3 feet please, it's the law

this was an interesting video.....got me thinking what my state laws are.

here you go virginians.....http://www.bikewalkvirginia.org/resources/documents/VirginiaBicycleRules2004.pdf

Unfortunately we only have a 2 feet rule.

Two feet would be 20" more than some drivers give me...

Rum_Runner - 2009-03-11 4:32 PM I think wearing that jersey would increase the chances of me getting run over

That ran through my head, too.

Other Lisa ... you can order the jersey without "it's the law" on the front, but still with the 3 feet please on the back.

lisac957 - 2009-03-11 5:33 PM

Rum_Runner - 2009-03-11 4:32 PM I think wearing that jersey would increase the chances of me getting run over

That ran through my head, too.

Other Lisa ... you can order the jersey without "it's the law" on the front, but still with the 3 feet please on the back.

 

...i actually had the same idea about the jersey as a previous post.....that just seems like a dare to get closer than 2 feet to me.

Very nice...

I give the guy 9 stars out of 10.

However, the cop makes a great point.  Being 'right' is small consolation for being dead.

Riding when snow plows are out?  No thanks, no matter if I have the right to do it...

thanx for the link!!

Nice video and smart guy. I feel similar if I was hurt I'd like proof that I wasn't breaking the law and who hit me was so they could be held responsible.

Sad that police officers often don't even know the laws in their state.

Crazy, right?

Here's what bothered me a bit (besides the obvious); the rider didn't always use the shoulder when it was available. I do.

And, when he did he rode right against the white line close to the road, instead of away from the white line further from traffic. I get that we have a "right to the road" but I'd rather be safe than right.

I concur with your observations.  In my mind, he could have produced an equally compelling  video, showing how some drivers come dangerously close to bikers, while keeping his bike in a more middle or neutral section of the shoulder.  The good news is the Police are getting additional training and many thousands of people (drivers and bikers) will watch the video which should be good for everyone.  After watching the video, I will be riding more to the middle of the shoulder.

I see your point, but I'm not convinced that riding on the shoulder is safer.  (And let's bear in mind that we saw < 2minutes of his presumably hours and hours of video, so we don't really know where he rides most of the time.)  I generally prefer to ride far enough INTO the lane to be sure that cars understand that yes, I am IN the lane.  I will move onto the shoulder if it helps a car to pass me safely, but only if things are clear (on the shoulder) up ahead.

Riding with the snow plows?  No thanks.

Great post BEAR!

Something I observed in my last marathon.   While running on the white fog line with really no shoulder, just the ditch, oncoming  traffic would not really move over (even though this was a very uncrowded country road) and they would pass me with about a foot to spare (i could have elbowed the mirror many time if I wanted).  (while running, I'm on the oncoming traffic side).

But than when I got to a stretch of the road where I had a 3-4 foot shoulder and the fog line and I'm running nearer to the ditch than the road, oncoming traffic would veer to the middle stripes of the road to avoid me....WTF

Same thing happens when I ride the bike, when I have a nice yard wide shoulder, I will notice vehicles going around giving more space, but on those roads where you ride the white fog line, they zoom right next to you....

Somewhere in the history of BT, I have a thread about some mutant punk kid that was offended by my riding the fog line......      HA! I found it....good times and BT ROCKS.

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=48977&posts=20&highlight=Bike&highlightmode=1#M503277

He had me until the snowplow scene.  It made him look like he was just looking for trouble.

It reminded me of a lady that I almost hit who was running in the road after dusk with a black top on.  I might have been found guilty of vehicular homicide because she has no sense of self-preservation.  I wear my reflective vest during EVERY run that is near dawn or dusk.

I've only been riding a year, and from my observations, an a-hole is an a-hole no matter the shoulder.  I live in a fairly rural area of NJ, and many of the roads have 6 inches to the right of the white line, and I try and stay on/close to the line, unless it is wet, and I've had people be nice and others honk, even when there is no oncoming traffic to avoid.  The honkers are usually when I'm on a flat and am going at speed.  I rarely encounter an a-hole on the hills, when I'm spinning my arse off to get up them.  Maybe they realize the effort it must take.

The only place I've never gotten grief is one stretch where the shoulder is 5 feet wide, but that's a 50mph road, and I hate being there anyway. It's probably why I average 20+mph on that stretch.