Friday, November 20 2009 @ 10:14 AM EST
Contributed by: The human car
Bike ElsewhereASHEVILLE — A former Asheville firefighter will spend 120 days in jail for shooting at a bicyclist, narrowly missing his head with a bullet that pierced the man's helmet.
Charles Alexander Diez, 42, pleaded guilty Thursday to assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, but testified during his sentencing hearing that he only fired a warning shot and didn't intend to hurt Alan Ray Simons.
“I was the one who felt truly, truly threatened,” Diez told the court. “It was not my intention to shoot him.”
Simons described being confronted by the 17-year Fire Department veteran on the morning of July 26 as he was riding his bike along Tunnel Road with his 4-year-old son in a seat on the back and his wife on another bike.
He said Diez yelled at him from his car, claiming he was putting the boy's life in danger by riding on the busy roadway.
“We were out for an enjoyable ride, minding our own business,” Simons said. “At any point, he could have left.
“When I got to his door, the gun was pointing at my chest. I turned to walk away, (and) the gun went off. He chose to pull the trigger.”
Superior Court Judge James Downs sentenced Diez to 15-27 months in prison, with all but four months suspended for 30 months. If he runs afoul of the law during that 30 months, the full sentence could be imposed. Diez will be subject to a curfew after his release and must complete an anger management course. He also was ordered to pay Simons $1,200 restitution to cover medical treatments for damage to his eardrum.
The presumptive sentence for someone convicted of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill is 20-39 months under state sentencing guidelines.
By MEGAN K. SCOTT(AP)
Bicycle technology doesn't stand still.
This product image released by Xtracycle shows a FreeRadical attachment on an existing bike and turns it into a cargo bike. (AP Photo/Xtracycle) AP
Bike makers keep tinkering to give us a smoother, more convenient, more stylish ride: bikes long enough to carry another passenger and groceries. Bikes with batteries so you don't have to break a sweat. Aerodynamic bikes with little wind resistance.
"In the bike world, there have always been a bunch of trends going on at once," said Loren Mooney, editor-in-chief of Bicycling magazine. "It's because a bike is such a multipurpose tool. It's a toy. It's a piece of exercise equipment. It's a mode of transportation. And so really it's very common to have many trends at once."
Some bike trends on the horizon:
STYLISH UTILITY BIKE: The biggest trend is casual city riding, said Mooney, "where the person doesn't look like a spandex-clad cyclist, but rather like a normal person. And his or her bike looks like a cool, often retro object of design and casual fun _ maybe it even has a basket."
,,,
FITNESS BIKES: An evolution from the hybrid bike _ a cross between a road bike and a mountain bike, which was "too cumbersome for true fitness riding," said Mooney. (Fitness bikes are sometimes referred to as flat-bar road bikes.)
Mooney said hybrids were too slow and too upright for riding on roads and recreational paths, and were not rugged enough for riding on dirt trails.
...
PEDAL-ASSIST ELECTRIC BIKES: A bike with a boost. Pedal-assist bikes combine battery power with pedaling so you can ride farther and faster without getting as tired.
It's an ideal bike for someone who rides for transportation, as opposed to fitness, and when the distance is far, the terrain difficult or the rider short on endurance.
...
ECO DESIGN BIKES: Bike manufacturers are coming out with eco-friendly bikes. For example, Trek's Belleville and Atwood models have grips on the handlebars, a saddle and a steel frame that all can be recycled. The bikes also come with front and rear lights that are generated by pedaling, not batteries, said Trek spokesman Sam Foos.
"It's a more upright style with a wider saddle, so it's more comfortable, to encourage people to use their bike more often," he said.
FOLDING BIKES: These have been around for years but the technology is getting better. Traditional folding bikes, which have small wheels, were better for folding than riding, said David Montague, owner of Montague Bicycles in Cambridge, Mass. The company introduced SwissBike TX earlier this year, a full-size bike that folds in half.
"It really rides very nicely and you can throw it on a bus, or in the trunk of a cab," said Montague. "When you get to your office, it fits underneath your desk. ... The whole folding system takes about 10 seconds."
XTRACYCLE: a kit that makes a bike 15 inches longer so you can carry a passenger, groceries, books. Some people use it to carry camping gear, said Nate Byerley, president of Xtracycle, in Oakland, Calif. He said he knows a home inspector who uses his Xtracycle to carry equipment including a 10-foot ladder. "Competitive cycling has been traditionally dominated by men," he said. "And what we're finding is when you start offering a product that's about day-to-day living and carrying groceries, you're offering a product that speaks to moms and dads."
...
AERODYMANIC ROAD BIKES (High-End): Bikes are already very light, but they can be made faster with aerodynamics, said Mooney. On these road bikes, the down tube and seat tube are shaped to reduce drag. Examples include Ridley Noah, which the company claims is the fastest bike on the planet, Cervelo S3 and Felt A2.
...
