There are more than 3,000 stories in Adventure Journal’s archives, most of which are evergreen, and occasionally we put the best of them back on the home page for new readers to see.—Ed.
I got on my cross-country bike, the one with semi-slicks, and pedaled out of my neighborhood, half intending to violate my self-imposed sidewalks-only rule so I could do laps on this big steep hill up a road called Pacific Island Drive. It was raining lightly and the streets were sopping from the previous night’s deluge, and when I got to the intersection at the bottom of the Pacific Island hill, all four lanes of the road were blocked with police tape.
There, at the base of 60-foot ponderosa pine, located across the sidewalk from the downhill lanes and in the yard of a small office building, was a compact SUV with the entire front end compressed like an accordion. No one was in it, the ambulance was gone, and now the police were just doing their forensic work. By that afternoon, a few young girls were gathered around the tree, and a memorial had been set up.
I turned left and continued on my way.
Southern California has been inundated with rain this winter, as you probably know. What you probably don’t know is that our soil, at least here in southern Orange County where I live, is primarily clay. It does not drain well, it takes forever to dry, and if you poach and attempt to ride in the mud it will leave ruts that last weeks. In short, as a dedicated mountain biker with ambitious climbing goals, it’s been frustrating: We need the rain, but I want the vert. The options have been 1) don’t ride, 2) ride a spin bike, 3) ride on the pavement.
It’s the last of those to which I turned, but with mixed feelings and concerns. Four years ago, after a spate of deaths and bad injuries to road cyclists I knew or was connected to, I decided to quit riding on the road. I sold my road bike and stayed in the dirt. But I continued to ride to the trails, or to hit paved hills when I wanted extra climbing, until, eventually, there were enough close calls, ugly incidents, and reports of other deaths that I decided once and for all to stick to what I know and love best: trails.
It wasn’t an easy decision. I’m wired with the expectation that I can and probably should enjoy every adventurous pursuit available. Kite surfing? Count me in! Ice climbing? I just sharpened my tools. The idea that I would give up something I like because of an excess of caution didn’t sit well, even if I knew it was the smart thing to do. So, you know, me being me, occasionally I’d violate my rule and log a few miles here and there on the road.
It’s been about a half decade since I said goodbye to that beautiful Specialized Roubaix and the situation on the roads has gotten worse. There are a lot of aggressive jerks in Orange County who drive way too fast, but we are in the midst of an epidemic of road accidents everywhere. And you know the reasons why: smartphones. People are texting, fiddling with Waze, trying to skip songs in Spotify. Deaths from distracted driving increased 8.8 percent between 2014 and 2015—almost 300 more people died than the previous year—the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration reported. The number of cyclists killed by cars jumped by 12.2 percent—89 more died than in 2015—to the highest level in 20 years. Insurance companies are paying out more than they’re taking in, directly because of distracted driving accidents, and premiums are consequently increasing.
Michael LaRocco, chief executive of State Auto Financial Corp., recently told an insurance-industry conference that it’s “an epidemic issue for this country.”
A New York Times story this week quoted Tim Burns, the owner of Village Bikes, as saying, “I’ve lost three customers who died being hit by cars. I don’t even try to sell road bikes anymore. People don’t drive a car anymore. They do everything except drive a car — texting, putting on makeup.”
This is true everywhere and not just in places where drivers gun on surface streets and don’t respect cyclists. Distracted driving knows no geographical, gender, or age boundaries. It’s just not safe out there, I don’t think it will be again, and I’ve long stopped feeling like Chicken Little. Too many people have died, too many people have gotten hurt. We all have to make our decisions for ourselves, and I try to mind my own business, but when I see friends training in the bike lane while Cadillac Escalades zoom past them at 60 mph (Sean, I’m talking to you), I want to beg them to stop. Road cycling is a beautiful, wonderful, noble pursuit. And there are places and times and situations where it’s perfectly safe. Gravel comes to mind. Italy, too. But when a 4,000 pound vehicle going fast is separated from a fragile little creature on a 20-pound bicycle by nothing, there is no margin for error. In the modern urban, suburban, exurban racetrack, it’s just not worth it. Not for me, anyway.
Last Saturday, I kept riding. It was wet, it was cold. Less than a mile down the road, a landscaping truck with balding tires fishtailed and spun 180 degrees going down a hill. No cars were around for it to hit. No cyclists, either. I watched from the sidewalk as it corrected course and continued down the road.
Instead of going along the coast highway, I headed toward a paved bike and walking trail and went inland. A few miles later, at an intersection, I leaned one arm against a streetlight pole and waited for the red to change to green so I could cross. Duct-taped to the pole was a poster with a picture of a dad surrounded by his kids. “Please help us raise money to support the family,” said the flier. The father was in a coma. He’d been riding his bike the week before, on this road, and was hit by a car.
Note: For those of you who’ve complained, sometimes in less than civil terms, about riding on the sidewalk, it is legal in some parts of the municipalities where I live. Typically, it’s allowed outside of downtown and busy pedestrian areas. If I do encounter pedestrians, I move to the street or bike lane to go around them, and give them plenty of room. I know this isn’t enough to satisfy some but I follow the laws, ride only where it’s legal, and try to be considerate to others.
Photo by jbdodane
UPDATE, AUGUST 2019
Hey, all. As mentioned above, this piece was written a couple years ago and has been reposted to “continue the conversation,” as they say. Since then, my position has evolved, primarily because I got a sweet gravel grinder, which I wrote about here, and also because I’m trying to use as little gasoline as possible. Over the last two years, I’ve used that bike to explore more neighborhoods and trails than in the previous five years put together. I’ve used the bike to suss out every scrap of dirt and paved trail within a 30-mile radius and to learn which neighborhoods go, which don’t, and which look like they don’t but do. We have some amazing paved hills around here, many or most of which can be ridden as a sleepy suburban loop.
