While spending the past few days riding my bicycle - and writing about riding - I've thought back to a recent episode from a drive home.

I was approaching my right turn off a main road. Two cyclists were on my right, heading straight. I might have been able to get ahead of the cyclists and turn safely, without violating their right of way, but it would have made me the kind of driver that always infuriates me when I'm biking. Instead, I slowed to a stop and let the cyclists go first.

The driver behind me was furious at me. I don't read lips well, but I do OK at reading facial expressions. (It's one of the perks of this job.)

That episode says a lot about the Treasure Valley's bicycling challenges. Cyclists and motorists are sharing cramped space, and there's a lot of general cluelessness about how to coexist.

The Ada County Highway District has a 50-year plan for how to make the area more bike-accessible. And I think ACHD is on the right track.

The plan, adopted Wednesday, recognizes that not all cyclists are alike.

Most are casual or young riders who want a leisurely and low-stress experience.

Some are into long-distance conditioning or commuting; they don't mind sharing roads with cars, but they want a direct route to their destination. They are outnumbered by the weekend warriors, yet more than 4,000 workers countywide use a bicycle as their primary mode of transportation.

The centerpiece promise of ACHD's plan is that, at completion, 95 percent of the population will live within a quarter mile of a bike lane or bike path. A lofty goal for a county that, in 1990, had a meager four miles of bike lanes.

The first phase of work, over five to 10 years, could cost an estimated $14 million. ACHD has no 50-year estimate. But it's likely to take a very aggressive plan of this magnitude in order to build a bicycling infrastructure that will encourage more people to commute to work.

In ACHD's bicycling surveys conducted in 2007, more than 2,100 cyclists were asked to list the factors that keep them from riding more; 73 percent of respondents cited a lack of bike lanes, paths and bike routes.

Better bike lanes and paths would certainly make cyclists feel more comfortable. But there also has to be a lot better understanding of the rules, and a lot more cooperation.

Neither motorists nor cyclists have cornered the market on boneheadedness; I've seen plenty of selfish and stupid behavior from both camps. But when I'm driving, I don't worry that a cyclist's foolishness puts me at risk of injury. When I'm cycling, I worry a lot more about dumb drivers.

Motorists and cyclists have to stop acting like they are competing for the roads, and do a better job of coexisting. Yes (and this means you, the guy who was driving behind me the other evening), sometimes common courtesy and the law require you to wait a few seconds on a cyclist. Let's have some patience.

And in that spirit, a little footnote. That stretch I was driving has a skinny shoulder, no bike lane and no sidewalk. According to ACHD's 50-year plan, it is on the schedule for a bike lane ... in 10 to 25 years.

A little patience would serve us all well.

TOUGH LUCK, TEAM AIG

Before becoming one of the most hated corporations on the planet, AIG made a deal with the Devils.

The Red Devils of Manchester United, one of the giants of British soccer. And, I'd argue, one of the most hated soccer clubs on the planet (but that might just be the Liverpool FC fan in me speaking).

Anyway, AIG signed a four-year sponsorship deal in 2006, which pays Man U about $19 million a year. In exchange, Man U wears jerseys emblazoned with the AIG corporate logo.

So yes, it was delicious karma to watch Team AIG play like a bunch of overpriced toxic assets Wednesday, losing 2-0 in the finals of the prestigious European Champions League. The winning side, Spain's FC Barcelona, eschews corporate sponsorship and wears the Unicef logo on its jerseys.

Good triumphs over evil? Perhaps. Unless you also root, as I do, for Barcelona rival Real Madrid.

The Man U-AIG deal will end in 2010 - and not a day too soon. May it usher in an era when sports franchises (and colleges such as Boise State University, for that matter) think more critically before signing on with partners who want to attach their corporate logo to a stadium or a jersey.

Kevin Richert: 377-6437