Together

gang.

Over the years I’ve been hit by cars, buzzed by cars, knocked by buses, squeezed by busses, had shit thrown at me out of cars, been spit on, have fought people that tried to kill me, have been yelled at 100s of times, chased down cars that tried to kill me, have hit cars with ulocks, broke mirrors with my hand, thrown hot coffee through open windows, dressed down old motherfuckers-to old to fight, retaliated however I could.

I know many of the people that read this can relate.

I’ve read comments sections filled with hateful rhetoric about cyclists, many suggesting that cyclists should be run over for the crime of existing.

Just a couple weeks ago some shitball drove his car into a group of cyclists at the jens voight gran fondo in california.

And now this…

This is the realization of all that hate coming from these people.

There is a thin line that separates these cowardly mens action and the average cyclist hater’s rhetoric.

Cyclists, urban, suburban and rural must stay vigilant at all times.

We are “moving targets”.

We are not protected anywhere. Society as a whole looks down at those who ride bicycles.

If you are killed by a driver on the street you will be blamed: by the cops, by the courts, by the media, by society.

I don’t have an upside to this thought. I don’t see any rising hope of acceptance coming up from the younger generation. They are the cracked mirror of the older generation, worse in many ways.

I only feel for those who lost their lives and those who have been hurt.

I want all of us to be safe in this disconnected world.

It’s hard for me to find a positive word.

Ride safe. Stay vigilant. Fight to protect yourself.

Prepare for the worst, but ride like the best.