When winter begins to fade and the days grow warmer, Michigan becomes invigorated. People start going back outside for pleasure and begin to naturally pigment their skin. However, with the good of the newly reinvigorated spring comes the bad. I refer to things like people walking in the road, and more frustratingly, cyclists in the road.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I like riding my bike as much as the next guy. Only I have the ability to ride it on the sidewalk. I know doing so is a feat of great wonder, but keep it a secret. Quite frankly, and I’m sure there are those who agree with me, cyclists need to stay out of the road.
While I’m on the road, I tend to worry about other drivers. I go into every driving experience expecting there to be at least one, but probably several, idiots on the road. This generally pertains to other people driving their cars. Suffice to say, when a guy on a bike rides diagonally through an intersection, I get a little upset.
I think bikers need to keep it in their heads they are not motorists. While they have the propensity to move as fast, they are not cars. While there may be such a thing as a biker’s lane on the street, it doesn’t entitle them to the middle of the road.
When you think about it, biking in the street doesn’t even seem like a good idea. The chances of getting hit by an idiot driver seem something less than astronomical. So why not just stay out of the road? I think I have a few reasons.
One, I think some people on bikes possess questionable decision-making. Two, I think they have a superiority complex. Three, I think they generally don’t think they are a hindrance. I’d like to think people don’t go out of their way to be annoyances, but I have been wrong before.
I feel like the only time it is acceptable for bikers to be anywhere in traffic besides sidewalks, biker’s lanes and crosswalks is when there is a sanctioned event of some sort. It’s understandable for bikers to take up whole roads in the case of a competition. In that scope, the roads will be closed off, it will be safe for the cyclists, the pedestrians and just the public in general.
Now, I keep preaching about safety. I’ve said it’s unsafe for the biker in the streets because of drivers. But what about the drivers? What if they’ve been wronged by a biker swerving in front of them? I think the police would probably blame the driver. Just seems like keeping cars and bikes as far away from each other as possible is the most sensible course.
All in all, biking is cool. It’s a good workout and an even better pastime. I enjoy it greatly, but there are right and wrong places to bike. The main environment I refer to is busy streets. Stay out of the roads cyclists; as a driver, I want nothing to do with you.
