Clueless?

A local blogger had a post recently regarding two incidents where cyclist ignored police barricades. In one of them it seems a college-aged girl went around the barricades and proceeded to ride right through the middle of a movie set. It goes on to state: "During the day we had several bikes approach but generally they would make some attempt at eye contact with me, I would send them East / West if the movie was active, tell them OK to the next cross street otherwise. I just don't understand how these two could have a thought process that said none of this applies to me."

I can really sympathize with that.. I frequently ride at the Bicycle Veloway which just so happens to be across the street from The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. At least once a day someone will pull into the Veloway parking lot while looking for the Wildflower Center. Most people quickly figure out they are in the wrong place simply by observing the crowds of spandex-clad cyclist and roller bladers hanging around. The majority of them never even have to get out of their cars to come to this conclusion. Some will get out, walk up to the trail head, read the sign and turn around. Every now and then they approach someone and ask a couple of questions, but more out of curiosity/amusement than confusion.

So on Saturday as I sat by the trailhead I watched an older woman get out of her car and begin walking down the middle of the Veloway. I kept waiting for the little "light bulb" hovering over her head to blink on, but it didn't. Not even as she passed the trail map, or the signs that state "No Walking or Jogging on Veloway". Nothing seemed out of place to her even as several cyclists whizzed past. Had she made eye contact I would have said something like, "Are you looking for the Wildflower Center?"

Instead she kept her head down and walked with a very deliberate, purposeful stride that indicated this is something she's done a million times and knew exactly where she was going. She walked a ways down and out of my sight, but apparently at some point she turned around came back. I saw her walk back up to her car, get in it, and leave. Never once did she look puzzled, confused or say a word to anybody. I can imagine her going back to her friends and neighbors telling them that the Wildflower Center is nothing but bunch of exercise nuts or something... I'm just amazed how some people never clue in and yet somehow manage to blunder through life without a scratch.