A New Spring, Well Sort Of...

So the spring classics have started and we are all well into our own spring training. Unless, you live in the Northwoods and you still have two feet of snow on the ground. We have have fewer than 5 days above freezing so far this year and had the coldest winter on record and were very close to a record for snow fall. Needless to say, my bike and I didn't venture outside much. I have spent more days on a trainer than I care to remember. I did have a discovery that made these days a bit more bearable.

The Sufferfest training videos provided me some direction, motivation, entertainment, and most of all accountability.  There is no try, is one of my favorites but you can't go wrong with any of them. I realize now that I am back outside on my bike how much I accomplished over the winter months. Usually the winter is trying not to lose much strength, but this winter I feel like I made some gains. The best part about The Sufferfest is the amount of interaction the staff has with it's customers. I have posted on twitter about my workouts and will receive some sort of acknowledgement from someone at Sufferfest within a day. This is a great investment for any time of the year.

Enough of the shameless promotion. I always find it a bit funny to ride by snowmobilers and ice fishermen. I am wearing some level of spandex and form fitting outerwear while they are bundled up for Arctic temperatures. I wonder if they judge me the way I judge them. I can just hear them saying to one another how crazy I am for cycling, wearing spandex, or just being me. I really wish they would be thinking what a beast, I can't believe he is out in this pushing himself. I am sure they hardly notice me and if they do they probably just think I am nuts. I know I am thinking that I am glad I am on my bike rather than sitting on the ice or sledding between bars.

Well.. I have been rambling as usual but here is my final thought for the day. I hope I don't get on the wrong side of the hooligans who shot up this sign.

Cars and Bicycles need to learn to Coexist

Every time I leave the house on my bike, wearing only a piece of styrofoam as protection, my wife reminds me to be careful. My response is generally, "I always am, I have the two best reasons to come home."  My reasons being my beautiful wife and my soon to be born baby daughter (I am so excited about both by the way). I can control the way I interact with cars and the road, but that is it. When I think about it, that is not much that is in my control.

A month ago a friend of mine linked to an article on Facebook that got me thinking about the risks I am taking every time I am on the road riding my bike or driving my car. There is a constant stream of incidents between all users on the road.  I want to focus on cars and bikes, since that is my greatest area of concern.

Now, as a cyclist I have had my fair share of interesting interactions on the road.  Not mentioning all of them I have had cars swerve at me, people cuss me out while they drive by, and my favorite, people tell me to get off the road or ride on the sidewalk (this is actually illegal in some places). I would say there are four kinds of drivers when there are bikes around.  The first is the accommodating driver, this driver will pass at reasonable speeds and is perfectly fine with a bike on the shoulder or taking up two feet of the lane. The second is the prankster, this driver thinks it is funny to mess with a cyclist by swerving, honking and trying to startle the rider, and generally screwing around. The last two are the groups I am least comfortable with. Third, there is the driver who hates the cyclist. In their mind we are a complete inconvenience or there have been sour experiences in the past. This driver thinks bikes are a nuisance and has been known to take matters into their own hands. Finally, there is the uncomfortable driver. I would say this is my least favorite, they are unpredictable.  This driver will tail a cyclist or group and insanely slow speeds, waiting until they have six lanes to pass.  When this happens I know that this driver is tensing up and could be building a frustration towards the rider.

It is no secret that cars and cyclists need to learn to coexist.  The road is to be shared by both and everybody should be allowed to use it while feeling safe. There are so many people who write and talk about this every year.

I am not sure why both groups think they are solely entitled to the road.  Lets just calm down and be considerate for one another.  No one is intentionally trying to inconvenience or injure anyone else (I have been in situations where this is the case). Let us, drivers and cyclist, do our individual part to foster cooperation in the road.

Cyclist, do your best to be visible and FOLLOW THE LAW.  Unless you are in a sanctioned race a stop sign or light will not ruin your ride. If you ride like you are supposed to be there than you will be okay.

Drivers, pass cautiously with enough space. I guarantee the cyclist is not purposely sucking up 5-10 seconds of your life. Please treat bikes like they are another car, they are entitled to the road and they should follow the same laws.

Sorry that this was a bit of a ramble. Until next time, be safe and push a little harder.