So the other night I was riding home on Hackett. Hackett can be a little tight sometimes, especially during rush hour. This car passed me a little closer than I like, and I waved, and I muttered and smiled. Today I find this article about what you should do if you actually get hit by a car. In short:

IDENTIFY THE VEHICLE INVOLVED.
CALL THE POLICE.
OBTAIN PROMPT MEDICAL TREATMENT.
GATHER AND PRESERVE EVIDENCE.
DO NOT ATTEMPT TO NEGOTIATE YOUR OWN CLAIM.
CONTACT A QUALIFIED-EXPERIENCED ATTORNEY.

This came a couple days ago from Sarah in Albany:

Anyone have any suggestions for how to safely teach my son
to bike in traffic in Albany? He’s 8, and when we’re not on residential suburban streets (we live in Delmar) we’ve always had him ride on the sidewalk, which usually means we have to ride on the sidewalk too, which sucks for numerous reasons and certainly slows us down. He’s old enough to balk at riding on a tagalong — he wants to ride his own bike — but riding through Albany safely takes skills and awareness he just doesn’t have yet. (I bike to work into Albany and am comfortable with it, after years of being afraid to try, but I still don’t feel safe having him come with me.) Any ideas?

You can reply in the comments section. Thanks!

This came from the Albany Bicycle Coalition mailing list:

I am concerned about the bike thefts at the Honest Weight Co-Op and lack of good bike parking there for shoppers, memeber workers and paid employees. So why am I writing to ABC? I’m looking for support, ideas and info for how go about solving this problem.

I just returned to member work yeserday, 9/29, after a two week vacation and found no designated area in the back warehouse area for bike parking. People who work back there are asking that we not park bikes there and no one I spoke with had an alternative - Nate H. says he has no power. Rob at the front desk says talk to Cindi….

Claire Nolan suggests we ask that the bike rack be moved to one of the in front of the store parking spaces so I put that in the suggestion box. It’s a good idea but doesn’t address other issues. When I am in the store for an extended period I would be happier knowing my bike was safe and dry no matter what happens outside. I imagine this would be even more important for paid workers.

I plan to write a letter to the board addressing the issues of safety and sustainability and to find out who or what committee can make something happen. I would hope that others would write letters and make phone calls. And if anyone knows the chain of responsibility to make this more efficient and effective, please share.

– Rita Nolan

This came from NYBC’s Jennifer Clunie today:

Dear Cyclists,

NYBC has received a number of calls and inquiries re: the LONG BIKE Back event tomorrow (Saturday, September 27th). Like trusty mail carriers, Pearson & Pete have ridden through heavy rain, fierce winds, blistering sun, and treacherous road conditions (16 flats & counting) since their journey began early this summer to deliver the Share the Road message to communities across the country. Our event is on rain or shine! If the weather is inclement tomorrow afternoon and you opt not to ride, we still encourage you to show your support and attend the Welcome Reception and Talk from 5:30-6:30pm, happening in the warm dry space of the UAG Gallery on Lark St.

For those wishing to ride the last 15 miles in with Pearson, Pete, and Julia, meet at the corner of Dunnesville Rd. & Route 20 (Western Ave), Dunnesville, NY. If you’re looking to ride a shorter distance, two alternate locations that are easily accessible on Western Ave. are the Twenty Mall (intersection of Routes 20 & 155) and in front of the Bank of America (across from Stuyesant Plaza/Fuller Rd.) Claire Nolan, NYBC Board member, will be accompanying our cyclists and will pick up individuals at all 3 of these locations.

5:30pm-6:30pm: “The Long Bike Back” Reception/Preview Screening at the Upstate Artists Guild Gallery, 247 Lark Street Albany NY 12210, co-sponsored by NYBC and the Upstate Artists Guild. Join us for a warm welcoming reception and early preview screening of a segment of “The Long Bike Back,” after which our featured guests will speak briefly about their journey, including Pearson’s recovery, and the need for motorists to be aware of vulnerable road-users. $10 donation ($5 student/low-income); proceeds for the event would benefit NYBC’s Share the Road campaign to increase bicycle safety awareness.

