Portland radio show hosts: ‘Jerk bikers’ deserve ‘clothesline wire’ for riding through parking lot

A host from 1080 The Fan makes the throat-slitting gesture as he suggests using clothesline wire to hurt bicycle riders.

A trio of local sports radio show hosts has posted a video where they talk about how they’d like to seriously injure “jerk bikers.” The two men in the video are Isaac Ropp and Jason “Big Suke” Scukanec, hosts of Primetime with Isaac & Suke, which the station bills as, “Portland’s most popular sports talk show.”

Employees of 1080 The Fan, a radio station owned by Entercom Communications Corp, posted the video in
a tweet last Thursday (September 5th). Apparently they are frustrated because people who ride on the Willamette Greenway path cut through the parking lot outside their building to connect to surface streets in the South Waterfront District.

Here’s the tweet:

https://twitter.com/1080TheFAN/status/1169732695460499456

“Let’s escalate the violence.”
— Jason “Suke” Scukanec, 1080 The Fan

As you can hear, one of the talk show hosts refers to “jerk bikers” who have a problem “respecting… authority”. Because they believe bicycle riders are going around barriers they’ve erected to keep them out of the parking lot, the men suggest various solutions. “I’m thinking attack animals: badgers, snakes, things of that nature,” says one of them. “I’m thinking clothesline wire,” says another, as he makes the throat-cutting gesture across his neck with his hand. “That was in the news other day, that was bad,” one of them responded, a reference to a scary incident last month that happened on the same path just a few miles away. “Hey, then don’t go through our parking lot,” says another. “Yeah, we have insurance,” says the man who suggested the idea.

“Let’s escalate the violence,” another man says toward the end of the clip.

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Official Portland Bicycle Map showing paths and Entercom building. Red dashed line is where people cut through parking lot to SW Bond Ave.

These statements are deplorable, especially when you consider many people hear them while driving in their cars just feet away from the extremely vulnerable road users that are being targeted. It’s also worth noting that in addition to last month’s incident, three men were arrested in 2018 for purposely stretching a wire across the I-205 bike path with the intent of hurting bicycle riders.

Green line shows official path of Willamette Greenway Trail.

The location where the men are standing in the video is one block south of SW Bancroft Street, just east of the new Tesla Service Center (see maps). It’s understandable why people would cut through the parking lot because the Willamette Greenway path ends just a few hundred yards north of there. Most people don’t go through the lot and opt instead to travel east-west on one of the alleyways that connects to the SW Moody portion of the path that travel adjacent the rail tracks.

Portland Parks & Recreation is responsible for this path. I’ve contacted them to put the issue on their radar and spokesperson Mark Ross says he’ll send a staff person out to investigate the situation. Meanwhile, after we posted something about this on Twitter earlier today, some people have already began to contact the station with their concerns.

We hope these guys will apologize and remove their video from Twitter. People are angry enough these days and don’t need any encouragement for road rage. Words matter and we cannot allow this type of casual hatred toward bicycle riders to go unnoticed or become normalized.

UPDATE, 2:44pm: Jason Scukanec (on left in video) just posted a statement on Twitter:

— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org

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Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car owner and driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, feel free to contact me at @jonathan_maus on Twitter, via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a supporter.

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Candor Cane
Candor Cane
4 years ago

Important topic. I am glad you’re elevating this ugly rhetoric.

But that line on your map is NOT GREEN, it’s totally blue.

Candor Cane
Candor Cane
4 years ago
Reply to  Candor Cane

(Now that the map has changed, can you delete this comment Jonathan?)

Doug Hecker
Doug Hecker
4 years ago

I think we can all agree that the solutions to getting on the Willamette path is a difficult one at best. Yes, you could get on before this section or at it but you’d be faced with the gnarly bumps in the path just before a tight corner turn. I avoid it and ride past the west side of the Tesla operation and enter at the River’s Edge Hotel.

As for the sports talk guys, it think they are clearly joking. Of course there is always a grain of truth, maybe cyclists, like myself, could stay off of their sidewalks?

Dan A
Dan A
4 years ago
Reply to  Doug Hecker

Somehow I knew you’d pop in to defend them.

Doug Hecker
Doug Hecker
4 years ago
Reply to  Dan A

Dan A
Somehow I knew you’d pop in to defend them.Recommended 0

Defend? More like being reasonable. I know, reason is something that has been tossed to the wayside these days. Maybe you could watch the video again?

Doug Hecker
Doug Hecker
4 years ago

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)
Joking or not Doug, the impact of their words is still real and relevant.Recommended 1

Have you reached out to them for a comment? Also, I’ll gladly stop by tonight after work and ask a few questions. Please let me know.

dwk
dwk
4 years ago
Reply to  Doug Hecker

Please ask Ropp, why he thinks a drunk driver like himself has any right to judge anyone’s transportation mode.
Ask him if drunk driving is funny?

dan
dan
4 years ago
Reply to  Doug Hecker

Just a joke, like Trump joking about the Russians hacking Hillary’s e-mail, right? No one would ever act on such a suggestion, right? Imagine the reaction if someone on this forum started joking about shooting motorists who drove unsafely.

Hello, Kitty
4 years ago
Reply to  dan

Hillary’s emails were essentially unsecured, contained sensitive and classified information, and of course the Russians grabbed them. Not because of anything Trump said but because it’s what intelligence services do.

