It is amazing how perceptions of distance can differ between modes of transportation. One of the reasons I mostly stopped mountain biking years ago was the unfavorable comparison of total time dedicated to a ride and the actual ride time spent riding. The closest off road spot is a frustrating 25 minute or so drive away, but on a road bike I can be out in the country and away from traffic in just a few minutes. The lost hour and wasted gas are good reasons to just go on a road ride instead. The local mountain bike ride isn’t too far away, but the quickest way to drive there includes some sections of road that I’d rather not bike. But about a month ago, I looked at a map, and realized that a longer and safer alternate route was shorter than I anticipated. So I gave it a try. It turns out that even though I’d chosen a longer route on a bike than in the car, it still took the same 25 minutes to get to Franke Park. But instead of a frustrating trip with bad drivers, traffic lights that are always against me, and thoughts of how much gas I’m wasting, taking the bike route is a relaxing warm-up before the real ride. So now I’ve been mountain biking twice a week. And because I’m not wasting an hour getting my bike to the park and back, I am able to ride for an hour longer than I could if I drove there.

Even though I’m heading most of the way across town, I can still make the trip in the same time on bike or in a car. This shows that if you are in a city, it is worth comparing travel times in a car and on bike. Once traffic is taken into account, cars don’t necessarily have an advantage.

I first read Proficient Motorcycling by David L Hough back in college when a motorcycle-owning friend recommended reading it before buying a motorcycle. Proficient Motorcycling immediately made it on my short list of recommended books. When I first posted my list of Books Everyone Should Read I wrote:

This is the book on safe motorcycle riding technique. If a complete understanding of the content of this book was a prerequisite for applying for a learners permit for a car, the roads would be much safer for everyone.

I just read the ‘new’ second edition, and I still highly recommend this book. Hough doesn’t cover the absolute basics of driving a motorcycle—you’ll have to learn the controls elsewhere—but he does an excellent job of explaining what you need to know once you move out of the empty parking lot. This includes basics such as countersteering and how to choose the best line. More important than the basics of motorcycle control, Hough does an excellent job of covering how to deal with many traffic situations and poor roads. These sections of the book should be grokked by all drivers, even those who never intend to ride a motorcycle. Just reading this book will make you a better, safer, and more aware driver. Proficient Motorcycling isn’t just for drivers, it will also help bicyclists deal with traffic.

Proficient Motorcycling is well written for a skills-instruction type of book. The motorcycle dynamics sections are reasonably accurate and are covered in a way that anyone can understand them. Hough includes enough humor to be entertaining and easy to read without feeling forced. The classroom portion of the motorcycle Basic Rider Course is basically highlights from this book plus introductory material on motorcycle controls, but Proficient Motorcycling covers enough extra detail to be worth reading.

I highly recommend that everyone read this book. Even if you are already fairly skilled, reading this book will help you because you will have consciously thought about the skills and situation-awareness required required of all drivers.

BibTeX reference:

@book{hough2008,
    Author = {David L Hough},
    Edition = {2nd},
    Publisher = {BowTie Press},
    Title = {Proficient Motorcycling},
    Year = {2008}
}

Here are the monthly average retail gasoline prices in the USA since 1976:

Take a few seconds to examine the overall price trend and the points where there are major changes in the price of gasoline.

Now that the price changes are fresh in your memory, consider some basic facts:

• Oil is a finite resource.
• Oil is a fungible commodity.
• Population is increasing.
• Car ownership in China and India has increased dramatically in recent years.

Now, consider the dates of several historic events, including:

• Important revolutions
• Market bubbles popping
• Major terrorist attacks
• Major recessions

This is enough to have a reasonable understanding of the price of oil, without a more detailed look. With this understanding of the context of gas prices, consider:

• Given the information above, how much control does the President of the United States have over the price of gasoline?
• If you had to choose one price or trend to represent the cost of gasoline under President Bush or Obama, what would be the most honest price or trend in prices?
• What points do the Republican presidential candidates reference as the price of gas under Presidents Bush and Obama?
• What (if any) price trend do the Republican presidential candidates mention as the trend under Presidents Bush and Obama?

It should now be clear that the major GOP presidential candidates are either misinformed about the price of oil, or are intentionally deceptive. Which is more probable? Is one of these alternatives acceptable?

Yesterday was a good example of why it is important to always clean your car’s windshield completely before driving. I didn’t see the accident take place, but a car that was parked on the street was pushed about fifty feet down the road, onto the grass, and into a tree. This caused quite a bit of damage to both ends of the car. The driver that hit the parked car left the scene. A few minutes later another neighbor showed up with a smashed bumper. What I think happened was this:

(Using standard cryptography alphabetical stand-in names)

It was warm but snowing (‘slushing’) just enough that car windows needed to be cleaned before driving. Alice was in a hurry and didn’t clean her windshield. In the half block between Alice’s house and where Bob was parked, Alice accelerated too much. I can tell Alice was driving too fast for a neighborhood street by how far Bob’s car was pushed given the relative masses of the two cars. Alice must have not cleaned her windshield, preventing her from seeing Bob’s car, even though it is common for a car to be parked where Bob’s was. Alice then drove back up the block, cleaned the snow off the car, and came back.

Now, imagine that instead of a parked car, it was one of the many cyclists or joggers in the neighborhood. So, please, completely clean and defrost your car’s windows before driving.

Why is this important? The current law uses a subjective definition of safe passing separation. What a cyclist feels is a safe distance isn’t necessarily the same as what a driver or police officer feels is a safe distance. Drivers often believe the safe distance is much less than it is, and make dangerous passes. Since the safe distance is no less than three feet, and many people don’t realize this, we need the minimum separation to be explicit in the motor vehicle code.

You can help promote this important safety law by filling out this survey from Bicycle Indiana, and by writing your state representatives. And while you are at it and if you live in Allen County, fill out the City of Fort Wayne Trail Survey.

With or without an explicit legal definition, remember to only make safe passes:

Notice the steps of the safe pass:

1. Begin to move over well before reaching the cyclist.
2. Pass at a safe distance. Keep a minimum of three feet between the closest points of the car and the bicyclist. At high speeds and with large vehicles the minimum safe separation is larger. Don’t forget about your mirrors.
3. Move back into the lane well after passing the cyclist. Don’t forget to leave room for your trailer.

Respect pedestrians and cyclists

In addition to the general caution required of all drivers at all times, please remember to avoid splashing those of us on foot or bicycle. There is usually enough space on the road to move over enough that you won’t splash us, and when there isn’t you should slow down enough that your spray doesn’t hit us. Be observant and notice how far your spray is traveling and who is around. Remember, you have the right to walk, run, and cycle on the roads, but driving is a revocable privilege. So please, be sure to only make safe passes.

Back in the ’70s, we experienced what I’ve been snidely calling the Energy Crisis Lite. A small group of oil suppliers stopped selling us their stuff, and we went into such a panic that we even started buying fuel-efficient cars. Then those suppliers decided our money was as green as anybody else’s, so they resumed selling us all the oil we wanted.