I’ve barely ridden a bike on the streets for years now.
If I ride a bike in the city and stop for stop signs which are on nearly every corner now, I fear I’ll look like a wimp (not to mention lose a lot of momentum up and down hills).
If I don’t stop, or do the other casual things I see cyclists do, I fear I could be cited.
Are car laws generally not enforced against bikes, or do riders just accept the slim or considerable probability of getting busted? Need some street smarts here.
Thanks.
If there are no cars: I do not unclip but I will significantly slowdown.
If there is at least one car: I will unclip.
“Are car laws generally not enforced against bikes” A cop gave me a warning once because I did not stop @ a stop sign on my bike.
Obviously @ certain stop signs, cars do not stop either…
Fred.
Thanks–but since I don’t have the temperament to guess when bureaucrats* would use my behavior as an excuse for revenue, I’d really like to marry a fast sportscar driver and satisfy my adventure that way.
*Note that I said bureaucrats, not police. Not all police act as revenooers against those who aren’t hurting anyone. And while I know such good cops wouldn’t want to be compared to the truly heroic ones, I’d like to suggest that they be honored in their own right as well, if anyone has any ideas for doing so.
solution:
learn to do a track stand, then you can stop completely, and look like a badass (or skilled hipster at least)
.
Sounds good.
Hope I still like it when I learn just what a track stand is.
that is when you come to a complete stop
and stay balanced on the bike. no unclipping, no feet down.
Or slow down to a very slow roll, then stand up and pedal. Looks like you really did stop.
My rule is, I stop on my bike as much as the average car stops. Which generally means I slow down and then roll on through.
Thanks all!
Cyclists always complain about drivers. If you want to be treated like other vehicles, you have to obey the same rules. You can’t break all the rules and then expect to be treated the same.
It’s not that much of a burden to stop at traffic lights and stop signs and obeying traffic rules is best for cyclists in the long run.
That’s what I do. It qualifies as a legal stop. Just don’t fall over because that is soooo uncool.
-Robert
Before I drove I complained about cyclists who gave me a bad name.
It’s not that I was trying to get out of respecting traffic laws and being safe; I judt didn’t want to be ultranerdy in my respect, even as I want to avoid tickets.
But with a growing number of stop signs obviously being protected or subsidized by some special interest, it seems perfect respect would be more burdensome these days–especially on hills.
I should think that bureaucrats who tell us that we’re destroying the planet by burning fuels would want to make biking easier, not harder.