Our major streets are even gnarlier. If you know South Orange County, I’m talking about Pacific Coast Highway, Crown Valley Parkway, and any of the six-laners that connect the freeway to the coast. Since I initially wrote this, I saw an injured cyclist getting medical attention after being hit and two ghost bikes. They widened the bike line, after the fact of course, but still didn’t put in a barrier or rumble dots.
I don’t want to ride on the sidewalk, not ever, but on these streets, if I can’t go through neighborhoods or use a trail, that’s where I’ll be. If there’s a pedestrian, I’ll hop into the bike lane and go around them, then hop back up, as mentioned above. I also keep my speed down, which isn’t fun, but it’s a sidewalk after all. Such practices might violate etiquette in many places, but around here I see more obviously dedicated riders doing the same thing. It’s opened the door to have conversations about it, like, at traffic lights, and the only place anyone’s criticized is here online.
I think we will have to wait until ALL drivers are using self driving cars before it will be safe for road bikes again!
This applies at a lesser extent to running as well. I’ve recently taken up training again after a 5 year hiatus. I won’t say that I am amazed at the increase in distracted drivers since 2012, but I am surely frightened by it and feel as though I am on constant alert, while seldom being able to feel relaxed. I notice too that runners and cyclists are often just as distracted as drivers. Head phones on checking texts in the middle of a run and paying little attention to others around them. Distracted drivers and distracted pedestrians are a deadly combo.
I stopped riding in my area of Anaheim, CA. I feel a lot safer, and yes indeed distracted drivers believe they own the road, and sadly the law agrees with them. Unless I find a friendlier bike city. I am either driving or taking the bus.
This is a frustrating essay. While I empathize with the sentiment (& love adventure-journal), statistically biking is SAFER than it has been in the past. The number of total deaths and accidents is up, but not as significantly as is the total number of riders. More people are biking, but more bike lanes, bike paths, and critical mass efforts have actually improved biking’s safety profile. We need more people riding daily, and this will make it safer for everyone. Please don’t use statistics to frighten and misinform.
Dylan,
All due respect, but I’m not misinforming anyone. The statistics back up what anyone can see: that the roads are far more dangerous because of distracted driving than they used to be. One recent study that I didn’t include determined that the distractions of technology are statistically countering the gains we’ve gained from safety features like anti-lock brakes, blind spot warnings, etc. From a safety standpoint, we’re moving backwards.
Steve, I think you’re completely missing Dustin’s point. You’re looking at the absolute number of cycling deaths without considering: 1. the growing US population and 2. the growing number of cyclists. You also don’t have the analysis to show that 815 deaths is a statistically significant increase from previous years. If the 2015 increase in deaths is due to the prevalence of smartphones then why did the number of cycling deaths decrease between 2013 and 2014? I’d recommend doing a follow up article with more statistical rigor once the 2016 figures are released.
2005-2014 data: https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812282
Number of smartphone users: https://www.statista.com/statistics/201182/forecast-of-smartphone-users-in-the-us/
Maybe I am missing his point. But I think he’s missing my broader message—the roads are dangerous and there’s no margin of error for the cyclist when a driver makes a mistake. I’m not telling you what to do, I’m just sharing my view and the decision I came to. And frankly, when it comes to one person’s experience, both anecdotes and statistics are irrelevant: The bumper of a pickup truck knows nothing of data trends. It only takes one.
When it comes to risk and perceived risk, we all have to make these decisions for ourselves. I feel far safer traveling on skis in the backcountry than I do in the local bike lanes. You might feel the opposite. That’s fine. I wrote this essay—not an article—and put it out there to raise the issue, which I believe is important for all of us to consider and discuss.
Statistics are one thing, but over the course of 25 years of road racing I lost five close training partners and teammates and just as many acquaintances to cars. It’s insanely dangerous to ride on the road.
From 1987 until 2010 I averaged between 6,000 and 10,000 road miles per year. Then I lost a very close training partner and several other road racing teammates and pals. I’m a dirt-only rider now. I am still a roadie to the core, but it’s just not worth it to roll the dice, and roll the road.
Statistics and data are usable resources for making a decision. If someone wants to alter their activity for a safety concern they most certainly can do so. Steve, I applaud your courage and sharing your voice here. Everyone who has responded, I’m proud of our 1st Amendment that allows us to disagree.
It’s an engaging decision that really resonates with anyone who steps outside into the world. To live is risky, to choose your risk is wise.
Live fully,
Kris
Indeed, and thank everyone for commenting in an intelligent and reasoned manner. We’ve had to delete or block quite a few comments on the backcountry skiing and localism story because a few grumps want to through stones.
I’ve lost several friends in car accidents over the years; therefore, I’ve decided to stop driving an automobile (In terms of statistical trends, this is actually a more defensible statement than deciding to stop biking out of fear.)
Encourage people to change their bike routes, use better lights and reflective clothing to improve visibility (I personally look like an emergency vehicle / disco ball during my morning bike commute), and advocate for more car-free path and trail options in your community to improve safety further… But please, please don’t tell people not to bike based on flawed (incorrect) study analysis. Too many people across the country (me included) have invested countless hours into making our cities more bike rider friendly. The progress must continue, but it is safer to ride your bike now in most places than ever before. For the environment, for your health, for your pocketbook: ride your bike everywhere you possibly can.
The author didn’t tell anyone to stop riding the road. He only told us what his decision was and why. And frankly, my life is worth more than your opinion.
I’m also from orange county and I know the exact incident that you are referring to (I believed it happened on super bowl sunday). I too was once an avid road cyclist and like you, I lost a friend a few years back when a driver under the influence of drugs hit him on PCH by crystal cove and didn’t even bother to stop. It’s a sick sad world out there now. I remember a time when hit and run were unheard of, not that the streets were safe, but at least people would stop to help and accept responsibility for their actions. Now it feel like every few months there’s a hit and run incident involving a cyclist. I still own my road bike but I hardly ever ride it anymore, when I do, it’s either down the coast on the beach path, back bay, or a river trail.