See article published in Thursday’s Times Union: Life-changing crash sparks ride for awareness: Message is that cyclists, drivers must share road

NOTE: bicycle parking is available in front of UAG Gallery and Lark St. BID. For more information about the event, visit NYBC.net or longbikeback.com.

We look forward to having you join us tomorrow,

Jennifer

Many Albany-area RocBike readers know Andrew, the cyclist in this story. It really makes my blood boil:

Tall, pink bike provokes alleged low blow

By MARC PARRY, Staff writer
First published: Thursday, September 25, 2008

Andrew Franciosa pedals a giant pink bike all over town, so the UAlbany junior is used to taunts.

But a 260-pound driver punching him in the head?

It may be a new one in the annals of local anti-bike rage.

The alleged assault, first reported in the Albany Student Press, took place on a recent Wednesday, as Franciosa rode his fluorescent bike toward UAlbany on Fuller Road.

Robert Dames drove by and “some words were exchanged,” said Albany police spokesman Detective James Miller.

Words turned to fists: Unprovoked, Miller said, Dames punched Franciosa in the face.

“It looks like a case of the defendant thinking that the victim was taking up too much space on the roadway,” Miller said.

Vertical space, maybe. The student rides a tall bike that he built by welding two frames together.

After the alleged attack, Franciosa told the Albany Student Press that he had a bloody lip and it hurt to brush his teeth. He didn’t know what set off Dames, who was charged with misdemeanor assault.

“I think he was mostly offended by how cool it (the pink bike) was when he was driving a ‘92 Buick,” Franciosa told the paper.

The original story is here. It had a photo in the paper, but not in the online version.

Bruce Wilbur pointed out this post from No Impact Man:

AN OPEN LETTER TO NY STATE SENATOR JEFF KLEIN, WHO YESTERDAY CALLED ME A F—ING ASSH-LE AFTER NEARLY HITTING ME WITH HIS MERCEDES:

You’re never going to believe it folks, but today I had another close call on my bike, but this time the driver was New York State Senator Jeff Klein of the 34th Senate District in the Bronx. What follows is an open letter to the Senator which I will deliver to him today.

I am asking Senator Klein to meet with me and the Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives, the New York City organization that advocates for bikers and pedestrians. Since the Senator has now had first hand experience, we’d like to talk to him about policies that would help keep bikes and cars from tangling with each other.

Bloggers and journalists, please feel free to repost the letter in its entirety (being sure, of course, to attribute it to Colin Beavan at NoImpactMan.com).

Readers, please email this post to every New Yorker you know.

New York State citizens, please register your thoughts on the incident I will describe below with Senator Klein and the leader of the New York State Democrats. I will give contact details below. Please also ask Senator Klein to honor my request to meet with him.

The rest of the letter and all the relevant contact information is at Colin Beavan’s No Impact Man site.

If you’re in a hurry, you can reach Senator Klein at:

718-822-2049 or jdklein@senate.state.ny.us

BSNYC’s post from yesterday’s Links of the Day echoed my own feelings this week…sometimes the fact that I am only one wrong move away from a serious accident makes me pause. I remind myself that such a fact is true even when I’m not on a bike, but cycling ramps up the intensity and immediacy of that knowledge.

This week alone I’ve had several incidents that kicked up the adrenaline a bit. Funny thing is, they’re about equal in terms of whether they happened on a bike trail or on the street.

On the street, there’s been the usual…cars driving way too fast and too close, cars running a red light, cars backing out of driveways with no clue that I’m there. Oh, and cyclists on the wrong side of the road forcing me into traffic.

On the bike trail…again, some of the usual…cyclists rounding a curve without being prepared for me on the other side being the most common.

Then there was a very unusual instance: a pedestrian was walking in the middle of the trail (it’s a multi-use trail). I rang my bell a couple of times, and she froze in place…stopped walking, stood in the middle of the trail, and hunched her arms and shoulders as though she were trying to make herself smaller. I yelled, “Move to the right, please!” But she just stayed there. Fortunately, the trail was wide enough for me to go around her, and there were no other cyclists around.

