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KDKA' Mike Pintek anti-bike again

KDKA radio 1020 has an anti bike lane rant going on right now - noon to 3pm Jan. 7th. Usual crap: Suburbanites complaining about their tax money, etc.
marko82
2015-01-07 13:51:55
Is there any point in calling? It's past 3 now, anyway. I was at work, couldn't call if I'd wanted to.
stuinmccandless
2015-01-07 16:47:20
Naw, I don’t think it serves any good calling in. It's just "click bait" in another medium. But I do think it’s important to take note of the fact that these anti-bike conversations are taking place, and who is entering into the discussion. Not one city resident called in while I was listening and a lot of the discussion was basically Peduto bashing – from Republican suburbanites! The host kept mentioning a comment from one of the Sunseri brothers (strip grocer) on how the bike lanes have hurt his business and are stupid – of course their shop is several blocks before the bike lanes & it’s the cars that are usually holding up the bikes in that block. I’m not sure if Sunseri called in before I started listening or if it was off air, but I probably will shop elsewhere from now on.
marko82
2015-01-07 17:47:06
Yeah I saw an article where the suneris complained about the bike lanes and was confused because they don't have a bike lane in front of their business. Ugh. . Mine pintek is a piece of shit. Does he and and his angry callers think that we need more lanes for vehicles? Because all of the high speed 2-3 lane highways my co-workers drive in on were parking lots on Monday and Tuesday mornings. Obviously, more traffic lanes and less bike lanes alleviate traffic.
stefb
2015-01-07 20:06:53
Had an interesting conversation with Jimmy Sunseri one of the times I shopped there last. He looked at me (in my hi-viz and blinkies) and said "Wow, *you're* visible! But these people who ride in the dark with no lights! They're asking for trouble! They come zooming by me in the dark when I'm trying to park on Penn at 5:30 AM!" I'm never quite sure to say to comments like that, but I did mention the Free Lights program and it seemed to disarm his aggro attitude.
rustyred
2015-01-07 21:35:44
Jimmy is a character. Every time I see him I think of mouth cancer... but maybe that's me. I haven't frequented his shop(s) since he was across the street. What made me drift away is that, over time, his people didn't seem to care that much about the customers, and that making sure that the customer was not not being handed crappy product was job one. But ultimately that's a boss responsibility. His shop was pretty good at the start, though. Then again, maybe I'm just saying stuff. Go there yourself and decide if you like it. If it's good and the price is right, buy it. [The Sunseri family owns Penn Mac; Jimmy decided to strike out on his own at some point. I don't know the details.]
ahlir
2015-01-07 22:21:59
Obligatory cross-reference to the 2010 thread here. I haven't re-read the whole thing, but in a quick skim, it doesn't look like much has changed in five years.
stuinmccandless
2015-01-08 06:54:26
I hear that he's at it again today asking if anyone sees bikers on the road(yes even though many drivers elected to stay home I am sure) and he is also complaining about the very idea of the Snow Plow Tracker.
mjacobpgh
2015-01-26 13:00:22
@mjacobPGH, it would be mildly amusing to put a Bike Lane Tracker racker online that generates non-actual cycling traffic and then send it to him so he can rant about it online. #FeedTheBeast
vannever
2015-01-26 18:07:57
"Pintek" - because his family always knew knew that Pinhead would be too hard for him to spell.
mick
2015-01-26 18:39:38
Should we chip in and get Pintek a subscription to, say, Urban Velo? Maybe some other mags? Delivered to his work address, so that his colleagues can bear witness to his abiding interest in the bicycle. He might even flip through an issue or two. And maybe find something positive to say, not just complain about weirdness.
ahlir
2015-01-26 19:03:05
Unfortunately, you can't get a subscription to Urban Velo anymore. They printed their final issue in December. Guy like this, probably could find lots of positivity in a bike magazine, and then totally ignore it because his radio persona is like a petulant child who whines and complains about stuff he doesn't like or understand.
benzo
2015-01-27 10:30:54
And the point of the show is to get people excited so they will listen and call in. Talking about how great bike lanes are is just not going to inspire the same response.
jonawebb
2015-01-27 11:12:08
Yeah, negativity sells better than positivity. Well at least in Pittsburgh. I doubt it would sell better in Boulder or the like, but I digress. It would be great to get rid of the the old thinkers like Pintek (head) and get some new blood in there. Goodness, don't people get tired of complaining? On a bright note, I have been riding all winter as I usually do, but this year I have seen WAY more cyclists than I have ever seen in some pretty crazy weather. I love the wild snow and such for something different, but most people think I am nuts. Not sure I understand why though. Also seeing more bike tracks going across the HPB and a lot of walkers all over the place. Maybe people are just going to be more active in Pittsburgh instead of sitting in SUVs eating oversized sandwiches.
gg
2015-01-27 11:17:24
Eventually they will all die out (the complainers) and hopefully be replaced by forward thinkers (hey, a girl can dream, right?)
shut_up_legs
2015-01-29 12:08:27