Unabogie
Unabogie
4 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

That is not true. Hillary’s emails did not send any “classified” information from her email account, and her personal email server was never hacked. What was hacked was the DNC email server, as well as John Podesta’s personal emails. What Trump was asking Russia to do (which they immediately tried after his request) was to find the emails that Clinton’s lawyers had deleted (as per the law) because they were personal and not work related. Trump was convinced that he’d find something incriminating in there, which is why he sent his kids to talk to the Russian spies at the Trump Tower meeting. The Mueller Report lays all this out in detail, should you want a refresher.

trcole
trcole
4 years ago
Reply to  Unabogie

What Issac and Suk did wasn’t something I would have done, nor would I have felt comfortable being a part of. However and with that being said, time and time again we have Oregon bicyclists lobbying, suing, cutting corners, protesting and costing the city budget money they already lack, breaking traffic laws as well as bicycling laws, only to show up anytime they can, to point out how everyone else is a bicyclist hater and its always the motorists fault – right?. Its ridiculous and just plain dumb. Bicycles and Automobiles have never and will never be able to share the road. Speaking for myself, who has always been an avid bicyclist, I’m not OK with bikes on main roadways because its unfair and asinine to expect myself, as well as my family, to somehow be OK with the notion that I may one day end up in jail or sued, because i sneezed while a bicyclist was 6″ away from my car and they were hit and injured, or worse dead. Its simply physics and you all are trying to somehow justify it otherwise. The argument is weak, at best. Take mass transit if you cant or don’t want to drive a car. End of story. And to the person who wrote about somehow knowing “exactly” what was on or in Hilary Clinton’s email – come on man. We don’t know what happened and we never will.

Ryan
Ryan
4 years ago
Reply to  Dan A

Ha! I immediately thought of this when reading this post 😀

Rain Panther
Rain Panther
4 years ago
Reply to  trcole

trcole, please listen to your own advice:

“Take mass transit if you cant (competently) or don’t want to drive a car.”

q
q
4 years ago
Reply to  trcole

trole, people walking share the same roads as cars, too, and even people who drive at least occasionally walk across streets or walk on sidewalks across driveway curb cuts. When they do, they’re at least as close to cars as any bicyclist ever is. Yet you believe that sneezing at the wrong time while you drive may cause you to injure or kill others near your vehicle. Wouldn’t that mean driving is crazily dangerous, and society should spend more money and effort to make it less dangerous?

q
q
4 years ago
Reply to  trcole

On the one hand, you seem unhappy that cyclists are lobbying and protesting. On the other, you say that they have to right to use roads. Maybe that’s WHY cyclists lobby and protest.

q
q
4 years ago
Reply to  trcole

I think this is primarily a failing of the City–not providing a decent connection between trail and streets–so I don’t like the station people blaming cyclists, and I don’t like the idea of cyclists retaliating by cutting through the private lot.

But in the “people who live in glass houses…” category, the google satellite view shows cars parked in the north parking lot (by Oregon Ballet Theater) that are blocking the walkways. Those are almost certainly zoning-code mandated “pedestrian connections”, required because the code recognizes the importance of connecting the building entrance and other site areas with the public street via specific walkways vs. leaving building occupants and visitors to wander randomly through parking areas. If it shows up on google, it’s unlikely it was a one-time occurence.

I’m not bringing this up to encourage people to turn the building owner in for code violations, because the real issue to me is the City’s failure to create a valid public connection. I’m just pointing out that the station guys complaining (even if in jest) about bikes in the parking lot invites looking the other direction at the building owner’s allowing tenants to block code-required pedestrian connections. If I were the building owner, I wouldn’t want my tenants inviting that scrutiny my way.

https://www.google.com/maps/@45.4927051,-122.6701769,123m/data=!3m1!1e3

9watts
4 years ago
Reply to  trcole

“Speaking for myself, who has always been an avid bicyclist, I’m not OK with bikes on main roadways because its unfair and asinine to expect myself, as well as my family, to somehow be OK with the notion that I may one day end up in jail or sued, because i sneezed while a bicyclist was 6″ away from my car and they were hit and injured, or worse dead. Its simply physics…”

How did you end up *in* the car, sneezing?
Are you also an avid motorist? Or an avid somnambulist? Perhaps an avid sneezer?

When you use words like “they were hit or injured” (did the sneezing you play no part in that little imagined drama?) or “simply physics” (is it also simply physics that you found yourself avidly sneezing in your car?) you pretty much give the game away, reveal where your allegiances lie.

q
q
4 years ago
Reply to  trcole

“I’m not OK with bikes on main roadways because its unfair and asinine to expect myself, as well as my family, to somehow be OK with the notion that I may one day end up in jail or sued, because i sneezed while a bicyclist was 6″ away from my car and they were hit and injured, or worse dead. Its simply physics and you all are trying to somehow justify it otherwise.”

In a perverse way, this to me could be a Comment of the Week, or more. It was intended to be an argument against letting people bike on main roadways. But the unintended, underlying message is that driving is so dangerous that the slightest disruption to a driver at the wrong time can result in killing someone else on the road (and not just people biking, as the commenter believes). The worst thing is that it’s true.

Hello, Kitty
4 years ago
Reply to  Unabogie

>>> Hillary’s emails did not send any “classified” information from her email account, and her personal email server was never hacked. <<<

The balance of the evidence (which is not, and never will be, conclusive) is that you are right, her personal email server was likely not hacked (though it was not well secured), however evidence does support the assertion that there was classified information on it.

Regardless, using that server very likely cost her the presidency, much to our great (collective) sorrow.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Clinton_email_controversy "Classified information in emails"

rachel b
rachel b
4 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

Misogyny cost her the election.

