Bark and bite

The sun has gone down and there is a nice breeze blowing. It will be cool tonight and I'll sleep well. It will be cool tomorrow and then it will heat up through the weekend. I'm determined to be on my bike as much as possible.

I had a very nice commute to work today. It was cool and I rode into the rising sun which illuminated the cheat wheat along the side of the road. I'll try to get a photo of this but I left my little camera at work and don't want to haul the big one on my bike. I'm blessed to have such a nice route to work. I really feel sorry for those poor commuters who have no options or give themselves none. They are stuck in inside those SUVs, many making payments on vehicles they can't afford while gas prices rise, and they have no options. It becomes their lifestyle and they have built their whole world around it. Most people can't imagine going anywhere without getting into an SUV, truck or car.

It is almost as if the gas powered vehicle has become a prosthetic, an obscene extention of our healthy but otherwise dormant bodies. The scale of this disability is pandemic as this car crazy culture that we have created for ourselves is slowly spreading around the globe.

And it isn't just our physical health that is in atrophy. Our mental health is also in decline as a result of this car culture. While we are in traffic we adopt aggressive behavioir. Road rage. Everyone knows what I'm talking about to some degree. It touches all of us. A car or SUV can transform the otherwise meek into a vicious road warrior, who has little tolerance fo anyone in their path. Bicyclists become sub-human without even the status of a fit adversary. Nothing more than an insect on the windscreen. I've been yelled at, had things thrown at me, cars have swerved at me and I've even had some kids shoot a bee-bee gun at me. Thankfully it hit me in the butt and not on my bike. And also I did get hit by a lady in a car who just turned into me. I was lucky it didn't crush my ankle and lucky I had my helmet on or I would have been scalped as I landed upside down in the gravel.

Another time I had a very old lady in a Pontiac just scream her head off at me, I think, because I was over the shoulder line. There was nothing but gravel on the shoulder and she had two lanes going in her direction to be in with no other traffic. But she had to change lanes. I looked over to her and motioned, "what?" I couldn't hear what she was saying as her windows were rolled up. It would have been funny if I thought she was rational enought to be driving.

I remember thinking: You are an old lady, you have plenty of room with two lanes. Would you be so courageous if you were out of your car and looking up at me? Would you still scream in my face? I might grab you by the throat and take away your false teeth.

Just kidding. I'd never do that. :) But her bark was as bad has her bite. She did have some teeth in her 3000 lbs Pontiac. I found that out the hard way when I got hit. And this old lady didn't have her emotions in check.

Cars do empower people beyond reason. Anyone who ever spent any real amount of time getting around on a bike would see the other side of things. But most people will never see outside of the bubble.

But who knows? Perhaps cyclists are actually getting more respect these days. Motorists seem to be more tolerant lately of me anyway.

And we as cyclists can do our part: Never loose your cool. Always hand signal. Don't zip through stop signs.

And motorists can keep this in mind: If you hit a cyclist in the state of Washington, it is like hitting a pedestrian. You will most likely pay. Believe me as I can tell you first hand. So keep your cool and use your head.