I still ride mountain so maybe I’ll see you out there sometimes!
I think we may be semi-connected through Strava. Feel free to find me there…
Please stay off, or at least don’t mention, the sidewalks. Drivers thinking bikes don’t belong on the road is also part of the problem, distracted driving notwithstanding.
I will ride on sidewalks whenever I feel that my safety is at risk. Further, I will not feel guilty about it. The author of this article is spot on. I live in what is widely considered a very well served bicycling community and state. We are blessed with a large number of bike trails and infrastructure, yet there is an area of my daily ride where there is no room for me to ride safely on a very busy street. I think it’s time for the cycling community to recognize the difference between bicycling advocacy and activism. I will not endanger my safety to make a point about a bicycle’s place on the road.
Steve,
While I’m not familiar with the data that you and others have quoted (nor do I honestly have time to read the original research – which is vital to understanding the data, results and conclusions as data without context can be misleading), I am intimately familiar with your experience and emotional reaction to it.
I have been a road cyclist in the Bay Area since 1987 and since then I have witnessed the numbers of cars on the road (esp “country” roads) increase greatly (I blame Waze for some of that traffic on country roads). I know several people who have been killed or seriously injured by cars (not all were the driver’s fault). My own experience is not just that drivers are more distracted but they are also in more of a hurry, are more impatient and are less respectful of other road users (other drivers and pedestrians, not just cyclists). I am also older (mid 40’s) and my tolerance for risk has diminished.
All of this has lead me to enjoy road riding less, which saddens me. I mountain bike as well and fortunately have a few miles of single track trails not far from me in Oakland. But I also love to ride a road bike. Unfortunately, on almost every ride there is an encounter with a driver that is distracted, driving recklessly or is threatening or abusive. I have a camera light on the rear of my bike and have purchased one for the front to document these encounters for future use if someone is seriously injured by that driver. Closecalldatabase.com is a website that catalogues these encounters with drivers – I highly recommend checking it out and using it as needed.
More and more I am heading in your direction. Unfortunately, the trails here in the Bay Area are quite crowded with other users and while I drive the 15 mins to the trail head, I would prefer to ride the 20 mins to get there. 15 years ago I honestly believed that the Lance Effect on attracting people to the sport would make road cycling safer but that does not seem to be the case.
Short of moving to a town that has mountain bike trails right out my door, I don’t know what the answer is. Last spring I rode Tioga Pass Road in Yosemite on my road bike on the weekend before it opened to cars. It was one of the best days on a bike simply because of the absence of cars and my brain was not constantly on edge.
Many people are fighting the good fight to make roads safer for cyclists and I will continue to support them. I am not quite ready to give up on road cycling, but I have curtailed riding at certain times of the day when traffic is heaviest and drivers are at their worst. However, if current trends continue as I suspect they will, then it’s likely that I will no longer own skinny tire bikes at some point in the future.
Thanks for writing this and thanks to everyone for their measured and reasoned responses.
Thanks for sharing this, Dave. Really appreciate it.
I should also qualify something, as I saw a lot of sad emojis on this piece linked on Facebook—I have always been most passionate about riding in the dirt. It’s a simple equation: I want to be in nature, not dodging cars. Mountain biking has always been my favorite, by orders of magnitude. In abandoning the roads, I’m not giving up my life’s passion.
But it does make me sad. For most of my life, I’ve only dealt on with aggressives and idiots on the road—those who yelled as they went past, or threw cans or something worse. Such incidents always tainted a ride, but were relatively quickly forgotten. Today, though, we’re in a different culture, precisely the one you identify. Faster, more stressed, always in a hurry. So, while I’m bummed I feel that it’s unsafe for me to ride, there’s a larger ambient sadness, that this is who we’ve become.
The solution, I think, is for everyone to drive VW Vanagons. Although I sold mine about a year ago, there’s nothing like driving an old van to make you chill right down.
Your article really resonated with me. While I may or may not be supported by data, I have reluctantly come to the same place as you. I’ve been riding road bikes since the 70’s and have ridden in amazing places. But traffic and people’s behavior have changed. As others have mentioned, the incidence of hit and runs seem to have skyrocketed. Last year, we sold our house and are living as digital nomads out of a camper. Of course, we brought bikes. But instead of road bikes, we brought our CX bikes. A bit slower, a bit heavier but way better for gravel roads and single track. In the last 6 months we’ve ridden in 5 states, rarely on the road. It makes me sad to feel this way, but have had one too many close calls. Some of my friends think I’m over-reacting. I don’t care.
As a former bike courier, I actually love riding in city traffic. One of my favorite vacations is going to NYC, renting a bike and rallying in traffic. You have to ride your bike like it’s a skateboard and be an offensive rider. Offensive meaning on offence, not being an asshole. Being a courier you learn very quickly how to stay alive riding in traffic. Constantly think you are invisible, and ride like you are so you have a higher probability of staying alive. You learn that bumpers don’t care who is right. If you get hit you lose.
Distracted driving might be killing more people on country roads or in less traffic because drivers think there’s no cars so, “I can sneak in a quick text”. Bikers might be getting hit more in situations like that because it goes back to bikes being invisible.