Rain Panther
Rain Panther
4 years ago
Reply to  Doug Hecker

I think the “grain of truth” might be that some people really do harbor hostility and ill will towards people riding bikes.

Jason Skelton
Jason Skelton
4 years ago

I write to validate your sentiment that this is beyond awful. And they are objecting to bikes on a parking lot! My office is in the River View building (by the green/blue line) so I know that the two alternatives to exit off the river path are by the Oregon Ballet Theater or Old Spaghetti Factory, which are both places where there tend to be many people walking about. So riding by this radio station is the preferable way if one prefers to avoid conflict with pedestrians.

pdx2wheeler
4 years ago

A better route to connect to Moody from the Willamette path is just a bit earlier, between River Forum II and River’s Edge at Cottonwood Bay, or even from River’s Edge at Hamilton. The connecting route you’ve highlighted is long and narrow, and it gets a bit tight passing pedestrians through that stretch.

rick
rick
4 years ago

If only the Willamette Shore Trolley was a trail or a trolley-with-trail.

Chris I
Chris I
4 years ago
Reply to  Branden Shelby

**Deleted by moderator. Please don’t joke about violence like that. Thank you.**

It’s okay, though. I’m just joking. Haha.

q
q
4 years ago
Reply to  JJ

Point?

SD
SD
4 years ago
Reply to  q

I think they mean to say that all people who ride bikes are evil because of “the one person that one time on a bike” in this link, which means that people who wish “cyclists” harm and encourage violence are always excused. This is a common and valid idea on many preK playgrounds.

JJ
JJ
4 years ago
Reply to  q

SD and Q,

No my point was a troll and had nothing to do with cycling but more with the outrage of Branden Shelby. He felt it necessary to posted a link to one of the broadcasters DUI arrest photo which serves no point at all and really has nothing to do with the radio commentators and their recent comments. He was trying to point fingers at then and add “color” to the outrage and “how horrible” these people are. My point was to basically say “glass houses” to Branden.

rick
rick
4 years ago

Do they even understand that one of the most dangerous crossings of I-5 is within walking distance? Hood Ave under I-5 doesn’t even have a legit crosswalk and ODOT might even put up a fake no-crosswalk sign to prevent crossing from one side of Hood to the other.

maccoinnich
4 years ago

This is obviously a dick thing to do, but relying on a private parking lot for access to the Willamette Greenway trail from South Waterfront isn’t an ideal solution.

Eventually the gap to the north will be filled by private development. Until then Portland could always pave an interim trail on SW Lowell, directly north of the Old Spaghetti Factory parking lot. Portland Maps shows that as a ~ 30′ wide right-of-way between SW Bond and the Willamette:

https://www.portlandmaps.com/detail/assessor/0715-SW-BANCROFT-ST/R568131_did/

Looking at Google Street Views it’s currently a gravel path, fenced off:

https://goo.gl/maps/BznQ5icu5sAuU9aY6

I can’t think of any good reason why this couldn’t be paved with an asphalt path, until such time as it’s built out as a full street and the gap in the trail is filled.

q
q
4 years ago
Reply to  maccoinnich

Yes, exactly. The City creates conflicts between people by not taking responsibility itself. Creating a decent connection as you say would eliminate the reason people cut through the private lot. A similar situation exists with Riverview Cemetery–people cut through because the City hasn’t stepped up to provide a decent alternative, leaving Riverview and the public to hash things out. I’m sure there are dozens of other examples.

axoplasm
4 years ago
Reply to  q

> The City creates conflicts between people by not taking responsibility itself.

THIS, so much. Reminds me of similar conflicts in Riverview Cemetery, where the city has outsourced infrastructure to private landowners.

i live on a bike route corner, there are tons of cyclists daily
i live on a bike route corner, there are tons of cyclists daily
4 years ago
Reply to  q

Portland Parks & Recreation is responsible for this path, but cyclists are supposed to be responsible riders. Folx here are making it sound like Parks & Rec is forcing you to cycle through private property against your will. Like there is someone preventing you from walking your bike through the parking lot, which to me seems to be the only somewhat-respectful way of using private property as a cut-through if you’re the only cyclist doing it — but in the case of throngs of cyclists doing it, it’s just wrong.
Speaking from my experience, when your property is edged by a bike route, cyclists are a part of your everyday life in various ways. It can be disruptive, which is fine, but I guess I just don’t understand the sense of entitlement that I’m seeing in a lot of comments here.
I think if cyclists hadn’t made this a frustration for the folx using that property, there would have been no attempts at barriers, and there would be no spouting off video about their frustrations. Did they cross the line with their joking? Yep. But that hardly seems the point.

i live on a bike route corner, there are tons of cyclists daily
i live on a bike route corner, there are tons of cyclists daily
4 years ago
Reply to  q

The radio hosts were wrong to joke about violence, for sure.

So far I’ve heard that (1) Parks & Rec is responsible for the path, but I haven’t heard anyone speak about the responsibilities of cyclists in this situation. No one seems to think that walking their bike through a private property parking lot is an option for increased safety in a mixed-use space that you are sort of appropriating as your cut-through path, and for decreased agitation of the property users.

And I’ve heard (2) that the “official” path through (by Tesla) is poorly designed, which a lot of commenters seem to think gives them the right to use the private parking lot the way they want (which is also ‘poorly designed’ for this in other ways). But again, I haven’t heard anyone speak about the responsibilities of cyclists in the situation of confronting a poorly designed bike path — which is again safety and respect for others on the path. No one seems to think that walking their bike through the narrowness and the blind corner is an option.

