Nashville Bikers attacked by Stray Dogs

By NANCY DEVILLE • The Tennessean

Several Sylvan Park residents are concerned about their safety and that of their pets after several cyclists were mauled by a pack of dogs roaming the area.

It’s a big concern for Leslie Keffer, who was recently attacked on Charlotte Avenue near 40th Avenue North while riding her bicycle home from work. She tried unsuccessfully to outrun the pack of eight dogs, but was bitten three times during the chase, she said. “They had my bike surrounded, and I was just terrified and thought I was going to die,” she said. “I’m not scared of dogs, but I’m scared to be in my neighborhood at night on a bike or on foot without a weapon. I just don’t feel safe.”As a result of the attack, Keffer’s leg required stitches, a tetanus shot and a series of rabies vaccinations. The incident has also left her financially strapped, because she says she was forced to fork over thousands of dollars for medical treatment. While her bicycle is her only means of transportation, Keffer said she’s forced to take taxicabs or hitch a ride. She plans to buy some pepper spray for when she gets ready to start riding her bike again. Like many neighbors, Keffer remains on guard and hopes Metro can do something to rid the neighborhood of the problem. “I know seven to eight people that have made complaints to Metro Animal Control, and people are still getting bit,” she said.“Even if it’s not the same group of dogs, there is a stray problem with dogs chasing and trying to bite people. I moved into Sylvan Park because it was a safe neighborhood, but now it doesn’t feel so safe.”

Carl Polgar has also been bitten by what he assumes is the same pack of dogs that attached Keffer and recently another cyclist. He was bitten once while riding his bike on Nebraska Avenue. And again once he slowed down after he thought he outran the dogs. “Most of these incidents are happening at night, and these dogs are less likely to be out during the day,” he said. “If there’s no one that can act on it at night, then it’s kind of useless.”

Brent Hager, director of Environment Health Services for Metro Health, said Animal Control officers started patrolling the area Thursday and have not seen any strays.
He said officers would continue to patrol the neighborhood for the next several days.
“This is not a common problem,” Hager said. “Most of the time dogs will chase the bikes but won’t attack.” “We would like to set some traps, if there is someone in the area that is willing to let us do that,” Hager said. “They are really quite successful.”

Nashville parks enforce bicycle speed limit as walkers, cyclists clash

By Jenny Upchurch • THE TENNESSEAN • August 30, 2009

A clash between "Tour de France wannabes" and "iPod-deaf roadblocks" has park police warning cyclists to slow down and walkers to stay in the slow lane on Nashville's greenways.
Park police trained radar guns on cyclists on three greenways Saturday.
They weren't there to write speeding tickets, says Capt. Rich Foley, park police commander.
The aim is to teach riders about the new 15 mph speed limit on the walk/bike paths and encourage riders and walkers to share the space.
Conflicts between cyclists and pedestrians are a big issue and seem to be on the rise, Foley said, in particular on the Shelby Bottoms trail but also on Stones River and Richland Creek greenways.
"Definitely there have been injuries, definitely there have been crashes between pedestrians and cyclists," he said.
An ambulance crew treated a 22-year-old man injured in a crash with another rider Aug. 22 on the Shelby greenway, according to Nashville Fire Department records. He was about a mile in on the trail and was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Reports of the accident ignited a fierce discussion on the East Nashville listserv, with some posters castigating cyclists as Tour de France wannabes and others lambasting pedestrians as iPod-deaf roadblocks.
Lee Pampacos Putt bikes on the Shelby greenway once or twice a week between her East Nashville home and Gaylord workplace.
"Pedestrians definitely don't like cyclists. And as a cyclist, you do want to go more than 15 mph," she said, adding that she rides slower when more people are on the path.
"It is dangerous sharing with pedestrians and dogs. I don't see it as a huge problem if everyone respected everyone."
Shelby and Two Rivers parks were connected with a pedestrian bridge over the Cumberland last year, linking almost 20 miles of paved trails. That has more cyclists on the trails and more using them for group rides, Putt thinks.
"It's the perfect place to train, in some sense, because you don't have stop signs or signals. You have the luxury of you don't have to brake. But, again, it is not the greatest place to do it with the pedestrians."

15 mph limit set
Even if they are slow, a group of cyclists will intimidate pedestrians as they ride by, she said.
"I'll yell out, 'On your left,' and do it early so people have time to react, so they don't feel like they're being pushed off the path."
There wasn't a speed limit when greenways first opened, Foley said, only a directive to use reasonable speed. It was decided this year to set a 15 mph limit.
The 15 mph limit will be posted at each greenway entrance. The signs also will warn users to stay to the right and that it is a two-way trail. They are being paid for by the private Greenways for Nashville group.
Volunteers also will place a center stripe on the Richland Creek greenway to give a visual clue that pedestrians and cyclists need to stay on the right-hand half of a trail. The first 25 feet of each entrance and blind curves will be striped. Other greenways may follow. Speeding tickets rare
Officers on ATVs have used radar guns on greenways before Saturday's blitz, which was to begin at Shelby in the morning and then go on to Richland and Stones River.
"If someone is going over the speed limit, the officer will give them a warning," Foley said.
A citation would have to be for disorderly conduct rather than a speeding ticket. That would be rarer than rare, he said.
"If you say, 'Hey, the speed limit is 15' and they do the next lap and they do 25, maybe."
Foley said the problems seem to be caused by just a few cyclists, but doesn't point to bike riders as always at fault.
"All users have to be responsible. The greenway is for both walkers and cyclists, and there are rules walkers need to follow," he said. That includes keeping dogs on a leash and supervising children. It also means not spreading across a path and not having earbuds or headphones turned up so loud you can't hear a cyclist coming up behind.
"A little bit on each side is to blame."

Bike Month

May is National Bike Month
The League of American Bicyclists is promoting:
Bike-to-Work Week from May 11-15
Bike-to-Work Day on Friday, May 15.

Starting anew!

Well I let a year go by without getting my trike out of the garage. This year I am not going to allow this to happen. Must get the exercise and good attitude that the trike gives me. When the rain stops this week, hopefully Tuesday, the trike is coming out and getting ready to ride.