Hazards of gaggle of cyclists

[FJRider]

I see on the intramaweb tonight an incident where a cyclist is in serious condition in hospital after being involved in a collision on the Coro peninsula. He was taking part in a K2 race when tangled up in a pileup involving a milk tanker and a ute driver. In the article one of the riders blamed an impatient ute driver's overtaking manoevre (obviously behind the cyclists) while the tanker was coming in the opposite direction.
"Cycling organisations say it is time to consider a law which holds drivers responsible for collisions involving cyclists ...Stephen McKernon of the Cycling Advocates' Network says current road rules put cars and cyclists in the way of each other, causing unnecessary accidents." And further..."Police have found and spoken to the ute driver, but suggested that [the injured cyclist's] evasive action was to avoid cyclists, not the vehicle. They themselves claimed that the cyclists were 'using the road as if they owned it' - but it remains their word against those of the competitors".
Surely there must be other locations that large groups of cyclists can "race" without being a hazard to other road users. I am a firm believer in advocating patience on the road but sometimes it's real hard to dig deep for when you get stuck with very few overtaking options. That is not in any way shape or form to absolve the overtaking driver if their actions were directly responsible for the injuries sustained, but gee, there are two sides to every story. It will be interesting to see what the outcome of this is in terms of anything being done to minimise it happening again. Realistically though nothing will probably be done until there are more deaths, and even then I wouldn't hold my breath.

So how come cyclist's are allowed to race on public (open) roads... but we're NOT... ??? the rules apply to all...don"t they...

[Shadows]

So how come cyclist's are allowed to race on public (open) roads... but we're NOT... ??? the rules apply to all...don"t they...

LOL. Great minds.

[Gremlin]

I can see it from both sides, I used to do competitive team time trialling on the road, plenty of open road riding for training, now I am a biker. Like any industry, there are good guys, and wankers (not saying anybody from the story is in either camp). Some cyclists are good guys, respect other road users, go into single file vehicles approach etc.

Likewise, you have cyclists who think they own the road, will deliberately block traffic from passing (seen it) and refuse to show any consideration for other road users (once a decent sized ride came up behind a group, we were all in line, the pack continued to use the whole of our side of the road).

On the other hand, same applies for motorists. Some are very considerate, giving space. Others think its a game of how close they can get (I had a couple of incredibly close calls, with cars almost clipping me). Can also understand that, if the cyclists were using the whole of their side, in a large pack, it would be worse than overtaking a car (car is shorter to overtake).

So where does that leave this? I'd want more information before laying blame on anyone.

[PirateJafa]

Who is keen for a race around the Coromandel then?

If we crash because we're acting like tools, hey it's not our fault eh?

[Boob Johnson]

What I don't understand is why cyclists are allowed to "race" on an open public road. The race face everybody has on ensures they will break numerous road rules every time, putting other road users at risk (usually because they have to take evasive action to avoid the cunts).

No other road user would get away with it. Why should they?

You can be charged with "drunken in charge of a bicycle" yet they allow them as you say "with race face on" on public roads. I've seen the bastards taking blind corners 3/4 abreast racing on open public roads & even fully getting aggressive at passing drivers as they toot & attempt to go around them like a pack of bloody mindless sheep.

Wouldn't be a lot different to how some car drivers view motorcyclists from time to time except we don't go so slow to hold up other road users...





unless you're a member of the Ulysses

[AlBundy]

What annoys me is two cyclists thinking they own the road and riding abreast... Then getting upset when traffic gets close...

But really, this is the same debate every time one of them gets hit... I don't think it's fair to hold the driver/rider of the vehicle responsible, unless it was a blatant attempt to take them out... Accidents happen and I'd say often, the cyclists are equally to blame...

[Forest]

The ute driver sounds like a real arsehole. How hard would it have been for him to wait for a clear passing opportunity?

String him up.

[Slyer]

I would never ride one out on the open road like that, so dangerous.
Have to trust that everyone is going to go around you.

[Forest]

How about a law that says a cyclist has to look behind him when he changes his position on the carriageway?

I narrowly avoided taking one dumb fucker out on Manukau Road the other week when he decided to overtake a parked car, and hadn't bothered his arse looking behind to see if it was clear. It wasn't..

If that cyclist was in front of you when he got to the parked car, you are legally obliged to give way to him.

But you knew that - didn't you?

[Dave Lobster]

But you knew that - didn't you?

Much the same as I'm obliged to give way to a pedestrian crossing the road without looking?

[portokiwi]

Each case has it's own merits... I see heaps of cyclists around Bell Block, a lot of them ride up to four abreast as though they own the road, and show blatant disregard for stop signs etc. Not saying the Coro cyclist was doing this

Its a pain around Glen Dowie, St halliers, mission bay. they take up the whole road. yes Red lights most of them dont stop. I have so many near misses.

[MisterD]

A bit of backpedalling by the cop quoted - I've also heard some mutterings in the competitive cycling community that the ute might have been a support vehicle for one of the competitors - which is banned.

[Usarka]

So how come cyclist's are allowed to race on public (open) roads... but we're NOT... ??? the rules apply to all...don"t they...

Would you rather they close the whole road eg paeroa, wanganui etc?

[sunhuntin]

when susan and i went to hawera for the bike show, we saw the signs out for event when we left town. we got away before they did, thankfully. coming back, we saw a few groups of 3 or 4, all riding respectfully in single file. we come to a downhill and find ourselves faced with a pack coming uphill covering the whole road from the gutter to the center line, with a bunch of cars and a motorbike stuck behind them. dunno how many were in that bunch, more than 10 anyways.

im all for respecting cyclists so long as they arent behaving like knobs and blocking the lanes like that. i really think they should close roads if cyclists want to race, or else use cones or the like to highlight where cyclists should be riding. they did that with an intown race a few years back. coned off the corners to limit how wide cyclists could ride. worked too for the most part.

[Swoop]

What annoys me is two cyclists thinking they own the road and riding abreast... Then getting upset when traffic gets close.

Two cyclists riding abreast is allowed. IF they are passing parked vehicles, then they must revert to single file. The law says that.

If the signs are out that say "Event underway" then that is merely a warning to other road users. It does NOT mean that the road is closed.
The problem is that the lycra-clad seem to believe that the road is theirs to do as they please.
A gaggle of psyclists spreading out across the lane, let alone the entire road, needs some Gene-O-Clean.