Gas Bikes OK in OK...Except on Turnpikes

sparky said:
What?!? I'm not sure what points your trying to make with any of this. I'm just telling you that things are the way they are for a reason... and I for one, like them that way.
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The point being made is that some things need to change for the better, and use an open mind to change it. It's easy to not have to think about it much, because you like things the way they are and just conform to it.

sparky said:
The only time [motorized] bicyclists should be able to travel on a road with a speed limit of 55+ mph is when there is a dedicated lane (meaning a real partition between them and the other drivers, not just a solid, white line) for said pedestrians. That is all.
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That is thinking very small. Are you telling us that you should be bound to only ride locally around your neighborhood? Have you ever rode your MB to another city before? You will encounter a typical two lane 55mph road with a shoulder lane. Bicyclists ride the shoulder lane, and cars have to respect that. Also when driving your car, it's common to see people walking in the shoulder lane. You need to consider the folks that have no cars and need to get around.

I can agree with the interstates banning bicyclists and pedestrians. But not on keeping them off the highways. Highways and high speed roads are what connect everything in every country.

All this thinking about everything is fine the way it is, or make more laws, or don't allow this and that, is making this country more and more a police state. It takes people to wake up and not repress everything to the point of oblivion. That includes MBikes and everything else.
 
FightForTheCause said:
That is thinking very small. Are you telling us that you should be bound to only ride locally around your neighborhood? Have you ever rode your MB to another city before? You will encounter a typical two lane 55mph road with a shoulder lane. Bicyclists ride the shoulder lane, and cars have to respect that. Also when driving your car, it's common to see people walking in the shoulder lane. You need to consider the folks that have no cars and need to get around.
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I ride from city to city all the time. The highways around here have a sidewalk, so I ride on that. If I were to ride where people ride 60~65 mph, I'd be killed eventually.

The point is that accidents do happen a lot more frequently when you don't keep up with traffic, and they're even MORE frequent when people are traveling AGAINST traffic. People here are constantly riding their bike on the left side of the road, and I'm ever so close to hitting them at night because I can't wipe the dew off my car. Bicyclists here ride against traffic on the highways too, and it ticks me the freak off.

And the point was also based on localities. That's why bicyclists aren't supposed to ride on the highways (55mph and up), because it's a good idea for us. And I'm sure it's mostly a good idea for OK, too. Tulsa has sidewalks on every street. In the country, the roads are less traveled, so that's not like the type of highway I'm referring to. Trails in Colorado don't mean the same thing as trails do to me in Mississippi.
 
Don't forget the the "limited access" highways, mostly inter-states with some other state and US highways thrown in, were designed to give auto traffic clear sailing; no peds, bikes, farm tractors, horses or autos backing out of driveways. In fact, cars aren't even supposed to stop by the side of the road for any reason short of an emergency.

This is sensible and it's a good reason to keep bikes and other slow vehicles off of these roads. All other roads are and should be open to almost any use. What is lacking is the law holding cagers who stupidly plow into defenseless people responsible for manslaughter (at the least).

Also, when a newbie hysterically accuses a site leader of being "happy to tolerate 42,000 deaths per year", this community is reminded more of a troll than of someone with something useful to say.

Just a word to the wise.

Edit 5-19-09, evening; looking over this thread a bit the post that offended me this morning doesn't seem quite as hysterical as it did then. But there's still something about it that doesn't seem to quite make sense. Though I'll admit that I'd like to see the auto greatly reduced, if not eliminated.
 
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Regardless how this thread has digressed, I just want to say thank you very much BikeBillboards for the OK laws posting.

This was honestly the biggest reason I had not delved into the MB community earlier. I just ordered my own kit to assemble my first MB. I hadn't yet ran across this thread and this thread and was still apprehensive about getting on the road. Heck, now I am pumped to get out there and actually be protected by law!

I knew living in OK had its perks! Well besides the abysmally low cost of living, HA!

Thanks!
 
sparky said:
Tulsa has sidewalks on every street.
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No sir, Tulsa does not. Tulsa is the most pedestrian-unfriendly city I have ever seen. Sure, they brag about their 50 miles or so of bicycle trails, but those trails don't go anywhere useful. And I'd not even consider riding my MB on those trails... that's where the bikers are going to get away from idiots like me with a motor!

-Mark
 
I am in Edmond at the moment, so a big difference there. I agree with you though, Tulsa just isn't a pedestrian build city. My girlfriend is from Tulsa, and she wouldn't give a singular thought to trying to walk/bike in or near downtown. Period.

As small as Edmond is, I will hopefully be able to zip around with little issue.

*fingers crossed*
 
agentjosh77 said:
I knew living in OK had its perks! Well besides the abysmally low cost of living, HA!
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I thought cost of living in MS was cheap!! I'm at my relatives in Okemah & Okmulgee, OK... and somebody bought a lot with trailer and shed for $6,000. Same size property, trailer, & shed would cost at least 10x that much where I'm from.
 
Yeah, that is basically how it works. That is why Oklahoma City and Tulsa are starting to grow again. Being able to start a business by telecommuting or through national networking your can start pretty small and build your clientele with much less stress about paying the bills. That is, if you are around a major city besides that you have to learn how to grow produce or tend cattle.

Either way, cheap cheap cheap.

I am living in a NICE 2 bedroom apartment for just under $800 a month. Splitting the bills between three people, I can actually afford a very nice home while going to school and not feel terrible about it. Which is great!
 
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