Video Review

 (This was meant to be completed pre-departure, but that didn't happen. Oops! I am writing this now attempting to leave out any context from the trip to simulate having written it beforehand.)

In his video Cycling in the U.S. from a Dutch perspective [266], BicycleDutch explains his concerns regarding cycling in the United States, specifically in the context of use as a means of personal transportation. He states that the majority of the cyclists he saw were in racing gear and attempting to move as quickly along the roads as possible, both as a sport and in an attempt to move with automotive traffic. He explains that most cyclists in the US have to ride in the same lanes as car traffic, and that their left turns are performed while surrounded by cars (in my own experience, it's often at the same time as the cars around me are attempting to do the same), leading many cyclists to join pedestrians on sidewalks and crosswalks as that is often the safer option. He goes on to state that there are some places in the US, such as Davis, CA and Chicago, IL that have better infrastructure and bike ridership than is most common in the US, with designated lanes for cyclists to use, some with protection from automotive traffic in the form of anything from thin plastic posts to a row of parked cars, but not much more than that. He also points out a traffic signal meant for use by bikes, which is not common here and in fact not something I have ever experienced in the US. Notably, he doesn't speak much on the nature of Dutch cycling infrastructure. He also states that cycling in the US is regarded as childish and not something respectable adults are prone to doing.

I would say that his video is a decent reflection of the current state of affairs for biking in the US, and as someone who rides their bike not infrequently (read: when I have time and the weather/terrain combo where I am allows for it), I can strongly attest to the accuracy of what he said. In some places it's certainly better than others for infrastructure (Klamath Falls, despite the terrain issues for cyclists, has bike lanes along several roads (including all the more major roads) and a full bike path that follows the highway all the way through town), although I will mention that there are some places where the lack of infrastructure doesn't cause much of an issue, if only because there's not much car traffic (Baker City has next to no bike infrastructure, but since there aren't many people there the roads are generally pretty open).