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David Byrne is either lucky or extremely skilled (or maybe he just rides slower than I do). He has been riding his bike in New York City for over thirty years and claims to have only been hit once - and with style, by a limo.
I have lived in NYC for four years and have been hit four times: 2 taxi doorings, one swift illegal U turn of a minivan (I am lucky it was a minivan or I might have hurtled over the top of a normal sedan), and a no signal, quick right hand turn from a Dodge something-or-another that resulted in a lay down.
Byrne was featured on Gothamist late last year. Here are a few things that I found amusing from the links in the post that I hope you will too.
First, a Top 10 Bike Tip list from David that was featured on Green Apple Map:
1. New Jersey drivers have rarely seen pedestrians before. Bikes they’ve seen even less. They cannot see you, so if you see Jersey plates, be careful.
2. Limos and town cars think they rule the road. The only time I’ve ever gotten hit was by a limo.
3. Food delivery guys have been instructed by some malicious deity to always drive facing traffic, and to force other cyclists heading towards them into unseen traffic coming up from behind. It’s unfair to judge immigrants based on their bicycle behavior, but….since the Yuan is now no longer tied to the dollar I suspect things will be heating up in the near future.
4. No one has yet designed a helmet that is safe, light, aerodynamic, ventilated and most important of all- attractive. (admittedly this is subjective) A lady on 25th st was selling raccoon tails out of a shopping cart once (cheap too!)- so I tried tying one of those on to my helmet. But it didn’t really help.
5. I’m thinking those masochistic looking skinny seats might be more comfortable in the long run than the big soft cushy ones.
6. The landlord and the city building code people let me install a shower in my office because I ride a bike to work. Really.
7. I can gallery hop or hit the clubs at night or in the afternoon cheaply and efficiently. It beats cabbing, and the subway is sporadic at night.
8, There’s a man near me who usually dresses in white and pink and rides a teeny pink child’s bike- decorated with aluminum streamers.
9. I once got a ticket for running a red light on my bike. Fair enough. I hope that if I obey the traffic rules then I will in turn be given the space and rights any other vehicle would receive. I decided to contest the ticket downtown, and got another ticket for the exact same thing on the way to court. I usually stop at red lights, like cyclists do in Europe, though sometimes I do feel ridiculous stopping for nothing.
10. Avoid bombs, package searches, fear of public transport, or claustrophobia- ride a bike.
Second, a recap of his presentation “How New Yorkers Ride Bikes” can be found via this link. Included is a video of him riding to the presentation, with live commentary.
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Filed Under: culture
2 comments for this entry ↓
1 A Humorous Look at Biking in New York City « New York Outdoors Blog // May 22, 2008 at 6:34 am
[...] May 22, 2008 by newyorkoutdoors Here’s a humorous look at biking in NYC: Biking in New York City: David Byrne [...]
2 ishuku // Jul 7, 2008 at 4:45 pm
i’ve seen that guy with the aluminum streamers– in philly and new york in the same weekend! (seriously, he’s hard to miss. unless he has a twin!)
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