Having learned to ride in traffic and having learned that even though the law says I have rights, you have to ride like you have none, so it drives me insane when I watch people ride bikes in traffic that think the same rules that apply to pedestrians apply to them. As soon as you are on a wheeled vehicle all the rules of the car world apply to you. How did I find that out? By getting tickets. Speeding,stunting, riding on sidewalks, changing lanes without indicating, riding in crosswalks. I think I got a ticket for everything other than a DUI. Which as a friend of mine found out, you can actually get that on a bike. Anyway, getting those tickets taught me that a bike is considered vehicle and all the rules of driving a car apply and how to ride in traffic with the assumption that to drivers, I’m invisible. I wasn’t invisible to the cops but that’s another story. So when I see cyclists in crosswalks bike across in front of cars thinking, “I’m a pedestrian I’m in a crosswalk, this car has to stop” and then giving drivers the stink eye for not stopping, shows me why so many people get hit. Rolling into an intersection and thinking “I’ll take the crosswalk so the cars have to stop”, or rolling off the sidewalk into an intersection without stopping. You don’t have the right of way. It’s the same as if you pulled out in front of a car without the right of way. Why would you think that car would stop? Why would you as a driver think that the person on a bike would be so stupid as to roll out in front of you expecting you to stop? Perhaps that’s why it’s safer to ride in Europe, pedestrians don’t have the right of way. You learn at a young age not to expect a 2-5000 pound vehicle doing 30 to stop in three car lengths just because you want to cross the street…RIGHT NOW! AND I’M NOW A PEDESTRIAN! Maybe it’s euro riders get taught the physics lesson. It’s easier to stop your leg from taking a step or a pedal than it is to stop a car doing 30 -50mph in 70 feet.
Same with riding two or three wide or not riding in a straight line. Yes, you might be in your rights but bumpers don’t care. It’s the same reason I love driving in the third world. Once you realize there is no law and the only rule is whatever is biggest has the right of way / wins, you are a lot safer. You don’t expect that dump truck to yield to your scooter. It’s bigger than you, so you get out of the way. Once you come to that understanding, you’re a lot safer. I don’t say that as a dick car driver I say that as a bike courier. You’re responsible for your own safety. Don’t expect the person in the car to look out for you. You’re invisible, remember?
Having made all these different points in the end though, I totally agree with you. People can quote stats all day. In 2013-2014 crashes were down etc. 4 years ago is forever in tech. Think about how much more you can do with your phone. No wonder people are distracted. The accident stats haven’t kept up to the reality of the speed of change that phones have made in our lives in so many ways. Some are great and some unfortunately lethal. Maybe instead of petitioning for more bike lanes to increase rider safety, the cycling industry should be petitioning the government to make it so that once a phone is travelling faster than the speed of a person running, it shuts down portions of the phone to prevent the possibility of distracted driving. Distracted driving straight up kills people so I hope that everyone stays safe. In the mean time…
TO THE DIRT! Where you can be invisible and enjoy it.
The class 1 bike paths in Irvine are my go to for road riding. Shady Canyon is a beautiful ride. Otherwise I stick to all the dirt in Laguna Canyon.
Yo tambien.
I relate 100% to this article. About a year ago, I sold my road bike and bought a fat bike for these very reasons. Also quit running on the roads, and run trails now. Had too many close calls! Roads are boring anyway and beat up my joints. Never regretted my decision to keep it on the dirt.
I totally understand how you feel, especially where you live. If one frequents bicycling forums, you hear about every death, and it gets to you. It slowly eats away at you until you decide enough is enough.
Fortunately, I live in the semi-boonies, west of Boston. My rides take me on country roads, avoiding anything that’s close to being a main road. If the pavement sucks, that’s what fatter tires are for. But believe me, I know I’m still one texting teenager away from getting whacked. We just don’t have the people SC has where he lives.
My riding has evolved over the years, from exclusively road, to mostly MTB, to mostly road, to my current mode of mixed-terrain and country roads. I now seek out areas with dirt roads and bad pavement because mentally, I feel so much better on them. I can go out my back door and do a mixed ride for 2-3 hours, spending 75+% of the time off-road, a lot of it on singletrack. Looking back at roads I used to ride 20-30 years ago, I have no interest in riding them now. They’re boring or have too many cars. I’m sure getting older has a lot to do with these changes, I definitely smell the roses a lot more while I ride, and I definitely don’t beat the crap out of myself like I used to. I’m just glad to be out there.
Here’s one data point that summarizes my current riding. We recently completed a 6-month trip around the US and had our bikes with us. I have two sets of wheels for mine – a set with 25mm tires geared for road, and a set with 40mm tires with low gearing. I’m guessing I had the wide tires on 80+% of the time. I bought bear spray, too. 😉
I really want to see very strong laws with regard to handheld devices. Believe me, I love my phone and what it can do for me, but people have to be responsible drivers, and there is no excuse for whacking a rider simply because one was using their phone. We’ve all seen drivers in front of us swerving all over the road because they’re on their phone. And no, disabling a phone while it’s in motion is not the answer.
Good luck everybody.
This former ultracyclist agrees with the author. One can cite statistics to get an accurate probability of getting killed, but rational analysis goes out the window when you know three people who have gotten killed. I have not ridden roads in 7 years after I realizd that my life was out of my hands on a road bike. Godspeed to everyone on a road bike.
I ride from Glendale to USC (DTLA) campus 3 or 4 times a week. Motorists with phones + legal marijuana + speeding is a huge problem.
Coming off a fractured right foot from a car that hit me back in Dec, I have healed enough to start riding again. I am surprised how good it feels to be out commuting again.
Motorists routinely call cyclists crazy for trying to ride along side cars in traffic. I am beginning to think they are right.
When the body count around Newp Bch got to 12 on the climbing circuit (Newp Coast, Spyglass etc) I said F this. It’s too crazy these days on the road.
Dirt rules.
12? I hadn’t heard that many people were killed up there. That’s just horrible.
There’s plenty of dirt climbing to be had between Aliso Woods and Crystal Cove.
Two in one day a couple years ago – Lady doctor up on Newp Coast and young woman on PCH/Bayside. San Joaquin’s had more than a few.
I relate to this article as well. I am on the west side of LA and the Inland Empire. I attempted a ride on a Sunday morning thinking that all would be well, yet I soon realized the mad fury that is modern city traffic. I consigned myself to the sidewalk and with much trepidation realized things had changed. More precisely people have changed. It is sad to see the frenzy that people drive with. On the west side it’s balls to the wall between stop signs. I no longer feel safe on the sidewalk as I have seen and read the tragic tales of the slightly distracted jumping the curb. I gotta get out of this place and away from this madness. I long for the the quiet back roads I used to ride on. I still dream it is possible, though something tells me the world has changed all over. Be safe.
