Friday, June 01, 2007

[Cyclelicious] New comment on How to paint a bike and other useful tips.

danielo has left a new comment on your post "How to paint a bike and other useful tips":

I'll play the Devil's advocate, regarding suej's comment, because I think the argument could use strengthening.

The comparison of semi v. car and car v. bike is a spurious one. In the first case, MASS is the varying factor. In the second case, MASS, SPEED, and VISIBILITY are at play.

The MASS variance in the two cases might comparable, if you consider a fully-loaded semi v. a Geo Metro and an SUV vs. a bicycle. If you had to subject yourself to one of the two collisions, which would you choose?

The SPEED variance is a big issue, and directly affects the degree to which the MASS issue plays in. With not only a mass difference between auto and bike, but also a much higher speed difference, you have a much higher probability of physical damage.

Many cyclists go out of their way to have lights and reflectors all over their bikes. Even these highly-lighted bikes are less visible than a small car.

And on a final note, it's one thing to consider a car vs. a semi, but what about a BICYCLE vs. a semi? All the above factors are multiplies several-fold in such a case.



Posted by danielo to Cyclelicious at 6/01/2007 03:10:00 PM