Bicycles go faster than cars Dad.

That is what my daughter told me the other evening.

We were invited to friends for dinner on Friday night. I was running behind to pick up the family. We had gotten stuck in the mud at one of the wireless access cells and then had lousy traffic going back to the office and then home. I was in the car. So I was in a rush mood when I got home.

It was dark when we left home and as we drove through the edge of town I came upon a guy on a mountain bike frantically cranking away. I pulled out and went around him no problem. It might not seem wrong to you but right away I realized that was wrong.

First my car has a bumper sticker. "Share the road with bicycles." Okay, I gave him plenty of room. The problem was that I should of considered what hewas doing and going to do.

Within 200 meters after passing him there is a big speed bump and I had to slow down to 15kmph. A bicyclist doesn't have to slow down for these bumps. He caught me and it was his turn to go around me in the middle of the road. I made his commute a little harder. Me of all people. If I had been him I would of been thinking, "what a jerk drivers are".

Not only that but I now realized he really wanted me behind him so that he could benefit from my bright headlights. I changed mind set and now saw him as a fellow bicyclists and not someone impeding my speed. I followed him at just under my desired speed to the next speed bump and never saw him again.

Nashesha my 8 year old daughter watched the whole thing in the back seat and says, "Bicycles are faster than cars. Aren't they Dad?"

I think it is true that something happens to people when they drive cars.