Roy Exum: An Unfortunate Sentence

  • Thursday, October 8, 2015
  • Roy Exum
Roy Exum
Roy Exum

There was a most unfortunate line in a recent email written to me and, in retrospect, I should not have included it in some examples of the huge response regarding the bicycle lanes now being installed on Broad Street. I’ll admit I misread the line because I feel certain I know what the writer was trying to convey. As a matter of fact, I received enough of an outcry I want to clarify it.

The line read: “… The bicyclists are a danger to traffic. I hate seeing one when I am out driving. When I’ve heard that a rider has been hit my heart goes out to the driver that hit them, not to them.”

I don’t believe there is anyone in Chattanooga who wants to see a bicyclist or a runner get hurt. Back in the day I bet I have run down Manufacturers Road over 300 times where a wonderful person was recently killed during his run. For years I ran every day out of the Downtown YMCA and every day was a delight. I would join whoever was ready to go in the late afternoon and made some of my warmest lifetime friendships that way.

One day I was running with Larry Payne, one of my favorite UTC basketball players and later a great coach and educator in Cleveland, when I heard him shout, “Look out!” I whirled around just in time to see Larry sprawled across the hood of a car. Out of athletic instinct, I guess, Larry jumped in the air just as the car came near and, outside of a bruise of two, he was shaken but otherwise fine.

The driver of the car was not. She was literally a basket case. I was scared she was going to go into convulsions or have a heart attack or something. We spent the best part of 15 minutes calming her down and the most horrible part of the incident was that she kept saying, “I didn’t see him … I didn’t see him … I am so, so sorry …”

Several weeks ago the world lost a prize when noted runner Cameron Bean was struck by a car in almost the identical place Larry Payne was hit years earlier. So many people have told me Cameron was far more a giant as a human being than he would ever be as a runner even if he won the Olympics. This only heightened the tragedy. Sure, the runner-bicycle crowd took it hard but – trust me -- our entire community was touched by what was clearly a terrible accident.

There is no way we can bring Cameron Bean back, but we can honor his memory by being more diligent, more aware, and more cautious as those who relish exercising outside. In the many years I ran almost every day, I bet I can count on one hand the days I ran on an indoor track. There is no comparison to being outside, even in the rain, the sleet, or summer’s intense heat.

The point I am making is that I have the motorist who hit Cameron – I do not know her name – on one of my prayer lists because, while she wasn’t charged, nothing any court could ever do to her will equal the fact she has to bear Cameron Bean’s death. As accidental as it well may be, she’ll remember the glaring sun on her windshield and its fatal aftermath the rest of her life. Not in her wildest nightmares would she ever have thought something like that would happen to her. I’ll guarantee you that, and I can also guarantee you such a tragedy is something you never want to experience.

* * *

One of the greatest bits of wisdom is the adage: “When you ASSUME something, it makes an ‘A**’ out of “U” and “ME.” Since I wrote of my disgust for the Broad Street bike lanes, some people have assumed I’m against bicyclists, which is the most absurd accusation I can recently recall. I have been, and will be, a strong advocate for our bicycle community. Far greater, I’m a big believer in common sense.

I can remember one day several of us thought it would be fun to run across the Olgiati Bridge on Highway 27 one afternoon. It was the dumbest decision logical adults ever made. Cars passed us going 60 miles an hour, spraying up light gravels that sting your legs. It was scary enough, but one misplaced step and there would be no way for a driver to react before horror ensued for everybody.

That day taught me there is a time and a place for every outdoor activity so no wonder we do not have bicycle lanes on our Interstate highways. You will never convince me the heart of downtown Chattanooga is a good venue for bicycles. Runners can use the sidewalks but bicycles-versus-bumpers in the heart of downtown are a bad mix. A good bike rider should be the first to recognize there are bad drivers in our midst and should venture forth will the full knowledge the car always wins.

A day hardly passes that bicycles aren’t seen going up and down Lookout Mountain. Because the road’s shoulders are grooved to alert wayward motorists on foggy days, the cyclists have no option but to edge inside the lane. This means a car behind a bicycle cannot safely pass until there is a lull in oncoming traffic and most residents accept this. The great worry is that many tourists do not and, when a mega-bus of gawkers tries to maneuver the tight curves that were built over 100 years ago, a horrible accident involving a bus, a bicycle and a car is just waiting to happen.

Chattanooga is blessed with fantastic areas for cycling, the top of Lookout Mountain or the road up Raccoon Mountain are ideal, but any runner or cyclist must bear the responsibility of using common sense. Not the city, not the police, not the driver of a car or truck, not the bike lanes -- none matter – the ultimate responsibility rests with the runner or the bike rider and I believe riding a $750 bicycle in downtown traffic is just plain stupid.

* * *

If you don’t believe a growing number of accidents involving bicycles are going to happen, study our city streets. Not a week goes by that some squirrel, dog or other animal commits “critter-cide” by automobile. With a growing number of cyclists, there is no way this isn’t going to happen unless those on bicycles avoid areas they are fully aware have the potential for danger.

* * *

I have gotten loads of emails and the most vocal have been from people who work in the downtown area. Here’s one than came during the night:

“Amen to your article. They have used taxpayer money to screw up Broad Street after using taxpayer money to make the back-in parking on Broad. When are they going to enforce this new bike lane? I work downtown and walking from Regions Bank to SunTrust Bank on Market, there were three bicycles riding on the sidewalk and four riding down the street.

“I watched as one bike didn't obey the red light, as they often do, and almost got hit by a car. Now, to getting out of town at rush hour … I travel down Broad to MLK, then to (Highway) 27. In the "new" parallel parking, a large SUV was parked over the line so badly the travel lane was blocked.

“Then, as if that is not bad enough, the shuttle bus stops at every block...in the (other) lane. Don't know who thought this up, but either they have never been downtown or they are just plain crazy.”

* * *

My sentiments exactly.

royexum@aol.com


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