Advice for Tour de Asheville bike riders

Posted on by Sean Cullen

I have heard a lot of bike riders whine about cars entering their personal space while they bike the Tour de Asheville. Let me give another perspective.

I was driving down Haywood Street when I approached a bike rider, in all his "Tour de France wear," in front of me. I passed him, giving a wide berth (even going into the center lane to do it). As I stopped at the red light,  the bike passed me on the right, as they always do (illegally), and when the light changed, I was forced to maneuver around him, yet again. This continued for two more lights, and at the fourth light (Patton Avenue), the biker, apparently tired of passing me on the right, crossed the road in front of me … up on the opposite-side sidewalk and crossed Patton against cross traffic, after which I had to pass him again.

My point? In life, you get what you give. If you don't want to get run down, might I suggest you obey the law that you so readily quote when you're speaking about driver courtesy.

— Sean Cullen
West Asheville

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One thought on “Advice for Tour de Asheville bike riders”

  1. Chris Kamm

    Thanks to Mr. Cullen for his comments. Without bias, he captures the crux of the road use issue. We cyclists need to view road use as a cooperative experience. Motorists will only respect our presence if we behave in a way to deserve it.

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