Comments on: Don't Ride on the Sidewalk

By: cp

cp — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 20:20:13 +0000

Just grow some balls and ride in the street. I did it in NY, sans helmet, and I turned out just fine; ‘Cept four dis whowl in mah hed…

But seriously, grow some cajones cabron.

By: Belgand

Belgand — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 10:58:12 +0000

People will be self-entitled assholes regardless of the method of transit they’re using. I guess it’s kind of nice that at least so many of these terrible cyclists aren’t driving because they’d be equally terrible drivers and in a much greater position to hurt someone.

At the same time this behavior has become an even greater problem in that many of these same asshole drivers now expect cyclists to ignore the law. I’ve been honked at a number of times recently for coming to a full stop at signs.

My favorite was a cyclist ignoring a stop sign along the wiggle and almost running me down… as I walked my own bike across the crosswalk.

By: Belgand

Belgand — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 10:53:16 +0000

It’s not an issue of being “cool” it’s one where it’s flat-out illegal to do so.

If you’re going that slowly you really should just get off and walk it. It’s one thing if you’re just about home and ride for a few feet on an empty sidewalk, but quite another when you just decide to ride along it for a stretch.

Take another route, ride down a parallel street, or get off and walk your bike down the area you don’t feel comfortable biking along. It might not be “cool” to walk your bike, but it’s the legal and respectful thing to do.

By: Belgand

Belgand — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 10:48:58 +0000

I really want to agree in theory, but in practice when I do that I check first that the sidewalk is clear and then I pretty much ride slower than I’d walk. It’s just a bit easier to coast it out than get off and walk it. I mean, I walk my bike through crosswalks all the time, and I really don’t want to defend assholes riding on the sidewalk, but in this one tiny case I think it’s reasonably defensible. It does, however, depend greatly on the area you’re doing it in. An empty residential street might be OK, but a commercial strip never is.

By: silent

silent — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 00:40:10 +0000

bless you

By: Allan Hough

Allan Hough — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 23:07:28 +0000

Don’t worry, we had her deported after that.

By: silent

silent — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 22:56:45 +0000

http://missionmission.wordpress.com/2008/09/11/the-asshole-assumption/

wherein the protagonist (Mission Mission author) rides her bike and unleashed dogs down a Market St. sidewalk!!

By: Eric Kauschen

Eric Kauschen — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 00:03:40 +0000

I totally agree. While I admire bicyclists for not using cars, they also don’t obey the traffic laws.

By: CG

CG — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 23:39:30 +0000

Smushmoth why don’t you make a new year’s resolution not to be a douchebag. KT cleary makes an effort to be respectful and yield to pedestrians so what’s the problem with that?

By: Cranky Old Mission Guy

Cranky Old Mission Guy — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 22:54:56 +0000

Crowding the sidewalks with bicycles does me no favors — go crowd the streets.

By: Shaner

Shaner — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 22:15:33 +0000

You guys need to chill out. At least we are riding bicycles not crowding the streets with cars.

By: smushmoth

smushmoth — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 20:41:27 +0000

Actually you have other options, walk or ride your bike on a parallel route. It’s actually still more dangerous for you on the bike on the sidewalk than it is for you on the road.

By: smushmoth

smushmoth — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 20:39:43 +0000

Actually that is just as bad, if not worse as you are being rude to your own neighbors, get the f off your bike and walk that half block, is it really so hard?

By: KT

KT — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 20:23:31 +0000

I know its not “cool” to ride on the sidewalk but I do do it on a dangerous part of Lincoln where my option is to ride with cars that want to kill me or ride really slowly and really cautiously on a VERY wide sidewalk. I always yield to pedestrians, I make sure that they see that I see them and that I’m yielding to them, and I go very slow. If I’m not harming anyone, then why is it so bad?

By: thuglifecrunk187

thuglifecrunk187 — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 19:31:54 +0000

whatever. ima ride it