My favourite with a bus was in 196x – I had fitted my bike out with a m/c 6V battery which I used to power a ‘Clear Hooters’ 6V horn that my Aunt supplied (she worked for the company) and a ‘fog’ light. (before the days of LEDs and Zenon!)
I was approaching a bus that was stopped, loading and I got alongside the driver when he started to move off. I sounded the horn and he stopped so quickly the passengers must have been thrown around! The look on his face was priceless
I agree with cycler. I’ll stop far enough back to have the driver in my sight in the mirror, which means they can see me. I will put my foot on the curb.Drivers appreciate not having to guess what I’m doing. The exception is when the road is clear behind & there is a line of bus riders to load.
A four-frame comic strip encapsulation of non-cyclists’ perceptions of cycling. A car’s top speed is always faster than a cyclist’s – but the car driver can’t get used to the idea that on a clogged urban road a bike may in fact arrive before the car – even when (s)he sees it with their own eyes… like the guy in this strip.
The sentiment behind Yehuda’s interregator’s questions reminds me of a question I’m getting from some coworkers of late now that my wife and I are expecting any day.
“Are you going to start driving to work in case your wife goes into labor?”
It makes me want to say, “Um, no, cager. Why the hell would I do that?! My wife is having a baby, not a heart attack. We should have plenty of warning that things are happening and time for me to get home by bike before having to even think about getting ready to go to the hospital.” Instead, I politely tell them no and shrug it off.
“Having a baby, not a heart attack.” Love it!!
Although there will be times over the next 18-plus years when you’ll think you might have preferred the heart attack….. (grin)
Driving a car is such a status symbol in our little town. The only people who walk or ride bikes are those too poor to afford the luxury of a beater or too young to have a license. Oh yeah, and the health nuts who are just showing off. (That would include us, I guess, though neither of us would ever make the cover of any kind of fitness-related magazine.)
When I point out that they are spending a couple of dollars to cover the 2 or 3 miles – maximum – from home to work or to Wally World to pick up new batteries for the TV Remote and that it only adds about 5 minutes – maximum – to ride a bike, I just get blank stares. Occasionally I’ll get an explanation of why they can’t ride, how the bike has a flat tire, or they don’t want to get to work all sweaty.
A few friends have taken the bait, including our worship pastor who has prosthetics from the knees down on both legs. He rides the mile or so to and from work on a Giant comfort bike. Sometimes his shoe comes off the pedal and sometimes he falls down in the middle of the street. He picks himself up and keeps right on riding. Ya gotta love ‘im.
Or a tricycle…? No, wait, a recumbent tricycle! Would be probably my choice if I was in such a situation.
One of my friends lost his leg (above the knee) as a child. He rides a bicycle, allowing him to cover more distance than just walking, which is quite difficult for him even with a modern prosthetics. (He also has a car, but chooses not to use it too often, especially not on shorter errands around the town). Never tried anything else than his regular walking prosthesis, so he just has one of the pedals (with the crank as well) taken off and he pedals with just one leg, using a toe-strap to carry the pedal the whole way around. One has to respect this highly – it takes only a while of trying this to appreciate how challenging it is, how fast does one leg get tired without the help of the other…
Or a tricycle…? No, wait, a recumbent tricycle! Would be probably my choice if I was in such a situation.
One of my friends lost his leg (above the knee) as a child. He rides a bicycle, allowing him to cover more distance than just walking, which is quite difficult for him even with a modern prosthetics. (He also has a car, but chooses not to use it too often, especially not on shorter errands around the town). Never tried anything else than his regular walking prosthesis, so he just has one of the pedals (with the crank as well) taken off and he pedals with just one leg, using a toe-strap to carry the pedal the whole way around. One has to respect this highly – it takes only a while of trying this to appreciate how challenging it is, how fast does one leg get tired without the help of the other…
He can’t rotate his foot in any plane (on purpose). We tried toe clips without straps and discovered that his heels would tend to rotate in and bump the chain stays.
There are adjustments that could be made and even bicycle-specific prosthetics, but he is poor as a churchmouse (he has a bike because one was given to him) so the bike-specific is out of the question. Adjustments to the prosthetics take a considerable amount of time and aren’t justified unless he decides to tackle something longer than our sub-20 mile rides.
We have MTB pedals on his bike. Big platform with good grip. His heel still tends to move in over time. Not sure if anything less than a platform like on an eliptical trainer would help much.
What happens if he pedals with his heels? – I know it’s wrong form, but for someone with no lower legs, there’s no advantage to using the front of the foot.
Roadway Leapfrog… Love playing it. Caveat, I hate playing it with buses.
Which is why I just don’t. Stopping and waiting 30 seconds for them to pull out is worth avoiding the chance of getting hit.
I hear ya on the buses, I’m always scared of their sideview mirrors….. once was more than enough!
