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ZM, Oops, did it again. I am too poor to even pay attention.

vanzen, you have been told........... shaking my finger.

justoneoftheguys wrote:I think there are just too many people. With cars, that is.

Amen, oh cult leader.

Duane Ausherman wrote:ZM said, "licensing requirements to drive an automobile in the U.S. are nothing more than a sad joke !"

That tells me that you haven't traveled very much. Foreigners who drive here just about all have the same story to tell. our roads are among the best, our signs are THE best, it is easy to find ones way and people are very willing to help with directions. Generally, our drivers are considerate too. I can't recall being in any country where it is easier.

Go drive in Italy, or Russia and then tell me about the drivers in the US. Those "northerners" do OK too.

However, that said, I would love to see the licensing requirements tightened up too.

Duane, I will distinguish between the terms "courteous" and "skilled"
as I will distinguish between the quality of roads
and the total ambivalence as to who will be allowed to drive on them.

Good roads or not, goods signs or not, good attitudes or not –
anyone with a heartbeat can legally drive a deadly 2-ton missile in traffic.
Apparently I am mistaken in my believe that if one considers doing a task,
one should have the ability to perform that task.
And if that task compromises public safety,
then licensing should demand & require that ability.

Zombie Master wrote:Are you saying you can't leave traffic behind? Of course you can. You can also slow down to increase space cushion. Both methods work one is way more fun. For me, the importance of staying focused requires a rider with an aggressive nature. Riding slow, watching the scenery, is mind numbing and IMO dangerous riding.

If you ride fast (passing on double yellows?) to leave traffic behind you soon catch up with even more cages in front. There is an endless supply of bozos driving cages; you can never ever get away from them unless you are out in the middle of nowhere at 3 AM.

So I guess you pass them too? And your entire ride, you are passing cagers. Some of my rides have been like this too but it is often stressful and detracts from the fun of the ride. Not to mention quite likely to draw unwanted attention from LEO's.

Let's face it, when stuck amongst cagers, the fun of the ride is greatly diminished.

Which is one reason why often, when I have a choice of riding my motorcycle, or my mountain bike, I usually choose the mountain bike.

Zombie Master wrote:Riding slow, watching the scenery, is mind numbing and IMO dangerous riding.

I can attest to that!

As I have gotten older and more conservative in my riding, I have found it to be much less enjoyable. If I look at something pretty or interesting, the bike tends to go in that direction, for some reason.

But I haven't been to [court-ordered] driving school in a while, either.

justoneoftheguys wrote:If I look at something pretty or interesting, the bike tends to go in that direction, for some reason.

One tends to go in the direction one is looking. I have the same problem when riding my mtn bike and I try to look at the scenery, it throws off my direction of travel. That's why they say if you are trying to avoid an obstacle, don't look directly at it, instead look at the path around it. When going through a curve, look at the exit to the curve, etc.

Steve in Golden wrote:

justoneoftheguys wrote:If I look at something pretty or interesting, the bike tends to go in that direction, for some reason.

One tends to go in the direction one is looking. I have the same problem when riding my mtn bike and I try to look at the scenery, it throws off my direction of travel. That's why they say if you are trying to avoid an obstacle, don't look directly at it, instead look at the path around it. When going through a curve, look at the exit to the curve, etc.

Did I forget my winkie, again?

Steve in Golden wrote:. When going through a curve, look at the exit to the curve, etc.

I get distracted looking at curves.
I don't look at curves if my wife is with me tho'

This is a reply to the general idea that there are too many cars. On the one hand that is true. That doesn't mean that I will just accept that and figure the risk is part of the game. On the most crowded road I've ever been on, most drivers are doing just fine. There will be a small percentage who I would pluck off the road, never to return.

I'm with vanzen in that I want the driver training/test to minimize the incidence of those drivers who make the road dangerous by their bad driving habits. I can tell you for certain that many people do not know driving laws. When I'm in the left turn lane on my bicycle and someone yells at me to "learn the law", that tells me that we have work to do. It is work that is entirely feasible and reasonable. It would save lives.

Does that have anything with how people drive in other countries? For me, the answer is, no. The only thing I'm interested in when it comes to driving practices in other countries is: can we learn from something they are doing better than we are?

They could put me in charge of traffic safety improvement. I would take that job. I would work hard for forty hours a week and not dick around looking at fluff on the computer. I want to be Traffic King. There would be fewer drivers on the road in a very short time. A lot of people would be taking the bus. The phrase "driving is a privilege and not a right" would not sound empty if I was Traffic King. One more thing about me being King: Cops would be trained to understand that tickets are a tool for public safety and not a fund raising ploy. If a municipality needs more money, they can use another method but traffic safety would be taken seriously and not be used to raise funds. This, I could go on and on about. OK, I already have? I mean for lots longer. But I want to go spend some time with Gretchen.

Chuey

Chuey wrote:This is a reply to the general idea that there are too many cars. On the one hand that is true. That doesn't mean that I will just accept that and figure the risk is part of the game. On the most crowded road I've ever been on, most drivers are doing just fine. There will be a small percentage who I would pluck off the road, never to return.

I'm with vanzen in that I want the driver training/test to minimize the incidence of those drivers who make the road dangerous by their bad driving habits. I can tell you for certain that many people do not know driving laws. When I'm in the left turn lane on my bicycle and someone yells at me to "learn the law", that tells me that we have work to do. It is work that is entirely feasible and reasonable. It would save lives.

Does that have anything with how people drive in other countries? For me, the answer is, no. The only thing I'm interested in when it comes to driving practices in other countries is: can we learn from something they are doing better than we are?

They could put me in charge of traffic safety improvement. I would take that job. I would work hard for forty hours a week and not dick around looking at fluff on the computer. I want to be Traffic King. There would be fewer drivers on the road in a very short time. A lot of people would be taking the bus. The phrase "driving is a privilege and not a right" would not sound empty if I was Traffic King. One more thing about me being King: Cops would be trained to understand that tickets are a tool for public safety and not a fund raising ploy. If a municipality needs more money, they can use another method but traffic safety would be taken seriously and not be used to raise funds. This, I could go on and on about. OK, I already have? I mean for lots longer. But I want to go spend some time with Gretchen.

Chuey

What are you? Some kind of dreamer?