I find these omissions strange. I don’t know much about cycling. But I would imagine that there is some element of responsibility involved in how riding a vehicle occupies different spaces (bike path/public sidewalk/private property), and in what manner (riding fast/med/slow, or walking the bike).

I am sort of left wondering why this problem, and who shares in its responsibility and its resolution, is being reflected largely in the comments as everyone else’s except the cyclists.

Anyhow, I hope it gets resolved long-term in a way that allows cyclists to continue their ride freely, and that some opportunities for short-term accommodations on the part of all involved start to present themselves. Best of luck with it.

q
q
4 years ago

“I am sort of left wondering why this problem, and who shares in its responsibility and its resolution, is being reflected largely in the comments as everyone else’s except the cyclists.”

The prime problem is the lack of a decent connection. That’s why people are riding through the lot. If every cyclist stops using the lot (which means every single cyclist has to make that decision every single time, because cyclists aren’t one unified block under some sort of central control) that stops the cut-through riding, but it doesn’t solve the main problem. Solving the main problem is the City’s responsibility.

Resopmok
Resopmok
4 years ago

I think drivers should just bite the bullet and walk their cars through dangerous areas, like neighborhood greenways and high crash corridor intersections. I mean, where are they taking responsibility for the 40,000+ deaths per year on our roadways? Isn’t it okay for them to shoulder some burden for all the injuries caused by driving with a bit of inconvenience?

q
q
4 years ago
Reply to  maccoinnich

Part of me wonders if it wouldn’t be a bad thing if the building owners took a hard, 100% stance against cut-through bike traffic–barriers, signs, trespassing threats…along with telling the City that it’s not their (the building owners) responsibility to provide a decent trail connection. This might spur the City to create one.

What I don’t like about that is that I have no confidence the City would act, thus making the situation even worse.

Paul Cone
Paul Cone
4 years ago
Reply to  maccoinnich

There is a development in the works for that property. I thought I read something last week about there being an objection because the building sizes were off vs. the rest of them, but I can’t find that article now.

http://www.nextportland.com/2019/03/13/the-landing-at-macadam-receives-design-advice-images/

SBSope
SBSope
4 years ago

Of course they think they’re just being funny, but Isaac Ropp’s views on transportation and reckless behavior are possibly not due much credence or attention:

https://www.oregonlive.com/sports/2018/12/portland-sports-radio-host-isaac-ropp-arrested-for-drunken-driving-records-show.html

Serenity
Serenity
4 years ago

Despicable! Whether they are “clearly joking,” or not.

CommonSensePDX
CommonSensePDX
4 years ago

Let’s just stay off the sidewalk for goodness sake. This is the best town in the US for biking with more bike-only lanes ans streets than anywhere else I can think of. Why do some have to ride on the sidewalk??? It’s just bringing heat on good bikers.

Ryan
Ryan
4 years ago

Of the three, I’m not surprised Suke was the one that tried to smooth this over. As I mentioned in another comment, they’ve complained about PDX cyclists before on their show, and while he’ll play off the other guys’ comments and throw out something that sounds bad at times, he usually comes back around with a more rational type comment. Even though he’s the ex-pro football player and looks the most intimidating of the group, I feel like he’d be the least likely of them to actually be violent for something this stupid. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if he agreed to take a bike ride with you around that area to see the situation around there 🙂

Steve Hash
Steve Hash
4 years ago

Oh man, I love their radio show. They aren’t the most PC duo and hopefully have/will learn their lesson.

EP
EP
4 years ago

I’m guessing they’re stuck in a stinky radio studio too much, and are really just jealous of all the bikers riding by outside in the fresh air.

Sports Bro
Sports Bro
4 years ago

Go check out the speed at which the cyclists speed through the parking lot during AM and PM commute hours. The same hours building employees are pulling in and pulling out of their parking spots and lot. There have been NUMEROUS close calls between cyclists and drivers attempting to back out of their parking spots. How much time are the cavalier cyclists really saving by cutting through a private parking lot and endangering themselves in the process?

Chris I
Chris I
4 years ago
Reply to  Sports Bro

So you can confirm that no one has been injured so far?

I believe you misunderstand the differences between bikes and cars. Bikes are significantly more maneuverable, and afford the operator a completely unobstructed view of their surroundings, with no enclosure to block out sound. Cyclists are very aware of their surroundings, and cars pulling in/out of spots are not a problem.

I also look forward to hearing your thoughts on motor vehicle operators cutting through quiet neighborhoods to save a few seconds. This happens all over the city, and puts all of us at risk every day. I’m not too concerned about a few cyclists riding through a parking lot.

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
4 years ago
Reply to  Sports Bro

Maybe you can save us some time and tell us exactly how fast they are going?

MPH is the preferred measurement, but KPH is acceptable too.

Hello, Kitty
4 years ago
Reply to  Sports Bro

You “anecdote” is Sport Bro’s “lived experience”.

Hello, Kitty
4 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

If you call your anecdotes “lived experience”, you get a pass.

Fred
Fred
4 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

Aw, Mr Kitty – you have such a hard time living in this Brave New World.

Alex
Alex
4 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

You should look up the definition of anecdote and see if it means what you think it means.

Doug Hecker
Doug Hecker
4 years ago

dan
Just a joke, like Trump joking about the Russians hacking Hillary’s e-mail, right? No one would ever act on such a suggestion, right? Imagine the reaction if someone on this forum started joking about shooting motorists who drove unsafely.Recommended 1

I’ve been waiting to use this for a minute – RED HERRING!

