I am a bad person.

[tomca]

I thought it was funny, he didn't.

I observed a cyclist riding on peak hour traffic this morning right next to a bike path, and just as I commented to my coworker about his level of intelligence, an instant of Darwinism occurred. Yep, collected by a car. :laugh:

No not seriously injured, but hopefully knocked some sense into him, as he was lying 3m from a nice bikepath

[fishingnut]

10 points for you buddy

[noname]

:laugh: ! ahhh durrr

[tugger]

they r doing road works near my place at the moment and they still ride on the road through there while there is a bike path next to the road very little room to pass by the oncoming traffic let alone having to share it with bike clubs

[yoyo]

That's pretty funny.

Someone's dad, brother, son....potentially getting maimed or killed.

Sooper funny.

[fishingnut]

yep sure is

[tomca]

I know your a cyclist Yoyo, and riding my motorbike I accept a high level of risk riding on the road, so anything to reduce the risk is smart, like riding on the specially constructed path out of harms way. He is at least as much to blame as the motorist for that one

[fishingnut]

tomca wrote:

I know your a cyclist Yoyo, and riding my motorbike I accept a high level of risk riding on the road, so anything to reduce the risk is smart, like riding on the specially constructed path out of harms way. He is at least as much to blame as the motorist for that one

excelent advise there tomca !

now go make sure them legs are sooper smooth yoyo

[tugger]

if they only used common sense where there is bike paths consructed by concils at great expense after being lobbied by bike uses to build them then they don't use them

[yoyo]

There's no doubt it's not the brightest act in the world to be not utilising a readily accessible bike path along your route....i dont claim that all cyclists are automatically highly intelligent...... there are some really dopey m*therfarrkers out there....

But y'know...someone gets cleaned-up, maybe someone's kids have to grow up without a dad, a father who never thought he would outlive his son is making funeral arrangment for him, a wife who looked forward to a fulfilling marriage is now caring for a quadraplegic fulltime........

I can see the irony in the event, but the potential ramifications are not funny.

I have been hit by a car (head-on, driver at fault, DUI). did about $8K worth of damage to his brand new car. I felt sorry for the guy in a way, the poor pr*ck thought he'd killed me. He wasn't laughing. If I was conscious i wouldnt have been either.

[Whiskers]

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Suck S@#t I HATE cyclists

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

[Feral]

Yep I think its funny. Yoyo, you have to look at it this way, the future organ donors on motor bikes are not doing enough, so we need these cyclists riding in peak hour traffic to take up the slack.

Its there choice to ride in stupid dangerous places, and I am sure all the people waiting for kidneys and livers appreciate it.

Interesting fact, the leading cause of hospitialisation in middle age men is not heart attacks or strokes, its accidents on push bikes.

You were very lucky to survive your accident so well, but I dont really think your family would have been to worried about who was in the wrong if you didn't make it.

Me I parked my motorbike up after some tool ran over the front wheel cutting a corner while I was stopped at a stop sign. I took the hint, removed myself from the future organ donors group.

[dhess]

It's not a case of the cyclist being stupid or not for riding on the road when there was a bike way available.

Someone correct me if I am wrong but under traffic laws cyclists have just as much of a right to be on the road as any other vehicle.

Don't get me wrong there are plenty of cyclists that ride recklessly and endanger themselves and others. You don't mention who was at fault but if the cyclist was doing nothing wrong but using the road I fail to see anything funny about him being hit by a car.

[Feral]

Yes sure is Dom, also their right to have "I told you I was in the right" on their headstone as well.

[dassa]

TOM YOUR A BAD BOY but that is fu***ng funny and if cyclist were smart they would be driving car's or catching a bus. :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

cheers dassa

[dhess]

The problem as I see it isn't with cyclist taking extreme risks by using the road (they are), but with the attitude of Australia's motoring public.

Some european countries have a very high percentage of cyclists with out anywhere near the accident rates.

It amazes me how often motorists pass cyclists uneccessarily close when theey have several lanes available to them or fail to give way to cyclists at intersections etc.

BTW I am not a cyclist. Not even close. It wasn't long ago that I was one of thos people that hpught the stars on the bonnets of mercedes were crosss hairs for cyclists and pedestrians.

