bicycling to work thread

Discussion in 'Automotive' started by guignol, Jan 29, 2008.

  1. BocaFan

    BocaFan Member+

    Aug 18, 2003
    Queens, NY
    #176 BocaFan, Nov 4, 2013
    Last edited: Nov 4, 2013
    Been a while since I posted in this thread. Since my last post I joined the New York bike-share system and bike to work and back regularly (as long as the temperature is between 35 and 65).

    I agree with @JohnR that in the States, bicyclists are the menace. Now that my POV has changed from pedestrian/driver to cyclist, it hasn't improved my opinion of cyclists one bit. But I've also gained new appreciation for just how bad taxi drivers are. You'd think if you did only one thing all day, every day that you'd be good at it. But no!

    My favorite things about biking to work:
    1) kicking the back of taxis when they cut me off;
    2) doing near-miss fly-byes past unsuspecting pedestrians who are jaywalking and not paying attention (even when I can easily avoid them by a wide gap if I wanted to) to wake them the ******** up :D).
     
  2. guignol

    guignol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 28, 2005
    mermoz-les-boss
    Club:
    Olympique Lyonnais
    Nat'l Team:
    France
    ummm... pete... i know you're crazy (it says so right in your name!) but where the hell in the northern hemisphere (hence albany) is it 27°C in the morning right now? think, brother, think!
     
  3. guignol

    guignol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 28, 2005
    mermoz-les-boss
    Club:
    Olympique Lyonnais
    Nat'l Team:
    France
    surprisingly taxi drivers here are among the coolest road sharers... which is lucky because they get to use the great bus/bike lanes cropping up everywhere.

    but pedestrians, even jaywalkers, are not the enemy. learn to love them, dizzy souls they may be.

    as for cyclists... when they are good (or even just so-so) they are very very good... but when they are bad they are horrid!
     
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  4. BocaFan

    BocaFan Member+

    Aug 18, 2003
    Queens, NY
    Either look before crossing the street or cross on a green-light. Or both. But you can't jaywalk and not look. Or else I'm allowed to be a dick and do a near-miss fly-by, even if I have to go out of my way to do it.

    I don't think that's asking too much/being unreasonable.
     
    Dr. Wankler and guignol repped this.
  5. guignol

    guignol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 28, 2005
    mermoz-les-boss
    Club:
    Olympique Lyonnais
    Nat'l Team:
    France
    on second thought... you're right.

    about two years ago a lady bourgeoise bitch from hell walked right out in front of me, little red man and all, without even pretending to look... to avoid her i ended up going over the handlebars, and as i lay on the ground (it turned out i cracked a rib) she just stared at me without even interrupting her phone call. that's class.
     
  6. crazypete13

    crazypete13 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 7, 2007
    A walk from BMO
    Club:
    Toronto FC
    It was 15* here yesterday - and y'know - as soon as you cross our southern border it invariably gets 10-15 degrees warmer...

    *Celsius
     
  7. crazypete13

    crazypete13 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 7, 2007
    A walk from BMO
    Club:
    Toronto FC
    Taxis are the bane of cyclists everywhere in North America methinks

    My personal favourite is sneaking up on unsuspecting cars with open passenger windows and wishing the occupant(s) a good commute.
     
  8. Dr. Wankler

    Dr. Wankler Member+

    May 2, 2001
    The Electric City
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    As one who jaywalks multiple times on a daily basis (for reasons of personal safety, given how ignorant most drivers are about pedestrian rights of way at intersections) I agree with you. A totally reasonable request it is.
     
  9. BocaFan

    BocaFan Member+

    Aug 18, 2003
    Queens, NY
    To follow-up on this, I just had a doctor appt and my LDL (bad) cholesterol dropped 65 points since I became a member of the NYC bike-share system. Good times! :thumbsup:
     
    Dr. Wankler and guignol repped this.
  10. ceezmad

    ceezmad Member+

    Mar 4, 2010
    Chicago
    Club:
    Chicago Red Stars
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    When I first saw the picture I wondered why Citibank was getting into the biking business.
     
  11. cleansheetbsc

    cleansheetbsc Member+

    Mar 17, 2004
    Club:
    --other--
    Grant Wahl ‏@GrantWahl 5h
    1st snow of the year in NYC. Let's find out who the real Citibike users are.


    Collapse

    5:24 AM - 12 Nov 13 · Details
     
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  12. guignol

    guignol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 28, 2005
    mermoz-les-boss
    Club:
    Olympique Lyonnais
    Nat'l Team:
    France
    is GW a citybiker?
     
  13. BocaFan

    BocaFan Member+

    Aug 18, 2003
    Queens, NY
    I don't know, but yeah I took the subway this morning. I don't mind the cold, but not biking next to 4 lanes of traffic and over the Manhattan bridge when traction is dodgy at best.
     
