think twice before riding in Ennis Texas

[sw3759]

I had this story forwarded to me yesterday from some other North Texas bike riders..hard to believe a bike commuter was convicted by a jury of impeding traffic on 4 lane road with a shoulder.sadly his treatment does not surprise me at all.Texas is one of the few states to not pass the 3 feet law as well.what a great state.... :cool:


Reed Bates has been stopped numerous times by the police in and around Ennis, Texas. Most notably, he was arrested and jailed for the 'crime' of riding a bicycle on the road. Yes, he was on the roadway, not the shoulder, so the county sheriff's department decided he had to be taught a lesson.

Like most states, Texas forbids motor vehicles from using the shoulder. Cyclists are permitted to do so, but they are not legally obligated to ride on the shoulder. Rather than charge Bates with violating a non-existent law (a practice that's not unusual) the police charged him with impeding traffic....on a four lane road.

Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but when there are two lanes in the same direction, isn't one of them often called the 'slow lane' and the other the 'passing lane'? Motorists pass slower traffic all the time, yet when it's a bicyclist in that slow lane, somehow a crime just had to be in the making.

Bates was tried and convicted by a jury of his peers - not a cyclist in the bunch, obviously - and his case is now on appeal. That is, his case will be appealed if we can raise enough money to contest this unfair treatment. Please, please, please, visit this website and make a donation however small and do something to stand up for a cyclist's right to use the public roadways.

And where are LAB and the Texas Bicycle Coalition in all this? That sound you hear is crickets chirping.

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . the URL of the web site?

Also, some contact with the cycling media, particularly cycling attorney Bob Mionske, would probably help.

BBD

[William]

In addition to BBD's response:

What about Lance? He's a Texan, a cyclist, and the un-official Governor of Texas. Shoot some e-mails his way as well.





William

[rockdude]

I grew up 15 miles from Ennis. This does not suprise me. I never saw anyone on a bike when I was growing up. The common thought is that bikes do not belong on streets or roadways. Heck, that's why they build sidewalks.

[SEABREEZE]

In addition to BBD's response:

What about Lance? He's a Texan, a cyclist, and the un-official Governor of Texas. Shoot some e-mails his way as well.





William

Exactaly what I was thinking William.

I betcha if it was a horse, not a problem, just the mind set...

[jpw]

Is it because Texans see it as unpatriotic to be transporting around by a mode that does not require petroleum?

[jlwdm]

...Texas is one of the few states to not pass the 3 feet law as well.what a great state....

A quick google showed an article 6 weeks ago saying there are 14 states with the 3 foot passing law. As you probably know, Texas passed the law last year but the governor vetoed it.

No knowledge of this case but I would bet anything there is more to this story.

Jeff

[rockdude]

In addition to BBD's response:

What about Lance? He's a Texan, a cyclist, and the un-official Governor of Texas. Shoot some e-mails his way as well.

William

Most people living in rodeo country and drag strip USA don't know much about Lance. If Emmit Smith rode a bike, now that would be a big deal.

Don't forget the Ennis area has produced some of the greatest Steer Wrestlers ever, such as 8 times World Champion and 1981 All Around World Champion Bryon Walker. Lance never came close to winning 8 worlds Championships nor has he lead in the UCI points. From the age of 8, I rode more bulls than I did bikes. Riding horses=cool, riding bikes under 6 years of age=cool. The mind set is just different there.

[William]

Most people living in rodeo country and drag strip USA don't know much about Lance. If Emmit Smith rode a bike, now that would be a big deal.

Don't forget the Ennis area has produced some of the greatest Steer Wrestlers ever, such as 8 times World Champion and 1981 All Around World Champion Bryon Walker. Lance never came close to winning 8 worlds Championships nor has he lead in the UCI points. From the age of 8, I rode more bulls than I did bikes. Riding horses=cool, riding bikes under 6 years of age=cool. The mind set is just different there.

I guess he should have been riding one of these and maybe he would have been fine... :D


http://longhornbikes.com/Hub/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/customer-riding-longhornbike.jpg





William

[jbrainin]

A quick google showed an article 6 weeks ago saying there are 14 states with the 3 foot passing law. As you probably know, Texas passed the law last year but the governor vetoed it.

No knowledge of this case but I would bet anything there is more to this story.

Jeff

The real reason was riding without a firearm!

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . for that URL. I'd love to give this story a fair hearing. Having more facts would be nice.

BBD

[gdw]

"Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but when there are two lanes in the same direction, isn't one of them often called the 'slow lane' and the other the 'passing lane'? Motorists pass slower traffic all the time, yet when it's a bicyclist in that slow lane, somehow a crime just had to be in the making."

Let's see... the guy was riding in the slow lane instead of using the shoulder on a 4 lane road and wasn't able to ride at a pace similar to that of the cars using that lane. What was the speed limit....30, 55, 65... and he probably wasn't doing more than 20mph? Most folks, including some nonbiased cyclists , would consider his actions dangerous.... as apparently the cops and local jury did.

Bottom line, just because you can legally ride in the road doesn't mean you should especially when the locals consider your actions unsafe. It's better to be alive, unhurt, slightly poorer, and riding on the shoulder than end up as a hood ornament on a redneck's pick-up.

[Louis]

Bottom line, just because you can legally ride in the road doesn't mean you should especially when the locals consider your actions unsafe.

If I were to use this criterion my driveway would be the only place I could ride. I would say that in a huge, huge % of this country "locals" consider riding a stupid and unsafe practice.

[rugbysecondrow]

Without having the benefit of reading the article, I have to agree with GDW here.

If you have a perfectly good shoulder to ride on and you still choose to ride on the road then you are obstructing traffic.

It sounds like there is a lot of history here that might not be relayed properly and it wouldn't suprise me if the rider was doing this purposefully to cause a stir.

Again, without reading the article and having the info, we are all responding base on our own bias.

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . I'm sure there are two sides to this story and I'd like to be able to consider both of them. I just recall other incidents presented in the past here on the forum where it turned out there WAS more to the story than the OP was posting. I'm not trying to say this is the case here, but without some more info to look at both sides it's kind of hard to sign on in support.

BBD

[jischr]

This goes to a blogspot that has a link to a donation page. They specifically state that it is for an individual not a charitable organization.

http://cycledallas.blogspot.com/

[BumbleBeeDave]

I find this blog entry and photo particularly instructive.

BBD

[gdw]

Once again, we don't know the whole story although..... that's a pretty narrow shoulder made even more dangerous by all those potholes and frost heaves....

[rugbysecondrow]

Once again, we don't know the whole story although..... that's a pretty narrow shoulder made even more dangerous by all those potholes and frost heaves....

Is that sarcasim I read?

I would LOVE to have a shoulder like that to ride in on many of my routes.

I am all for cyclist rights, but purposefully riding in the traffic lane when there is a shoulder is obnoxious. Cyclist like this make us look like jerks.

I thought this was enlightening from this blog: http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/03/08/let-him-ride/

United we stand
No matter how I might choose to ride as an individual, on a given road, in given conditions, I fully support another cyclist’s choice — whether that be in the shoulder, the right tire track or the left side of the right lane. What’s been somewhat disheartening (though, sadly, not surprising) in this saga, is the way the state and national advocacy organizations have refused to support ChipSeal. But cyclists across the US and Canada are coming together to support him.