photo of adult student learning how to "power pedal" her bicycle as instructor looks on

Teaching Adults How to Ride a Bicycle

July 1, 2020/8 Comments/in The Savvy Cyclist /by Tammy Bishop

After I wrote the Savvy Cyclist post about teaching children, I began on this post. I realized there’s only one difference in teaching adults.

The difference is age. Although that is an obvious difference, there is more to it than just the number of years.

What isn’t different about teaching adults?

First, the steps I use for teaching adults are the same I use with kids. We lower the saddle and remove the pedals so that balancing and steering are easier to accomplish. I created a chart listing skills from being able to sit on a bicycle saddle to riding independently. We check off each skill as it is mastered, celebrate the progress, and then prepare for what’s next.

Even a student who first begins to advance the bike forward using the feet on the ground is working on several skills at once: Balance, steering, and processing touch/pressure from sitting on the saddle. We don’t stick to the order of skill mastery, as some students advance past a skill or two without directly working on them.

Adult student on bicycle with pedals removed

The saddle is lowered and the pedals are removed when teaching balancing.

Second, adults — just like kids — are nervous learning a new activity that challenges their body and perseverance. It is important for me to present myself as a calm and patient teacher, without judgment. Students of all ages learn to ride easier and faster when they are relaxed and don’t feel pressure to perform at a particular level within a specific time.

Finally, adults experience the same excitement when they master riding a bike. From a teacher’s perspective, it’s a beautiful experience to witness a student’s feelings of success when this hard work comes to fruition.

The only difference

Age. That’s obvious, I know. However, I’m not referring to the number of years.

It’s what comes with age that can be problematic: Feelings of shame and embarrassment that build as one grows older not knowing how to ride a bicycle. A 48-year-old student shared that her new partner organized a bicycling excursion. Instead of divulging that she didn’t know how to ride, she frantically searched for someone to teach her.

Circumstances prohibit many people from learning during their childhood. A 28-year-old student mentioned that his parents forbade him from learning because his cousin was hit and killed while riding.

And a 45-year-old student spoke about growing up in a rough neighborhood. Staying safe inside her home was more of a priority than learning how to ride.

Thankfully, negative emotions disappear as bicycling is mastered. Feelings of joy and achievement replace feelings of shame and embarrassment. Circumstances that kept a student from learning become a distant memory.

Never too old to learn

So when a friend admits to not knowing how to ride a bicycle, don’t show shock or surprise. Be quick to remember the true age difference: Not the number of birthdays, but the feelings and history that come with age.

It may have taken your friend a lot of courage to tell you this. Casually mention that there are instructors who teach adults (see list at bottom of page). Inspire your friend to give it a try.

Teaching during the pandemic

Is it safe to teach anyone how to ride right now, in a pandemic? Yes!

In an email from June 6, 2020, John Ciccarelli, principal of Bicycle Solutions in San Francisco, described the additional precautions he’s using while teaching:

Adult student learning how to "power pedal" her bicycle as instructor looks on

Pre-pandemic, John Ciccarelli assists a student raising the pedal for a power-pedal start.

“I and one of my five Bicycle Solutions instructor partners (League Cycling instructors) re-started lessons recently. His county (Santa Clara) already allows outdoor classes; San Francisco will allow them on June 15.

“I do bring my own bike for demos and coaching-while-riding, plus any teaching bikes I need for the client(s).

“I bring a cloth, soaked (sopping wet) in 70 percent isopropyl alcohol, in a one-gallon Ziploc bag, and use it for wiping bike contact surfaces, tools etc. In the few adult learn-to-ride lessons I’ve done in the past two weeks (one client, two lessons), I haven’t had to remove and re-install pedals, but if I did I’d just wipe those.

“We practice distancing. The client is never within six feet of me and if s/he needs me to adjust the bike s/he parks it and walks away from it. I do what’s needed, then I walk away.

“I wear a synthetic, loose ‘bandanna’-style face covering (Buff) and require my client to also wear one when near me, but not while riding. I talk only through the Buff. We ride along at a good separation distance and I coach on the fly, talking or shouting as needed. I only shout when they’re a considerable distance away.

“(I also have 3M N95 masks, but they’re too restrictive to talk through effectively during lessons. I wear one under the Buff when inside stores.)”

We’ll have another post soon about teaching techniques and a student’s progression.

Passing safely with lots of clerance on shared-use patsh

Shared-Use Paths, Part 1: Etiquette

May 30, 2020/8 Comments/in Casual Cyclists, Fitness & Group Riders, The Savvy Cyclist, Transportation Cyclists /by Keri Caffrey

Have you been out walking or riding on your local shared-use paths? Has use been a bit heavier than usual? It certainly has been where I live.

The Orlando metro area has over 100 miles of shared-use paths. I’m an avid user, both for walking and cycling. But with increasing use, it becomes apparent that a lot of users don’t have a good grasp on safety, or how their behavior affects others — more so as new users seek fresh air and sunshine during a pandemic.

This is part one of two posts about how to be safe and considerate on shared-use paths.

