Shock Video: Sociopathic Bicyclists in New York
by Judd WileyJuly 1st, 2008, 9:43 pm
To those who claim that urban bicyclists ride in a safe and responsible manner (and shouldn’t be subject to licensing, registration, insurance, and safety regulations), check out the following YouTube video produced by some clown named Lucas Brunelle:
These people are a menace to society. There is no other possible analysis.
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Posted in Bicycle Lanes, Bicycles, Traffic Accidents, Uncategorized Rage |
Those people deserve jail time for what they did.
Anyone who argues against bike licensing, registration, and safety regulations is a complete maniac.
This debate is not about “creating another bureaucracy” or “ignoring the real culprits, automobiles” or any of the rest.
This is about saving lives. You’re right on this one, Judd.
wow i’ve never seen this video before, and it’s horrifying.
notice how the cars move out of the way for these lunatics. i don’t see any cars driving in a reckless manner.
thanks judd for posting.
Let me guess, these bike messengers don’t represent the average bicyclist in New York, and we’re just allowing the actions of a few to characterize an entire “movement.”
Let’s see how long it is before some weenie makes that point.
Tick tock tick tock …..
Right. Or the point that regulating this stupidity makes you some kind of big government nanny interested in depriving law abiding Americans of their freedoms. Or the point that cars kill more bicycles than bicycles kill pedestrians.
How about the point that bicyclists engaging in this type of behavior can and do kill themselves?
Apparently this jerk Lucas Brunelle has been busy:
http://www.digave.com/videos/
I see crap like this EVERY SINGLE DAY in New York.
On the sidewalk too.
Check out the fawning coverage of Lucas Brunelle in the Boston Globe, from his own website:
http://www.digave.com/press_inspirations.html
The Globe article is called “Inspirations: People who made it better in ‘02″
This maniac Brunelle is described as “keeping the drive alive to make Boston’s streets safe for bicyclists.” Incredible stuff.
Lucas Brunelle is part of some anarchist organization called Critical Mass.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critical_Mass
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/3a_cm070922.jpg
Yeah, this is what we’re fighting.
Streetsblog has some very nice things to say about Lucas Brunelle as well. From just over 1 month ago:
“Lucas has a given us a look at riding like nobody before him. He has traveled to London’s underground, the English Countryside, Tokyo’s freeways and tunnels, and of course the streets of New York. Every city has a different style of riding. The palm trees of Los Angeles, the stately buildings of Stockholm, are examples of backdrops for alleycats seen through the helmet cam in different locales.”
http://www.streetsblog.org/2008/05/24/bicycle-film-festival-messenger-program-fast-friday-bike-scene-it-the-way-bobby-sees-it-bmx-program/
This should tell you a lot about Streetsblog, its editors, its readers, and the complete hypocrisy and stupidity of those people.
thats weird that streetsblog would write a plug for this lunatic’s work.
i will say however that the above quoted text was not written by streetsblog. it’s taken directly from the bicycle film festival’s website:
http://bicyclefilmfestival.com/2008_site/newyork/program7.php#a
that said, by cutting and pasting this text and posting it on streetsblog (without any sort of acknowledgment that lucas brunelle puts everyone’s life in danger, including his own, when he rides his bike through city streets), the editors at streetsblog are tacitly approving of this type of behavior.
Well, their comment moderation policy didn’t seem to have a problem with this one from a reader named BicyclesOnly:
“Alex, if you took time off from college in 1979 you are about my age–way too young to be talking that way. Go watch some Lucas Brunelle videos and hit the streets!”
Looks like this Brunelle character has become something of a folk hero to the bicycle movement.
I don’t see any outrage, or even mild concern, from the editors or any of the other readers.
We plan to do a whole expose of Lucas Brunelle and others like him.
I agree, there’s no way this maniac should be revered as some kind of modern day folk hero.
you’d think these guys were eating babies or something with the way you guys react.
going down the wrong way and running red lights is just dumb, cause it can get you killed. But it would probably only ding up the driver’s bumper. So please, don’t act like you really think most bikers would drive like this.
