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Bike Portland reports that there’s a new bicycle blog in town, but it’s not all that bike-friendly. Bike Free Portland is mostly about Myra Walker’s disdain for other cyclists. Namely, the ones she calls “Bike Nazis.” Of course, it’s more than ironic that she applies the term “nazi” to freedom-loving cyclists when she wants everyone to conform to her belief system.
As Bike Portland’s editor pointed out, Myra would be considered little more than an internet troll (or a laughing stock, thanks to her relatively poor command of the English language), however she claims to be taking the law into her own hands. Her Red Lock concept is to punish cyclists who behave in a manner that offends her sensibilities by slapping a red lock on their bike once they’ve parked and left it unattended.
Hmm, why post about that moron and give her the attention she apparently craves so badly? Just another lifeless troll. Ignore her.
why would you even bother mentioning this loser.
sc
I think this quote from her site actually points out her primary motivation – “It ain’t going to matter if you are dead who had the right of way, You are still dead”
After reading her blog, I do not see her as a lifeless troll, but rather a person who regularly uses mass transit, as well as riding a bicycle in order to get around Portland and is just plain sick of all the jackasses who think a bicycle is not required to follow the same traffic laws as all other vehicles operating in Portland Oregon.
Look, riding a bicycle is not a fad, not an identity, and not some act rebellion against the man.
Get over it.
Move on and be apart of society in a city that has done more then any other in this country to support alternative transportation.
Ok, so she writes like total a kook but does that mean her argument is without merit? Don’t get me wrong, I oppose any kind of u-lock justice whether the target is a motorist or cyclist because all vigilantism is counter-productive in the long run. But like Myra I’m disturbed that there seems to be as much sociopathic behavior in the population of cyclists as there are in the population of drivers. You might argue that the situation is different because sociopathic cyclists are risking their body instead of their license, but the end result is the same: they force everyone else to resort to emergency maneuvers to avoid causing a collision.
I think she has some good points, even if I do not agree with her tactics. This is an example of what I would consider one of the biggest problems in the US; people are passionate about demanding and exercising their rights, but are not willing to accept the responsibilities that come with those rights.
Mr. Fuji
Myra ROCKS. We are ALL responsible for making jackass-bike-riding socially UN-acceptable. What would you think if you were a passenger in a car that just blew through a red light — would you yell at the driver? Would you laugh and think “right on!” or would you lose a little respect for that person? Why is breaking the law on a bike any different — WHY IS IT SOCIALLY ACCEPTABLE? EVERY TIME cyclists ignore their road-using responsibilities, it makes ALL OF US look bad to the general population, and undermines our collective argument that we have the right to use the roads alongside the cars. The best “protest” you can make is to kill ‘em with kindness by being a PERFECT road user, leaving the naysayers no grounds for arguing against us belonging out there. In short, don’t fuck up traffic, BE TRAFFIC.
Myra might have points about road users, but in reality her efforts might be better used elsewhere. Dangerous cyclists have the most to lose. If they run a stop sign, you will not be killed – they will. Not sure where the hate is coming from.