Ryan
Ryan
4 years ago
Reply to  Doug Hecker

The example wasn’t great, but the underlying point is valid. Yes, they’re joking and being sarcastic, anyone who has listened to them at all probably gets that, although there’s definitely some bits of seriousness included. For rational people it’s mostly nothing. BUT, there are enough malicious people out there who really don’t care about the lives/safety of others who actually could use this as encouragement to carry out violence against cyclists. Not to mention, for a few of those normally-rational people who become enraged at the perceived slight of being “stuck” behind an “inconsiderate” cyclist (which usually means they had to wait 10 seconds before accelerating hard, close-passing the cyclist, only to get back into a line of cars at a red light while the cyclist casually filters by), this is another piece of kindling that will make that fire burn just a bit hotter the next time that happens, which can lead to bad/dangerous behavior.

The times that I am driving in the afternoon I like listening to these guys, I find them pretty entertaining usually. They’ve complained about PDX cyclists before (not specifically related to the parking lot issue) and Suke tends to be the more level-headed of the group. He’ll play off comments from the others (like his “escalate the violence” remark) but usually comes back around to something more rational. Ropp on the other hand… I’m not up in arms about this, knowing what was probably intended, but it’s still disappointing.

Maria
Maria
4 years ago

The original video post is a joke. Their apology is also a joke. “Gotta love the outrage culture”. I wonder if one of these guys would be willing to ride a bike among cars JUST ONCE, feel terrified for their lives, then realize that joking about violence against cyclists is just not funny and could in fact inspire one of their listeners to do something stupid.
If they are serious about not wanting cyclists to cut through their parking lot (why, I don’t know, is it hurting anything? if they were smart they’d fine a way to make a game or a buck or a show out of it), then why not just put up an actual sign that says “CYCLISTS: Please respect our property and don’t cut through”. Then we’ll stop putting cigarette butts in their dog poop.

Johnny Bye Carter
Johnny Bye Carter
4 years ago
Reply to  Maria

then why not just put up an actual sign that says “CYCLISTS: Please respect our property and don’t cut through”.

You mean like the sign that they held up in the video? That didn’t seem to work.

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
4 years ago

I’ve always used the sidewalk that’s sort of hidden directly to the West of their lot when passing through. I also avoid the path that wraps around The Spaghetti Factory for the same reasons others have mentioned.

I don’t really understand why they are worried about bikes going through their lot, but maybe they’d be okay with folks using the sidewalk outside of their lot?

Bjorn
Bjorn
4 years ago

The dudebro on the left obviously thinks his calls to violence are no big deal, but I can’t even get my wife to ride the springwater corridor/eastbank esplanade/i 205 path with me anymore because she is too afraid of being attacked after multiple people have been attacked. For someone with such a wide reach to stand their and encourage his fans to “escalate the violence” against cyclists is in fact a big deal.

Chris I
Chris I
4 years ago
Reply to  Bjorn

The Springwater between Johnson Creek and Gresham is really bad right now. If I rode it regularly, I think I would carry bear mace. I passed a guy on Friday who was walking while carrying a 4ft long battle axe type weapon. I did not call out my pass…

Skid
Skid
4 years ago

They sure know how to backpedal considering they’re not cyclists.

Toby Keith
Toby Keith
4 years ago

These guys are bozos for sure, but they apologized so let’s just move on. Like Chris mentioned above I’m more concerned about things like the Springwater becoming a Battle Royale.

Ryan
Ryan
4 years ago

They think adding things that could be bunny-hopped and/or will give cyclists an excuse to go off-road and through brush will DISCOURAGE cyclists from going through? Ha! Jokes on them… #crossiscoming

Kenny
4 years ago

“Gotta Love the Outrage Culture”. Hmmm? Not only is that not a honest apology, it’s a clear lack of awareness that they are part of the violence culture (I don’t know; Trump culture?) that they are representing with what was Said.
Honestly, it’s downright pathetic to get THAT upset over some bicycles that won’t harm anything coming through the Lot. So What?
All I see is a couple douch bags looking for attention in a really thoughtless manner.

Contacting PBOT wouid have been more constructive. See if there’s design approaches that could correct this.

It’s Radio. Too bad it’s Sports, they might actually have a job for a while there. Hopefully the PD told them to apologize. I hope he or she sees how this wasn’t good enough.

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
4 years ago
Reply to  Kenny

I found that comment particularly ironic since it could be easily argued that getting all worked up over a few cyclists riding through a parking lot could be considered outrage culture.

Concerned
Concerned
4 years ago

I was really perturbed that my neighbor put their couch in that spot. I generally like to make my way through their private home without the need to travel all the way around the sofa like that.

Regardless of the nature of the comments, keep yourself on public property and you won’t have to worry about anyone stringing a line across the way to clothesline you. Good fences make good neighbors.

Hello, Kitty
4 years ago
Reply to  Concerned

>>> keep yourself on public property and you won’t have to worry about anyone stringing a line across the way to clothesline you <<<

Except, of course, you do have to worry about it because people have been stringing lines across the way on public property.

Johnny Bye Carter
Johnny Bye Carter
4 years ago
Reply to  Concerned

“keep yourself on public property and you won’t have to worry about anyone stringing a line across the way to clothesline you.”

You don’t even have to worry about it on private property. It’s illegal to erect traps intended to cause harm, even on your own property. I don’t think these people want to go to jail (again).