[Whiskers]

Went to redcliffe for a swim on sunday and on anzac ave there is a good metre and a half of road between the curb and white line, So where was this knob riding? On the road side of the line! You have got to be kidding me! If cyclists want rights on the road they can pay the bloody ridiculus regos motorist have to pay!

I hate cyclists like rude hates cats!

Oh wait I can feel somthing coming...

Oh here it comes.

I hate cyclists, I want to hit them turn them into picklets.

I hate cyclists, There tights are gay, There always in my way!

I hate cyclists, They think there green, When I catch one I'll puch him in the spleen.

I hate cyclists, Ohhhh you get the idea.....

[tomca]

Dom, no doubt at all the car was in the wrong.

But I have had cars rear end me in a truck, a semi and even a backhoe. Its the irony of where it happened that amuses me. If some shiela applying makeup doesn't see me slowing down in a 42.5 tonne truck, what hope does a cyclist have?

[yoyo]

feral, your info about hospitalisations is grossly incorrect.

If i had been killed of course the issue of fault would be an important one !

feral that's like me saying your son crosses the road 20m from a pedestrian crossing, even though he knoows he should use the crossing, it's right there. He gets cleaned up by a car.

1. haha isnt that funny. 2. you wouldnt care about what happened/the issue of fault.

It's not funny, it's a ridiculous notion...

yes cyclists are permitted onthe road. they are a vehicle on the road and should be treated as such (ie. if infringed upon from behind, the vehicle behind is always at fault.)

Anyway....this sh*t goes 'round and 'round and 'round even on cycling forums.........

All i would ask is just think about it for a second..... if you think you're clever and 'accidentally' knock a cyclist off and kill them, you're going to go for a stint upstate and you're going to have to pick up the soap in the shower....is it really worth it??

[fishingnut]

LMFAO hahahahaha

[elops]

I ride a bicycle because I dont have a licence.

I used to ride a motorbike thats why I dont have a licence.

I ride the bicycle on the road only when there is no other option.

Riding a bicycle on the road is a nightmare cant understand why anyone chooses to do it.

I hate cyclists even now I am one.

[Feral]

yoyo wrote:

feral, your info about hospitalisations is grossly incorrect.

It is correct Yoyo, its from a study done in Canberra, released a few weeks ago. Also included was the info that 98% of cycling accidents are not reported to police as they are required to be. (Yes I listen to to much Radio Australia)

Yoyo I would never deliberately run over a cyclist, nor even do something silly to scare them as I have seen others do. They just get no sympathy from me, being stupid enough to be riding in peak hour traffic, or on busy roads. Same level of sympathy as drunk drivers, people who get in the car with them knowing they are drunk, kids who get in to cars with other kids who speed etc etc. Its all about life's choices, I'll defend your right to make them, just dont expect sympathy from me when you have to pay the piper because you made a bad one.

The bloke in Tomca's story made his choice, weighed up the potential consequences and took the risk. He paid the piper, gets no sympathy.

PS 20m from a crossing you are allowed to cross the road without using the crossing, the requirement is within 20m. If you get run over you made the choice. Kids are different, they have yet to learn these things, my eldest, it would be his fault, my youngest, no , she is still to young to make that choice, it would be my fault. Either way, yes, I wouldn't really care who was at fault.

No a child getting hurt, anyones child is not funny, but every one hates cyclists they are perceived as arrogant, lawbreaking, and a few other unprintables, so when they pay the piper people consider it funny. Same as jet ski riders and volvo drivers. Is it fair, no, is it reality, yes.

[fishingnut]

very well said feral

[tomca]

Very articulate response there Feral.

I'll add the example of morons jumping into Polar bear/tiger/lion enclosures and getting mauled. Yes they get hurt, but we all laugh just a little on the inside

[fishingnut]

or people being swooped by magpies, some of the most hilarious things to ever see yet these people could lose an eye! :laugh: :laugh:

[Feral]

Yoyo, here is a link to the shortened transcript version of the story I listened to to get my info. It went for about 30 minutes the original program.
/>http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/12/04/2761546.htm

[yoyo]

the full version of the radio segment is here ;

http://www.abc.net.au/rn/backgroundbriefing/stories/2009/2758349.htm

"as many as..... car crashes and heart attack.." is not "the leading cause..."

