From: Andy
Subject: Re: Cyclist down
Big Jonny:
Deaths such as this are never easy. We plan to have a memorial ride Sunday morning. For now, da Tour is cancelled, perhaps permanently. Da Tour has had a lot of support over the years, from shops like Yo Jimbo’s Garage and Upgrade. And then we have people like Mark Mattei of Cycle Smithy spouting off about how it shouldn’t be allowed to go on. Many people share his sentiment, but fail to understand that for many of the people participating in events like The Tour da Chicago, the reward isn’t the thing you get at the end. It’s the ride itself, the camaraderie, experiencing the city in a different way.We were planning on hosting the NACCC in Chicago, and I hope this doesn’t have too much of a negative impact on putting that event on, which unlike da Tour, will require cooperation with the city.
Link to another “news” story:
abclocal.go.com
I don’t even know what to say after watching that video.
“Bicycles dont kill people, cars kill people” – This guy could not sound more like an idiot.
I cannot even form my thoughts after watching that.
Do too many people drive cars? Yes.
Should everyone ride a bike in Chicago? Yes.
Do cars hit cyclists? Yes.
Is it always their fault? No.
Is it realistic to ask everyone to ride their bike? No.
Was I almost killed with a buddy last weekend by someone texting and driving at the same time? Yes. Turns out, we knew her. Awkard for her..
Does that give anyone the right to run a red light on a 6 way intersection – car or bike? No. Are you that narcisstic to think you have the right, no matter what the situation? Everyone needs to take turns…we are trying to run a society here.
Do you need to follow traffic signals for your own safety? Yes.
I guess I am just a heartless jerk. I just really, really feel bad for that person driving the car. I am sure there will be years of psycotherapy in store for them.
I am sorry that this guy is dead, it sucks. But too many people (especially the dude in the video) like to try and make this out like a “regular” cyclist down story. The laws for red lights are for everyone. He knew the risks of this type of behavior. I might be heartless like the guy above, but if there is anyone that has any type of responsibility in this, it is the rider, he knew what he was getting into. I do feel sorry for the driver, they have to live with the what ifs for the rest of their life (my grandma had to as well, hit a pedestrian in the 50’s, she died 2002). If I was the people that “organized” this event, I would lay low, the cyclist’s family might feel that the “organizers” have blame, and therefore need to pay up.
Just my two rupees.
Did that idiot actually say we shouldn’t “blame the victim”? If you carelessly disregard the laws designed to protect your safety, you are no “victim”.
If anyone is a “victim”, it’s the driver. They were following all the laws and respecting others’ safety, then inadvertently end up part of an assisted suicide.
If someone in a SUV blew a red light and hit this guy as he had the right-of-way, then yes this would be a real tragedy.
If you’re running in an alleycat and are blowing reds and going the wrong way down one way streets and all that nonsensical shit (That I openly admit I have done and continue to do, weather permitting…) then it;s your own damn fault.
SUV’s suck ass without question, but to try and put this man’s death in the context of why USV’s should be outlawed and cyclists should be better protected; of how equal enforcement of the laws that are in place and how stricter ones protecting bicycle commuters are needed… well that is just fucking the rest of us who ride, now isn’t it?
Sucks that he died, but he died pulling a shit move in a city not known for it’s ‘bike-friendly’ culture. Shame on him and on anyone trying to make this the law-breakers fault.
He woulda dies if he got hit by a 2-door civic, something tells me. Cars > Human skull. Period.
The news story is really a case of shit reporting. Neither Mark nor Alex were directly involved (in fact, nobody directly involved has been quoted in any of the local news sources). Alex pretty much has a standard spiel, consistent if nothing else, which when used in this context certainly has garnered a lot of criticism.
I have pointed out many times that we have ran this series for 9 years in Chicago, only in winter (summertime sees racers participating in sanctioned events in the area). Hell, during the Stairmaster last year (racing around downtown on Saturday night involving running up and down stairs), we had cops cheering us on.
Thinking about it, if I had to guess what race would have led to someone getting iced it would have been the Stairmaster. Downtown on a Saturday is busy as all get out.
There’s no way to say whether a different car would have caused a different outcome. That said, it has also been documented that SUVs, with higher ground clearance and higher bumpers, do dole out more punishment then smaller passenger vehicles.
“We were planning on hosting the NACCC in Chicago, and I hope this doesn’t have too much of a negative impact on putting that event on, which unlike da Tour, will require cooperation with the city.”
Are you kidding me? NOW you want cooperation with the City? Andy your grasp of reality was slim and now it is nil. “Negative Impact”, what utter nonsense. This is a NEGATIVE event, period. Think about your culpability during your memorial ride.
When you ask why people perceive bikes to be a toy, it is because children ride them.
Far from ‘spouting off’, Mark Mattei is absolutely right, and he has been a better friend and mentor to cyclists in this town than you can ever hope to be.
Sounds like the talking head on the news here in NJ last night, two kids were either walking or skateboarding along the side of a road and got mowed down by someone in a mini-van and the big statement of the report was that they’re not sure if they were wearing the helmets they found at the scene…
I doubt that I need to comment further on the insipidness of that.
…so, alex wilson (w/ the “victim” comment) of west town bikes (non-profit) does do good things for cycling in his chicago neighborhood by offering bike wrenching & building classes for kids & others, but i think his ‘passionate’ involvement has allowed him to develop a less than real world, myopic viewpoint…
…take a look around you, dude…you advocate better laws to protect cyclists but you essentially applaud scofflaw cycling behavior…
…we, as cyclists face some pretty stiff & dangerous odds, no doubt, but w/ that in mind, if you don’t ride intelligently, what the fuck do you expect & just as importantly, what the fuck are you teaching your cycling students ???…
…just askin’…