Re: BICYCLE LITERATURE

[Frank Krygowski]

retrog...@gmail.com wrote:
> Yes, Forester certainly does seem to have verbal diarrhea of the written word variety. I felt the same way when I tried to read "Effective Cycling": an entire book devoted to what could have been said in one paragraph. He seems, for no apparent reason, to be overly-impressed with his own sense of wonderfulness.
>

Reading Forester is a bit like reading Isaac Newton. The writing may
not be sparkling and concise, but it was groundbreaking in its time.

Until Newton, people thought things like "A stone falls to the earth
because it is _of_ the earth, and seeks to return; smoke rises into the
sky, because it is _of_ the sky..." and so on. Newton moved us from
myth to science, in many ways and many fields, with words like "An
object in motion remains in motion..." That was quite an insight at a
time when the most advanced transportation was a wagon towed by an ox.

Until Forester, most cyclists thought it was best to stay completely out
of the way of cars, to ride sidewalks, to skulk in gutters, and to
always use bike facilities - thinking any bike facility is a good bike
facility! Forester said, and explained, that "Cyclists fare best when
they act, and are treated, as drivers of vehicles." Lots of people soon
realized that was true. But not everyone, unfortunately, which is we
now have people calling for "cycle tracks" into blind intersections. :-(

BTW, the seventh edition of _Effective Cycling_ is just out. On page
29-30, you can see Forester has almost completely changed his treatment
of helmets. He's replaced phrases like "Wearing an adequate helmet is
strongly recommended" with phrases like "The strong emphasis on the need
for helmet wearing serves to exaggerate the fear that cycling is
inherently dangerous and the belief that helmets provide great
protection." His strongest pro-helmet recommendation is now "If you do
a lot of cycling, particularly fast cycling, helmet wearing MAY be
advisable." [Emphasis is mine.]

--
- Frank Krygowski

[Jym Dyer]

> Reading Forester is a bit like reading Isaac Newton.
> The writing may not be sparkling and concise, but it
> was groundbreaking in its time.

=v= Given the claims that what he describes are proper riding
techniques known to and practiced by British club riders decades
before Forester took pen in hand, I'd say "groundbreaking" is a
gross exaggeration.

=v= Certainly compiling these techniques into a dogma that
some found compelling was a step in the history of bicycle
advocacy, but that ain't Newton by a long shot.
<_Jym_>

[Frank Krygowski]

Jym Dyer wrote:
>> Reading Forester is a bit like reading Isaac Newton.
>> The writing may not be sparkling and concise, but it
>> was groundbreaking in its time.
>
> =v= Given the claims that what he describes are proper riding
> techniques known to and practiced by British club riders decades
> before Forester took pen in hand, I'd say "groundbreaking" is a
> gross exaggeration.

Hmm. Well, one way or another, Americans had not heard the message
despite those supposed decades. Should we say he broke American ground,
at least?

(Incidentally, John Franklin has found it necessary to deliver the same
message to the Brits. Most of them seem to have forgotten those
techniques, if they ever really knew them.)

> =v= Certainly compiling these techniques into a dogma...

Hmm. In most cases dogma isn't testable. The benefits of riding as a
legitimate vehicle operator certainly seem to be.

> that some found compelling was a step in the history of bicycle
> advocacy, but that ain't Newton by a long shot.

Even Newton said he was "standing on the shoulders of giants."

--
- Frank Krygowski