Stop!...In the Name of...uh...Bike

I treat Stop signs as if they were Yield signs, when I am on the bike. Not legal (unless you are in Idaho), but safe and sane. Traffic-calming devices designed to impede speeding on the part of motor vehicles tend to not be placed in spots logical for cycling.

If the intersection has poor visibility, or if there is other traffic at the intersection, I stop like a good citizen. And, of course, I always make sure to stop if a cop is around.

Two days ago, I approached a 4-way stop as a cop approached on the opposite side. To my right was an RTD bus, and to my left one of those dumbass riders which make even me hate bikes.

This guy was riding on the wrong side of the road, with headphones on, and proceeded to run the Stop sign, cutting off the cop and forcing the bus to swerve into the center of the road to avoid him.

The cop just ignored him, and drove on. I continued on my way to work, wondering why I even bother stopping at any time!

WARNING: COMMUTE STATS AHEAD

So, at the end of my third month of bicycle-commuting, I have ridden to work for 54 days and I have accumulated 918 commute miles. Since April 25, I have bought 26 gallons of gas (one tank in the truck, two in the Triumph), and I have only 57 miles on the truck since June 25.