Gravel on the side of the road is not a road. To say that she should be on that is akin to me saying “Parallel to Shoreway is Highway 101 – THAT IS WHERE THE TRUCKS SHOULD BE”.

Your last comment – natural selection. Shit.

Mary had a kind heart and wouldn’t want all of this arguing or finger pointing. As said many times, nobody will ever know exactly what happened or why. She would want all of us to learn from this, help each other through it and have compassion. The truck driver and his family are suffering just like all of us.

Let’s follow Mary’s example and help each other, be kinder and more respectful of everybody. We’re all here together with different interests and there’s room for improvement in all of us.

On behalf of the Yonkers family, thank you for all of the kind memories and comments. We truly appreciate them and know she was well loved in CA.

Many of us would like to join in the celebration of Mary’s life.
Please share details.

Foster City Bike Trail Friend of Mary & Moe
Bike.Trail.friend@gmail.com

Patricia – thank you for your kinds words about Mary. I’ve known her for many years through cycling and will miss seeing her on the bike path and will miss riding next to her chatting about life’s challenges.

For those of you who have questioned safety – Mary always had a helmet and would never listen to music – she was as safety conscience as any cyclist could be. She rode everywhere and was aware of the dangers of being on a bike around cars. And she took her own safety very seriously.

It’s time to stop blaming. Cars and bikes will both be part of our roadways and perhaps we could better spend our energy looking for solutions to improve dangerous intersections. As a commuter myself, I have had many close calls and know that close calls are part of the risk.

Let’s celebrate Mary’s life for the gentle soul that she was and remember her for her contributions to our lives.

Please contact me at Bike.Trail.friend@gmail.com.

I like Barry’s idea (from the other blog) to make a memorial donation to the Peninsula SPCA.

We will run on Sunday morning and remember Mary.

http://sf.streetsblog.org/2009/10/14/bicyclist-killed-in-redwood-city-hit-and-run/comment-page-1/#comment-45761

Please let us know if there will be a celebration of Mary’s life and also who will take care of her precious puppy Moe.

Biggest I’ve driven is a 32 foot truck, a 32′ RV, and a WWII Dodge PowerWagon. Basically the limit of my Class C/M1 license. I’d love the chance to try driving something truly big & heavy (I won’t tell the DMV if you won’t.) What have you got to offer?

In return, I’ll loan you my 20 pound roadbike, and we’ll spend a day or two riding in traffic. You won’t need any spandex – lord knows I never wear it. Helmet will be your choice, but no iPods allowed – I’m not suicidal.

Regarding “passing on the right”. Imagine the comments if she had been hit from behind in the traffic lane.

Motor vehicles are loaded weapons. Drivers are responsible for them. I’ve never heard of someone getting hit and killed by a bicycle.

Shoreline near Holly is one of those dangerous places. Garbage trucks are constantly driving up and down Shoreway, every weekday, because that’s where the transfer station is. They always drive the same route (turn right onto Holly from Shoreline). They’re impossible not to notice when you’re on a bike…if not the sound then by the smell.

On Shoreway, between the transfer station and Holly, there is no bike lane, the pavement is terrible, it’s not particularly scenic, and it smells bad. If you want to go South, I recommend Twin Dolphin for that stretch. It’s got striping, nice views, and there’s no giant trucks or potholes.

This seems to have been an experienced biker. In those cases I always tend to assume that the biker is not to blame. You don’t get to bike for decades on the roads without learning to recognize and avoid dangerous situations.

I have to say though, this one takes the cake:

“Why the DMV doesn’t outlaw bicycles on public roads to protect them is beyond me.”

Excuse me while I pick my jaw off the floor. Calling John Forrester!

Looking beyond the fact that the DMV would not have the authority to outlaw anything, if I would follow your logic, the thing we should outlaw is actually automobiles and trucks. Or else, would you want to outlaw everything automobiles and trucks are a danger to, including bikers, pedestrians, children and seniors?? Everything BUT disciplining motor vehicles, eh?

Good god, man. And this after being almost run over by an aggravated BMW driver riding up on Broadway in Oakland this afternoon. Maybe I shouldn’t have spit through his open window as he sped by, but you know, the fact that he honked at me and hurled his two ton vehicle at me only to stop a foot from me without the slightest provocation or law breaking on my part (yeah, taking the lane is allowed by law right?), it kind of clouded my judgement and I will always derive a certain amount of joy from the memory of him wiping, if for nothing else, just for my excellent aiming abilities. Freak accident — my ass. I really try, and I’m a nice guy. But sometimes it does feel like a war out there.