A sad letter in this week’s Tucson Weekly

Uncategorized July 14th, 2007

Available from the paper, free at newstands throughout Tucson, or on line here.

Here is the text of the letter:

An Idiot in a Truck Sends a Bicyclist Looking for the Car Keys
An open letter to the people of Tucson and Pima County: You win.

For years, I have been a bicyclist in the Tucson area and have ridden a bicycle for 99 percent of my transportation needs. I have been an advocate for safe and courteous riding. I rode for my health and for the environment. I have endured terrible street conditions, huge potholes, debris, rocks, tons of broken glass, indifferent police and sheriffs. I have been spit at, honked at, yelled at. I have had sodas, beers and other liquids thrown at me. I have had shopping carts rolled into my path, cars and trucks veering at me, buses, semis and vehicles of all sorts coming within inches of hitting me.

Last night, while riding home from work, in the bike lane on Ruthrauff Road, I was struck in the kidneys by a water bottle thrown from a work truck pulling a trailer. The impact was great enough to burst the bottle and cause severe bruising. I’ve had enough. Today, I will get into my car and hang up my bicycle.

You win. Tucson is a bicycle-friendly city? Yeah, right (“Pedal for the Medal,” Currents, June 7).

Phillip Newman

One Response to “A sad letter in this week’s Tucson Weekly”

  1. leo mellon Says:
    July 19th, 2007 at 3:52 pm

    this person is needing to rethink his actions. first of all, driving a car is not without its liabilities! besides the ever-present risk of personal injury, there are big risks of being liable for injuries to others, which risks are pretty negligible for biking.

    Secondly, his biking habits must take him on major streets quite often to be subject to such a number of abuses. Bicycles and cars are a bad mix; as much as possible, STAY OFF STREETS HEAVILY USED BY CARS.

    Get on your bike, don’t cede too much power to the motorists, but use a lot of common sense to reduce the odds of getting harassed.

    and, i’m sorry for all your troubles — motorists are notorious for having fiendish personalities, usually not at all in accord with how they behave when not behind the wheel.

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