My favourite with a bus was in 196x – I had fitted my bike out with a m/c 6V battery which I used to power a ‘Clear Hooters’ 6V horn that my Aunt supplied (she worked for the company) and a ‘fog’ light. (before the days of LEDs and Zenon!)
I was approaching a bus that was stopped, loading and I got alongside the driver when he started to move off. I sounded the horn and he stopped so quickly the passengers must have been thrown around! The look on his face was priceless
Yehuda asked: “The CAP?”
He could have answered: “No, I read Kickstand comics”…
Yehuda’s cap in that frame would have been a good place to hide a link to Walzcaps.com
I like my Walz caps. Especially good to prevent striped sunburn on the head.
I agree with cycler. I’ll stop far enough back to have the driver in my sight in the mirror, which means they can see me. I will put my foot on the curb.Drivers appreciate not having to guess what I’m doing. The exception is when the road is clear behind & there is a line of bus riders to load.
A four-frame comic strip encapsulation of non-cyclists’ perceptions of cycling. A car’s top speed is always faster than a cyclist’s – but the car driver can’t get used to the idea that on a clogged urban road a bike may in fact arrive before the car – even when (s)he sees it with their own eyes… like the guy in this strip.
Rick said it all so much neater.
Brian wrote this one! I just drew it.
The sentiment behind Yehuda’s interregator’s questions reminds me of a question I’m getting from some coworkers of late now that my wife and I are expecting any day.
“Are you going to start driving to work in case your wife goes into labor?”
It makes me want to say, “Um, no, cager. Why the hell would I do that?! My wife is having a baby, not a heart attack. We should have plenty of warning that things are happening and time for me to get home by bike before having to even think about getting ready to go to the hospital.” Instead, I politely tell them no and shrug it off.
“Having a baby, not a heart attack.” Love it!!
Although there will be times over the next 18-plus years when you’ll think you might have preferred the heart attack….. (grin)
Driving a car is such a status symbol in our little town. The only people who walk or ride bikes are those too poor to afford the luxury of a beater or too young to have a license. Oh yeah, and the health nuts who are just showing off. (That would include us, I guess, though neither of us would ever make the cover of any kind of fitness-related magazine.)
When I point out that they are spending a couple of dollars to cover the 2 or 3 miles – maximum – from home to work or to Wally World to pick up new batteries for the TV Remote and that it only adds about 5 minutes – maximum – to ride a bike, I just get blank stares. Occasionally I’ll get an explanation of why they can’t ride, how the bike has a flat tire, or they don’t want to get to work all sweaty.
A few friends have taken the bait, including our worship pastor who has prosthetics from the knees down on both legs. He rides the mile or so to and from work on a Giant comfort bike. Sometimes his shoe comes off the pedal and sometimes he falls down in the middle of the street. He picks himself up and keeps right on riding. Ya gotta love ‘im.
You may want to suggest toe straps or SPDs with the release set easy – should prevent accidental slippage without impairing voluntary exit.
Or a tricycle…? No, wait, a recumbent tricycle! Would be probably my choice if I was in such a situation.
One of my friends lost his leg (above the knee) as a child. He rides a bicycle, allowing him to cover more distance than just walking, which is quite difficult for him even with a modern prosthetics. (He also has a car, but chooses not to use it too often, especially not on shorter errands around the town). Never tried anything else than his regular walking prosthesis, so he just has one of the pedals (with the crank as well) taken off and he pedals with just one leg, using a toe-strap to carry the pedal the whole way around. One has to respect this highly – it takes only a while of trying this to appreciate how challenging it is, how fast does one leg get tired without the help of the other…
Think of the muscles on the other leg though!
Or a tricycle…? No, wait, a recumbent tricycle! Would be probably my choice if I was in such a situation.
One of my friends lost his leg (above the knee) as a child. He rides a bicycle, allowing him to cover more distance than just walking, which is quite difficult for him even with a modern prosthetics. (He also has a car, but chooses not to use it too often, especially not on shorter errands around the town). Never tried anything else than his regular walking prosthesis, so he just has one of the pedals (with the crank as well) taken off and he pedals with just one leg, using a toe-strap to carry the pedal the whole way around. One has to respect this highly – it takes only a while of trying this to appreciate how challenging it is, how fast does one leg get tired without the help of the other…
He can’t rotate his foot in any plane (on purpose). We tried toe clips without straps and discovered that his heels would tend to rotate in and bump the chain stays.
There are adjustments that could be made and even bicycle-specific prosthetics, but he is poor as a churchmouse (he has a bike because one was given to him) so the bike-specific is out of the question. Adjustments to the prosthetics take a considerable amount of time and aren’t justified unless he decides to tackle something longer than our sub-20 mile rides.
How about MTB pedals..? They should offer better grip on the sole of his shoes.
We have MTB pedals on his bike. Big platform with good grip. His heel still tends to move in over time. Not sure if anything less than a platform like on an eliptical trainer would help much.
What happens if he pedals with his heels? – I know it’s wrong form, but for someone with no lower legs, there’s no advantage to using the front of the foot.