To the editor:

I am a bicyclist, and I enjoy riding the scenic roads in Baker County either solo or with my friends. I’ve been impressed with the courtesy most Baker County drivers extend to bicyclists. But this past Saturday, June 14, I was truly ashamed of some of my fellow bicyclists.

My family and I were on our way to Phillips Lake to a family gathering when we met a number of bicycles in the canyon below the lake. There is very little shoulder on that highway. On one of the many curves in that canyon two people were riding side by side, chatting, with a car coming up behind them and our pickup coming toward them.

Let me ask you a question: Are you insane or do you have a death wish? Bicyclists are required to abide by the same traffic laws as other vehicle operators. You demand respect for our sport, yet you are doing your best to ruin its image. Neither I nor my family was impressed with your conduct. Respect is a two-way street and you have to earn it.

What I saw Saturday does just exactly the opposite.

Chuck Buchanan

Durkee