Thursday, October 23, 2014

Morning commute



Second Avenue this morning via Derek Berg

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow, at least he is going with the direction of traffic. Most of the skateboarders I see seem dead set on making their ride as precarious as possible--phone in one hand, cigarette in the other, going against traffic, etc.

Scooby said...

Anonymous - I'm saying this in a friendly way - just so you know the reason why skateboarders face traffic is for safety reasons (at least it is for me and the people I know). Facing traffic has saved me on a number of occasions from getting slaughtered by a car coming up behind me. In addition, if someone opens a car door and you get hit - when you face the car the door will give way as you are contacting it in a way that will close it. If you hit it the OTHER way you get what is known as being "doored" - the hinge doesn't work in the opposite direction and there's no "give".
Also - it is a REALLY creepy and unnerving feeling skating down the street with cars coming up behind you....and not knowing if you're gonna end up with tire tracks coming up your body from feet to head (if you get my drift).

The cigarette and phone thing is definately bad - and I say that as a long time skateboarder.

Just some FYI to let you know why. Hope it helped ;)

xootrman said...

Scooby-he's in the bus lane.Is that safer for the boarder?

moe said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
moe said...

All the same ignorant, and incorrect, excuses bicycle riders and skateboarders make up when they feel like going the wrong way.

The reason people are going the wrong direction on the Avenues is that they find themselves on a Northbound avenue, and they wish to proceed southbound. Or visa-versa.

That simple. I do it myself when I am too lazy to shift over to an Avenue or Street going in the direction I need to travel. It is dangerous for me, and certainly for any pedestrians, and very especially to any bicyclists or skateboarders going the CORRECT direction, having to face me barreling right at them while I am going in the wrong direction. I try to only do it for a block or so, and with extra vigilance.
Without making ridiculous excuses about which way the hinges on car doors are set.
Please.

Scooby said...

Hey moe - the CORRECT way for me to skate is the SAFEST way. You go your way - I'm goin' mine...SAFELY. Btw - it's not because I end up on the wrong avenue. "Please."

Scoobyt said...

@xootman - I'd say it's safer as long as it's empty.

Anonymous said...

Scooby's explanation works for me, and I'm not a skateboarder.

What I do, in situations where I meet an oncoming bike/skateboarder (it's almost always a bike), I take the inside. I figure they can see what's coming and I can't. It's a similar thing to what he's describing.