When my 9 year old son was ready to venture out on his first solo bike ride in Corvallis, to the neighborhood 7-11, I made sure to cover some important safety/consideration points. As it is all-too frightening to cross S. 3rd Street without the help of a crosswalk light, he was left with the option of riding his bike on the sidewalk to the nearest crosswalk; which happens to be just north of the 7-11. I carefully explained that the Sidewalk was intended for people to walk upon and should he encounter pedestrians on his ride he should either 1) stop his bike and wait for them to pass by, or 2) get off his bike and walk past the crowd (we'd just seen "Stranger than Fiction," we know the consequences of riding past a crowd). As he was riding opposite the flow of traffic, I explained the danger of wrong-way bike lane riding, though if he was riding with the flow of traffic, the bike lane is exactly where he belongs. He's now been riding & walking that route happily for months!
Then we got a big dog. A really big, really sweet, black dog. A pretty fuzzy intimidation, who happens to be a bit freakish about bike wheels. So we keep him off the bike lanes and walk him only on the sidewalks. The South Corvallis sidewalks, which happen to be filled with bicycles. Worse, those bikes are ridden by some of the rudest folks I've encountered in my 9 months as an Oregonian. For our part, we tend to walk on the with the traffic side, so we can see ahead for any bikes we may encounter and bikes coming from behind will be in the *specifically designated* bike lane. We are also so kind to step aside and ask the dog to sit when encountering small children or any other citizen who has that "OMG it's a DOG!" look on their faces, so they may walk past in peace & my doggy's good citizen reputation remains intact. What we heard a lot of was, "On your left" as a bike zoomed past us without enough warning, sending the dog into a panic. Or worse, someone riding right toward us, expecting the pedestrians to get out of their way. One woman saw the dogs plight as she rides past us and asks, "Oh, is he afraid of the noise?" "NO," I reply, "it's bikes he's afraid of!!" (for the record, I am taking the dog on regular runs with me on the bike, building trust through calm exposure to a SAFE person on a bike; he's getting much better)
We all deserve to enjoy this beautiful weather in our beautiful hometown; in safety and comfort. Please show my son that I am not asking for more consideration out of him than he receives from his fellow citizens of this fine city. And the next time you see a redhead with a big black dog, feel free to say hello and give the furry beast a good scratching behind the ears, off your bike of course.
(to be submitted to our cool local indy magazine, Corvalchemist)
Then we got a big dog. A really big, really sweet, black dog. A pretty fuzzy intimidation, who happens to be a bit freakish about bike wheels. So we keep him off the bike lanes and walk him only on the sidewalks. The South Corvallis sidewalks, which happen to be filled with bicycles. Worse, those bikes are ridden by some of the rudest folks I've encountered in my 9 months as an Oregonian. For our part, we tend to walk on the with the traffic side, so we can see ahead for any bikes we may encounter and bikes coming from behind will be in the *specifically designated* bike lane. We are also so kind to step aside and ask the dog to sit when encountering small children or any other citizen who has that "OMG it's a DOG!" look on their faces, so they may walk past in peace & my doggy's good citizen reputation remains intact. What we heard a lot of was, "On your left" as a bike zoomed past us without enough warning, sending the dog into a panic. Or worse, someone riding right toward us, expecting the pedestrians to get out of their way. One woman saw the dogs plight as she rides past us and asks, "Oh, is he afraid of the noise?" "NO," I reply, "it's bikes he's afraid of!!" (for the record, I am taking the dog on regular runs with me on the bike, building trust through calm exposure to a SAFE person on a bike; he's getting much better)
We all deserve to enjoy this beautiful weather in our beautiful hometown; in safety and comfort. Please show my son that I am not asking for more consideration out of him than he receives from his fellow citizens of this fine city. And the next time you see a redhead with a big black dog, feel free to say hello and give the furry beast a good scratching behind the ears, off your bike of course.
(to be submitted to our cool local indy magazine, Corvalchemist)
No comments:
Post a Comment