Los Gatos Weekly-TimesLettersNon-bicycle riders shouldn't rush to typecast bicyclists Marlene Burak's letter confirmed what I wrote the week before, that non-bicycle people have an irrational and very dangerous hatred for bicyclers. She says, "Mr. Wolf, when you learn to use the common bicycle courtesy, that is when I will begin to respect you and your passion for riding. Until then, my feelings regarding bicyclists will remain the way they are." Well, Marlene, at my age and condition I could not get a bicycle to any dangerous speed, at least not dangerous to anyone but myself. I call out, "Passing on left" when I overtake. I stop when it is not safe to pass. I have never sworn at, spit at or otherwise abused pedestrians or automobile drivers. No, Marlene, you do not hate me because of my behavior or the behavior of the vast majority of bicyclers, but because of irrational hatred of anyone on a bicycle. I doubt that I have ever met you, except possibly while I was trying to cross a street at a crosswalk, and you might have been one of the great majority of car drivers who will not let a person pushing a bicycle cross at a crosswalk. Even then, I know I did not yell at you and did not make obscene gestures because I never have to anyone. I regret that you got hurt when you stepped into the wrong lane on Lexington Dam Trail. Obviously, it would have been better if the bicycle rider had yelled out, "Passing on left," and you had gotten back in your lane. But is there not some responsibility on the part of pedestrians to stay in their lane? What if we required every car on the streets to honk their horn whenever passing another? And what are we supposed to do about pedestrians wearing earphones or pedestrians who ignore the warnings? I, too, have suffered injury--broken ribs one time and a handlebar into my gut another time. Both painful. In each case I was the only one who got hurt. My point was and is, it is almost always the bicycle rider who gets hurt. Of course, you were an exception. These irrational feelings become especially dangerous when people are behind the wheel of a car. Forcing us off the road, turning right in front of a bicycle, opening a car door into a bicycle lane or crossing in front of us are all very dangerous events that happen every day. My last point is: I am a pedestrian at times, a bicycler at times and a car driver most of the time. My views are based on experience gained in all three modes of transportation, and believe me, the bicyclers are by far the most courteous when there is interaction between the three.
Don Wolf O'Shea's article did not tell the whole story We wish to respond to the article which appeared in the July 30 Los Gatos Weekly-Times regarding the closing of O'Shea's Bar and Grill. We have been patrons and neighbors of this neighborhood "hangout" for about six years and have listened to the fabricated complaints from other neighbors who have made it their mission in life to close O'Shea's down. Your article did report that O'Shea's has been very reasonable in meeting the town's demands--stopping the live music, closing at 10 p.m., offering a food menu, repaving the parking lot, etc.--but you didn't report the opinions and facts the people who know the best have to offer: the patrons. The patrons of O'Shea's range from young to old, blue collar to white collar, and most of us live within walking distance of O'Shea's. It's a gathering place for neighbors to relax and converse. We do not disturb the other neighbors or the town of Los Gatos; we're neighbors ourselves. But the town of Los Gatos and a small minority of neighbors have decided that O'Shea's isn't good enough for them, and so they are going to make life as miserable as possible for the owners and try to put these people out of business and out of work. Shame on you, Los Gatos! And shame on the Los Gatos Weekly-Times for not printing the whole story!
Lynn and Robert Murphy Reroute trucks for SJ projects I am fuming at a discovery I have just made that disturbs the peace and jeopardizes the safety of the residents and businesses on Los Gatos Boulevard and Blossom Hill Road. I am referring to the steady stream of big-rig, double-trailer gravel trucks that have been traveling on the Boulevard and Blossom Hill regularly during the first two weeks of August. These trucks, from a variety of trucking companies, are fully loaded north and eastbound, and are unloaded west and southbound. They exit Highway 17 at Highway 9 on the loaded run and reverse the same on the unloaded. I have typically counted nine to 10 one-way runs during an average 30-minute period. My judgment is that they are regularly exceeding the speed limits in both directions. This is particularly disturbing as they pass though the residential neighborhoods. What really disturbs me, however, is the route of travel and destination of the caravan of trucks. Initially I assumed they were bound for town projects, possibly the new construction on Union. What I discovered is that the route of travel for this truck caravan is Los Gatos Boulevard to Blossom Hill Road, then Blossom Hill to Camden, and finally Camden to Almaden Expressway and a residential construction site at a development called "Almaden Ridge" at the very southern end of Almaden Valley. The return trip retraces this route. Obviously, the contractors of this south Almaden Valley construction project have chosen Los Gatos streets as their best job route rather than stay on the freeways (17 to 85 or 280) to reach Almaden Expressway. I find this absolutely unacceptable. I am well aware that there are weight limits for trucks on Highway 85. Does that allow these weights to impact our town thoroughfares? Just as we are preparing to enhance the Boulevard as a more pedestrian-accommodating environment, have the gravel-movers decided Los Gatos is an easy mark to save some time and gain profit on their runs into south San Jose and beyond? Traffic is already one of the greatest detriments to quality of Los Gatos life. This current problem is a perfect example of the health and safety of our community being put in jeopardy by interests that don't even benefit our town. As far as I'm concerned, now is time for the citizens Los Gatos and our town government to vigorously attack this problem.
Joe Pirzynski Correction In the article "Orchards, vineyards bloom at Forbes Mill" in the Aug. 13 issue of the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, the woman in the accompanying photograph was incorrectly identified in the photo caption. Stephanie "Steve" Durston is the name of the local artist shown painting with John Pugh.
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This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, August 20, 1997. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||