Years ago, I would attract attention while riding my bike. In many communities, people stopped riding bicycles as soon as they were old enough to drive--if, indeed, they ever rode bicycles in the first place. Seeing an adult on two wheels instead of four, and pedaling instead of stepping on a gas pedal, was strange for many people.
And, in my workplaces, I was "the one who rides a bike." I didn't mind the appelation: I simply wished others would ride.
Apparently, it's still possible to get attention simply by riding a bicycle:
When I was an undergraduate, one of my favorite rides took me along the Delaware and Raritan Canal Towpath. One of my favorite rides in Paris follows the Canal St. Martin, and one of the highlights, for me, of cycling in Montreal was the Lachine Canal path.
All over the world, as canals designed for barge traffic fall into disuse, paths alongside them--which were often trod by horses and mules that pulled the barges--turn into all-but-ideal cycling and walking lanes.
Some folks in northern Illinois have discovered as much: a trail alongside the Hennepin Canal has become a magnet for cyclists. It's so popular, in fact, that it will become part of the Great American Rail Trail.
The Hennepin Canal connects the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers through northern Illinois. Like the Delaware-Raritan, St. Martin and other canals, it once served as an important link for water transportation. Now it is a draw for all sorts of recreation, including fishing, boating and hiking as well as cycling.
For one thing, paths along canals are flat. But, perhaps most of all, canals are almost always scenic, whether because of the landscapes surrounding them or the industrial structures that line them.
Say "Idaho" to most people, and they think of "potatoes."
You might think about them if you're a cyclist: They are, after all, a good energy source. (An old riding buddy used to keep two baked spuds in his jersey pockets.) But you might also associate another word with the Gem State: "Stop."
Way back in 1982, the state passed a law allowing cyclists to treat red lights as "Stop" signs and "Stop" signs as "Yield" signs. It also allows cyclists to ride through a red light if there is no cross-traffic in the intersection. These provisions allow cyclists to get ahead of the traffic proceeding in the same direction, making it far less likely that they'll be struck by a turning vehicle.
Since 2011, a few cities in Colorado have enacted stop-as-yield policies. A Paris decree, issued in 2012 and amended in 2015, allows cyclists to treat certain stop lights (designated by signage) as "Yield" signs. It also permits cyclists to turn right at red signals or, if there is no street to the right, to proceed avec prudence extreme through the intersection. To my knowledge, no other US state or other jurisdiction has passed a similar law, though a bill with essentially the same provisions as the Idaho statute was introduced last year in the Utah state legislature and is still making its way through the Statehouse.
But the Utah Yield won't be the second piece of statewide "red-as-stop, stop-as-yield legislation." On Tuesday, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson signed Act 650, which gives cyclists the same rights as the 1982 Idaho law.
So now that there's an Idaho Stop and it looks like there will be a Utah Yield, Arkansas has to come up with a catchy nickname for their law. I should think any state that can call itself "The Land of Opportunity" shouldn't have any trouble finding one.