Serenity
Serenity
4 years ago

Concerned
I was really perturbed that my neighbor put their couch in that spot. I generally like to make my way through their private home without the need to travel all the way around the sofa like that.Regardless of the nature of the comments, keep yourself on public property and you won’t have to worry about anyone stringing a line across the way to clothesline you. Good fences make good neighbors.Recommended 0

I rollled my eyes so hard I think I just saw my brain.

TJ
TJ
4 years ago

In regards to the Tweet from you: “You are missing my point. I don’t need to know any more context, because there mere utterance of the words is what matters. Ppl on bikes face all types of threats and harassment daily. Last thing we need is popular radio hosts “joking” abt it & making it seem like it’s cool/ok.”

Context is never a bad thing. I completely agree with the reasoning behind the story: condoning violence against bikers is unacceptable and joking about it on air with their sort of reach is unacceptable. I saw the video when they posted it and thought it was in poor taste.

And you were completely right to point that out.

But when has context ever made a story worse? You could have completed the objective of your story while still adding some context through reporting: getting their side, learning that they are bikers, too, and made a joke in poor taste. That doesn’t make what they did right, but it also doesn’t paint them as two brainless gas guzzlers who legitimately hate bikers when in truth, they’re just two sports guys trying to fill space.

TJ
TJ
4 years ago

Cool. Next time Trump says global warming is fake, NYT should just publish those quotes as is, right, with no context? He said it, right? Let’s let the public decide.

Bancroft OHSUian
Bancroft OHSUian
4 years ago

I work in this same building and share this lot. This building consists of Entercom, OHSU, and OBT. My desk faces the parking lot they speak of and I witness drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians using it every day. Being near the entrance of the parking lot (the OHSU side) I pretty much see everyone who enters and exits, and I must say that what I find most alarming is the speed of the drivers that fly between the entrance and the rear/Entercom side of the lot at ridiculous speeds, considering this a parking lot.

It’s funny, the last time I had an errand to run (via bicycle) south of the building I noticed it wasn’t so easy to hit the path from the Entercom portion of the lot. It had been a while and I was wondering why it seemed less simple than before, so when I returned I just opted to go through the OBT portion instead. I guess my mind wasn’t messing with me and they had actually reconfigured it to be more difficult to get through than I had previously remembered. But I can see why people opt to hit the path here instead of using the path between ICE and the charter school/storage building. It’s more pleasant (on the river) and it’s not next to ICE. As well, going the ICE way you are dumped out on a “road”, on the non river side of the River Forum building, which means more interactions with drivers. There is a teeny tiny path between River Forum and Tesla but that’s not really favorable to cyclists, it more of a residential size sidewalk than anything. So you are stuck on that road for longer, and it has a ton of parking directly off it, and it’s constantly filled with FedEx and UPS and other delivery trucks. Who wouldn’t chose the quickest path to the river over that crap?

But seriously, it’s not even hordes of cyclists that come through here. There are probably more people on foot than on bike. I just wish those driving to/from Entercom would slow the heck down. When the charter school first went in many of the parents were parking in OHSU spots to drop off/pick up their kids. I was terrified someone was going to run over a kid with how fast people drive through this lot. Fortunately they put a stop to using OHSU parking for this a while back. But this Entercom garbage is purely a case of hating on people who ride bikes.

anecdote
anecdote
4 years ago

Interesting. When someone else posted about cyclists behaving badly in that lot, you responded with “Cool story, (sports) bro, but that’s all it is: anecdotal.”
Apparently anecdotal is just fine when you agree with it.

briandavispdx
briandavispdx
4 years ago

This is gross and all but whatever…honestly these guys seem far too stupid to be worth the attention. They will have a karmic comeuppance that will more than equalize this, I’m sure (it seems that perhaps the transportation gods are already having a little fun at Isaac’s expense).

What’s far more salient here is that this is illegal. You can’t just put stuff up in parking lots to restrict circulation in park, but more than that, those planters in the sidewalk are an ADA issue. As BP has been chronicling, the City is taking those *very* seriously in the current legal environment.

If observed again, this should be documented and reported to BDS. Since we have this helpful video, any further documented evidence would be part of a pattern that could be reported. More info can be found here: https://www.portlandoregon.gov/bds/34180

Johnny Bye Carter
Johnny Bye Carter
4 years ago
Reply to  briandavispdx

“What’s far more salient here is that this is illegal. You can’t just put stuff up in parking lots to restrict circulation in park, but more than that, those planters in the sidewalk are an ADA issue.”

Citation needed.

As far as I know it’s completely legal to restrict which entrances you want people to use to access your parking lot.

Those sidewalks are not needed. They can legally put up a fence around that entire side of the property to restrict all bicycle and pedestrian movement. And they should ask the building owners to do that.

idlebytes
idlebytes
4 years ago
q
q
4 years ago

Private walkways are very often part of a site’s required exit routes (required by building code to get people from building exits to streets) or pedestrian circulation systems (required by zoning code to connect building entrances, parking areas and adjacent public sidewalks with one another). Blocking one is likely a violation of one type or another.

Debbie Gustafson
Debbie Gustafson
4 years ago

Let’s be clear. “Bikers” ride motorcycles. “Cyclists” ride bicycles. If you clothsline a bunch of bikers, you’d better move.

Hello, Kitty
4 years ago

And if you try that crap with any of my trike-riding Sanrio gang, moving isn’t going to help. You’ll rue the day.

