Novice / Century-Prep Safety-Session Outline

This outlines the 25 minute pre-ride "safety session" or "advice clinic" which I give prior to GPC Novice and Century-Prep rides. (Yes, it can all be covered in 25 minutes if one is concise.) I posted this in hopes it may be useful to other ride leaders. But it's an outline only: If you don't already know the material, some of it won't make much sense.

SIMPLE BIKE CHECK

• Static:
• Brakes -- adjustment; not rubbing against sidewalls.
• Cables (visual)
• Bounce check -- quickly reveals many problems -- investigate any rattles.
• Tires pumped
• Quick visual tire check -- for cuts, etc
• Careful tire glass check (not right now, though)
• Quick release -- correct tightening
• Riding:
• Derailer check (not right now, though)
• Anyone who fails -- go see a co-leader for adjustments.

ELEMENTARY BIKE HANDLING

• Starting -- the correct way. It checks your brakes, too.
• Relax your hands and body. Avoid "death grip".
• Arms bent.
• Power comes from thighs & glutes.
• Avoid upper body gyrations.
• Trunk braces the legs.
• Steering: largely with your weight. The bike naturally goes straight when your weight is centered. (That's why riding no hands works). Internalize this ... it may save you a spill!
• Constantly scan the road surface for hazards: potholes, debris, glass.
• Looking back: Chin touches left shoulder (L.A.B. method). Neck stiffness/looseness.
• How to brake:
  • Evenly, but front does the work.
  • (Demonstrate front vs. rear, walking the bicycle)
  • For hard braking: weight back.
• Control your speed on downhill. Feathering & pumping brakes.
• Posting (demonstrate).
• Resources:
• Bike handling classes, eg, Mike Cox.
• League of American Bicyclists Fact Sheets

RIDING MULTIUSER PATHS

• Be courteous of peds, etc.
• Watch out for dogs, kids, baby-strollers, rollerskaters, etc.
• Pass on the left; call out and ring bell.
• Single up if the path is busy.
• Some have posted speed limits, eg 15mph.
• If stopping, pull off the path.
• Less challenging & less excercise than open road.

RIDING IN TRAFFIC

• Lots of novice bikers are afraid of riding in traffic. They shouldn't be. They simply haven't been educated.
• Share the road. This means:
• Bikes & cars share the roads, often the same travel lanes.
• Same roads, same laws.
• Cooperate with drivers and they should cooperate with you.
• Vehicular biking: Think like a vehicle; act like a vehicle. You'll be treated like a vehicle.
• Be just as alert to traffic & obstacles as if you're a car driver.
• Where to ride on the road? Lane positioning: done by speed:
  • To the right;
  • Not so far right you're in the doorzone / debris zone;
  • Not in the shoulder, unless it's very good quality.
  • Not on the sidewalk, unless under 18 (depends on municipality).
  • Not in right turn lanes when you're going straight.
• Be predictable. Don't weave. Act the way you'd want a car driver to act.
• Always observe lane markings, traffic lights, etc. Always ride with traffic.
• Intersections (done by destination): Always take the right-most lane that goes where you want.
• Turning left: Use the left lane (or rightmost left-turn lane, if several).
• Going straight through an intersection which has right-turn-only lanes: Where should you be?
• Differences if entering a road from a bike path. Then what are you?
• Take the lane:
• Always, when stopped in an intersection.
• Whenever the lane is too narrow for safe sharing.
• When safety otherwise dictates -- eg, moving same speed as auto traffic
• But not unnecessarily.
• Summary: "Bicyclists fare best when they act and are treated as drivers of vehicles." --John Forester.
• Drive defensively, bike defensively.
• Common sense and common courtesy.
• Resources:
• L.A.B. Fact Sheets (again!)     L.A.B. Road 1 class (9 hours of instruction).
• John S. Allen's Street Smarts. See the full text on-line.
• John Forester essays (very pithy): Bicycle Transportation Institute | Effective Cycling Training.

RIDING IN A GROUP

• Great fun, but need to avoid problems.
• Ride a straight lane. Again, be predictable.
• When much traffic: ride single file, except when the group takes the lane (eg, to turn left)
• Be alert to other bikers, ahead and behind.
• Bad things to do:
• Quickly stop in front of someone.
• Veer into someone's path.
• Don't follow too closely -- but assume someone is following you too closely
• Don't pass on right -- except if very safe and necessary; then call out
• Calling out:
• "Car back" (single-up for cars to pass)
• "Car up" (narrow roads only)
• "Ped up" (if on the right)
• "Slowing"   "Glass"   "Stopping"
• Hand signals
• Left.   Right.   Slowing.   Stopping.
• Point out hazards.
• Drafting, pacelining, and tight packs are advanced techniques. Not for novices.

Get these notes in PDF format, handy for printing (2-sided) and taking to the session.
The League of American Bicyclists Fact Sheets have more detail on most of these subjects.

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