My first official bike ride in Phoenix
Posted on 17. Apr, 2009 by Tony Arranaga in Lo-cal
Documenting my first bike ride in the Valley should come as no surprise.
Hello! Former bus virgin!
Actually, this is my third trip.
- the ride home after purchase
- my faux-ride last night – no sooner I hopped on my bike and my windbag chatty talkative neighbor cornered me. Never made it out.
- my ride to Target this morning
Am I the only one around here who is scared to death of the traffic in Phoenix? Maybe it’s my inexperience on the bike, but honestly the other drivers make me so nervous. Take a look:
Obviously, this is the view from the sidewalk. I realize this is a bicycle no-no, but look how much room those big ol’ cars take up! I’m not kidding, I could almost reach out and touch that champagne colored Buick on my left. All that driver needs to do is take a quick glance at the cell phone or a looksee in the rearview mirror, then suddenly their car veers to the right and I’m roadkill! No way am I riding on the road!
Suddenly my face plant on 7th St a few weeks back seems rather painless compared to the thought of a “Flat Tony” on Osborn and Central.
Now let me tell you about my experience with the bike racks.
My bike on the light rail
There must have been some funky gravitational pull between the Earth and Moon because right as I was hoisting my little baby up, the bike suddenly felt like I was lifting bear! And talk about coordinating the docking point between tire and prong, I almost fell back into two teens canoodling in the seats behind me. I don’t think they came up for air long enough to notice I was STRUGGLING.
*Sigh* I promise not to give up, but tell me, am I doing something wrong? Are the mechanics back at the train yard watching the CCTV ROFL??
jordre
22. Apr, 2009
….speaking of champagne…..do you have a helmet?
have you been studying the proper hand/arm signals for turning and stopping??
do you have to register your bike or get a permit or license of some sort??
Tony
22. Apr, 2009
Hi Kyle,
Actually, no, I do not have a helmet. I was reminded of that AGAIN this morning during Valley Metro’s Bike to Work ride. I need to get one. Will you come to Target with me and help me pick one out?
As for the arm signals.. I’m kinda scared to ride on the road. I’ve been riding on the sidewalk. People are crazy on the road!!!!! Maybe I should go for a ride-a-long with an experienced rider and mount a camera to my handlebars! I love when I think of a great blog post.
As for registering… I don’t believe so. Your registration is your bikes serial number. The bike shop where I purchased mine made me write it on the receipt.
Great questions!!! Thanks for contributing to the post!!
bikelady
30. Apr, 2009
I am totally in agreement with you about riding on the streets of Phoenix. Scary. I prefer canal banks and mountain trails to Phoenix streets–no matter where they put the bike lanes. Still scary. I know and have heard too many horror stories about cars hitting cyclists.
Jackie
P.S. I wear a helmet and don’t think that’s really much protection. What about the rest of me???
Love your blog and your sense of humor.
Tony
06. May, 2009
Hi Jackie!
Thanks for commenting! I recently discovered the canals you mentioned. They are much more enjoyable than the streets. Especially the one that runs north of St. Francis Xavier Church. As it turns, that one makes for a nice trip to the Biltmore shopping center. I’m just sayin’.
My neighbor also tells me there’s a dedicated bike path along 3rd Avenue in Midtown Phoenix that runs quite some distance. I’ll have to try it out and let you know.