Stupid, Stupid Bicyclists

[Two-wheeled Boneheads] It happened again this morning. I witnessed yet another close call on the road between a motorist and a bike rider. This is becoming a near-daily occurrence. Depending on the length of time I travel, I sometimes note three or four idiotic cycling infractions in one trip.

In today's case, a car turning left, legally, from westbound 1700 South onto southbound 1300 East (Westminster College intersection) nearly took out a middle-aged guy, with no helmet, on a fat-tired cruiser bike. The cyclist, who also wanted to turn left onto 1300 East, pedaled into the left turn lane and up to the passenger side of the car in question. That meant when the light changed, and the car turned left, dumbass cyclist turned in tandem with the car. The driver apparently didn't see the guy on the bike, and when she swung a bit wide on her turn, nearly took the bike rider out of commission.

Then came the best part: The cyclist cussed her out!

The right way for the cyclist to make that turn was to pull up in the lane behind the car--just as another vehicle would do it. He was supposed to make his own left turn, waiting for oncoming traffic to clear.

Other common observations in bike riding idiocy:

1. Riding on the sidewalk. It's illegal and stupid, to boot. Pedestrians have the right of way on sidewalks. A cyclist risks running over a pedestrian as well as running into objects like planter boxes, signs, trash cans, sleeping homeless guys, etc.

2. Riding without a helmet. Sorry, words pretty much fail me here. If you can't figure out why you should wear a helmet while bike riding--even for a short distance--your brain probably isn't worth preserving anyway. Just make sure you've filled out your organ donor pledge before hopping on your bike, ok? (BTW, this applies to all you cutie pies on shiny new scooters, too. Because scooters lack the engine power of a motorcycle, you have far less ability than a big hog to quickly escape a dangerous traffic situation . )

3. Riding in crosswalks. Stop it. Utah law says bicycles must observe all the same laws as a motorized vehicle. Yes, it's hard for people who are riding bikes again for the first time since third grade, but you're running with the big dogs now people, so stop pissing like a puppy. Riding a bike in traffic can be scary, but the more you do it, the more nerve you grow and cars will begin to respect you. Grow a nut.

Ok. Are we all on the same page?

You all get mad props for using your human power to get around town. You're saving money on gas and you're shrinking our carbon footprint. Just learn the rules of the bike world, all right?

Last point: Please don't go all bongo calling me a bike-hating bitch. I'm one of you! I'm a mad road cyclist--I spend every free moment I can riding up and down the canyons in SL County. I'm a regular bike commuter, too. I stop for lights. I ride in bike lanes or in traffic. Just like a car or truck.

I'm sick of you knuckleheads who can't figure the game out. Ride big and brave or get off the road. (Holly Mullen)

P.S. Love that Einstein fellow, above. But he's a dumbass for riding without a helmet.

The Word is Getting Out

[Hit and Run Part II] A couple of hours after I posted this entry yesterday on Salt Blog for City Weekly, I e-mailed several news outlets in town telling them about bicyclist Edith (Dede) Welker and the bastard who plowed into her with his/her van Sunday night, then took off.

KSL radio has been running a shorter version of our blog post on its news breaks all morning.

Typically, my news hound instincts would keep me from sharing any of our stories with the competition. But we need to find this hit and run criminal while the trail is still warm. Remember: white van with a red stripe, and probably some damage to the right front end. Call Salt Lake City Police at (801)799-3000 with any information. (Holly Mullen)

Update: Fox 13 has interviewed Dede and her family today, as well.

Another Hit and Run Badly Injures a SLC Bicyclist

[Urban Scare] Edith (Dede) Welker came home from the hospital yesterday. The 22-year-old is nursing a badly fractured jaw, which is wired shut. Two of her teeth have been knocked out; others are broken. She is bruised and scratched and a gash in her chin took several stitches. Welker's jaw will be wired for at least four weeks.

