Cyclists seen today, including the elusive sidewalk salmon!

Thanks to we4farm14 via flickr for these Salmon!

Its exam week, give me a break!

cyclists seen today (not on university property)

All cyclists observed today were in the afternoon while I was on the road from 1:40 to 1:50 pm and from 6:20 to 7:00 pm.

total 16 (not including me)
6 road cyclists (only 2 were practicing vehicular ways when observed)
1 was a salmon cyclist(maybe even a salmon sidewalk cyclist!) shortly before becoming a road cyclist
1 couple on bikes, not being gutter bunnies at point of observation
2 different cyclists who were riding as gutter bunnies when observed
1 cyclist who was a gutter bunny as I talked/passed him, he then became a separated trail cyclist when reaching the city beach area.

5 sidewalk cyclists
4 salmon sidewalk cyclist. they are defined as sidewalk riding on the side of the road where the closest traffic is moving opposite to them.
1 normal sidewalk cyclist

5 bmx bikers
all 5 were at the local bmx/skate board park at one of the elementary schools.

of note only 2 cyclists were female, one in the mentioned couple, and one sidewalk salmon cyclist. There are maybe a handful of female cyclists in the Plattsburgh area, and even fewer that actually ride on the road properly. This of course does not include university or school students.

There was a west wind today, that was a bit southish coming in and then kind of northish going home. still made good time, I was just blown about quite a bit.

I Received one internship so far. I will be working as an unpaid(yeah yeah) intern with the non profit advocacy group, MassBike out of Boston, Massachusetts. There will be a combination of commuting via Amtrak's Downeaster, possibly staying with friends in Somerville (their intern position was full until September, booo) , or staying with my wonderful girlfriend just outside of Worcester.

Hey you, get off of that sidewalk!

Image thanks to OberWiki, from Oberlin, Ohio.

I was riding home yesterday, after about 40 minutes of excellent conversation with a cyclist member of the board of my local Co-Op. I was showing him my new bike and the features and we were discussing riding habits, how and where a lane could and should be taken, safety and so forth. We parted ways and as it was dusk, I had my full complement of lights flashing away, making me quite similar to a bloody Christmas tree!

I round the corner by the new bike shop and what is technically State Route 9. There is a man, maybe later 20's, I don't think a college student, and anyway he is riding along quite quickly on the sidewalk. Now I hate sidewalk riders and I do try to comment every time I come across one, if it’s logical for me to do so. He also had no lights...

I said, Dude, you shouldn't ride on the sidewalk. Simple too the point, however I could have said something like, dude its safer for you to ride in the road. I thought about this later due to the response.

Oh yeah he was wearing headphones, but heard me...

"Shut the fu*k up, as*hole"
I of course was in no mood to explain the subtleties of subjective vs. actual safety of riding on a sidewalk as opposed to the road. Especially in the situation where he had no lights or other reflective equipment, was wearing dark clothing after sunset, was clearly in a foul mood, and seemingly not interested in talking points.

I kept riding along, thinking that most likely this guy was the type to own a large truck and would normally be passing me within inches going 40 and screaming to get the fu*k off the road. I bet he got a DWI in that truck of his....

Nonetheless, I am out on the 4 laned 35mph (ha, more like 45) section of 9 past the Georgia Pacific plant heading toward Cumberland Head, when I see two more cyclists on the sidewalk.

(note I estimate 1/2 to 2/3rds of cyclists in Plattsburgh are on the sidewalk, for a majority of their ride)

I decided a slightly different tact was needed in this case, they were two young women, maybe freshman in college age or seniors in high school. What made them stand out was the one at the back had a freaking bright light (I saw later that the one in the front had a very strong headlight... I hope they planed that...)

My comment was, "thanks for having nice lights!" and gave a thumbs up :)

My response was, "hey thanks man, sure" with a smile.

I continued on, smiling :)

Now I understand subtleties, and do use them, but is it this simple?
I know in many cases using encouragement or complements can get you further than criticism, but I actually do best with criticism, knowing what I am doing right is great, but knowing what I am doing wrong is so much better, and much more useful to me. Was it the age and social difference between the high school girls, and a late 20's man, that caused the responses? Or was it my tone of voice and positive vs. critical reinforcement...

I have a feeling if I said "dude its safer in the road with me" to the guy I still would have been sworn at, he was not a happy cyclist, hence my thinking he got a DWI and license suspension.

I try to be a showcase for proper cyclist behavior, for motorists, and cyclists alike, but I do understand riding with cars going 45+ past you is not comfortable for many. Nor is taking the lane on this stretch to increase safety on a personal level, comfortable either.

In a way, it does feel safer on the sidewalk. There is the tendency to think of yourself as a pedestrian with wheels, after all that is how we are taught to think at an early age. The true risks of this behavior are not apparent to many motorists or cyclists. I understand why they are riding on the sidewalk, I do, but I also know that they are not dealing with complete information and I feel a duty almost to give them a different way of doing things, and better information.

The ~50% of the population that would ride if they felt safer needs separated infrastructure. 10% will feel safer with bike lanes and 1% like me will ride no matter what is provided. (Data from Albany bike master plan (yep its a pdf), mentioned in previous post)

I know I can’t stop cyclists from riding on the sidewalk through the city and out in the rural routs, but perhaps if I focus on positive reinforcement of proper actions. "Dude its safer in the road with me" "hey, I almost didn't see you because I think you have a light out" I will be able to make some small change in the perception of cycling...

Making fully separated infrastructure, using bike sharrows, blocking off streets for motorists and making counter flow bike lanes is what will really bring cyclists to the roads though, only by doing that will you start to get the cyclists off the sidewalks of America.

Thanks to Olivia for mentioning the sidewalk riding in her comment from a couple posts back. I will talk about the theft rates that she seems to be seeing in a city with lots of bicycles, later too