Are we inferior, really?

Cycling alongside motor traffic can make us feel might small sometimes, especially when an 18-wheeler roars past; a bit like standing below the Eiffel Tower and looking up at it.

But just because cyclists take up much less space than motorized vehicles; and aren\’t as fast; doesn\’t automatically make us inferior, does it?

We hear about cyclists becoming the victims of road rage because they were \”in the way\”. Or, \”They\’re too slow\”. The effects of road rage upon cyclists range from \”You need to get on the sidewalk!\” (which I\’ve heard a few times — and I was in the BIKE LANE), to serious injury/maiming, to death. Apparently many non-cyclists don\’t realize that a bicycle is a vehicle, and has the right to use the roads. But are we inferior because they think that? I don\’t think so!

John Forester\’s Effective Cycling is one of the earlier books about cycling that I read. Admittedly that was so long ago that I remember little of it! However, a glance through the Table of Contents makes it apparent that this is an in-depth book. Maybe I should read it again!

I won\’t deny that riding with cars and trucks can be scary; and I\’m thankful that I can avoid riding alongside of traffic most of the time. When I can\’t avoid it, I try to go out early in the day, before traffic builds up.

Is that merely common sense? Or do I have an inferiority complex?