FLCC> tues ayes

[Peter Ozolins]

Ano, I didn't hear you as hypocritical... I think it's ok to point out 
the wrong of a group even if one is a part of it. That's a good first 
step in getting things right. This is an issue that we're all at the 
center of, so difficult to touch on well.

I didn't mean, ether, that we should keep on without any change, or that
we have to. I think there's a choice in the matter, but not something
that any one can just dictate -- how to ride is a personal decision on
everyone's part in every situation.

I think we can change some things on Tuesday nights that would make it
safer, but I think it's more of a top down decision. That change is more
a matter of "what is done" or "not done", not a matter of whether any
one thinks something is dangerous. I don't think that risk assessment
enters into people's decisions while racing in the ordinary sense.
How the pack behaves has a lot to do with the example and communication
of the leaders, both physically and socially. It's up to us to take
responsibility for our actions and their influence in the group.

It's the kind of question like why do people dope? Well, every one's
doing it, so you've got to keep up. It seems like we ought to be a small
enough and smart enough community to say, we're all going to just *not*
do it.



mgarcia at borgwarner.com wrote:
>  
> I am in agreement with you guys, especially Peter's point about it
> being a group mentality thing.  I tried to admit that I also am part of
> the problem, but somehow I think my email came across as
> holier-than-thou
> and maybe annoyed some (Glenn?) which was not my intent.
>
> The bottom line is that if there is not a majority perception of
> dangerous
> behavior it is very difficult to change the group's mentality.  And
> it just takes a few people who don't see these incidents as being
> dangerous to subtly encourage everyone to keep doing what they are
> doing and punish those try to be safer.
>
> I feel like I have a different perspective on these things.  Being
> a volunteer in the emergency services I have scraped many bodies off
> the pavement (including drivers, cyclists, and motorcyclists) and I 
> can tell you first hand that no one plans to have a bad accident 
> and just one mistake can change your life in a very sudden way for 
> the worse.
>
> Unfortunately the two most dangerous intersections
> (Whitechurch/Coddington
> and Midline/Irish Settlement) both come on downhill dips with limited
> visibility where it is very tempting to roll through fast and keep
> momentum
> up for the climb.  I guess we can do our part to try to slow things down
> if we are at the front but it may be a bit hopeless to expect everyone
> to follow suit.  Especially since there are riders there who aren't on
> this list and don't see these email discussions.
>
> Like Peter says, we'll all probably just keep doing it but then when
> something happens it will be too late.
>
> I guess at least it doesn't hurt to bring it up from time to time.
>
> -Ano
>   
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