I'd be interested to get a hold of that study, it's based out of the ANU and sounds like it may only be pulling data from ACT databases.

Road accidents are not all required to be reported to police. For eg. if i hit a pothole and come off the bike and break my arm, i dont have to report it to the police, even if i get an ambulance and go to hospital.

[Feral]

Yes you do, if it was a road accident that involved any injury it must be reported.
/>http://www.legalaid.qld.gov.au/Legal+Information/Cars+and+driving/Car+accidents.htm

The data is only from Canberra, apparently that is the only place in Australia they can do it, because it has one police district and one hospital, making it directly comparable (IE you cant have gone elsewhere for treatment)

[yoyo]

and yes fishingnut, even i find people on bikes getting swooped by maggies pretty amusing...even if it's me getting worked over by one i have a bit of a chuckle to be honest......

[benno573]

Hmmm..... Big can of worms here. I ride a pushy to work a couple of days a week purely for fitness. I ride along Logan rd in peak hour traffic coz I have to, then I am on the se bikeway all the way until stones corner. I then have to ride along Logan rd again at woolloongabba which I hate and despise totally. Unfortunately, I have to. Either that or Ipswich rd... F$&k that. I follow all road rules, use hand signals on turns and ride as far left as practical (shoulders are often covered in gravel, glass and other fun stuff to ride on, cars don't realize this) and still people in cars crack the shits. I have had people reach out of usually work trucks and hit me on the back of my helmet for a laugh. Real funny you tossers. Why? Seriously... Why the f would you bother? Yes it scares the sh!t out of me. It could also cause me to fall off and be injured or worse. Get a life.

I know many cyclists are wankers, riding 2 abreast, whatever, not all are. I just want to get to work in one piece. Under the law cyclist are perfectly entitled to ride on the road, high and mighty car drivers who claim they need rego need to have a look at themselves in the mirror. Cyclist do no damage to the roads and even if rego was introduced, car drivers would carry the same attitudes regardless. I think cyclists should be made to attend a course on road rules and consideration before being set lose on the roads. 99% would pass. People just focus on the 1% who wouldn't.

The guy in the story, while perhaps not intelligent, does have every right to use the road and the car driver is definitely in the wrong. I think a bit of common sense on BOTH sides would be great.

Stepping off my soapbox ................... Now.

[yoyo]

Feral, a bike is not a car and not all bike accidents on the road involve cars.

[Do$tylz]

sorry Yo-yo.. it is pretty funny. No one got killed, thus it can be funny. If Tomca had written "and the guy had to be taken to hospital for a broken spine" or "and the dudes head went through the window, don't think he'll make it"... then correct, not funny.

Its like watching all those youtube/viral videos that you watch of people getting hurt and laughing your head off. Same thing.. except in real life.

And also.. I'm not a fan of bike riders. All this whinging about equal rights on the road. Sorry but your "equal rights" will lose out to a hummer.. even a Fiat 500 will win. Its just stupid to do it and expect complete safety, let alone push the boundaries.

If I kept drifting my super-dooper rice rocket around you local neighbourhood at 12pm for months and then one night you hear a "bang" at the end of a long skid... of course you'll have a giggle to yourself.

fishingnut wrote:

tomca wrote:

I know your a cyclist Yoyo, and riding my motorbike I accept a high level of risk riding on the road, so anything to reduce the risk is smart, like riding on the specially constructed path out of harms way. He is at least as much to blame as the motorist for that one

excelent advise there tomca !

now go make sure them legs are sooper smooth yoyo

:laugh: that call actually made me laugh out loud.

[Feral]

Yeah, not quite accurate with memory there, but I'm gettin old you have to make allowances. Interesting story / article though!

[Davo_Dinkum]

when people get hurt and its not serious ,its funny ,its the Aussie way .

as for bikes ,i haven't rode 1 for 14 years ,but i used to and used to ride the road a lot .

i give them a wide berth ,i don't want to scare /know a person off a bike .

i treat motor bike and push bikes the same way ,pretty much .

they don't have a steel shell around them protecting them .

i would ride a bike on the road again ,but these days u have to wear helmets .

jokin ,after 14 years i'm just to flat and lazy to ride a bike .

i used to wear a helmet back in the old days ,only cause it hurt like hell last time i hit my head on the road .

so as long as the person on the bike is doing the right thing and so are the people in the cars all good hey .

i'm to old ,fat and lazy to ride on the road and its scary to be on a bike on the road i still remember it .

now what pisses me off is little punks on a motor bike no helmet or gear or rego etc and there racing around the suburbs and down the road .

i had the same little punk cut in front of me at a roundabout in one car ,then later that day he flew down the road and did the i'm going as fast as a car and ride in front of me ,i was in another car .this is on opposite sides of the suburb .

this really pisses me off .

