Rockaway Residents Reject Bike Ban

 If you have been following this blog, you know that I frequently ride the Rockaway Boardwalk along the South Shore of Queens.  Who can resist a seaside spin?

While I sometimes like to build up speed, I am careful and try to be respectful of beach goers, dog walkers and other pedestrians. I can, however, understand the impulse to engage in Grand Tour fantasies: I’ve done it myself. After all, the Boardwalk is a long flat stretch with no traffic lights and few, if any, other reasons to stop or detour.

Some folks in the local community board want to change, at least partially, what I described in my previous sentence.  Others, however, wanted to go even further.

At a recent Board meeting, a proposal to ban cyclists along thr Boardwalk’s most popular segment—from Beach 73rd to Beach 108th Streets—between Memorial and Labor Day. That area includes concession stands, bathrooms and changing areas and a surfing school, ans is closest to subway stations and the Veterans Memorial Bridge, which connects the Rockaways to the rest of Queens.

Accidents and altercations between riders and pedestrians have been reported. Some Board members—and media outlets like the New York Post—have used them to portray anyone on two wheels as a menace.  I’ll admit that I’ve seen a few reckless cyclists. But I think the greater problem is riders on mopeds and eBikes that don’t have a pedal assist.  I think they’re intoxicated by sea breezes rippling their hair (they’re almost never wearing helmets) and the power they feel. 

Fortunately, more than a few people can see, not only black and white, but all of the shades in the picture. Some just happen to be local residents who helped to vote down the proposal.

Some are calling, instead, for clearly-painted lanes and speed limits on the Boardwalk. They also believe that requiring cyclists to dismount around the major concession areas at 86th, 96th and 108th Streets. The Long Beach Boardwalk in Nassau County, where I have also ridden, has a similar policy for its main concession area during the peak season.

The Long Beach policy is enforced:  Police officers stand by barricades.  And a New York City Parks official says that would be needed—and that it would be the best way not to punish local residents who like to ride the Boardwalk for the actions of those who “come in and use it as their racetrack” (i.e., “outsiders”) however hysterical that claim might be. 

Too Old For What?

"You're too old to ride a bike."

Someone told me that when I was, oh,  35 years old. Here I was thinking I had just become old enough to be President of the United States.  (For some reason, even though I never wanted the job, I always thought of that age as a milestone of some sort.) I guess that's how life works, at least in some people's minds:  Being old enough to do one thing means you're too old to do another.  

The man who made that assessment probably wasn't thinking that I had accumulated enough years, even if I'd never have enough votes to move into the White House. (Hey, that didn't stop someone, did it?)  He was about a quarter-century older than I was.  He also was the father of someone I rode with, who just happened to own the shop where I worked part-time when I wasn't working my regular job--or bike riding.

Needless to say, I've never subscribed to the notion that anyone is "too old" to ride a bike.  Certainly there are conditions, mainly health-related, that preclude people from mounting a saddle.  Some might be related to aging; others can strike in the prime of one's youth due to a crash or some other mishap.

Speaking of which:  on 21 October, Massachusetts resident Sue Scheible made what she admitted was a "hasty" U-turn.  Her tumble to the ground resulted in a fractured elbow.  Seeing her injury, an urgent care doctor advised her (in, I imagine, a tone of condescension that he thinks is his "bedside manner") that she should stop cycling because she's "too old."

And like the 81-year-old I hope to be, she said, "No way!"

Sue Scheible.  Photo by Bob Sears for the Patriot Ledger (Massachusetts)

Mind you, not long after she took her spill, I executed a "hasty" U turn that landed me on a Coney Island street.  While my injuries--a cut and a few scratches--weren't nearly as serious as hers, I have to wonder whether a provider would have told me what that doctor told Ms. Schieble even though I'm a good bit younger (but, by most definitions, not young).  Or what if someone younger still had shown up in the ER.  I can assure you that plenty of cyclists, skateboarders, runners and other active people young enough to be my grandchildren have had mishaps like mine--or hers.

Susan Scheible brought her bike to her local shop for a tune up and, a little less than a month ago, was back in the saddle.  

Too old--for what?  To be President?

 

Happy Mother’s Day!

 Happy Mother’s Day!