A vehicle that witnesses describe as a white van with a red stripe plowed into Welker as she rode her bicycle home from work at the 9th and 9th Coffee Garden. It was about 11 p.m. The van was on westbound 300 South, turning right (north) onto 500 East. Welker was also traveling west. The driver slammed into her while turning right. Witnesses told Salt Lake City police she flew up over the hood, then fell to the ground. The driver, who witnesses say was moving at a high rate of speed, did not slow down. Instead, the driver sped away, leaving Welker dazed and bleeding on the side of the road.

Witnesses immediately called 911 and got emergency help. But this story gets even more egregious. The van driver took off with Welker's backpack, containing a wallet with her I.D., credit cards, her tips from four shifts at the Coffee Garden, her cell phone and several checks from donors who are supporting Welker in a charitable trip to Madagascar. Her plans were to leave later this summer after raising $4,000 for the NGO, Azafady. Welker graduated in May from the University of Utah with a degree in environmental studies. She's keenly interested in projects of sustainability and in working with developing nations.

"I think this means I will not be able to make it to Madagascar this July," Welker wrote in describing the accident to her financial backers on her Web site. "I am currently considering pushing my departure back a couple weeks if I am able to heal quickly, or perhaps jumping on the next pioneer scheme, if there's room. After 4 months of fundraising, and thanks to all your
generosity, I have nearly all the funds raised for Azafady and my personal expenses, and this is everything I want to do with my life right now. Patience is my plan, and I also plan to leave those moneys alone completely."

Jenny Harmon, is Welker's 29-year-old sister. She was speaking for her today, as talking is still difficult. Police are investigating, Harmon says, and have taken Welker's mashed road bike into evidence. Witnesses got no license plate number or any other description of the van.

"She's just feeling everything out right now," Harmon says. "She doesn't remember much. She doesn't remember going over the top of the van. She's in pain and sifting through a lot of emotions right now."

Welker uses her bike and public transportation as her sole means of getting around. She was not wearing a helmet--something her sister suspects will change should she eventually get back on a bike.

Anyone who sees the van--white with a red stripe and likely carrying front-end damage on the right side, is urged to get the license plate number and call Salt Lake City police at 799-3000.

(Holly Mullen)

Cyclist Tests "3-Foot Law"

[Safer Riding] Jason Bultman is a longtime bicycle safety activist, a husband and father of two young children and lives in Salt Lake City. He's been using a bike for his primary means of transportation for years--long before $3.19-per gallon gas prices and chatter about our carbon footprint.

Bultman also had his ankle crushed a few years ago--an injury that has required numerous surgeries to repair--when a driver of a car slammed into him as he rode his bike in Salt Lake City. Bultman believes a case he recently pursued against a clueless driver may be the first prosecution of Utah's "3-foot-law" for road cyclists.

The law, passed in 2006, requires that drivers of vehicles give bicyclists three feet of space when passing them on the road.

In an e-mail Bultman writes: I was riding north on 900 East last fall (going to a Bike Collective Board Meeting) when I was "brushed" by a guy hanging out of the passenger window of a pickup truck. The truck was within inches but did not contact me, and I did not fall, but damn, that was scary. Luckily, I did not catch up to the truck to express my feelings. I stopped a police officer and gave the tag number. The police found the driver and passenger who confessed and were apologetic. When given the option to prosecute for assault or reckless endangerment, I instead decided to pursue prosecution of the 3-ft-law (State Code 41-6A-706.5) since it was the driver who threatened my life, and also since very few are aware of this new law to get some media attention and educate the public.

The driver did not show up to his recent arraignment hearing and there is now a warrant out for his arrest. I also found out that violation of this law is a $82 citation.

Bultman asks that people who circulate this story remind everyone that cyclists have the same rights to the road as drivers. Also, if there are not three feet available to pass, a driver must wait to pass a cyclist until the space presents itself. And another obligatory reminder to cyclists: You must obey all safety rules--including stopping for lights and stop signs. Just like cars and trucks.

(Holly Mullen)