HAstoria
HAstoria
4 years ago

I think energy would be better directed to the miscreants in city hall (talking about you Teddy) who ignore the appalling conditions their lack of ability to manage and govern a city has allowed to fester. The sites one sees peddling around this city are breathtakingly disgusting. The tarp camps, the garbage strewn everywhere, the piles of stolen bike parts, the vagrants and criminal vagrants who’ve invaded our once lovely burg, the needles, the human waste, the decay and degradation of multiple neighborhoods and areas…save the outrage for the demonstrated neglect and malfeasance demonstrated by our alleged public servants and the miasma they have allowed to fester here in Portland.

The radio guys are idiots running their mouths and I’m sure they’ve thought better of it by now.

Save our city before it’s too late and save your energy for things that matter.

Pat Lowell
Pat Lowell
4 years ago

They don’t want cyclists cutting through their parking lot; cyclists don’t want to have to detour through a parking lot. Seems like we’re all on the same side and should be working together!

Bjorn
Bjorn
4 years ago
Reply to  Pat Lowell

The guy specifically encouraged his large group of followers to escalate the violence on cyclists, I don’t feel like we are on the same side.

Fake Outrage
Fake Outrage
4 years ago

1. I’m surprised some of you folks who are obviously outraged haven’t called the authorities. Badgers are a deadly weapon! lol…
2. Stay off the sidewalks. Simple.
3. Calm down. You’re going to be just fine.

Bjorn
Bjorn
4 years ago
Reply to  Fake Outrage

It is perfectly legal to ride a bicycle on 99% of sidewalks in Portland. Pretty much any sidewalk outside of downtown is legal. In general when people choose to ride on a sidewalk it is because they feel unsafe riding anyway. This comment comes across as threatening to folks who are riding on a sidewalk when made in response to this article, which is not cool. Simple enough for you?

Johnny Bye Carter
Johnny Bye Carter
4 years ago
Reply to  Fake Outrage

“2. Stay off the sidewalks. Simple.”

Yeah, we wish it were that simple. Cyclists don’t WANT to ride on the sidewalk, they ride there because it’s safer. Bond feels much safer to ride on than Moody. And when streets feel unsafe then cyclists pick a route that doesn’t feel unsafe. When drivers start respecting other modes of transportation and stop killing vulnerable road users with little consequence then there will be less short-cutting.

J M
J M
4 years ago

If you listen to their radio show, you would know this is sarcasm. This article proves their point that you in the cyclist community have earned the pretentious reputations you have. Maybe if you had contacted them before publishing this article, you would have realized that. Oh, but it’s better to write an inflammatory article to get clicks on your blog.

Chris I
Chris I
4 years ago
Reply to  J M

Wait, are they also being sarcastic about cyclists being pretentious? Is this some kind of double-negative? Do you know the definition of the word sarcasm?

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
4 years ago
Reply to  J M

He’s right though. Biking through the mud and rain in the winter and sweating in the summer heat while others sit in their climate controlled living room on wheels is so very pompous and pretentious.

/sarcasm

Chris I
Chris I
4 years ago
Reply to  MantraPDX

I constantly see cyclists looking down there noses at drivers in lifted F350 pickup trucks. It really is the definition of privilege.

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
4 years ago
Reply to  Chris I

It’s just a shame that those poor F150 plebes will never know what it’s like to have the sea of traffic part as we bike through the city or experience the red carpet treatment that we get when we arrive at our destination. Alas, the 100 virgin sponge bath we receive every morning after arriving to work is something reserved for we avid cyclists and certainly not for any of the proletariat toiling away in their motor carriage.

GlowBoy
GlowBoy
4 years ago
Reply to  Chris I

“looking down their noses”

That was meant sarcastically, right?

Johnny Bye Carter
Johnny Bye Carter
4 years ago
Reply to  J M

Nobody cares if they were being sarcastic. Getting paid to joke about violence toward vulnerable road users is a bad thing. We all know there are things that you don’t joke about, especially if you have a large audience, are getting paid for it, and are not a comedian at a comedy club. They need to understand that it’s not cool to joke about that and there are many people who will be encouraged to be less considerate to their fellow road users because of it.

rachel b
rachel b
4 years ago
Reply to  J M

i don’t give a damn ’bout my reputation.

grek
grek
4 years ago

I mean, cyclists (myself included) also ride their bikes TO that building all the time – if there were a way to access it without going through the parking lot, I’d like to hear it.

Wasted time
Wasted time
4 years ago

Seems to me if you’re going to seek out something to be mad about, you should probably wear protective ear muffs. Definitely don’t turn on the TV. Don’t open your eyes outside of you’re not often by tactless jokes than you are the poverty and need witnessed in your previous back yard.
The amount of eyes on this CHILDISH article could have gone to gathering support for a better cause.
The amount of issues in Multinomah aren’t enough, I need to make some problems…
Racism, class war, sex trafficking, being in the top human trafficking areas, pollution poisoning, educational standards, funding funneled into abused services for profit, system corruption, lack of accountability for officials…
But this guy being heard by oncoming traffic is appalling? I have an idea, let’s use that to try to publicly shame him… That sounds really grown up and big…

GlowBoy
GlowBoy
4 years ago
Reply to  Wasted time

It IS appalling, if these guys incite more people to clothesline cyclists, and get someone killed.

Don’t think I’m being overly dramatic: if something thin is strung across cyclists’ path above the 3′ level it has a VERY strong chance of killing someone.

Years ago I hit a steel cable strung across a dirt road in the coast range. It didn’t have the required flags or signs for visibility, and in the sun-dappled shade under the forest canopy it was nearly invisible. Nearly 20 years later I still have visible scars on my arm and chest from the impact – and I was going up a steep hill at only 6 mph. If I’d been cruising along at 15mph – or heaven forbid, going downhill on the same slope – the force would likely have been enough to decapitate me. And that’s with a half-inch steel cable. The thinner the wire, the more dangerous.

