After cycling in India a month or so back, I know that some people had me picked as the ultimate thrill seeker. However, I’ve discovered there are some places that I find a little more frightening when it comes to cycling.
Yesterday afternoon I dropped in to pick up a couple of bits and pieces from some relatives of one of the cyclists who joined me in India. The cyclist lives in Adelaide and her relatives graciously agreed to bring a parcel to Perth on her behalf.
We got to talking about our trip to India and how tricky it was dealing with the traffic over there on a bike. While in India we faced trucks, buses, livestock, tractors, cars, motorbikes and lots of other road users who would move all over the road in strange directions. It wasn’t uncommon to see a large truck or bus heading towards you on the wrong side of the road.
During the conversation, these people mentioned their recent trip to Rottnest Island, and I realized that I fear cycling in the traffic on Rottnest more than the traffic in India.
I guess the difference at Rottnest is that many of the cyclists haven’t been on a bike since they were last on the island several years ago and everyone’s in holiday mode, so they don’t tend to be thinking about normal traffic rules. No one seems to take normal safety precautions. Kids are left to their own devices on their bike and they can be seen swerving all over the place, usually right in front of you when you get closer on your own bike.
I’ll be dropping in at Rottnest in a few weeks time for what I hope will be a relaxing weekend. Maybe I should pack a few trucks and cows so that I feel safer on the roads.
Posted by Rodney Olsen
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Hah! Now you know why I always avoid bikepaths! ;^)
Maybe you should consider adding some armor to your bike. Or some of those spoke-shattering spikes, like in Ben Hur. Discreetly, of course.
Hey Chris, you’re right about ‘some’ bike paths. The paths that go along the river are very dangerous on a Sunday afternoon with walkers and Sunday riders weaving aimlessly across the path with no though of other path users. Thankfully the paths that I have tended to use aren’t all that pituresque so they’re only used by commuting cyclists.
Good ideas Ariel. Maybe even a discreet rocket launcher would work. 🙂
I like cycling on the road, but I LOVE mountain biking. This personality stuff that typeblog got me hooked on, pegged me as a thrill seeker. I guess it was right.