Well I know I don't, but do I sound like I do? Am I a rite self pitying git!!
I know in theory the more I cycle on busy roads the more I relax, and it becomes 'natural', but in practice I just aint there yet :( And it doesn't stop the fact that the more time on busy roads I spend the more likely I am, to have an accident. (if you follow?) Its like I could spend all day learning to cross a road, and become the best ever road crosser. Or I could wrap myself up in a cotton wool ball, and stay home and be safer still.
I just don't know anymore?? I mean life has been good to me both before and after my disabling car crash, 22years ago. Every part of my life has been a bit of a challenge, but I love that bit. If cycling had been easy, I wouldn't have had to attend CFH, on a weekly basis, becomming a Health Champ, getting my ICDH. And through cycling I've met some of the best folk I've ever met. and I'd just not have appreciated what I was actually doing. I just think sometimes I've had one near death experience, and I do infact love my life (even though I sound like a miserable b* s'times) maybe I should value it more, and not take any chances.
Negative thoughts, made me take a cab to see my Mum today, but I did cycle to the chemist and School, without drama.
It's crap that you even have to feel guilty about having these doubts, if cycling was taken seriously in this country we would have proper segregated infrastructure like the Dutch and it wouldn't be an issue. (There was even a point in history where we built decent off road cycle lanes). Vehicular cycling is non-inclusive by definition as it scares the shit out of anyone with the slightest imagination. Unfortunately the majority of car drivers have never ridden a bike on the road and haven't the faintest idea how their actions are so dangerous. It is a sad fact that asking cyclists to "share the road" is about as ridiculous as dumping a toddler in the middle of a bunch of teenage lads playing football and telling them to "play nicely".
ReplyDeleteBut on a lighter note the only way I have found of dealing with this crazy situation is to a adopt a more fatalist attitude of "when your times up, it's up" and just get on with life in the meantime. Let's face it falling down the stairs can be fatal (and I've done that so many times I must be running short of lives!)
Oh dear, Sheffield cycle chic, I used to live and cycle to school by those great off-road cycle paths built when dear old Hoare Beleisha and his chums were looking enviously at Herr Schickelgruber's autobahns and trying to mimic them in the UK. They were rubbish and still are rubbish - especially on the A4 where they now have buses pulling in to the bus laybys built on the cycle path - I use the carriageway - it's generally safer!
ReplyDeleteI prefer the delivery through numbers approach - with Caroline firing up so many people to hop on their bikes and ride it won't take long before even the most short sighted of drivers can manage to miss the presence of cyclists on the street, and those charged with designing streets won't be able to ignore or offer grossly inadequate road layouts to the mass of cyclists who know where they want to ride and will ride there because they have become such a significant part of the traffic mix.
Yes cycle paths and lanes will be needed but more in the way that the railway has (or had) fast, slow and goods lines, so that when there are lost of fast trains they do not keep having to slow down for the slow and goods trains, and it there are a lot of goods trains they can get a track where the are not stopped frequently to let fast trains overtake. Yet when the level of all traffic is low we can manage with just a single track railway. Likewise when there is a massive volume of cycle traffic it makes a lot of sense to provide a special facility to move this efficiently as a separate and uniform type of traffic.
Until then the key option is to press for 20mph as a speed limit at which all modes can mix - including pedestrians (many of whom can accelerate to around 20mph - fast running - to get clear in a surprising number of situations).
So support Rod King and the 20's Plenty campaign, to make this the default speed for any place where people may be walking about.