I haven't ridden a pedal bike in several years, (although my doctor thinks I should.) I remember blowing through a few stop signs and going from road to sidewalk and back to the road as convenience dictated. Going from vehicle to pedestrian, or vice versa, in an instant had it's benefits too. I always tried to avoid being a obstacle since the laws of gross tonnage apply even more on a 10 speed than a Triumph. What I don't remember is the sense of smug condescending entitlement that seems so prevalent among the spandex crowd now.

I recently heard one of these guys actually say that he and his crowd were saving the Earth because they were not using gasoline while they were out on their weekend rides. Of course they took their bikes out there strapped to their cars. I guess when you are responsible for saving the Earth you can ignore little things like common courtesy and the rules of the road.

We all like to think of ourselves as rugged individualists. But when push comes to shove most of us are sheep who do what we are told. Worst of all, a lot of us become unpaid agents of whoever is controlling the agenda by enforcing the current dogma on the few rugged individualists who actually exist.