An Amusement & Diversion for The Genteel Cyclist. Daily.

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Dirt: It's so much softer — and ironically, there aren't any SUVs

Seen in the morning papers...






It's bad form to blame the victims, of course, but if you're going to ride race-pace in a group of thirty riders, you might want to find a quiet non-residential street.



The bicycle group rides along the four-mile Kendale Lakes Circle loop about five nights a week, according to neighborhood residents and some of the bicyclists. They use the course for race training, often hitting speeds of 30 to 35 mph.


And they do this five nights a week? It's a wonder it didn't happen sooner.

5 comments:

AdamB said...

oh sure, if it happens to a messenger it's criminal, but if a SUV pulls out in front of spandex warriors it's their own fault.

where is it that you recommend finding quiet non-residential streets?

Anonymous said...

well no, but what Pinchie is saying is that riding in a pack at that speed is basically like running a crit on an "open course."

There are plenty of commercial streets like that. In Minneapolis, Opus is a great example... after 6 p.m., its ghosttown on those beautifully paved circuits.

AdamB said...

Yeah sorta, and I'm saying that if it's okay to drive at that speed on those streets, it's okay to ride that fast as well.

just pointing out what looks like a double standard.

Opus is in Minnetonka, but the same thing coulda happened there. You see sedans and SUVs of pissed off office workers all the time there.

just my $.04

Pinchie said...

well, it's not so much speed limit as size of your peloton. If you're cruising at 30-35 in a pack of 30 riders, there is very little room for error. it just seems crazy to me on an open residential street to go that fast with that many riders.

i'm not saying it's their fault; i'm just saying the odds are not great that an accident like this wasn't inevitable.

And, by the way, if this was a parkway like we have here in the twin cities, then 25 MPH ~is~ the speed limit, and a pack of cyclists moving at 35 is rather like a semi-trailer on a residential street driving at 10 MPH over the limit.

agreed there are road ragers at Opus as well, but seriously, it's almost completely car free after six... a nice long warmup ride from Minneapolis will put you in tall clover for your spontaneous training crit, it seems to me.

Anonymous said...

What Pinchie is saying is that this group is a bunch of slap dicks riding without the skill needed to do so. The clue, 5days a week=slap dick. Just because you can ride 30mph(in a group)does not mean that you should. As a long time elite cat1, I will only ride with a select group at those speeds during open training. Closed course, then at least you can keep clear from the 99% of racers that are still learning, without the worry of cars.

el rapido