Trust Me

Written by Boston Biker on Aug 04

Did you know that if you are going down Cambridge street towards the Longfellow bridge that if you wait patiently at the first two red lights, you can then make every other light if you simply go the correct speed? Did you know that most of the lights in Cambridge turn green exactly three seconds after the walk guy pops up? Did you know that it takes almost as long to “lane hop” (walk out onto the dividing median and then wait for traffic to clear on the other side) Com ave in Allston as it does to simply wait for the light to turn green. I know these things, because in a very real way knowing these things helps keep me alive. If you drive a car, you probably don’t know these things. Your world is totally different than mine. You are stuck in a little metal box, your vision is obscured, you are low to the ground, your vision is limited by the cars in front of you, behind you is filled with blind spots, your ears can’t hear past the sound dampening, your nose smells only what is inside your car…I simply have more senses on the job, and more inputs for those sense. Trust me I know what I am doing.

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You honk your horn because I am going too slow, only to be stopped by the red light in 50 feet. If we go slow that light will be green when we get to it and we can both go through without stopping. Trust me.

You get mad because I am moving over into the center of the right lane, but then you almost hit the car pulling out of the drive way. I saw that guy moving out into the street a block down the street. Trust me.

You give me the finger because I am riding 5 feet out from the left edge of the bike lane, but don’t notice when the cab door opens and tourists pop out into the bike lane. Trust me.

You wonder why I am taking the full left lane as I approach the Boston side of the Longfellow, only to be totally taken off guard when someone makes a right hand turn onto Storrow Drive from the far left lane. Trust me.

You wonder why I am riding down the middle of State street heading towards Government Center, only to be forced to slam on the brakes when A group of tourists staring at the sky walks out against the light clogging both sides of the street with human speed bumps. Trust me.

You give me dirty looks as I take the far left hand side of the right lane, only to be forced to slam on the brakes when the bus in front of us pulls hard to the right and slams on the brakes. You are are again surprised when I move to the center of the left hand lane and are surprised again by the pedestrian crossing in front of the bus. Trust me.

Going really fast only to have to stop at the red lights is not efficient. They’re no parking spots, don’t even bother looking. If you want to drive a car in this city get ready to stop a lot. Did the price of gas just go up again? Nice parking ticket. Hey look someone backed into your bumper.

Being on two wheels has it’s advantages, perhaps you should try it, trust me.


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