reckless

I am a cyclist. Not very experienced, not competitive, but definitely enthusiastic. I belong to a club, I lead rides sometimes, I know some cycling routes and have created a few of my own. When I'm in shape, I can ride 50 miles and still walk normally when I get off the bike. I pay my dues to the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation, and I feel like part of something as a cyclist.

However, the thing that on a good day I might call "the cycling community" is a little rattled right now because on Sunday morning a guy died. Matt was 29 years old and he was at the front of a pack of experienced riders in a sort of unofficial, unsponsored, underground bike race called Tour Da Chicago. The race course was on Chicago streets. Matt ran a red light at a complicated intersection. He got hit by a large vehicle, and he died.

Today Matt's family and friends are having to confront the recklessness that played such an enormous role in his death. Today the driver of that large vehicle is having to come to terms with her role in his death. Maybe she can avoid thinking "I killed that guy" -- and I honestly hope she can. Looks to me like he got himself killed, based on the accounts I have read so far.

The cycling community always has to take some heat from annoyed drivers who complain about the cyclists who run in front of them thru red lights, who ignore stop signs, who act like the rules of the road don't apply. And the truth is that many cyclists ARE casual about the rules of the road. I will, let's say, run a red light on my bike if there is no traffic coming the other way, when I wouldn't do that in my car. These are usually fairly well-considered moments. I usually don't have to make split-second, life-and-death decisions on my bike, although I acknowledge here and now that at any time I could make a mistake and take my life in my hands.

What distinguishes Matt's death in my mind is that Tour Da Chicago seems like a set-up to press cyclists into making numerous split-second critical judgment calls -- on city streets and in city traffic, where the lives in their hands are more than their own. It seems like this outcome was nearly inevitable, the proverbial accident waiting to happen, like how could it not happen eventually. It seems to me that Tour Da Chicago's organizers should be called to account for that. Calls for that accountability will probably cause rifts in "the cycling community" -- but as far as I'm concerned, the increase in safety for everyone and the reduction of friction between cyclists and disturbed drivers would be worth it.

Rest in peace, Matt, and may good come from your sad demise.