All of this at the same time that my daughter has said that she’s willing to get back on a bike. Long-time readers of RocBike will know that Jason and I have a special and prior-to-RocBike unknown connection…he came to my assistance when my daughter was hit while biking several years back. I’ve written about how hard it was for me to overcome my fear and get back on a bike after that accident.

I am thrilled that she is ready to get back in the saddle. We will start with some easy trail rides and take it from there. I will put my own awareness of how quickly things can go wrong into trying to educate her about safe cycling. And, even though she’s 17, she will probably actually listen to me. She’s like that.

And I’ll try not to worry. Because life is always shorter than we want it to be. We can live in denial and fritter our time away because we think there’ll always be time in the future to do what we really want to be doing. Or we can live in fear and make ourselves crazy with worry and anxiety. Or we can do what I find the hardest and most uncomfortable of all—live in the full knowledge of the fact that my life and the lives of those I love will inevitably be shorter than I want them to be.

Cycling reminds me of that, and today, as I prepare to take my daughter out for a ride this weekend, I am grateful for the reminder.

Several members of Team RocBike are also members of the board or staff of the New York Bicycling Coalition. NYBC got some press this week in the Schenectady Gazette:

Police go easy on kids without helmets — Education seen as higher priority
Friday, August 22, 2008
By Jessica Harding
Gazette Reporter

CAPITAL REGION — After an 8-year-old boy was hit by a car while riding his bike in Amsterdam, his mother was ticketed for his violation of the state’s bicycle helmet safety law.

Amsterdam Police Officer Ariel Santiago said such instances are rare.

“We’re more about education,” he said Thursday.

Santiago said he frequently stops children in the city and tells them to walk their bicycle home and get a helmet or confronts parents about the importance of helmets.

The boy was taken to St. Mary’s Hospital with minor injuries, but many bicycle accident victims are not so lucky.

Statistics from the Brain Injury Association of New York State say that 96 percent of cyclists killed in 1996 were not wearing a helmet and 88 percent of brain injuries from cycling accidents could have been prevented by wearing a helmet. Furthermore, more children between the ages of 5 and 14 go to hospital emergency rooms for biking accidents than any other sport.

Read the rest of the article.

Bob from Liberty On Bikes passed this along from Ward 9 Common Council rep Jim Sano:

Folks,

Be on the lookout we seem to be experiencing some bicycle thefts. I chased two people away on my block last Friday and we had a bike taken off the porch(locked) on my street last night. I would advise if it’s a valuable bike to lock it up and store it in your garage or back porch and please keep an eye out and report all suspicious activity.

Jim Sano

Here’s my version of what I’d like News 10 NBC to do (yes, I’m on a bit of bike theft rant these days).

Dear News 10 NBC Editors:
On 18 August 2008, News 10 NBC ran a story about Mayor Robert Duffy’s “Zero Tolerance” crime policy. Part of the story featured footage of a Rochester police officer nearly running into a cyclist on a street in the 14621 neighborhood. Reporter Ray Levato cited this as an example of “zero tolerance” for crime.

To use this incident as an example of zero tolerance is destructive to safe and congenial use of the roadways for motorists and cyclists alike.

In this specific scenario, both used poor judgment; the cyclist by not wearing a helmet and not being more aware of the car on his left; the police officer by not signaling or looking back and fulfilling his legal responsibility to exercise “due care.” While both used poor judgment, only the police officer committed a crime; unfortunately, the cyclist could have paid with his life. As a regular bike commuter and occasional driver, I am all too aware that she with the heavier vehicle wins, regardless of who is breaking the law.

As to zero tolerance, I’d like to see the police address the rings of bike thieves roaming our city neighborhoods…three bikes were stolen from my neighborhood this weekend alone, including my own.

Instead of presenting cyclists as criminals, I urge News 10 NBC to explore two related issues: 1) bike theft–who’s committing it, how to prevent it, and information about R Community Bikes (http://www.mpnnow.com/lifestyle/x1542100972), where people in need can get free bicycles rather than buy stolen ones; and 2) safe and courteous procedures for sharing the road between drivers and cyclists.

Sincerely,
Julie White
Rochester, NY
writer for www.rocbike.com