I believe that they are going to have to ban phones in the car period. People are too addicted to checking their phones. They need to be in the trunk or locked in the glove compartment. Driving is a privilege and a huge responsibility and people seem to have forgotten that.
It’s not just the US – I live in the UK and used to commute to work in central London by bike for part of my route for many years until I was hit by a car two years ago. Sadly many of the comments and observations about careless and aggressive drivers seem all too familiar here too. I’m actually grateful to see someone else thinking the same as me – it is just too risky on the road and I too am contemplating giving up the road and getting a mountain bike.
I got hit yesterday by a driver who ran a red. He was traveling at 30mph and I was broadsided. It was-up until that point one of a the best rides I’d had in the last 4 years from a pure fitness (W/kg) standpoint.
I had been receiving a bit of flack from other riders on the road because I had been wearing a hovding “airbag” helmet…. and us cyclists are generally snobby and elitist to some degree. I could hear people talking about it throughout the day and speaking as if I were an idiot for wearing something so out of the ordinary. The irony was, I had just heard a guy posing the question to his friend of whether it would work or not.. “oh look at that airbag thing” wonder if it works”? Well, 30 min’s later, it did work. And I feel that it saved me from serious head- and neck trauma. unfortunately I’m dealing with some back issues but the scans didn’t reveal any glaring fractures or compression.
I wholeheartely feel that a helmet can save a life but falls short of reducing head trauma and thus has become an antiquated technology. The general design has changed very little. I think the industry is taking advantage to a Degree as, they are so inexpensive to manufacture and are able to charge so much. And Stylistically theyre shit, but we’ve accepted them to be the norm.
There are downsides to the airbag as well but, I just wanted to share my experience.
I got to agree with this article. I was a commuter who cycled all over till I got hit by a truck a few months ago. The truck was in a hurry it was morning and he tried to go past me, He misjudged the distance hitting me from behind. fractured my wrist. 3 fingers and fractured my scapula. Bones are all healed but I go to Physical Therapy 3 times a week to this day. Had to get another job cause I was out so long recovering. Luckily the guy had insurance but even so I’ll never be the same again. I can ride again which I love but riding on the street is a dicey proposition. I stick to my local gravel and paved trails. Until we have dedicated lanes separating riders with some concrete barriers or something its not worth it, You can quote statistics all you want but the fact remains its too dangerous to ride side by side with vehicles. While I was recovering there was a young man on a small two lane road that was hit near his home outside the city. It was a hit and run, they found him the next day in a ditch. Very chilling to say the least. All around my city I see ghost bikes. Bikes painted white to mark where someone died cycling. If that”s not enough proof of the danger of vehicles I don’t know what else to say. A friend of mine who bikes told me awhile back” Just cause the law says we can be on those roads with traffic doesn’t always mean we should.” Stay safe everyone.
2 days ago I was struck from behind by a hit-and-run driver on a quiet residential road in upstate NY. The driver had come way over onto the wide shoulder where I had been riding and slammed into me from behind doing about 45mph and then drove away as I laid there in the road. Some people witnessed it but didn’t get the license plate. I laid in the road in shock until paramedics arrived and fortunately I didn’t break any bones but was severely bruised and my bike was heavily damaged.
I’ve been an avid road cyclist for over 30 years and this is the first time that I’ve ever had an accident with a car though there have been many close calls. In recent years I have noticed a huge increase in distracted drivers and my guess is that was the case with the person who hit me. I’m still trying to wrap my head around the whole incident and the fact that this person actually drove away while I laid in the road because for all he knew I could have been dead. So I’ve been searching the internet for other people’s experiences and to my surprise there are countless stories just like mine. I’m starting to consider giving up riding on the road now which is really sad because it has been one of my favorite activities for decades but the reality of how dangerous the roads have become is starting to hit me. I don’t see how the situation will ever get any better and will most likely just get worse.
I ride my bike to and from work, 2 to 3 days a week, 21 miles each way, and I always feel endangered, with things thrown at me, horns and loud motors activated just in time to throw me off balance, trucks moving into my lane, narrow misses with distracted/drunk/stoned drivers, and more. It’s been just over two years now, I am 59 years old, riding for fitness, and I don’t know anything that works better. I have experienced the dangers, thanks to all of the types of drivers and conditions mentioned, and although I know my life is in jeopardy, I don’t want to give it up. I need this for my health and well being…ironic, right?. On the flip-side, I can’t stand riding stationary indoors. As to MTB, I can’t commute through dirt because there is nowhere to do it. I have a rode bike and a mountain bike, and I ride them interchangeably. Is there a fourth option I am missing? Do I just continue to take the risk? I really love riding.
The traffic must have gotten far worse in Orange County, since I moved back to the PNW, in 1999. 20 years, so what else would I expect, yes? When living in Trabuco Cyn, I daily commuted to Newport Beach (no fenders, yea!), and only very rarely had any issue with poor driving habits. Fewer people, and fewer distractions, back then, presumably. Don’t ever remember getting buzzed on the road, or honked at, either. Wife and I road our slick-shod Mtn Tandem many, many miles on the OC & SD county roads, and got lots of friendly honks, and waves, but nothing worse. The roads have gone to hell, everywhere…plenty of auto/bike issues in OR, as well, these days. Singletrack and Gravel riding are still primo, though.
I live in Nebraska. I’ve been riding for 40+ years. Training, commuting, racing, ultra marathon cycling, 4000 – 11,000 miles per year. No one I know here in Nebraska has been killed by a car. Quiet roads are pretty easy to find. Even for commuting, if you avoid rush hour. I wouldn’t drive my car during rush hour. It’s just no fun. Self employment makes for long hours, so my commutes were before 6:00AM, and generally after 8:00PM. BTW, bicycle lighting has gotten way better during my 40+ years of cycling :). You all need to move somewhere it’s safe to live. Yeah, if it’s not safe to ride your bicycle, it’s not safe to live your life there. We all make choices on how we live our lives, and we all do have a choice. If you respond to this and tell me you don’t have a choice I’ll just dismiss you as a fool. In my early 20’s I had two paths for my career, one was in New York City, and one in Omaha Nebraska. It is that simple.