No one should be joking about this.

Johnny Bye Carter
Johnny Bye Carter
4 years ago
Reply to  Wasted time

There’s plenty around this town to be mad about, and this news site focuses on the one they want to focus on. I’m sure you have issues you like to focus on. Or maybe you like to work on all those issues you listed at the same time.

And yes, when somebody says something offensive most people don’t have much of as issue with it. But when a public figure uses their audience reach to do the same thing then it because a public safety issue.

Al
Al
4 years ago

I’m one of the “jerk bikers” who cuts through their parking lot. It’s on weekends and I never see more than a few cars there. These are “stay off my lawn” type losers who don’t actually own the lawn.

Brian
Brian
4 years ago

build a wall and make them pay.

Paul
Paul
4 years ago

Every way you can navigate this section is awkward and feels wrong on a bike. You have this great mixed use trail that just abruptly ends. Should I take a poorly marked left and go into what appears to be an office park? Should I go down what I thought was part of the trail and end up on some weird sidewalk, or should I just ride through their parking lot? I had to ride the west side path for several months while they did that work on the springwater and I never really found a great solution.

Edward LeClaire
Edward LeClaire
4 years ago

Advocating violence against people based on mode of transit? This is profane. It’s grossly offensive. It’s a public nuisance. They don’t belong on the air. Time for an FCC complaint.

Middle of the Road Guy
Middle of the Road Guy
4 years ago

It’s transist!

Travis Ernst
Travis Ernst
4 years ago

I used to ride through the parking lot all the time. It was nice because you could go directly to the bike lane and you could predict what the traffic was going to do. I would like to know why I was a jerk to them? Sorry guys I was just trying to be safe.

Tim
Tim
4 years ago

One thing I miss when I commute by bike is getting to listen to their show. Irreverence is one of their calling cards, but they’re usually pretty funny and actually very thoughtful, especially by sports radio standards. I could give examples, but I’ll just say they do a lot more good with their airtime than others. This bit might have missed the mark, but don’t be too quick to bury them.

tee
tee
4 years ago
Reply to  Tim

The bar is pretty low though – they could/should be doing so much better. A lot of sports radio commentary is pretty lame. I’ve stopped listening and switched over to podcasts, such as CJ McCollum’s Pull Up Pod. Much better. Also, neither McCollum nor Schwartz have threatened pedestrians or cyclists in any episodes.

pdxpaul
pdxpaul
4 years ago

Now I want to detour through their parking lot on my ride from DT to NE. It’s outta my way but if it gets these guys’ panties in a bunch, it’s worth it.

GlowBoy
GlowBoy
4 years ago

Wait … there are still people who work in radio station buildings?

Serenity
Serenity
4 years ago

pdxpaul
Now I want to detour through their parking lot on my ride from DT to NE. It’s outta my way but if it gets these guys’ panties in a bunch, it’s worth it.Recommended 3

This is pretty much what I figured everyone’s response would be. I don’t usually ride there, now I feel like I have to.

Serenity
Serenity
4 years ago

Chris I
I constantly see cyclists looking down there noses at drivers in lifted F350 pickup trucks. It really is the definition of privilege.Recommended 1

The lifted F350 pickup trucks? Yes, that really is privilege.

pdx2wheeler
4 years ago

When Tesla moved in a few years ago they graciously extended the Willamette path across their property and put in picnic tables. From my understanding they didn’t have to. Now, instead of this path taking a hard left between River Forum I and Tesla (which you can still do) it now continues, all the way to this parking lot and you just get dumped… This is what you get when you build-out bike infrastructure on a piecemeal basis. Not all the pieces are going fit properly. Now we all get to stand around and argue why the square peg doesn’t fit in the round hole…

Serenity
Serenity
4 years ago

SD
I think they mean to say that all people who ride bikes are evil because of “the one person that one time on a bike” in this link, which means that people who wish “cyclists” harm and encourage violence are always excused. This is a common and valid idea on many preK playgrounds.Recommended 0

Some people don’t change much after they get off the playground.

Lowell
Lowell
4 years ago

The current “official” way to enter/exit the bike path in this area (between Tesla and the River Forum) is just completely inadequate for actual bicycle use. The pathway is way too narrow, and the entrance onto the river path is downright dangerous. It’s a steep drop into a sharp right turn, with an ~8 foot high hedge that completely blocks your view of traffic coming in from the left.

Just yesterday, when the ground was a little bit slick, I lost traction and wiped out trying to make the sharp turn, despite the fact I always come to nearly a complete stop here due to the obstructed view. I am now sporting some nasty bruises on my hip and shin, and a strained shoulder that makes it tough for me to even put pants on in the morning.

So in summary, I don’t blame anyone for not using that joke of an entrance/exit. In fact, I’ll probably start using this parking lot instead. Seems much safer.

Chris I
Chris I
4 years ago
Reply to  Lowell

Yes, but would it be safer if you are biking through their parking lot and run into a trip line that one of their listeners has placed in your path?

Mark smith
Mark smith
4 years ago

I know a lot of dudes who listen sports radio like it’s gospel and the radio jocks are gods. They literally repeat it verbaitem. And believe it.

Serenity
Serenity
4 years ago

Mark smith
I know a lot of dudes who listen sports radio like it’s gospel and the radio jocks are gods. They literally repeat it verbaitem. And believe it.

Scary.