To the Editor:                                       26-Apr-1996
Gas prices have jumped?  I read something about that.  My costs of
commuting and running errands and going to meetings haven't changed
noticeably.  If you want to know my secret, just call me at 1-900....

Nah, I don't want to live by the phone; I'll just tell you here.
My gas-cartel-busting secret isn't natural gas or LTD or electric
or wind-up propulsion.  You may already have the answer in your
garage; it's a bike.

But, before you get out the 3-in-1 oil and the tube patch kit. Let me
remind you of a few things that may help keep you from adding to the
confusion on the roadway.

Always ride on the right.  Wrong way riding is the mark of the clueless
newbie.  It is the result, I think, of a misunderstanding that the
overtaking car behind you is your greatest danger. Not so.  Motorists
can easily overtake and pass a cyclist travelling predictably along a
straight line.  

Obey all rules of the road, including signs and signals. Utah's Motor
Vehicle Code, like most other state codes, says (Section 41-6-84) "Every
person operating a bicycle ... has all the rights, and all the duties
...applicable to the operator of any other vehicle".   Idaho law allows
bicyclists to treat a stop sign like a yield sign; but Utah law doesn't.

Use front and back lights at night.  By the time a motorist's headlights 
bounce off your reflective equipment in a collision avoidance situation 
you are already about to bounce off the car.  And lights help other 
nighttime cyclists to see you, too.

Did I mention a helmet?  If you do everything else right your helmet
will probably just keep the sun out of your eyes and the wind out of
your hair.  And if you do suffer a fall or collision, it will only give
some protection to one part of your body.  But it's an important part
and it often fails to heal after an injury.

Once you're on your bike, smile and wave at those folks at the gas
pumps.

Bob Bayn
797-2396(w)
752-8386(h)