sign when he could have run it.

As a cyclist who does ride by the rules, will anyone please explain to me exactly WHY anyone thinks they have the right to endanger me because they’re made at some other cyclist who didn’t ride by the rules?Explain to me why you think you have the legal authority to run me off the road if I do commit a traffic violation, or because you saw a different cyclist commit one.

Retired Dude: Your observation is bang on. That’s because it is often unsafe and doesn’t really make sense for a cyclist to sit at an intersection when they can proceed safely through it.

LMB?

What planet is Frazz from? I see people on bikes daily, and they mostly behave as if traffic laws don’t apply to them.

The thing that always bothers me about both fringes is this (They are fringes, the majority both ride and drive reasonably responsibly or at least attempt to). The fringe cyclist endangers himself (what an idiot). The fringe driver endangers the cyclist (what an asshole).

And I’m off for my Saturday ride. Wish me luck!

It’s not about obeying the rules, it’s about KNOWING the rules at all. As for respect, that has become un-American.

A significant, but often ignored part of the problem is that most drivers today simply don’t see the cyclist, whether or not the cyclist, or the motorist, is obeying the traffic laws. Motorists these days haven’t been trained to be observant. Watch them next time you are driving or riding. On coming to a stop, whether a sign or light, maybe one in ten will turn their head to look for cross traffic. Most simply stare straight ahead. I was taught to keep my head on a 180° swivel at all times.

When I cycle, I follow these rules at ALL times: (1) I am invisible. (2) Any driver that sees me will try to hit me if possible. Make it impossible. (3) Traffic laws apply to cyclists, not to motorists. (4) Anyone who thinks it’s a good idea to argue with two and one half tons of angry scrap metal driven by a cell phone does not need a bike helmet. There’s nothing up there to protect. (5) Most “serious” cyclists are arrogant jackasses who can’t even be bothered to announce to another cyclist that they are passing them, well in advance.

BTW: I just did 100K yesterday, I cruise at 16 to 18 mph, so I guess I’m “serious.” However, I always announce my pass loudly enough to be heard clearly, well before I reach the other cyclist. If you don’t have enough breath to do that, you aren’t getting a proper aerobic workout. Even if you are sprinting, you should be able to shout, “Passing left!” on the exhale.

Enough rant. Back to laughing.

I’m new to this comic strip. Did Frazz ever state unequivocally that he always stops for all stop signs and all red lights?? I’m not sure that this is implied in his comment : “…ride predictably and ultra cautiously…”

I like the nod towards the League of Michigan Bicyclists.

Frazz obviously doesn’t live in a college town.

Sadly, we had a guy killed last week. I don’t think anything was involved other than “she didn’t see him”. Be careful out there, folks.

Cyclists may “obey” the rules, but they’re not above bending or changing them. How about the four way stop rule they’re trying to bring in? Cyclists only have to yield to vehicles that are in the intersection. So if I’m waiting behind the stop line where I’m supposed to be, any number of cyclists can cut me off without stopping! It’s happened to me many times and it’s not even the law yet!

Riverside Drive, South Bend Indiana was a nightmare until they put in a bike/walk path. Even then there were some who wouldn’t use it and insisted in riding side-by-side on a major way through several neighborhoods. No, I do not like bicyclists.

I have yet to meet a cyclist that powers his/her pedal machine with gasoline. Remember that liquid stuff they put in cars? The taxes on that stuff is MORE than the actual cost of the gasoline. And THAT is what pays for the ROADS the cyclists think they OWN! I live in a town where twice a year about 300 cyclists come into town for a week or more, ride down Main street in a HUGE group blocking cars that also drive Main street, suddenly decide to cross 4 lanes of heavily traffic in downtown, in the middle of a block, in order to get to their hotel! They have NO courtesy. NO warnings that they are now going to hold up traffic for the next 5 minutes. They assume that everyone else on the street is just going to be OK with their disruption. Its amazing they all survive at all.

BrassOrchidI always assume all others, vehicle or pedestrian, is either a homocidal maniac or intent on suicide and using me as the means. I know that is not the case, but the assumption is the life-saver.

Frazz is only saying that so I won’t run over him.

Only people who have ridden bicycles on the road side would truly understand that fear that is out there on that. It is much better if they build bicycle lanes for them. Greater safety all around.

Google | “right hook” death | before you get all dewy-eyed over bike lanes.

Doesn’t fit the stereotypes of bicyclists I see around here, especially those who bother to dress like Frazz. Most of those cyclists think they owm the road and it’s up to you to get out of their way. Maryland law requires you to give bicyclists three feet; but when they’re in the middle of a country road with rotten lines of sight, that’s a difficult thing to do.

I dunno. I ride my bicycle like Frazz does (law-abiding, not distance-wise) and I’m positive I’m part of the minority. And it’s not “you don’t notice the good cyclists” because I DO because they’re the ANOMALIES. The majority of cyclists here ignore stop signs, ride down the wrong side of the road, on the sidewalk, ignore red lights if it’s convenient and “clear”…. maybe things are different wherever Frazz lives.

I got “hit” by an unmarked police car at night. I was between the head lights, and fell onto the hood, I was just about to grab the back of the hood to hang on when the officer saw me and hit the brakes! I flew off, crashed over and through the bicycle. I was okay, and I asked the officer, “why did ya hit the brakes?”

Not sure if you mean the drivers or the bikers, but I live in a small tourist town and I can tell you the majority of bikers do not follow the rules of the road. The serious bikers i.e. not the tourists are more law abiding.

I also hit a biker going to work at 7:30 in the morning. Was coming up a large dip in the road approaching a crossroad that had to stop. A car was stopped waiting for me to go by, and a high school girl on a bike blew past him and right in front of me. The impact threw her bike twenty feet into the fields and pitched her onto my hood. As the brakes were immediately locked up, I ground to a stop on the side of the road and she rolled off onto the shoulder. Thank goodness she only suffered a sprained ankle and I had witnesses to the accident. No ticket and my insurance paid for her bicycle and she had health insurance. This was a impact at probably 45 MPH as I was driving the speed limit of 55 MPH before she blew the stop sign.

I wish it were the majority… unfortunately most cyclists ride like they own the road, and you don’t dare challenge them for fear they might get hurt.

Alright, a few pointers from someone who walks, rides a bike, drives a car and on occasion uses other transportation:

1. Raise your hand if you and everyone in your driving “clan” abide to the posted speed limits.

2. Raise your hand if you’ve never seen a fellow driver use a mobile device while behind the wheel.

3. Raise your hand if you’ve never seen a cyclist blow throw a stop sign.

4. Raise your hand if you’ve never almost (or not almost) hit a jaywalker.

I’ve been t-boned (on a car), hit three times by cars on bikes, and almost ran down by a bus… while having the right of way while walking. Also I’ve hit a car square on the side by missing a hidden intersection, and stayed as a witness to support a driver that hit a dimwit cyclist emerging from the sidewalk – going the wrong way. And last week I almost hit (on a bike) a guy on a mobility chair going the wrong way on a one way street…on the bike lane.

So, what is my hypothesis? Jackassedness is personal and independent of the mode of transportation. The jackass on the roads will manifest his/her traits irrespective of how he or she moves.