I appreciate your willingness to share your opinions openly, Rita. But I encourage you to take a deep breath and consider slowing down to 60 km/h.
I own a vehicle that doesn’t go over 80km/h, and its best fuel mileage is in the mid-high 70s. A drive is much more pleasant at a slower speed.
It is easier to see wildlife and to slow down for sudden obstacles. Where you are going - the lake, the river, the mountain - will still be there if you arrive 45 minutes later. Yes, you may only have a weekend, but in the grand scheme of things, it is not a big deal.
I empathize with you if this causes anxiety and stress. I can’t imagine what you go through in an intense crisis. Reflect on this, because this may cause you illness one day, if it a hasn’t already.
Regarding your use of words, I encourage you to choose those more carefully in the future, because when used improperly, they can be used against you.
“Selfish” can be perceived in many ways. One definition is an unwillingness to share. I think it is unfair that you are unwilling to share the road with your community members, and this can be perceived as selfish.
We only ask that you be cautious and respect those of us without a metal box encasing us.
There are only two occasions (road relays) when cyclists and pedestrians take up a larger portion of the road. For the remainder of the year, you can have the entire lane to yourself.
If you travel abroad, you’ll find the cycling culture here is minimal to other places, where it is highly respected and admired. It is, worldwide, viewed as a holistic, connected, environmentally-friendly mode of transportation.
Although you are not required to share this belief, I do encourage you to think outside of the box minimally. Just because a bicycle doesn’t have a motor, does not make it any less valid and legitimate as a means of transportation.
There are more rules pertaining to motorized vehicles because the risks are greater. As a nurse, I have seen more injuries as a result of motorized vehicles than any other form of transportation.
If you were to look at numbers, more people are killed in a year by motorized vehicles than by cyclists.
Bilateral respect is needed from both parties to maintain a healthy and safe community. There is so much space in the Yukon, it really is unnecessary to argue childishly over the amount room that a cyclist takes up on the road.
There are 0.2 people per square kilometre in the territory. There really must be greater things to worry about than willingness to share road space with cyclists.
How about the unsustainable nature of motorized sports in the Yukon? The amount of energy, fuel and money required to transport fuel here to run your motorized sport vehicles can also be viewed as selfish, as they are really not necessities. Especially when taking into account the actual resource issues that we are facing.
Chantal Gagne
Whitehorse