Kyra Gottesman, horse trailers and bikes

Ms. Kyra Gottesman in Oroville, California writes about the challenges of pulling her horse trailer up a hilly road while trying to pass packs of recreational road cyclists.

Just because it is legal to ride on a road does not by any stretch of the imagination or common sense mean it is either smart or safe.

I was towing my horse trailer uphill with absolutely no way to see around the corner for oncoming traffic when I came upon a cyclist herd (six in all) whose clothing and rear ends were equally horrifying.

She’s incorrect about the danger of road cycling. Okay, she doesn’t like the look of fit cyclists with their skin tight clothing. I can live with that, but she continues.

While the affront of their appearance was distressing what was even more disturbing was their absolute lack of concern for their lives or mine. They neither pulled over nor stopped. Rather, they imperiously waved me around them.

Note to self: I’ve waved vehicles around since I can see a little farther up the road than the motorist can. I’ve never even imagined that a driver might misconstrue my courtesy as “imperious.” She then, in print, threatens cyclists with homicide and acknowledges shoving a few off of the road!

… I guarantee you my truck and trailer are wider and so will take you out if you don’t move over!

I continued with the only option I had — upward and onward. This forced them to swerve to the side, stop their bikes and give their poor tired legs a rest, though most of them decided to exercise their middle fingers.

In my part of Santa Cruz County, equestrian activities are a popular form of recreation. I have several family and friends who ride and keep horses. FWIW, I always give warning when I approach horse and rider, slowing to give way. Sharing the trail is the expected, civilized behavior for adults, just like sharing the road is. I wonder how Kyra Gottessman would react if I zoomed by her mounted horse at high speed, especially if she was thrown from her startled horse.

Only sociopaths with an exaggerated sense of entitlement feel the need to assault other trail and road users, and it’s truly pitiful that Mr Gottesman needs a five year old child to affirm her own entitlement.

Gabbs [Gottesman’s five year old “friend”] was listening to this conversation and after a few minutes of careful consideration she tugged on my hand and pronounced with a shrug, “People are crazy. Get used to it.”

My advice to Gottesman: Dismissing the ‘other’ as “crazy” might be acceptable for a five year old, but it’s the adult’s job to help the child move beyond that stage.

For the full text of Ms Gottesman’s egocentric delusions, read her column in the Oroville Mercury Register. Oroville is something like a suburb of Chico, located 20 miles southeast of Chico, with several outdoor recreational activities nearby. Via Dan Gutierrez and Biking In LA.

4 Comments

  1. I hope she doesn’t expect much respect from cyclists while out riding her horses. Geez

  2. …it’s always “the other guy” who is self indulgent…

    …it’s an interesting situation wherein a person who owns an animal that has traditionally been used for transportation dating back prob’ly 5000 years (you historians can correct me on my timeline)  has a need to utilize several large vehicles to transport that animal for her own recreational needs & indulgences & in the process, whilst encountering people utilizing small lightweight human powered vehicles, finds herself ‘put out’ by what she considers to be their self indulgence…

    …if it didn’t involve a danger of life threatening proportion, i’d be heartily laughing my ass off at both her ignorance & her facetious attitude…

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