[benno573]

Do$tylz wrote:

sorry Yo-yo.. it is pretty funny. No one got killed, thus it can be funny. If Tomca had written "and the guy had to be taken to hospital for a broken spine" or "and the dudes head went through the window, don't think he'll make it"... then correct, not funny.

Its like watching all those youtube/viral videos that you watch of people getting hurt and laughing your head off. Same thing.. except in real life.

And also.. I'm not a fan of bike riders. All this whinging about equal rights on the road. Sorry but your "equal rights" will lose out to a hummer.. even a Fiat 500 will win. Its just stupid to do it and expect complete safety, let alone push the boundaries.

If I kept drifting my super-dooper rice rocket around you local neighbourhood at 12pm for months and then one night you hear a "bang" at the end of a long skid... of course you'll have a giggle to yourself.

fishingnut wrote:

tomca wrote:

I know your a cyclist Yoyo, and riding my motorbike I accept a high level of risk riding on the road, so anything to reduce the risk is smart, like riding on the specially constructed path out of harms way. He is at least as much to blame as the motorist for that one

excelent advise there tomca !

now go make sure them legs are sooper smooth yoyo

:laugh: that call actually made me laugh out loud.

dostylz, laughing at a dickhead is fine. I did when a guy doing circles on my street found a pothole and blew his diff to bits. The assumption is being made by many in this thread that all cyclist are dickheads. They aren't. I'm a dickhead for different reasons, granted, and many on afo would agree. Sure the ones that are dickheads are indeed dickheads but the majority are not. If I'm riding along minding my own business the last thing I want is to be hassled by a car driver purely because he hates bike riders in general. It's akin to saying I hate all people of a certain racial/religious/sexual orientation just because there are some in the category I don't like. If someone is a dickhead, sure, take the piss, however, a serious injury regardless of how it happens is not a laughing matter. Yoyo shaving his legs is funny though...

[Davo_Dinkum]

silky smooth

[Feral]

Yoyo, is it true that cyclists shave their legs coz they dont want it to hurt when the bandaids gets pulled off? :evil:

[Eug]

road cyclist here... i'd have to say some cyclists are wankers, too slow, weaving in and out, crossing when lights are red, not indicating, no helmet, no lights, etc.

but i do agree with what was mentioned earlier, european countries have a very high percentage of cyclists with very little incidence. in australia we such arrogant drivers who think they own the road you notice it even when you drive a car, weaving in and out, speeding, overtaking without indicating, talking on the phone, etc.

i think it's both cyclists, motorbike riders and car drivers, we/they are all too self absorbed in what they are doing they dont give a flying f*ck about the guy in front or behind irrespective of mode of transport. if we were all a little more considerate of one another we'd have less accidents on both sides.

[Dinodadog]

On a road with a single lane each way, how many abrest can cyclists ride when in a group.

[yoyo]

State laws are different in each state re that dino.

cyclists can ride two-abreast legally. Sometimes it is actually safer to do this on some stretches of road as it takes away the option of some motorists trying to squeeze through, half in their lane and half in the other.

Courtesy on alot of stretches of roads (and i speak from the perspective of my own group), is that we would go single file where possible to reduce impact on other road users.

But like i said, sometimes taking the whole lane (legally and usually only for relatively short periods) takes away the 'sneak by' option and either delays the motorists day by maybe 5 seconds in total journey time, or makes them do a full and correct overtake as they would with another car.

aside from some cyclists doing stupid things, cars trying to sneak past rather than do a full overtake is prob the main cause of accidents and near-misses i have seen out there.

You're insurance company is not going to be too happy with you when they're being asked to foot the bill for broken arms, collarbones and $50K in bikes.... (if it's a group and you take down one, there's a very high chance you'll take down a number of those behind them as well)