“If you respond to this and tell me you don’t have a choice I’ll just dismiss you as a fool. In my early 20’s…”. Call me a fool but I’d rather live in a place where I might have to cut out certain activities (i.e.road bikes) so that I can enjoy a plethora of other outdoor pursuits, plus make a living and be surrounded by great art, culture, food, people, etc versus live somewhere where I can ride a road bike worry free and when not doing that I can watch grass grow. Also, in my 20s I had the luxury of moving and doing what I want with little consequences. Although I still have the freedom of choice to move now, family, business and various other things have to be considered. You mentioned self employment and you’ve got 40 years of riding under your belt so you don’t sound like a spring chicken. Would you up and move in the prime of your business and other life pursuits? Maybe. maybe not. To make a statement that you’ll “dismiss you as a fool” in the context you described and that “…if it’s not safe to ride your bicycle, it’s not safe to live your life there” is pretty short sighted. Enjoy those great Nebraskan, car-free roads.
To say that if you don’t live in a place that is so overcrowded that the roads are not safe, then there is nothing to do, and no art, culture, or cuisine… pretty short sighted 🙂 If the roads are not safe for me as a cyclist, then they probably aren’t really safe for my wife and kids in the minivan, or even as pedestrians. We are all free to value different things.
ps. I live within a days drive of Rocky Mountain NP, and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, and there are no traffic jams in between.
I live in Nebraska. I’ve been riding for 40+ years. Training, commuting, racing, ultra marathon cycling, 4000 – 11,000 miles per year. No one I know, here in Nebraska, has been killed by a car. Quiet roads are pretty easy to find. Even for commuting, if you avoid rush hour. I wouldn’t drive my car during rush hour. It’s just no fun. Self employment makes for long hours, so my commutes were before 6:00AM, and generally after 8:00PM. BTW, bicycle lighting has gotten way better during my 40+ years of cycling :). You all need to move somewhere it’s safe to live. Yeah, if it’s not safe to ride your bicycle, it’s not safe to live your life there. We all make choices on how we live our lives, and we all do have a choice. If you respond to this and tell me you don’t have a choice I’ll just dismiss you as a fool. In my early 20’s I had two paths for my career, one was in New York City, and one in Omaha Nebraska. It is that simple.
I was an avid cyclist starting from 4yrs old, rode to school in KG, was never with a set of wheels, rode BMX on trails until high school, then shifted to road bikes. I spent five years on a bike without access to a car, averaged 10k yearly, toured across the US, up and down the coasts, and across the Iberian Peninsula.
I gradually shifted toward mountain biking but still used road biking to maintain base fitness, esp during the rainy season.
I have been hit by cars multple times, I have witnessed friends hit by motor vehicles, and I have had untold close calls over the years. When a friend was hit while riding on our home turf and nearly lost his life, I decided to sell my road bike and I have never looked back.
Twenty five years later I am so adamant about avoiding that I’ll do anything to stay off the roads, including hours of backtracking; the drivers just make me too nervous.
Personally, I think road riding has become so unsafe that I would never encourage anyone to ride with cars, in fact I actively discourage it.
Life is too short to waste .
I too count mtn. biking as my primary 2-wheeled passion, and only came to road biking as a consequence of racing cross-country mtn. bikes. Ironically, the more serious I got about racing in the dirt the more miles I logged on the road.
In that time, as I became immersed in local roadie culture, and even did a little bit of racing on the road, I saw far too many deaths on our local roads. Some years ago an up-and-coming pro racer, who lived/trained in the area, was killed by street-racing local teens, and every roadie in the area watched in dismay as his killers got off with the merest slaps on the wrist. Just a few months earlier this year another racer was killed when a car flipped a U-turn in front of him, while he was out pre-riding the course a few days before a local road race. Not sure if that driver was even charged. In addition to these high-profile deaths I can think of at least a half-dozen stories of riders dying or getting seriously injured on local roads at the hands of drivers.
I haven’t raced in about a decade, and the only street riding I do these days is a 1 mi. commute for work, or trips around town within a ~2mi radius from home. Fortunately traffic around our neighborhood and downtown area is typically pretty sedate, so I don’t feel compelled to give up those trips. However, I don’t have much desire to do longer rides on those remote 2-lane roads that lend themselves to long meandering rides, and faster car speeds. Just not worth the risk any more. I honestly can’t remember the last time I took my road bike down from its hook in the garage and went out for a ride just for riding’s sake, on asphalt. Those rides are in the dirt now.
Sorry Steve, I don’t have a lot to say. I’ve been hit twice and don’t really want to get hit again. The third time will be the charm! I’ve gotten to the point where all I do is ride my fat bike higher and higher in the mountains. The higher you go the less people period!!!!
Thank you for all you do!
Not much to add that hasn’t already been said, but I feel a conglomeration of what other commenters are expressing that might be worth synthesizing.
I, too, just love riding dirt. I’m grateful that in Billings I only have to cross one road to get to miles of dirt and paved trails. My neighborhood has benefited from several undeveloped nature areas, a 8ft wide sidewalk and bike lanes along the thoroughfare, and bike tunnels under major roads. It’s a beautiful thing. As soon as I get away from the road into the network of singletrack, I feel my blood pressure decrease, my breath come easier, anxieties drift away. I usually have it all to myself.
But, you know what? I usually have it all to myself. Which means, no one else is using it. Which means that nearly everyone else in my city is in front of their TV, or driving to a restaurant, or bar, or casino, or all three-in-one to spend their precious evening. When I see someone in the distance on the trail, I want to cheer them on, race up and shake their hand with a stupid grin on my face, ask them if they know how much good they are doing for themselves and the world by getting outside.
