Have you ever wanted to see a self-appointed motoring journalist riding on the pavement, at speeds up up to 20mph, filming himself with one hand and holding a 16oz cup of iced tea in the other? Me neither, but here's your chance . . . .
Link to video (Skip to 3:40 for the scary bit)
When someone suggested it was unsafe, he said: "Sorry you guys are correct. Riding a bike on the road in traffic is much safer because car is slim 4000 pounds of metal and a bike is a massive 20 pounds of carbon fiber"
However, he's clearly very happy about promoting "4000 pounds of metal" because he's promoting a huge Lexus 4x4 in the very same video! How about that for a bit of cognitive dissonance? In the comments section, plenty of people have been laying into him about pedestrian safety. They're right, but nobody has yet explained why riding his bike on the road would be safer for him too. After all, that seems to be his primary concern!
(This has been doing the rounds on some of the cycling blogs so I apologise if you've seen it elsewhere. I'm a shameless copycat)
Scary American Journalist!
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cjchambers
- Posts: 855
- Joined: 29 Jun 2008, 9:55pm
- Location: Hartlepool
Scary American Journalist!
Last edited by cjchambers on 6 Sep 2009, 12:05pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Scary American Journalist!
What is worse....
PINK cakes!
PINK cakes!
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cjchambers
- Posts: 855
- Joined: 29 Jun 2008, 9:55pm
- Location: Hartlepool
Re: Scary American Journalist!
Errrr whoops! 
Now fixed.
Now fixed.
Re: Scary American Journalist!
The guy is a bit of a plank. The bike is a cool bit of kit and I like the look of them (been on the Gadget show too) perhaps their manufacturers would be none too impressed also to see it misused in such a way.
However, not knowing where the guy is and what the road and cycling facilities are I think it would be problematic to simply lay into him. People have done the same to me about videos I have done on shared use paths and toucan crossings, there could even be a bylaw there to encourage pavement cycling!
However, not knowing where the guy is and what the road and cycling facilities are I think it would be problematic to simply lay into him. People have done the same to me about videos I have done on shared use paths and toucan crossings, there could even be a bylaw there to encourage pavement cycling!
Re: Scary American Journalist!
This is just a demonstration of the normal fear many non-road cyclists have of motorised traffic. He behaved like a majority of people who don't cycle on the road would, although the speed on the pavement was dangerous.
But on the positive side, the bike beat the car by 4.5 minutes, and would probably beaten it even if he'd taken the pavement at a reasonable speed, say 10mph.
But on the positive side, the bike beat the car by 4.5 minutes, and would probably beaten it even if he'd taken the pavement at a reasonable speed, say 10mph.
Re: Scary American Journalist!
Top Gear has a lot to answer for