  14. guignol

    guignol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 28, 2005
    mermoz-les-boss
    Club:
    Olympique Lyonnais
    Nat'l Team:
    France
    ah, something i forgot to post monday: since it was pouring down, not to mention the fact that i would be drinking rather heavily, i took the metro :oops: to vieux lyon to watch Potsdam-OL :) and the derby :ROFLMAO:. when i get back to my neighborhood metro station and start off for home i find out that some imp had undone both my brake noodles while my bike was in the rack.

    ya gotta feel the love there! :mad:
     
  15. Danks81

    Danks81 Member

    May 18, 2003
    Philadelphia
    First post on BigSoccer in ages (since 2008 I reckon). Thought I'd peek in and see what the site looked like. Gotta give some love to this thread. I've been bike commuting since 2010 when I moved out of Philadelphia and into the burbs. I've had short commutes (7 miles), a long bike commute (21 miles, each way), and in-betweens. It's been a huge blessing in my life for exercise and stress relief. Good on anyone for doing it. If you're considering doing it, give it a try. Doing it once doesn't mean you're married to it for the rest of your commuting life. If you're lucky like me you'll save $$$, lose weight, get fitter, and have an interesting hobby to show for it.

    And to paraphrase my old friend Own-Goal Hattrick, the cold is nothing but a scenario for different clothing. Riding when it's 20 degrees out is great stuff, just layer a bit.
     
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  16. guignol

    guignol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 28, 2005
    mermoz-les-boss
    Club:
    Olympique Lyonnais
    Nat'l Team:
    France
    what a coincidence this thread popped up again because i have updates on two old posts in it myself. 1) garbage can man from #140 chucked out his xmas tree yesterday. right in his strategic bikehater spot. i leaned it against his front door. after shaking all the needles off of it. 2) this morning i caught a strong whiff of ganga while going down the bike path and it was persistent for over a block. at the next big intersection it was clear who the dope fiend was...

    granarchist!
     
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  17. crazypete13

    crazypete13 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 7, 2007
    A walk from BMO
    Club:
    Toronto FC
    This made my day - awesome.
     
  18. BocaFan

    BocaFan Member+

    Aug 18, 2003
    Queens, NY
    Yeah, I've had a similar experience except for the part about moving to the 'burbs. I hated going to the gym for several reasons: the smell, the ambiance, the boredom ... but mostly the idea of working-out for an hour (plus changing, showering) and then commuting home for another 45 minutes all after a long-day... argh! So a good 2-2.5 hours are lost from the time I leave work until I get home.** But with bike-commuting, after your work-out you're already home! Huge bonus!

    ** That's why it annoys me when work-out enthusiasts come on TV and say stuff like "nobody is too busy to hit the gym ... it only takes up 20-30 minutes of your day". Bullshit!
     
  19. Dr. Wankler

    Dr. Wankler Member+

    May 2, 2001
    The Electric City
    Club:
    Chicago Fire

    If the gym is on the same block where you live, or if you have room and resources to set up your own gym, that's true. But man, for at least 95% of the population... it's not.
     
  20. guignol

    guignol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 28, 2005
    mermoz-les-boss
    Club:
    Olympique Lyonnais
    Nat'l Team:
    France
    i took my camera with me this morning because there have been cute billboards with a scottie dog all along my commute i wanted to get a snapshot of.

    but since st. valentine's is close, they've all been replaced by lise charmel lingerie ads. now lingerie ads are bad enough, but lise charmel's are definitely the worst. i'd paste a pic to show you just how horrible but our server tells me they're nsfw.

    those people who think france is a hedonistic nightmare obsessed with the female form probably visited here in early february. they're everywhere chief.
     
  21. guignol

    guignol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 28, 2005
    mermoz-les-boss
    Club:
    Olympique Lyonnais
    Nat'l Team:
    France
    now, all cyclists hate those motorists who just can't stay behind you for 5 seconds before making that right turn, and just HAVE to speed past and cut you off. when they don't use a turn signal it's worse. but when they do it the wrong way into a one-way street...

    but when all that happens and then they go ballistic screaming that it's all your fault (just for existing i suppose)... well, what would buddha say?
     
  22. guignol

    guignol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 28, 2005
    mermoz-les-boss
    Club:
    Olympique Lyonnais
    Nat'l Team:
    France
    http://www.cycling-embassy.dk/2015/11/25/cyclists-are-priceless-for-cities/

    article about how much bicycles do for the vitality of inner city businesses. which is what I've known all along but nice to see common sense getting some airplay in this day and age.
     
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  23. Dr. Wankler

    Dr. Wankler Member+

    May 2, 2001
    The Electric City
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    I think you guys might like this...

    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-35083392


    The Nobel Peace Prize 2016 should go to the bicycle - at least that is what two presenters on Italian state radio believe, and they have started a petition to push for it.

    The popular Caterpillar programme on Italy's Rai 2 network is gathering signatures to present to the Norwegian Nobel Committee in February.

    The presenters describe the humble two-wheeler as an "instrument of peace".

    They say the bicycle does not cause wars - often fought over oil...

    ...
    The plan is to deliver the completed petition to the Nobel Committee by bike relay.

    The petition has been launched amid a surge in the popularity of cycling - in sport, leisure and for commuting in cities...

     
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  24. BocaFan

    BocaFan Member+

    Aug 18, 2003
    Queens, NY
    Makes you wonder if there should just be an outright ban on cars in city centers. A bit late for this, granted. I guess such a rule needed to come about soon after cars were invented. But with the numbers presented in that article, it seems a car is utterly useless in city centers. Just needless congestion and noise, unhealthy, wastes time, adds pollution and, as this article highlights, bad for the economy.
     

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