But, I also want to know all of the numbers that others have asked for. The adventure community talks about calculated risks, and it’s hard to calculate properly without all of the data. Are deaths really increasing disproportionately to the population and the user base? If I want to ride the road to other trails, or ride the road across the state, am I really in more danger than driving? Am I ceding something important by intentionally staying off of the road, saying in effect, Human powered transportation is dead. We bought a Suburban this year, in part because of our growing family, in part because of the cowboy-culture vehicular arms race in our town, because the car at the stoplight in the lane next to my wife and kids was horrifically rear-ended by a jacked up, two-ton pickup truck, because these days you need armor to get the groceries.
I’m not going to criticize you for your gut-level reaction, or for publishing it. It’s a good piece. It’s a seed for more. I think staying off the roads is a stop-gap. The real solution is organization, activism, and fiery revival preaching to get out and go for a walk, pressure to make infrastructure that facilitates human-powered travel. Gosh, I could go on and on, but for goodness sakes if we are going to give up the roads we need to do it loudly, write headlines that Local Cyclists Avoid Streets, Citing Dangerous Conditions, attend city council meetings and transportation committee meetings and protest that our kids can’t ride to their friend’s houses because the streets are a death trap, until their shoulders get tired of shrugging and they using their hands to do some good!
tl;dr…
Funny. I was just saying I should sell my Roubaix this weekend for the exact same reason.
My local roads have become much busier and without new development or added local jobs. I assume that’s because of mapping apps. Turning our back roads into hurried commuting short cuts.
It’s to the woods for me and my little kids.
i like the way the dutch approach bike transportation. bikes have their own roads and when they share the bikes have the right of way over pedestrians and cars. I got yelled at a few times my first day in holland for not getting out of the way. of course i couldn’t understand them but it sounded like it wasn’t complimentary.
two things-
1) I’m in the market for a road bike, medium, or 55 TT, if that’s even still a measurement (i know, get fitted). I’m getting back onto the road because where I’m moving, there is a class 1 bike path that I can ride for 40 miles RT w/o crossing a single road. In the heart of West L.A. So for me, it’s situational. It’s terrifying to ride in L.A. proper… but the isolated path makes all the difference. Still dog walkers and skaters plugged in and sand and such, so not safe. None of this is safe, is it?
2) I know someone who was behind the wheel and killed a cyclist. She’s very sweet and smart, was not distracted, stayed on the scene and with the victim, and is permanently scarred from the tragedy. Even the victim’s family knew he was a reckless cyclist and made sure that my friend knew it wasn’t her fault. Tangling with cars in traffic is just plain dangerous, always has been. Maybe it’s worse now, maybe not, but the idea that road cycling with cars = Danger is absolute. There have been impaired drivers forever, and technology might help save some lives. I hope so.
OK I know I said two. But real quick- adventure is the name of the game, on road or trail with a bike. It’s what makes it worth doing, really. We each have our threshold of unknown outcome comfort, so pick your poison. Climbing rock, backcountry skiing, cycling, paddling and surfing all have significant risk involved. If you want to be safe, go the trainer route, and get strong in a gym. Way lower risk.
It’s called Adventure Journal for a reason! :-}
to throw another aspect in to this pot of discussion, periodically driving down the road I encounter a road biker on the edge of the line that separates vehicles from bikes. or worse, the road biker might even be traveling outside the bike lane and in to the vehicle lane. this is especially dangerous here in Arizona as we have a very varied terrain, with lots of blind curves……..a few road bikers have an arrogance that is dangerous……
Douchebag roadies drive me NUTS. There is no question that the arrogance of many riders contributes to the animosity of drivers.
I could not get through this article fast enough because I just knew what the comments would read like…and man was I correct. This article is spot on. You can chime in about statistics per capita, laws for riding on sidewalks, why not quit other risky activities and on and on but the simple fact is it is just too dangerous to ride on the road in most cities. I am a numbers person but sometimes the gut is right. So accidents are actually decreasing on some relative measure, but end of day anyone who has ridden for more than a decade, myself going on three, knows it has become much more dangerous out there. Sidewalk laws are usually by city ordinance and in a lot of areas are multi-use. They are safer than the road, period. Of course you have to use proper etiquette on a sidewalk just as a road. Quit all activities with risk? It comes down to calculating risks and what you are comfortable with. Climbing has risks, but you generally have a set of parameters you can assess and the moving parts of your analysis are limited. On the road, you just can’t evaluate every driver and what might distract them or increase your risk. Mr. Casimiro has decided that it’s not worth this risk. I have done the same years ago. My road bike sits on a trainer for rainy days now. I’ll stick with off-road riding, running, surfing, and various other “risk” taking adventures. If you live in a area with roads that are safe and less traveled by car, then you probably can keep riding without as much worry as the person who doesn’t have such luck. Each has to live with the amount of risk and danger they are comfortable with for them and their family. I’m not going to surf with chum in my board shorts because the risk is too high that I’ll probably be attacked by a shark. I very well might get attacked by a shark while at my local break after taking all precautions, but at least I know I don’t have to worry about him running into me because he is distracted by a cell phone.
Mister?
Ha! Old habits die hard. Someone writes a spot-on article, someone deserves to be addressed with some respect 🙂 But seriously, as I get older, I have come to realize just how short life is and that I need to pack more into my outdoor life every chance I get. But you have to be alive to do it. That means evaluating risk and making decisions just as your article says. Side note, I also care less and less about what people think is cool or hip or follows some gatekeeper’s rule book (I still regularly ride a 26″ wheel mtn. bike)
As a former bike messenger, I love riding in traffic. One of my favourite vacations was going to a city and riding around and through it. On a bike you moved faster than walking, so even if you ended up in sketchy areas, you were as I joked to my friends, “Faster than the speed of thought” . “Hey, let’s rip that guy off, Ohhh too late, he rode past us already!”
