So the other day, I got in an argument with a driver who honked at me for an extended period of time and then buzzed me. In the huge pantheon of silly, pointless things to do, arguing with motorists has got to be at the top of the list. Getting into shouting matches just reinforces the stereotype of bicyclists as loudmouthed jerks. Even though I know I was in the right and just trying to be safe, it ruined my day.  By the time I got to work, I was angry, frustrated and just mad at the world generally.

However, my world completely turned around on my night ride home. I often get positive feedback on the wide variety of lights I keep on my bike. That night it was complement after complement from motorists. One motorcyclist commented with a laugh, “Jeeze, your lights are brighter than mine.”  Then the driver of a giant pickup truck, with a huge set of roof lights, a lift kit and Glasspack mufflers (generally considered to be the archenemy of cyclists in these parts) helped me trigger a troublesome light even though he was turning right. He then departed with a shout of,  ”Awesome bike, man!”

That day spurred a few thoughts about cycling in Oklahoma. Let’s face it, it’s been a tough year for cycling in the state.  Over the past few months, there have been too many serious accidents including some with fatalities. Two of the fatalities were two important members of the cycling community and they died within days of one another.  To me and many others, it has felt like a war zone on the streets: A battle between us and them.  For some of my friends, they are avoiding the battle by moving to the trail system. For me, cycling is both transportation and exercise which means I’m stuck on the streets. But I too don’t want to fight a war over the control of the roadways.  However, I am not willing to give up one of the great joys in my life.

There is a riding event that started a few months ago called 30DaysofBiking.  Instead of setting a distance to beat or a time limit to match, this event is designed to remind us of the various reasons we got into cycling in the first place by encouraging you to ride at least once everyday.  If your love involves the feeling of the quiet speed only possible with your racing bike in top gear flying down a piece of perfect blacktop, or the love of a quiet ride around the lake with someone you love, or the love of a perfect run through a boulder garden on your mountain bike or even a nice game of bike polo; all are encouraged just so long as you ride.  Each day, you send a tweet describing your day of riding with the hashtag #30DaysofBiking.  It’s an amazing community of riders and an event that really encouraged me to ride last time through even though I didn’t make it all 30 days.

Well, this time I’m going to ride all 30 days.  I’m also adding an extra challenge to myself to be the cyclist I want to be. So here is my pledge for happy cycling over the next month:

I pledge to ride my bike everyday for the next 30 days.  I pledge to remember why I love to ride: The feeling of connection to nature, the feeling of quiet and calming motion, the joy of burning legs and dripping sweat, the joy of self-propulsion.  I pledge to renounce my life as a “soldier for biking.”  Instead, I pledge to wave happily at every person who honks at me because I know they just want to tell me how awesome my bike is.  I pledge not to yell at those who buzz me because I know they probably don’t know any better and yelling won’t inform them of anything.  I pledge to wave at every kid who smiles at my bike.  I pledge to say hello to every cyclist, jogger, pedestrian, rollerblader and other outdoor personages I pass.  I pledge not to be just an evangelist for cycling but an evangelist for being a nice and polite person.  Finally, I pledge to smile every time I see my bike knowing that I will get to ride her soon . . .”

If anyone else wants to join in for these last few weeks of warm weather, please visit http://30daysofbiking.com and sign up.  I’ve discovered that the hashtag #okbikes is almost never used, so if you want to tag your tweets with both tags (#30daysofcycling #okbike) then you can track the events of local riders here.

Finally, I’m going to try to organize a party for the end of the event somewhere in the city.  If you have any interest, please leave a comment and please feel free to leave some suggestions for locations.

Bicycling groups across the state said they support a new legislative package designed to protect riders and motorists. However, many cyclists are calling for the state to do more to educate residents and enforce existing laws and practices.

. . .

“I am excited to a certain point, but I’m also very leery because there is not much more you can do to regulate and put in new laws with restrictions,” said Matt Bradbury, vice president of the Ada Cycling Club. “The biggest thing really is education and awareness.”

Kevin Mussett, president of the Oklahoma Bicycling Coalition, said even if the legislative changes are small, he would still consider it a “major victory” for improving bicycle safety in the state. With the League of American Bicyclists ranking Oklahoma the 44th most friendly bicycle state, Mussett said any legislative change that clarifies laws, helps law enforcement better understand the rules or creates more attention for the issue is a big step forward.

via Groups support bike safety overhauls » Headlines » The Norman Transcript.

Of course, we all still have to wait and see exactly what the legislation says, but I’ve got high hopes.  Of course, all of the legislation in the world won’t fix the hostility between cyclists and motorists out there on the roads.  I was disturbed to see the following letter in the Oklahoman today:

Recently while driving in the area of Hefner Road and the Lake Hefner Parkway, an area where cyclists routinely run stoplights, two cars with bike racks passed me at a speed well over the limit. A short time later, a car in front of me with a bike rack made a left turn into the wrong lane and took off at a high rate of speed. Later that day I read the letter from Lisa Tehauno (Your Views, Aug. 14) criticizing drivers in general and drivers who endanger cyclists in particular. After these experiences, it occurred to me that a big part of the problem between motorists and cyclists might be the cyclists with a sense of entitlement whose behavior carries over to the way in which they drive their cars.

Russell Hixon, Oklahoma City

Via: NewsOK.com

I am as disturbed as anyone to see reckless cyclists on the road.  They give us all bad names and make it difficult to for drivers to know how to treat cyclists on the road.  However, and this is a BIG however, that is no excuse for threating another human being’s life.  The only responsibility for that kind of behavior falls upon the driver and it is criminal!

