"Conjugate positive vibes"
Preface: If you don’t want to read my entry, at least scroll down to the last paragraph and check out the links to the video and Biker Fox. You won’t be sorry.
When a friend first told me that the city of Carmel was considering a speed limit for the northern part of the Monon Trail, I said, “What a great idea.” In 2005, a cyclist was killed in a traffic accident when she crossed a street that the trail occasionally intersects. Perhaps a 15 mph restriction would prevent accidents like these from occurring. “No, no, no,” he clarified, “They want to put a restriction on the trail itself. To keep bikes from speeding over 15 mph.”
Now that’s an interesting concept. I really enjoy the trail, one of the few redeeming qualities of Indianapolis. By far, it is one of the most creative uses of urban space (I would almost say nationally if not regionally) by converting an abandoned railroad into a walking/biking/rollerblading trail. The Monon Trail is one of the few places where I can take The Toby to sniff other dogs’ anuses without apologizing, run without fear of being sideswiped by a vehicle, and actually enjoy my surroundings. Sure, the cyclists are a little annoying, especially when they whizz by you at lightning speed, screaming, “On your left!” It’s even funnier when a dyslexic cyclist screams, “On your right!” then zags left, and misses The Toby by a few inches.
The speed restriction seems a bit unnecessary. As far as I have read or seen, no one has been injured on the trail because of cycling. And cyclists are far less annoying than the SAHM’s pushing double-stroller SUVs. I imagine it is the SAHM profile whose primary concern on the trail is “discourteous speeding.” This may be just a Carmel effort of segregating itself from the rest of the city, which I have seen before (ahem, Nichols Hills in Oklahoma City? You know, where the citizens have their own water supply, but during a black out insist that they be serviced first before the rest of the city.). But this is all speculation, even though the demographic who responded to the trail survey was described as “white, non-Hispanic, college-educated users earning $40,000 or more per year.”
Even though I do not own a bicycle, I actually empathize with Indy cyclists. They passed the speed restriction today, which brought to mind a couple of questions. If the speed limit deters bikers, where are they supposed to train and commute? What message is this sending to Indiana’s initiatives to overturn obesity, such as InShape? How do they plan on policing this restriction? Will I get to see some racy, high-speed Pacific Blue type chases on bike? Oh, well, I don’t have answers to any of these questions. But this is the perfect excuse to segue into Tulsa’s biking situation via this locally directed video by James Plumlee that includes Oklahoma legend Biker Fox. Enjoy!
When a friend first told me that the city of Carmel was considering a speed limit for the northern part of the Monon Trail, I said, “What a great idea.” In 2005, a cyclist was killed in a traffic accident when she crossed a street that the trail occasionally intersects. Perhaps a 15 mph restriction would prevent accidents like these from occurring. “No, no, no,” he clarified, “They want to put a restriction on the trail itself. To keep bikes from speeding over 15 mph.”
Now that’s an interesting concept. I really enjoy the trail, one of the few redeeming qualities of Indianapolis. By far, it is one of the most creative uses of urban space (I would almost say nationally if not regionally) by converting an abandoned railroad into a walking/biking/rollerblading trail. The Monon Trail is one of the few places where I can take The Toby to sniff other dogs’ anuses without apologizing, run without fear of being sideswiped by a vehicle, and actually enjoy my surroundings. Sure, the cyclists are a little annoying, especially when they whizz by you at lightning speed, screaming, “On your left!” It’s even funnier when a dyslexic cyclist screams, “On your right!” then zags left, and misses The Toby by a few inches.
The speed restriction seems a bit unnecessary. As far as I have read or seen, no one has been injured on the trail because of cycling. And cyclists are far less annoying than the SAHM’s pushing double-stroller SUVs. I imagine it is the SAHM profile whose primary concern on the trail is “discourteous speeding.” This may be just a Carmel effort of segregating itself from the rest of the city, which I have seen before (ahem, Nichols Hills in Oklahoma City? You know, where the citizens have their own water supply, but during a black out insist that they be serviced first before the rest of the city.). But this is all speculation, even though the demographic who responded to the trail survey was described as “white, non-Hispanic, college-educated users earning $40,000 or more per year.”
Even though I do not own a bicycle, I actually empathize with Indy cyclists. They passed the speed restriction today, which brought to mind a couple of questions. If the speed limit deters bikers, where are they supposed to train and commute? What message is this sending to Indiana’s initiatives to overturn obesity, such as InShape? How do they plan on policing this restriction? Will I get to see some racy, high-speed Pacific Blue type chases on bike? Oh, well, I don’t have answers to any of these questions. But this is the perfect excuse to segue into Tulsa’s biking situation via this locally directed video by James Plumlee that includes Oklahoma legend Biker Fox. Enjoy!
posted by anarchic at 2:43 PM
2 Comments:
Saw that video at Overground 8, and the BikerFox himself was there to entertain the crowd. Very interesting dude, I've seen him around town, mainly weaving in and out of traffic on Memorial.
It's too bad I never met BikerFox while I lived in Tulsa. We share the same philosophy: life is fantastic with cardiovascular activities.
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