Commentary, Life Style and Common Sense
I live in a canyon with a 5 mile road that dead ends in the Santa Monica mountains. It is a winding path with houses that has blind driveways, with narrow no passing lanes and uneven terrain. It is a very cool spot to live as deer, coyotes, foxes and other wildlife also making it their abode. It is also the route that hundreds of bicyclists a day use to practice training or recreational treks.
There is a constant tug of war between the residents of the street and the bike interlopers who are oblivious to the every present danger of getting rammed by a car. The bike community believes it is their right to block the road when a chain of them crank their toys to the max of 35-40 MPH without the clear understanding that if a car hits them , they are toast. Stop signs are viewed as a minor inconvenience as a full stop is unheard of.
This bike marathon has been going on for years. Occasionally a biker is hurt and their community is shocked. Several years ago a resident in an act of road rage, suddenly stopped and two bikers plowed into his car. They were seriously hurt and the person in question did time. He deserved it.
I witnessed a biker who lost control across the street from my house when he skidded on a sandy portion of the road. He got mangled pretty badly and his bike was equally beat up. We rendered first aid to him, put his bike in storage for several days until he was well enough to claim it back.
So what is this tirade about? Pretty simple . I do not want to see anyone getting seriously hurt from an accident due to irrational behavior. I want to feel comfortable driving on my street without being yelled at from elitist bikers. I want to walk my dog without wondering if a biker will hit us. The street is narrow , poorly marked with pot holes and countless , blind curves. The local politicians see this situation as a nuisance and only react with someone gets hurt or needs votes during an election. The police see this a non priority , do not ticket the speeding bikers, or as they barrel through the stop signs.
This is an everyday occurrence for the residents of the street. It will be status quo until there is the inevitable collision between a bike and a car. Sorry to say but nothing will get done unless…….
Keep smoking