Good safety tip

[Ann G]

I just read such a good safety tip that I'm putting it here:

"When riding country roads, do your part to draw attention to yourself when vehicles are approaching from the rear. Move slightly left 6-8 inches when a vehicle is coming up behind you, yet still at a safe distance, then move back to the right 8-12 inches. This is an excellent way to make a visual connection, plus if the motorist sees you moving back and forth, I have found they instinctively pass further to the left than if you are riding on a straight course. A rider in a tucked position and riding straight ahead doesn’t look much different than a distant road sign to the motorist. How many times have we heard drivers who have hit a cyclist say? “I just didn’t see him/her.” So, don’t be afraid to move slightly left to right to draw attention to yourself. It may just save your life."

This is from an article by Gordy Mosher about rider safety on the RAGBRAI website. The rest of the article can be found here:

http://ragbrai.com/index.php/2009/06/20/safety-tips-for-riders/

[RolliePollie]

Anything to make yourself more visible! I would be a little cautious doing this move though...you'd need to be sure the car was far enough behind you that you have time to move back over towards the shoulder, and if you're going really fast, a quick little "swerve" like that could be dangerous if you hit a pothole or chunk in the pavement.

I ride country roads 90% of the time, and what I tend to do is ride out in the lane...like where a car's driver's side tire would be. I have a helmet mirror, so when I see and hear that a car is coming, I move over. I figure this makes me more visible because I'm moving across the lane, and it also lets the driver know that I am making an effort to get out of their way. The other reason I like to ride out in the lane is because the pavement around here is so atrocious that you get beat to death if you try to ride way over to the right.

One thing I see a lot around here that surprises me is riders wearing dark or drab colors that don't stand out. I wear orange, red, yellow, and hot pink. I want to be seen!

[MartianDestiny]

I'd much rather ride out 6-8 (more like 12) inches into the road to begin with rather than swerve in and out of "traffic" however light it may be when the shoulder is not wide enough to give me ample protection.

I'll gladly yield that foot or so to a car as they pass me safely (or be glad I have it as they pass me unsafely).

But it seems that moving farther left as they are approaching could be construed as a jerk cyclist move and an attempt to prevent a pass (which, incidentally is illegal in many (most?) vehicle codes (at least the ones I've been reading recently)). Doesn't sound like something that's going to earn us many "share the road" points, and we need them. Safer or not (and I'm not convinced it's safer than just riding in the lane to begin with) I think it would serve mainly to earn us more ill will amongst drivers.

[OakLeaf]

If I understood the OP correctly, I think she was talking about moving out when she hears the vehicle, before car and bicycle are visible to each other.

I definitely do that when I'm running (cycling, not so much). That way they see me at the earliest possible moment, and I still have plenty of time to get back into my usual "groove" at the far left.

[MartianDestiny]

If I understood the OP correctly, I think she was talking about moving out when she hears the vehicle, before car and bicycle are visible to each other.


Well maybe I need my ears checked, but 9 times out of 10 when I hear a car well enough to pick it out from the background and discern direction they can see me.

It also seemed like part of the point was for the driver to see you "weaving" rather than stationary and possibly not in the road at all (which I admit is an eye trick that could occur if you hold your line)

What do you do if it's a Prius (silent little buggers)? Surely they can see you before you hear them...frankly sometimes I don't hear them at all until they are right up on me or passing.

If you are going to move left before a car even sees you why not just ride in that line to begin with? Asphalt is typically better there anyway and it solves the "Prius problem".

[Ann G]

Maybe I should point out that both the writer of the article and I are live in Iowa and he was talking about country roads. The vast majority of country roads in Iowa are as straight as a ruler, and he suggested this maneuver when you first notice a car back there. I use my mirror and lot, so most of the time on a straight road, I notice a car when it's 1/2 - 3/4 of a mile behind me. But let's use an example where it's 1/2 mile back there. If the car is going 60 mph it's going to take him 30 seconds to go from point A (where I first notice him) to point B (where I am now). If I'm going 15 mph on the bike, I'm going to travel another 660 feet in that same 30 seconds (another 1/8 mile). So, I've got plenty of time to move to the left for a few seconds, then move back to the right. The point is to clue the driver onto the fact that I'm not a traffic sign or something like that up ahead. This isn't something that I'd do after the driver has begun to move to pass me. Then, clearly he knows I'm there, and shifting around would only be an annoyance at that point.

I tried this out on yesterday's ride and I liked the results.

[channlluv]

I dunno. I'll be in Palm Coast, Florida, next week visiting family, and my 11-year-old daughter and I are taking our bikes (both mountain bikes). We have blinking red lights on the back, but not much else in the way of reflective protective stuff except that her jersey is bright orange with butterflies on it and I usually wear a white or hot pink tank top. I'm also picking up a hot pink helmet on Monday. Hers is lime green with pink cats on it. We should be visible, but the roads I'm thinking of training on will be shared with Southern boys driving really, really big trucks.

Anyone familiar with the Old Dixie Highway near Flagler Beach and Ormond Beach? That stretch. Lots of people pulling boats to go fishing, lots of people heading to the beach from parts inland, and so on. It's marked at 25mph, and it's a twisty-turny, back country two lane road that skirts a salt marsh. It has a few flat bridges, and it's a really, really beautiful drive, especially if you like old growth forests of oak, pine, and bay laurel and sighting the occasional manatee in the shallows.

There are cycling signs and share the road signs. There's a smallish bike lane through a good bit of it, but it's hardly more than the shoulder of the road. I've seen lots of what I took to be very experienced cyclists based on their physical condition riding there, but the thought of it makes me nervous. Still, it's a beautiful stretch of road through a little patch of protected Old Florida, something I'd like for my daughter to appreciate. It's all very flat and should make for an easy ride - the closest thing to a hill is the bridge over the Intercoastal and the overpass over I-95.

Is there something I could do to keep us safer? More blinking lights? A high-viz yellow vest?

I also want us to try out the Gainesville-Hawthorne trail. It's a 17-mile path through Payne's Prairie between Gainesville and Hawthorne in Central Florida. That's Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings country - Cross Creek, The Yearling, and so on.

I need to stock up on bug spray and sunscreen. And blinking lights. <g>

Roxy

[Biciclista]

I do this. Sometimes I also wobble a little just so they think I'm unstable, because they then tend to avoid me. I am always reassured by the thump thump thump noise of tires going over the center line.

[OakLeaf]

I've ridden the Ormond Beach Loop with the Wednesday/Friday club a few times. I wear hi-viz all the time anyhow, but if you have any interest in getting some, I'd DEFINITELY wear it there. And expect to be buzzed anyway. Don't get me started about Florida drivers - I don't want to scare you off from riding there, but just be VERY, VERY careful, USE your rear view mirror, SEE with your whole eyes, and impress on your daughter to do the same. (Hint: It's not the boys with their pickup trucks I worry most about. :()

If you want to join one of the club rides (http://www.daytonabikeclub.org/rides/daytona.html), they leave pretty early, but there's definitely a group of slower riders on the Wednesday/Friday rides (and probably the Sunday Highbridge ride as well) that would likely keep a pace that's manageable for you and your daughter. Safety in numbers and all that - plus it's a good group of people.

Do have fun! It's quiet this time of year.

[malkin]

I do this. Sometimes I also wobble a little just so they think I'm unstable, because they then tend to avoid me. I am always reassured by the thump thump thump noise of tires going over the center line.

Me too.
I tink the less competent I look the more space drivers give me.


It's not like I really have to try to look incompetent.
:)