Opinion - Letters to the Editor

POSTED: Sunday, Nov. 08, 2009

Wonders why some bicyclists are rude

When I moved to Bellingham four years ago, I was overwhelmed by the patience and good will shown by the general population. It was the only place in the world that I had ever driven where motorists going slowly on a narrow road would actually pull over to let others pass them at a slightly higher speed. Clerks in stores and waiters in restaurants really seemed to care when they asked if you needed help and went out of their way to make you feel satisfied.

That's why I'm mystified that while walking on some of our beautiful trails I am nearly run down by bicyclists who sneak up from behind and then go whizzing past. No bell, no horns, rarely a call "on your left."

Obviously no one has taught these people who are usually so well-mannered in other ways that signaling to walkers that you are about to pass them on a bike is one of the rules of the road.

I try to bicycle when weather permits and will always signal my presence with a subdued ring of my bell. Walkers invariably thank me when I pass. I wish all other bicyclists would do the same.

K.C. Sulkin

Bellingham