I've spent a bit of time writing about my dislike, some would say hatred, of the humble bicycle. I may have come across as someone in favour of special bike prisons, like the one in the photograph that accompanies this post. Well I want to make it clear here and now that I don't hate bicyles, in fact, I have just returned from a short exploratory ride of some of the roads that surround my new home.
No, I don't hate bicycles. I hate the fact that cyclists in Belgium have some sort of idiotic immunity that allows them to act like idiots. This is not their fault, I understand it is some sort of law in Belgium that makes some people ride their bikes without brains engaged (please note that some is italics to bring to your attention that I'm not talking about all cyclists...just most of them. Any angry cyclist should put themselves in the 'he's not talking about me' bracket).
The first indication of what I call 'the suicidal tendencies of the Belgian cyclist' came to me on the same day I arrived in the country. We were driving down the road and to my amazement I watched cyclists riding across the main road and across side roads without a care in the world. I found this rather strange. It was almost as if people were playing a game of 'dare' with car drivers, as in, 'I dare you to hit me with your car'. I was told that drivers in Belgium must always be on the lookout for cyclists as they have more rights than the driver when it comes to a car vs bicycle accident. In a perfect world this would be a good, if not great idea. But it's not a perfect world and people are definitely not perfect. This rule has simply made the Belgian cyclist believe he is indestructible and is a great example of the blame culture that is developing around the world.
If it's always the other persons fault then I don't have to be responsible for my own actions.
If you are unlucky enough to live in a fairly big town in Belgium then you can expect this sort of thing:
1) A pavement split into 2, one for pedestrians and both for cyclists. I say both because although there should be a separate bicycle path and foot path, most cyclists treat the 2 paths as fair game. Many cyclists take their bikes shopping. That's fine, except when they stand them in the middle of the footpath, which is usually much narrower than the bike path.
2) Motor Scooters are allowed to use the cycle paths. So you have a vehicle that travels at speeds of up to 30mph being driven very close to where you are walking. Believe me when I say that someone riding one of these things can't help but ride it fast.
3) Tour de France wannabe's. These are usually lycra clad men who think they are in a race with every other cyclist on the cycle path. Unwilling to ride around them they torment the offending cyclist with a ting ting on their bell. Unfortunately the offending rider is usually an old man or lady and the sound of the bell seems to affect their ability to ride as they head at a slow speed, handle bars and wheels wobbling furiously as they try to get out of the speed freaks way. Where do they ride to? Why, the foot path of course!
4) Children. Kids are the best. They ride with their friends, usually 4 abreast. Taking up the whole footpath and in my experience the worst of these is the teenage girl. Most kids swerve out of your way when they approach. Teenage girls will usually aim the bike at you and then expect you to throw yourself against the wall as she rides gracefully past. If you don't then you are treated to a look that could curdle milk.
5) Zebra crossings. A cyclist thinks that because they are not a motorist then they don't have to follow any rules when it comes to someone waiting to cross the road. As an avid walker, I have on more than one occasion had to dodge out of the way of a bicylce as I have crossed the road. Admittedly, on some of the newer bike paths, there are traffic lights that tell a cyclist to stop when a car has to. But usually they are ignored.
So you see, I'm not anti bike. I'm anti cyclist. Or, maybe I'm anti whoever made these laws up allowing the cyclist to disengage brain when riding.
As I said, I had a short ride earlier, on the road, because there are no cycle paths here. I had to be aware of other road users, moving over slightly to allow a passing car as much space as I could safely give. Stopping at a T-junction and checking that it was safe to continue. That sort of thing. It was cold but sunny. I could get used to cycling again!
The photo was actually taken at Rock Werchter earlier in the year. It amuses me than thousands of people would go to a rock festival by bike. That cycle park was one of many.
