#IfYouReadOneThingToday - On bikes

Fun trivia fact about me: years ago, I survived being hit by a car while riding my bike through east end Montreal. Brain-dead middle-aged man was arguing with his wife as he accelerated through a stop sign into a bike path and proceeded to obliterate my bike. I miraculously walked away that day, and to this day don't understand how.

But the memory sticks with me every time I decide to take a ride. What if?

Which may explain why this Outside Magazine piece stopped me in my tracks. The pub decided last year to track every cyclist killed by a driver. This article tells the story of just a few of the nearly 700 cyclists killed on American roads in 2020, and I'm sharing it as our latest #IfYouReadOneThingToday article.

Please don't leave comments telling me about the cyclist who ignored the stop sign near your house. Or frightened your dog on the sidewalk. I share this not to start a driver-vs-cyclist holy war.

FWIW, I both pedal and drive, and however we choose to get around the planet, we all deserve to do so safely. The paradigm needs to shift, and it starts with important journalism like this.

Enjoy the read.

They Went Out for a Bike Ride. They Never Came Home.

Outside Magazine

December 22, 2020

#2020CYCLINGDEATHS