Made To Maim

 In many rural areas of the southern and western United States, the only way between Point A and Point B is a highway.  Cyclists and pedestrians therefore must share these thoroughfares with motor vehicles, including 18-wheel trucks, running at speeds of 60 MPH or more.

In some of those areas, as cycling has grown more popular, shoulders or lanes of those highways have been designated as bike lanes.  This causes resentment—and aggressive behavior—from motorists angry that cyclists are “taking “ their roads.

Sometimes the aggressive behavior includes driving that endangers cyclists—and, often, pedestrians and other drivers.  I’m talking about drivers who swerve into the lanes, brush by or throw debris at cyclists and shine their high beams into the eyes of cyclists riding in the opposite direction.

Other times, though, the aggression is more passive and includes breaking glass containers and leaving other hazardous debris in bike lanes. Some of the perpetrators may believe they are merely inconveniencing cyclists by puncturing their tires.  But from what I’ve seen and heard (especially from people who don’t know I’m a cyclist), some are trying to injure, or even kill, us.

How else can anyone explain leaving these on the bike lane of a Mesa, Arizona highway:

Several hundred of these spikes, called caltrops, were found in that lane—after a woman riding with a group flatted.  Fortunately for her and them, she was riding behind them at moderate speed.  But had she been riding in front of someone—say, if another rider had been “drafting” her—or riding at a higher speed, the results could have been catastrophic, given that the spike punctured her front tire.

I can’t help but to think that a more dire outcome was the intention of whoever left the caltrops:  Unlike broken glass and other kinds of debris, a caltrop always points one sharp spike upward from a stable base, no matter how it’s placed.

People have also reported finding these weapons of destruction on local hiking trails.  Tonto National Forest encourages anyone who finds them to report it to susan.blake@usda.gov  or 602-225-5200. Caltrops or other hazards in the highway bike lane should be brought to the attention of the City of Mesa.