Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Copenhagen Cyclists
Contrary to popular opinion, although there are lots of cycle paths in Copenhagen, not many Copenhageners can actually ride a bicycle. Well, let me clarify, there are lots of people who can sit on a moving cycle going in a straight line downhill, but come a bend or, wobetide, a corner and they're doing this strange one foot on the ground hopping motion to get around it.
Now, I have to admit, I have ridden bicycles from a very young age and when younger was in a cycling club and on a team for racing, and still today, in my dotage, can keep up a respectable 40 kph for several hours. I commute on my bicycle, a round trip in excess of 50 km. But when I reach Copenhagen I have to slow right right down to a maximum of around 25 kph, it being, well, just too damned dangerous to go any faster due to the other "cyclists". Although I do shudder at labelling them so.
Don't get me wrong, there are many Danes who can ride a bike, and one of my former team mates lives on the island of Fyn. Riding in the countryside is a pleasure. It's the cyclists in the cities. He tells me the cyclists in Odense are far worse. Ouch!
Anyways, today's idiot was shouting at me because a lorry was blocking the cycle-path. It was blocking the cycle-path yesterday as well and he nearly ran into it. Which made me laugh out loud. As mentioned there is more to cycling than just rolling downhill in a straight line, and I can normally contain myself when people make mistakes, but inability to see a lorry, for crying out loud: Walk! You'll make the roads safer. Hmm, but maybe the problem is then just transferred to the pavements...
So today, I think maybe he'd got out of bed the wrong side and seeing me again put him right over the edge, so he just had to shout. So, he starts shouting away, and there was this bird singing, which just disturbed my reverie so much I just had to respond: "Hey, keep it down you idiot". Bad move! He took to following me, gibbering about "traffic rules", and trying to cause an accident. Rule #1 in the English Highway code is: "Don't drive like a twat". I am reliably informed that in Denmark, Rule #1 is: "Darwin was right". I won't pass a judgement on which rule is right or wrong, different strokes for different folks an'all that, but will gently point you, dear reader, at the traffic statistics for death, serious injury and the truly bizarre accidents I witness for a country that thinks 5 cars waiting at the lights is a traffic jam.
I digress. I tried to avoid by going slower, hanging back, but that just enraged him further, and now he was starting to become a hazard for the cyclists behind catching up. Luckily I turned off to the right on a filtered green about 4 sets of lights further on. As I wasn't watching him but a street cleaner around the corner, I would like to think he may have tried to run the red light, (for straight on,) and become a mascot for a truck, there is no way he could have made that turn I did, (not without hopping,) but somehow I lost him. I found myself wondering if he completely lost it and imploded at the junction, but I doubt it and he'll be back tomorrow. Ho hum.
Now, I have to admit, I have ridden bicycles from a very young age and when younger was in a cycling club and on a team for racing, and still today, in my dotage, can keep up a respectable 40 kph for several hours. I commute on my bicycle, a round trip in excess of 50 km. But when I reach Copenhagen I have to slow right right down to a maximum of around 25 kph, it being, well, just too damned dangerous to go any faster due to the other "cyclists". Although I do shudder at labelling them so.
Don't get me wrong, there are many Danes who can ride a bike, and one of my former team mates lives on the island of Fyn. Riding in the countryside is a pleasure. It's the cyclists in the cities. He tells me the cyclists in Odense are far worse. Ouch!
Anyways, today's idiot was shouting at me because a lorry was blocking the cycle-path. It was blocking the cycle-path yesterday as well and he nearly ran into it. Which made me laugh out loud. As mentioned there is more to cycling than just rolling downhill in a straight line, and I can normally contain myself when people make mistakes, but inability to see a lorry, for crying out loud: Walk! You'll make the roads safer. Hmm, but maybe the problem is then just transferred to the pavements...
So today, I think maybe he'd got out of bed the wrong side and seeing me again put him right over the edge, so he just had to shout. So, he starts shouting away, and there was this bird singing, which just disturbed my reverie so much I just had to respond: "Hey, keep it down you idiot". Bad move! He took to following me, gibbering about "traffic rules", and trying to cause an accident. Rule #1 in the English Highway code is: "Don't drive like a twat". I am reliably informed that in Denmark, Rule #1 is: "Darwin was right". I won't pass a judgement on which rule is right or wrong, different strokes for different folks an'all that, but will gently point you, dear reader, at the traffic statistics for death, serious injury and the truly bizarre accidents I witness for a country that thinks 5 cars waiting at the lights is a traffic jam.
I digress. I tried to avoid by going slower, hanging back, but that just enraged him further, and now he was starting to become a hazard for the cyclists behind catching up. Luckily I turned off to the right on a filtered green about 4 sets of lights further on. As I wasn't watching him but a street cleaner around the corner, I would like to think he may have tried to run the red light, (for straight on,) and become a mascot for a truck, there is no way he could have made that turn I did, (not without hopping,) but somehow I lost him. I found myself wondering if he completely lost it and imploded at the junction, but I doubt it and he'll be back tomorrow. Ho hum.
Labels: cycling
# posted by threaded @ 4/25/2006 09:15:00 am 
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