I do ride with confidence on my bike, and as I have gotten older and (ahem...) wiser, I have also started giving others audible warning of my approach/passing. I don't have a one-size-fits-all approach, rather I assess the situation and respond accordingly. If I'm passing a small child, I slow way down and say something like "coming up behind you", and when they swerve (as they always do, it seems, whether I say something or not), I say something reassuring, like, "It's okay, have fun". That way they gain a positive experience and I daresay it does increase their awareness as well, but mostly it puts their parents at ease- knowing that I know how to ride safely around their kids. When I am approaching casual walkers, distracted dog-walkers, rollerbladers, etc. I either do a bell-ring or an audible warning- there is a lot to be said for tone-of-voice. I not only try to ride with confidence, but also speak with confidence and in a non-aggressive tone. I try to give people adequate notice as well- which means saying something sooner than later. I think a lot of cyclists do forget how quickly a bike seems to approach a ped from the ped's point-of-view.
I find that riding safely and predictably helps the most. I also think that it is totally appropriate to use audible signals on a multi-use path. I receive a positive response from nearly all the folks that I give warning to (smiles, "thanks", slight move-overs, hand waves). Again, I just think of it as one human communicating with another, regardless of the mode of transport. There's my 2 bits. -India ----- Original Message ----- From: Doug Adler <[email protected]> Date: Wednesday, September 9, 2009 5:50 pm Subject: Re: [Bikies] Rules Street Code To: [email protected] > > > Thanks for the alternate view, Kris. I'm in the middle on this one > myself. First I'm not sure most walkers/joggers appreciate the notice > - anybody done a poll? I've had several on foot (especially > side-by-side people) practically jump off the path, when I was going by > with 3 feet to spare already. It can seem the equivalent of a car > honking as they approach a bike from behind; maybe ok on an empty road > if done far enough back but pretty annoying if everyone does it in > town. I EXPECT cars to be passing me all I care is that they leave a > safe space. And most times on the trail you can pass with as much room > as cars give on the street, so maybe trail users should just get used > to it, serious crash risks are low after all. > > > > On the other hand there are times when I feel safer saying something > like when: passing bikes who are already near the centerline, or might > be about to move over for slower traffic we are closing on, anytime > children are involved, anytime pets are involved, whenever I 'm passing > with less than arms length. > > > > Doug > > > > > > Kristine M. Niemann wrote: > > > > I > personally don't understand why people feel the need to say "passing on > the left" in normal situations on the bike path anyway. If a person is > riding on the right side of the line, NOT in the way of the approaching > bike, then the approacher should simply pass with caution. What do > they think is going to happen? The right lane rider is SUDDENLY going > to veer out into the left lane without notice? This is simply so > ridiculous and I really wish people would just ride the path with > confidence and courtesy rather than fear. There is almost always > plenty of room to pass, so I don't get it, and it's annoying. Now > riding on the road...that's another matter. > > > > kris > > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Bikies mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org _______________________________________________ Bikies mailing list [email protected] http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org
