More on lights

Earlier today, I had to refill a propane tank. So, of course, I took the Xtracycle. After grilling a nice meal of kabobs, I decided to take the kids to the park. So, of course, I hooked up the bike train. After riding around for a while, it was time to bring the kids in and get them ready for bed. After reading Knuffle Bunny, I had to head back outside to put away the bikes. I was looking at the bikes lined up on my driveway and had the brilliant thought... Let's take a picture of all of the lights.

So here are the bikes...On the far left is the Trek with the trail-a-bike attached. The Trek has a Superflash on the seatpost and rear rack. The trail-a-bike has a Superflash on the chainstay.

In the middle is the bike trailer. I have the generic Performance Bike Flashpoints on that. Inbetween the Flashpoints is my helmet. I have Blackburn's Mars 3.0 attached to the back.

Finally is the Xtracycle. There are two Superflashes on the back of that.

Here is the picture....
(You know, I took drafting in high school. The only thing I remember from that class is that lines pointing at things should not cross. I'm glad I am not an architect right now.)

So I have the lights... Let's kick on the flash and see what we get. The piles of reflective tape really show up under the flash. Take a look...

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Situational Awareness

Last night I watched a show about vision.  They got to the part where they discuss magic tricks and optical illusions.  Basically, your brain only "sees" a small amount of what you think you see.  The rest is filled in by your brain.  That is why your brain falls for the optical illusion below.  Basically, the question is, what square is darker?  A or B?

This show had a card trick.  I used to do a little (very little) magic, so I am interested in this.  Person #1 had person #2 pick a card out of the blue deck of cards.  When person #2 put it back,  the deck of cards was red.  I felt pretty proud.  I notice the slight of hand that switched the deck.  What I did not notice was the background, both people's shirts and the table cloth all changed during this trick.  I missed it all because I was watching the deck of cards.

I told my wife about this.  She told me about a teaching conference she was at where they  showed a video of people passing a basketball.  I searched high and low on the internet and could not find it.  Then, right before I was going to give up for the night, I decided to check google reader.   A new post from Commute by Bike caught my attention.  It was a minor variation of the test my wife had talked about.  I don't want to give it away.  If you take it, please do not give it away in the comments.  I'll be honest.  I failed.

Here's the test.  Let me know how you do.

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My meeting with Jack

 I thought about the encounter with Jack and his Hummer for the past two days.  Today, after some encouragement, I decided that I was going to leave the letter on his windshield.  I rode past his house and saw the car in his driveway.  I thought about it, but then changed my mind.  Instead, I was going to talk to Jack.

I rang the doorbell and a woman about my age answered.  I asked for Jack.  She looked confused, but she got him.  I introduced myself.  I told him I was his neighbor.  I told him what happened Monday morning.  I wasn't surprised when he told me that he did not see me.  I told him about my experience as a cyclist.  If I were a child, I may not have know what to do.  That could have disastrous. 

I intentionally tried to stay away from being too preachy or high and mighty.  Instead, I was just trying to get him to pay more attention.  I don't know, but I felt as if I got my point across.  In the end, he even asked about my bike.  He also promised to check out yeildtolife.org.  

I hope our little conversation will help Jack to pay more attention.  I ended up handing him the letter in the end.  I did not stick around to see if he read it.  I had to make dinner for my family.  

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Money not spent on gasoline:  $29.45

CO2 not released into the atmosphere:  185.13

(Sorry, I have not been keeping up with this like I should)

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An open letter to Jack in his Hummer

Note:  I assume that the guy who almost hit me is named Jack.  His personalized license plate had his name on it.

Dear Jack,

You do not know me, but my name is Rick.  I was the cyclist you almost hit this morning.  Did you even notice me as you sped down the street in your Hummer?  Did you hear me yell at you?  I apologize, but what you did scared me.  I was seconds away from being a speed bump.  You backed out of your driveway and forced me to jump the curb in order not to be hit by you.  I think you heard me yell.  I will also assume that you were embarrassed.  After all, why else would you speed down the street, past a bus stop with children, at twice the speed limit?

What was it that you did not see?  Was it the lime green reflective helmet cover?  the blinking light on my helmet? the green blinking lights on the stem of my bike?  the white blinking light on the handlebars?  my reflective vest?  the three yards of reflective tape that cover most of my bike frame?  I spend a great deal of time on my bike.  In the first two months of this year, I have already ridden more than 300 miles.  I want to be safe. 

Did something happen this morning?  Maybe you woke up late.  Being first is more important that being safe, right?  Did you have a fight with your children about eating their breakfast?  Do you have kids Jack?  I have a four year old, a two year old and a baby boy due at the end of the month.  Can you imagine what it would be like to tell my daughters that they would no longer see their daddy?  Can you imagine how sad their wedding days would be with no one to walk them down the aisle?  Can you imagine my son who would never know his father?  Can you imagine my wife as she tries to raise three children by herself?  Would you be willing to take care of my family? 

Jack, I am sure that you did not see me.  In 1996, a car hit me.  After I regained consciousness, the first thing I heard was, “I never saw him.”  Since then, I have involved myself in cycling advocacy.  You know what the first thing a majority of drivers say after  they hit a cyclist?  Right.  “I never saw him.”

Please, go to the website yieldtolife.org.  I have no connection with it.  Read about why the website exists.  Read the tips.  I promise, if you follow the tips for drivers, I will follow the tips for cyclists.  Keep your eyes open.  Cycling is becoming more and more prevalent.  Today was a close call. Tomorrow we might not be so lucky.  

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