| Subject: | RE: Dogs at Mt. Tabor Park |
| Date: | 06/28/2001 12:54 AM |
| From: | Mark Greenwood |
|
I'm a big proponent of having people obey the law, particularly when my well-being is involved. I think we have to ask, though, "will pursuing a massive lawsuit help or hurt the cause of bike racing?" I can't see any reasonable scenario in which we come out in a better situation via that avenue. The most likely scenario is that non-cyclists (there are a lot of 'em!) would react by pushing to disallow bike races because they're dangerous and a potential liability to the city, and then right or wrong, the damage would be done. I think we have to acknowledge that there's a large part of the community that probably feels the same way about "those dangerous bike racers" as we do about the threat of off-leash dogs near the course. Do we want to feel vindicated because we won some technical point and end up losing our cause in the long run? Instead, we should work to help them understand how they can interact with us so we both stay safe. Racing will be risky no matter how much the laws are enforced. I'd prefer not to lose my opportunities to race because the populace is prodded into being more and more anti-cyclist. Let's pick our battles carefully. Phil Harden wrote: Let me set the record straight. THERE IS NO OFF LEASH AREA IN MT. TABOR PARK!!!!!! How do I know this. My wife was on the planning committee that decided how improvement monies were to be spent. I also attended 2 or 3 meetings and lobbied hard against an off leash area. The reason for no off leash area is environmental. Therefore, if 5 people were selling drugs on the street corner in front of your house everyday at 5:30pm, how long would you put up with that. When would you call the police? If people repeatedly stole your car or your neighbor's car every day at 5:30pm, how long would you put up with that. The point is this. According to the city and the elected officials, there is not any money for enforcement. The only solution is a massive settlement from a successful law suit. The only thing that liberal politicians will understand is an order from a judge. The duly enacted laws don't mean a thing to our city government. I have tried for years to get something done about the dogs in Mt. Tabor Park. And this was when I was part of the group that originally organized the summer series, not the Mt Tabor Crit. But I bet they have experienced many of the same problems. Thanks, Phil Harden |