When my friends said “Isn’t it dangerous I always laughed, “Cars don’t jump sideways”
All I worried about was getting the “Door Prize” of someone opening their door and riding into it.
Eventually it turned into night riding only.
All time favourite laugh… 2001, riding through a super sketchy part of Harlem in NYC at 2AM with a couple of friends and my soon to be wife. Stopped at a light and a little kid holding his mom’s hand asked us, “Are you guys having a bike race?” “Yeah!” we replied. “Cool!” The kid responded.
As we rode away my buddy looked at me and laughed “Four white people riding through the ghetto at 2 am? Damn right we’re racing!” Joking aside, I always felt completely safe on my bike. Cars didn’t scare me. Cars still don’t scare me. Distracted drivers scare me.
Now thanks to distracted drivers my dusty road bike hangs in the carport, tires flattened by time and lack of use, looking like a relic from another time. Not sold because I dream of the time when I can ride it again, knowing that time will never come, and because I think I’d hate to sell my bike and have someone else get hit.
And people always say “Ohhh the Bike park is SO dangerous!”
Depressing days indeed.
Well, yes. Distracted drivers.
https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812700
NYer here, where people are literally dying left and right. This evening, on my bike commute home,I saw no less than 4 crazy situations that could’ve hurt me if I were less attentive or less experienced. I commute once or twice a week to stay in shape but, otherwise, I’ve taken to multi use paths or driving ‘upstate’ to find dirt and gravel roads populated by more horses and tractors than cars. I get sh*t for driving the bike on the car to the ride, but it’s just not safe on my local roads. Everyone has a phone in their hand and enforcement is non existent unless your involved in a fatal accident. Good article.
Sadly the article could have been written about the Sunshine Coast Australia . Exactly the same behavior here. I am very nervous about riding these days and feel as though a thing of joy has been removed from my life.
Too old to go off trails and up mountains just want a peaceful tootle around my town.
In the world of safety, incidents are measured as a incidents per some unit of measure, such as man hours worked, flight hours flown, miles travelled, etc. Think incidents resulting loss of aircraft/life/$2m per 100,000 flight hours. IMHO a good stat would be loss of life & serious injury per 100k miles travelled. Show this year over year and you’ll have something solid.
While reading those similar articles like this one, I’m feeling sorry and at the same time so happy about, that in my Country – Lithuania it is still not a big issue. Due to low population, and considerably low amount of cars we still can enjoy descent, scenic routes around capital and in the province. Yes, without opportunity to relax and simply just pedal it road cycling is not so fun anymore.
Good article but your way of the mark suggesting Italy for safe riding.
Some of the most mad drivers on earth.
All roads are death traps Italy included, sadly. It’s scary out there. I’m been through 2 windshields and have 2 surgeries to show for it.
Safe riding
I don’t really know what to say about all this because it’s very depressing. I ride on the Interstate for six miles during my favorite ride from Bozeman to Livingston. I use two tail lights and I feel a little bit safer on the interstate (with its wider shoulders) than on the frontage road where their is no shoulder save the white line and about four inches of blacktop, if I’m lucky.
At age 73, I’m not ready to give up cycling, but I do take off in the winter for three months while the cross country skiing in Yellowstone is at it best. Folks, make yourselves highly visible and keep riding. Act like a car when you’re in traffic, use hand signals, and make eye contact if you can. Best to all of you and thanks for the great comments.
I agree with you.
Aaaaaaaaand now you know why I don’t keep or ride roadies. Mountain bikes for street, for trails, for riding street *to* trails. (Leaving the spandex at home also doesn’t hurt.)
The problem is you’re on the wrong type of bike. I live in an area full of clueless Califoregonian foreigners and something about roadies attracts these type of cagers like blowflies to carrion. All but the densest of idiots behind the wheel will usually think twice before fucking with a dude on a mountain bike.
Shrug it off if you want, but it’s really that simple. Throw that POS roady in the bin where it belongs and build a real bike.
It’s a sad reality in most areas. Here in Littleton, CO I feel especially blessed to not only have ample trails to enjoy, but TONS of paved paths for commuting and getting in miles on the road bike. We actually bought in the community we did largely because of the trail infrastructure through the neighborhoods and access to our neighborhood only dirt trails which aren’t crappy trails, but 50+ miles of good mountain biking. I can also ride for 100+ miles on the paved paths without being accompanied by motor vehicles. In some areas I might have to cross a street, but most trails go under the roads or offer a bypass over. Why don’t more cities have trail networks like this??? Minneapolis also seems to have a good path network. With this said, there are so many roads with shoulders I’d love to explore to get in some good climbing as that’s missing on these paved paths. But, I get that on the mountain bike trails and I just can’t seem to get my brain back to the space where road riding seems doable anymore. People drive like a$$holes out here, in my opinion. Every stoplight is like the start of a race when it turns green, only to catch up with the same drivers at the next light. Nope, I’ll stick to my lovely paths and go to the trails these days. It’s just not worth it.
Good article. I came back to cycling recently due to the pandemic because they closed my gym. I haven’t touched a bike in at least a decade and now I remember why I had stopped riding and retreated to the gym – CARS. Last month I have been riding my dusty old hybrid to get some exercise, its just not safe on the road today. Years ago I was a roadie, got hit and run. Was thrown in a ditch on the side of the road. After that I sold the road bike, bought a hybrid thinking I could ride on both the road and trails. Didn’t use it much because it was not good on trails and I was afraid of the road. So here I am back at full circle realizing why I stopped riding only its much worse now. When I got hit the smartphone hadn’t gotten out of hand yet but today? People are totally distracted now especially with all this stuff of integrating the phone into the car. I think its a huge mistake to put all this stuff in the cars which is leading to even more distractions. Started thinking about maybe buying another bike but it definitely won’t be a road bike, its just too dangerous.