September 2012 President’s Letter
Exemplary!
I've been told – too many times now – that when I'm around our three grandchildren, I shouldn't "model" behavior that their parents don't want to see in the future. So, when they visited a few weeks ago, I had a fork wrestled out of my hand when I started poking one of the twin boys and telling him I was going to "eat you up!"
Now where's the fun in all that? If you can't tease a child to distraction and make him squeal…well, what's the purpose of being a Grandpa?
My query as to when it might be appropriate to buy the boys their first folding pocketknives was met with horrified cries from both the kids' parents and also by Grandma Mimi.
Hey, it's not like I was looking to equip them with explosives. Heck, they're only four! I'd probably wait until they were at least six before I would teach them the fun one can have burning off one's eyebrows with black powder. . .
Stick with me here. This does have a point about cycling. Relax; I'll get to it.
So, I was out on the Monday night ride a while back, tagging onto tail end of Terry O'Connor's 18-19 mph group, as we embarked on the Old Schoolcraft route. A beautiful, balmy night and a lot of people showed up in the parking lot. I counted 32 of us on Terry's ride, and that was just one of the five different groups that rode that evening.
We all managed to squeeze through the stoplight at the intersection of 8th Street and Q Avenue and started south up that little hill that runs by Asiago's restaurant. I looked behind me and spotted a big County Sheriff's SUV following the group closely.
Having had one unfortunate encounter with the Sheriff's Department already this summer, I felt my stomach sink; we were going to get pulled over for sure, for being spread all over the road in no semblance of order.
But then, something miraculous occurred. As soon as we crested that little rise, everyone fell into two-abreast formation. We pedaled down the road in complete compliance with the State Motor Vehicle Code! The deputy in the SUV followed us until it was safe for him to pass, and then he did so.
The important thing is that we never gave him a reason to pull us over. We were abiding by the law. Again, miraculous. Thanks, Terry, for leading that disciplined group, and for the riders who take seriously our role as responsible citizens on the roadway.
Now let's bring this thing full-circle.
Just as it's a good idea to model the type of behavior we'd like to see emulated by our kids and grandchildren, it's equally important to do so on the bike. In groups or on our own, what we look like – and how we behave – is how others judge not only us, but other bikers as well.
Often unfairly, we get painted by a broad brush. We are sometimes categorized by auto drivers who have seen deviant tactics displayed by scofflaws on cycles. We don't need to make things worse by adding additional fuel to their inventory of experiences with bikers screwing up.
In fact, members of our club should be setting an example of exemplary behavior on bikes. We all know traffic laws and most of us know how they pertain to us as cyclists. If you don't, read this: http://lmb.org/index.php/Education/michigan-vehicle-code-pertaining-to-bicyclists.html.
When we obey the law and ride in a responsible fashion, we're not only safer, but we might start to change a few minds about how bikers are perceived on the road.
Ironically, near the end of that Monday ride on the way home, I watched as a member of the group rode right through the red light at that same 8th Street and Q Avenue intersection. There were cars waiting to proceed as their light turned green, but they had to wait until this rogue biker sprinted through.
Now, I have no qualms about speaking to people who do stupid and dangerous things like that on the bike – and you shouldn't either. I wasted no time in riding up alongside him to discuss what he had done and the possible effect it might have. He was apologetic, and said he hadn't looked at it from that perspective before. He promised not to do it again.
I hope he takes that to heart. And I hope you do, too. We all can be exemplary bikers, and this club can, and should, become known for our adherence to and knowledge of cycling traffic laws.
But I'm still buying those boys knives. I don't care what their mother says. . .
Zolton Cohen, KBC President