Bicyclists aren’t suicidal. we just prefer to drive a vehicle that doesn’t make us fat, make the earth warm, cause wars in iraq, environmental degradation in the swamps of louisiana and kill more people in this country than almost all diseases.
sociopath-
You write: “going down the wrong way and running red lights is just dumb, cause it can get you killed. But it would probably only ding up the driver’s bumper.”
Or cause the death of a pedestrian or another bicyclist who got in the way.
Or cause a driver to swerve out of the way into another car, or a bunch of pedestrians, or another bicyclist, leading to the death of any or all of them.
Here’s my question to you: Where’s the outrage from other bicyclists over this type of behavior? I don’t see it. Am I not looking in the right places?
That was AWESOME!!!!!!!
The only part I didn’t like was the end. I was hoping a city bus would t-bone him going through an intersection and turn him into a greasy spot.
What a BLEEP BLEEP BLEEP.
This is why I have zero sympathy for bicyclists.
sociopath -
See the post I did on bike safety.
I like how you tell us most riders wouldn’t drive like this after we just watched a video in which I didn’t see a single bike rider using safe driving practices.
You’re brilliant.
FYI - cardio vascular disease alone killed close to 870,000 people in 2004, that’s about 19 times more people than cars kill per year.
I like how you tell us most riders wouldn’t drive like this after we just watched a video in which I didn’t see a single bike rider using safe driving practices.
———————————————————-
That’s just disingenuous, Lew!
The whole damn video was about these anarchist-messengers flouting the law. Of course you didn’t see “a single bike rider using safe driving practices.”
Nice try at painting with infinately wide brush, though.
Do you harangue all motorcyclists for the few ‘tards on rice-rockets that split lanes, and put others in danger? Or how about your fellow motorists? Are they all lumped together? Because I’ve seen my share of idiots behind the wheel.
Paul C.
As you know, I don’t like to operate in the anecdotal space, but sometimes I feel compelled to share stories.
Two days ago, I walked on Connective Ave from Farragut West to Dupont Circle in Washington DC at about 5:30 PM, afternoon rush hour. It’s about a 10-15 minute walk on a very busy city street.
Since we’ve been examining the behavior of bicyclists this past week, I made a point of observing every bicyclist I saw. I was shocked at what I witnessed.
About 50% weren’t wearing helmets. Some were riding very fast on the sidewalk, or using the sidewalk to shorten their right turns. A large number blew right through stop signs and red lights. A few made very dangerous left turns.
Granted, I didn’t see any bicyclists acting like Lucas Brunelle and his little band of outlaws. And I did see one instance in which a car broke the law. Some clown in a convertible (talking on a cell phone) make a rolling right turn without stopping like he should have.
Still, the behavior of the bicyclists I witnessed made my very uneasy and strengthened my belief that these people should be regulated like automobile drivers.
Again, it’s about safety, not punishing the responsible bicyclists.
Wow, so this is one of the dumber blog posts I’ve read in quite some time. Let me see if I understand the policy-making process that you’re proposing here:
You find a YouTube video of an anarchist performance artist freak on a bike.
You (a pair of semi-anonymous corporate lobbyist hacks from suburban Virginia who have never ridden a bike in NYC) declare that this guy represents all NYC cyclists.
You then declare that this one cyclist is emblematic of the need for cyclists requiring licensing, registration and regulation.
And making note of the obvious idiocy of your “argument” makes me a “weenie” according to one of your one and only regular commenter.
NYC Bike Commuter -
You don’t understand the policy-making process. That’s why bicyclists like you try to advocate for similar restrictions on automobiles based on the behavior a few bad apples.
Unfortunately, what’s good for automobiles is also good for bicycles, especially when bicyclists are 10 time as dangerous to themselves, and just as dangerous to pedestrians in NYC as cars are when considered in proportion to their numbers.
