May 13, 2008
Oddblotter: Bay State Bike Week
A group of cyclists got an early start on Bay State Bike Week Saturday night when they beat a motorist unconscious and left a second man injured in Cambridge's Central Square, police say.
According to police, a group of ten cyclists rode together down Mass. Ave. around 11pm on Saturday, swerving in and out of traffic. When a motorist swerved into traffic to avoid hitting an object, the cyclists allegedly became testy. They traded words with the driver that might well be called terms of estrangement before swarming the vehicle and stopping it by throwing a bike in its path, according to police.
One of the passengers was pulled out of the car and beaten. A second passenger left the car to aid his friend and was himself thrown to the ground and punched and kicked senseless. Police arrested two cyclists, who were charged with various offenses. Not on the booking paperwork: the charge of cycling douchebaggery. [Cambridge Chronicle]
Photo tagged "bostonist" by Flickr user ariwriter
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The bugger about this is that the motorist's side of the story is always (always always) taken by police as the factual account. Nobody bothered to ask any of the cyclists their side of the story.
So every driver was always "swerving to avoid an object/pothole" or "minding their own business" whenever they miraculously almost kill someone on a bike.
I'm not saying the driver deserved this, but the police and media slant always blames the cyclist unless the driver is a) drunk, or b) completely psychotic.
I doubt that these guys went out looking to get arrested. Something threatening/scary enough must have happened to provoke this response.
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Well, they did allegedly throw a bicycle in the path of a car and then beat a guy senseless. I've got to side with the dude passed out on the sidewalk on this one, without even getting into why Boston's cyclists are the.worst.evar.
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I'm not saying they didn't go completely overboard in their response.
But the article makes the driver look squeaky-clean. I highly, highly doubt that. If someone almost kills you, and then exchanges harsh words with you as if it's your fault, the adrenaline and frustration can be overwhelming. Doesn't justify the response, but that sort of violent response doesn't usually happen without some sort of provocation.
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oh, boston. why can't we just all have some good clean fun... on bikes?
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robsolete: I find your claim pretty bizarre, in this case, for a couple reasons.
1) The story makes sense. The driver swerved to avoid something, which the cyclists didn't see (Swerving towards the cyclists implies you're swerving away from something on the far side of you from the cyclists). I doubt that the sort of person to get mad enough to throw his bike at the car you're in (Likely damaging his bike in addition to your car) and assault you is the type to be careful enough to check that you weren't avoiding something.
2) The assault victims were both passengers, not the driver. The person pulled from the car could have done nothing more than verbally insult the person who pulled him out.
3) I just can't see two people attacking 10, so I'd say it's pretty clear the men in the car were the ones who were assaulted, and not the other way around.
4) Getting back to 1, at least one of the cyclists obviously has anger management issues. All you need is one person acting aggressively for the explanation of this incident to make sense. Don't see anything in this case to suggest the driver was at fault, unless you have preconceived notions about who's to blame in motor vehicle/cyclist incidents.
In the interest of full disclosure, I admit to having a bit of a bias myself, against those who assault others, particularly those who beat others unconscious.
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I never said that the actions of the cyclists were justified. I never said that the driver or the passengers assaulted the cyclists. Obviously the three cyclists who started throwing punches have some anger problems.
I'm just saying that I doubt this is a black-and-white case, as it's being reported. It's being reported as a "mob beating," which isn't true. It was a two on two fight.
I'm biased myself because for some reason drivers are ten times ruder to me when I'm on a bike than if I'm driving or walking. It's a perceived safety/entitlement thing. So while I don't agree with beating people up, I'm don't buy that the driver and passengers didn't escalate the situation and make some stupid moves.
Here's my issue: if the driver made an honest mistake that scared cyclists, why didn't they apologize and stop the situation from escalating? Instead, it seems like the driver and passengers ran their mouths, expecting that they were safe in their car.
They were wrong. Lesson learned.
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it is now obvious that biking should be outlawed in MA. it is too dangerous for the bikers and for drivers. this is a straight up public safety issue.
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Rick, you've punked the organizers of and law abiding participants in Bay State Bike Week just as the gang punked the motorists.
You've committed assault and battery by associative principle. Perhaps worse, if the pen is mightier than the sword!
Do you have any reason to tie those thugs on cycles to BSBW? Were they registered for the events? Did they participate in any of the events of Bay State Bike Week?
Your phrasing makes it sound as if those cretins are representative of all cyclists, and you know that nothing could be further from the truth!
In fairness, you ought to change your headline and eliminate BSBW from your post, unless you have a substantiated reason to tie those accused to the events of BSBW.