A plea to Sonoma bicyclists

I admire bicyclists of all kinds: The 5-year-old learning to ride her first two-wheeler, the professional whose body looks like its molded to the bike, and everyone in between. This is why is scares the heck out of me when I see cyclists not following the rules of the road. To me this trend seems to be getting worse every day in Sonoma. Stop signs are ignored by many. I've seen parents teaching their kids how to bike on the wrong side of the street. On weekends, groups of people renting from local bike shops are en masse in the middle of streets - and some obviously do not know how to ride. I drive a very light electric car. But even at that, a bicyclist would have no chance of escaping injury if I accidentally tapped part of the bike ... through no fault of my own. And as most cars weigh over 2,000 pounds ... well, odds are not in a biker's favor. So I plead with all people on all manners of bike: Please, please follow the rules of the road. Please be confident on a bike before you take it on the road. Please make use of the bike paths if possible. I will do anything I can to avoid hitting you. I could never live with myself if I injured you ... or worse. But please do anything you can to avoid being hit. There's just no way a collision with a heavy car will turn out well. Thank you.