NYC Bike Commuter,
Obviously not all NYC bicyclists behave like this. But enough do to pose a clear and present danger to pedestrians, car drivers, and other bicyclists. YouTube is clogged with “alleycat races” and “bike messenger tribute” videos and other examples of bicyclist lawlessness.
The fact that the bicycle “community” hasn’t ostracized Lucas Brunelle and his little band of thugs is essentially a tacit acceptance of this lunatic’s reckless behavior. Like I mention above, he’s become something of a modern day folk hero.
So yes, this one bicyclist is very emblematic of the need for bicycle licensing, registration, inspection, insurance, and safety regulations.
Also, you’re completely wrong with the “corporate lobbyist” and “suburban Virginia” labels, which makes your comment one of the dumber blog comments I’ve read in quite some time.
Paul C. -
I understand that not all bicyclists ride like this in NYC, but you do see plenty of other bicyclists in this film, who are not affiliated with it, doing dangerous things.
As far as the “tards on rice rockets” - I completely agree with you that these people are morons. I used to live in southern CA, and out there motorcycles were allowed to lane share with cars. It was one of the stupidest things I’ve ever seen.
I wouldn’t necessarily lump all of those people, or all motorists together. But that’s what the bicycle community does when pushing for anti-car regulations. You hear about the dangers cars pose to bicyclists, not the danger that dangerous drivers pose to bicyclists. There’s a difference, and the solution for the real problem doesn;t involve congestion pricing, traffic calming or better bike infrasturcture - it involves better enforcement of laws already on the book and better driver education.
Bicyclists would benefit from the same things if they were implemented for bicycles. If we really want to make the roads safe for everyone, that’s the way to go.
NYC Bike Commuter -
One more thing - no one at Commuter Outrage is a corporate lobbyist, or a resident of suburban Virginia, and you may be surprised at the places that I’ve ridden bikes.
As far as the regulations we’re proposing, as an occasional bicycle commuter myself, I would whole-heartedly support the licensing and registration of bicyclists in major cities. I think that’s actually a very cost effective and viable way to save lives.
Why do you think that wouldn’t work?
NYC Bike Commuter,
You are a weenie, and what’s more, you just made a fool out of yourself by writing a poorly argued, factually incorrect, illogical comment.
I drive in NYC quite often, and I see this kind of behavior all the time. Maybe not as fast as Lucas Brunelle, but the rest of it is all there. Many other bicyclists, pedestrians, and car drivers agree with me.
It makes me doubt the often mentioned “statistics” that claim cars are almost always at fault when a bicyclist dies while riding on city streets.
Enjoy your anarchy while it lasts. The rules and regulations will eventually come.
Are you guys still crying about the cyclists like they’re the 8th plague sent from God?
Get over it. This is called an Alleycat race. An unsanctioned, underground race formed by Bike Messengers in the 80’s. These races aren’t for the everyday cyclist and often involve dangerous and erratic riding. Not a single person was hurt in that video, so don’t break a sweat sitting in your office chair. These races by no means represent the average City biker in NYC. You’d be shocked to note that most commuters obey traffic laws, wear lights and a helmet on their commute.
Maybe if you guys rode a bike daily (or in a dense city), your outlook on public policy would change. Since you don’t, your views are too narrow to ever be accepted by anyone but your own kind. Face it, DC is home to some of the worse urban planning to date in the United States…
… and Outraged, why do you drive a car in NYC?
I drive a food delivery truck part time.
“you’d be shocked to note most commuters obey traffic laws, wear lights and a helmet on their commute”
are you serious, i never though i’d agree with you, but you are in fact correct.
i WOULD be shocked to note all the things you’ve mentioned above. i’d be shocked because of the three representative characteristics you’ve stated, wearing helmets is the only one that i’ve noted most bikers having in my observations walking around the city.
if the day ever comes when i see the majority of bikers consistently stopping at lights, following traffic patterns, not biking on the wrong side of the road, AND dressed to the nines in reflectors and blinking lights, i think my head will explode from processing all the shock.