Sen. Andrew Rice announced today that he will be filing legislation for the upcoming session to help better protect bicyclists in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma democrat said the legislation is necessary following the recent deaths of three Oklahomans in bicycle-related accidents.

“Our job as legislators is to ensure the public’s safety, and we need to do what we can to keep everyone on Oklahoma’s roads safe, and that includes bicyclists,” said Rice, Senate Democratic Leader elect. “I’m looking forward to working with my colleagues in the Legislature, the Department of Public Safety and others concerned with this issue to see how we can best prevent further accidents and unnecessary deaths.”

Rice said his bill will be mirrored after Colorado’s 2009 Bicycle Safety Act, which includes commonsense rules about passing and lane position for bicycles and motor vehicles on public roads.

According to the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office, more than 300 people were involved in bicycle accidents last year resulting in eleven deaths – a significant increase from previous years. Only twelve people were killed from 2006 to 2008 in bicycle accidents. So far this year, there have been at least 150 bicycle accidents and three deaths.

via Oklahoma State Senate – News.

The Colorado Bicycle Safety act essentially clarified several already existing rules that were already in the state law and from what I can read that would do the same here.  The major points of the Colorado bill are as follows:

• Vehicles may only pass bicyclists when they can give half the road to oncoming traffic along with 3 feet (including mirrors) for the cyclist.  If done in Oklahoma, this would make the 3 foot law a state law instead of a municipal one. Update: Susan pointed out that the 3 foot rule is actually a state rule, I was under the impression it was only municipal.
• Cyclists may ride UP TO two abreast so long as they are not impeding the normal flow of traffic.  If proposed in Oklahoma, this would be a change to our current law which grants cyclists the constant right to ride two abreast. (Unless riding on a bike path or bike lane, signed for the exclusive use of bicycles, bicyclists should not ride more than two abreast. Title 47 § 11-1205)
• On standard bi-directional roads, cyclists are to ride as far to the right as is SAFE.
• On one way roads with more than one lane, cyclists may ride as far to the left as is safe.
• It makes harassing a cyclist a more serious offense.

You can read a summary of the Colorado legislation here or the full text here.

Honestly I can’t see much wrong with the proposed legislation and specific clarification of those points would be great.  I think specific training of motorists on how to deal with cyclists as part of the standard driving tests would be a big plus.

About 1,000 miles into the life of Joe Henretty’s pedicab – the first of his three bicycle taxis that frequent the BOK Center and ONEOK Field – the pedicab’s mileage counter broke. So now Henretty’s fit, 6-foot frame is the only gauge of the remaining 4,000 miles he’s put on the bike, which bears Affordable Bail Bonds’ advertisements as it hauls as many as three adults and two small children at a time.

The 33-year-old pedicab company owner doesn’t like to talk about money, but a good night – like when Bruce Springsteen played the BOK Center – Henretty, his wife, Bethany, and a third driver collected tips that were, on average, $10, but up to $20. From 6 p.m. to almost 2 a.m. that night, Joe said each driver gave more than 20 rides.

via Green pedicab business growing in downtown Tulsa | Tulsa World.

Photo via: Golzern Pedicabs

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said a 19-year-old driver hit and killed a bicyclist just west of Stillwater Sunday.

Troopers said James Hazzard told them the sun was glaring in his eyes and he was adjusting his sunglasses when he swerved into the shoulder and hit 56-year-old Debra Miller.

She was flown to OU Medical Center where she later died.

via Bicyclist Hit, Killed by 19-year-old Driver Near Stillwater – News9.com.

The weather had been rainy, cold and windy for weeks when Curtis Moss reached a point where he didn’t care and he was ready to stop.

Moss, a junior at Oklahoma State University, had already cycled more than 3,000 miles. He got an offer 430 miles up the road that he couldn’t possibly refuse. Two men he met at a rest stop in Canada were traveling to Anchorage — his final destination. They offered to drive him the final leg of his 4,000-mile journey.

via OSU student rides bicycle 4,000 miles to Alaska | NewsOK.com.

You can read the limited details here: Okla man killed while riding bike on highway – News9.com

With a few exceptions, Oklahoma law gives bicycles as much right to use public roads as cars, on the condition that bikes shouldn’t "impede the normal and reasonable flow of traffic."

Tulsa World: Roads are for bicycles, too

Update:

And just to prove my point . . .

A recent incident involving an Edmond bicyclist hit by a car is sure to stir the discussion about sharing the road.

Nate Gomez said he was out for an early morning ride Saturday when someone in a car pulled up behind him and yelled at him for being on the street. Gomez said the driver then swerved into him causing a collision. He wasn’t hurt, but his $5,000 bicycle was damaged and the driver sped away.

Bikers, drivers clash | NewsOK.com

Tulsa has become the first city in Oklahoma to receive a bronze ranking from the League of American Bicyclists, designating it as a "bicycle friendly community."

Tulsa World: Tulsa being peddled as ‘bicycle friendly’

Given my bad experiences with drivers in OKC this year, I think we aren’t even close to getting something like this.  And of course, Oklahoma as a state ranks 48th in bicycle friendliness according to League of American Bicyclists.

Representative Chuck Hoskins has authored House Bill 1795, which would make it legal for motorcycle drivers [and bicyclists] to continue through an intersection even if the light is red. The only requirements would be that the driver come to a complete stop and then make sure it is safe to proceed before going through the light.

Bill lets drivers run red light – KFOR

The bill has already passed the house and is currently languishing in the Senate’s Public Safety and Homeland Security committee which seems a bit grandiose for this bill.