Path Etiquette: ensuring you and your fellow path users have an enjoyable time.

On roads, pedestrians are required to walk facing traffic, so they can see cars coming and step aside. Stepping off the road is not always necessary, but pedestrians can easily do it when it is.

Pedestrians should never be expected to step off a shared-use path or a sidewalk to make way for another user, and so it doesn’t make sense for them to walk on the left.* Doing so causes both the pedestrian and an oncoming user to have to stop whenever passing isn’t possible due to opposite-side traffic. When all users keep right, faster users can simply slow and wait for the opportunity to pass. BTW, if you cannot keep your bike balanced at walking speed, you probably aren’t ready yet to be on the path (more on that below).

Take it easy!

That brings me to my next point. When an obstruction is on your side of the path (or road, for that matter), YOU yield — whether it’s a fallen branch or a slower user. If there is oncoming traffic, wait until that traffic has passed.

Don’t thread the needle! This is disrespectful to both the person you are passing and the oncoming person. A crowded path isn’t the place to set speed records. If you have a need for speed, you should use the road instead.

When you do pass a slower user, move over! This is my chief complaint as a walker. I can’t tell you how many times a pathlete has blown past my elbow when there were eight feet of path to her left. Why would you do that? You know you hate it when motorists do that to you on the road.

It’s also nice to say something. I personally prefer to offer a gentle “good morning” vs screaming “ON YOUR LEFT.” Some people may react by moving left! Some are listening with earbuds and may not hear you. Startling them by yelling doesn’t necessarily help you pass safely.

So even if you say nothing at all, moving over as far as possible and passing at a reasonable speed is fine. In this pandemic time, social distance is about more than only common courtesy. (See our recent post about riding in the pandemic.)

Along those same lines, when you are riding side-by side with a companion (these days, a member of your household, I’d hope!), it is polite to single up in order to give a slower user more space when passing. Oftentimes two cyclists are so engrossed in their conversation that the left rider doesn’t even move left and the rider on the right brush-passes the pedestrian (me, yes, this happens a lot). Please be present.Similarly, many older shared-use paths are not wide enough to remain side by side when there is oncoming traffic. Without a centerline, some users don’t recognize this. The additive closing speed of both users can be disconcerting.

Shared-use path courtesy when walking

When walking or jogging with family/friends, do not spread across the path requiring every other user to have to ask you to move in order to pass.

I’ve walked many path miles with my dog. I trained her to walk on my right. She does this by default now, so I never have to worry about her wandering out in front of someone. A well-behaved dog makes everyone’s life easier on the path.

It’s very alarming for bicyclists to have a dog on a retractable leash run across in front of them or wander toward them while the owner appears distracted. Dogs can cause a crash! Some people have a fear of dogs due to having been attacked. Having a dog lurch toward them can cause panic.

Another point on retractable leashes: they can cause cuts and burns to both pets and people.

Brush up on skills

Though it may not seem to make sense, the path is NOT the place to learn bike handling. You need a set of simple skills before you ride on the path, especially a well-used path. To be safe around others, you need to be able to:

start and stop easily,
balance at very low speed,
ride in a straight line,
look over your shoulder while riding in a straight line (particularly if the path goes alongside a road, more in part 2).

This is true for kids as well. Please don’t bring your kids to the path to teach them basic skills. Children (and adults) tend to have target fixation when learning basic balance on a bike. A kid will literally ride straight into an oncoming bicyclist instead of steering away. A kid will also ride off the edge of the path and then fall, trying to steer back over the pavement lip.

Skills can be developed in a parking lot or quiet street. Or in a CyclingSavvy Train Your Bike class.

Using shared-use paths in the dark

Most shared-use paths are technically “closed” from dusk to dawn even though they are not physically closed. Many of us use them anyway, either for commuting or early morning exercise. And you know what, they were built with transportation funds, so… that’s a rant for another time.

Rule 1. Use lights! Head-on collisions between unlit users are a thing—they can be a deadly thing. Don’t count on well-lit cyclists to see and avoid you, either. It isn’t easy to detect an oncoming ninja outside the range of a headlight, and closing speed can make the range of a headlight too short to react. I’ve learned to look for the tiny glint of pedal reflectors, which is how I saw this guy coming:

The burden of care rests with faster users — bicyclists — but pedestrians also do well to carry a light and wear reflectorized items. In a few places, this is required by law.

Rule 2. Aim bright lights down. I love that bright headlights have become so affordable. I’m old enough to remember when a 300 lumen bike light cost more than a bike. Now you can get 3x that for $30. But with great brightness comes great responsibility… to not blind your fellow users. The old “be seen” weak headlights needed to be aimed straight out at the horizon for maximum visibility. Today’s 900 lumen LED lights should be aimed toward the ground ahead of you. This is not only to keep you from blinding other people, it helps you see debris or pavement issues that could cause you to fall. The best bicycle headlights have a flat-top beam pattern to cast the beam farther without glaring into people’s eyes.

Rule 3. Don’t flash! When it’s dark out. that bright headlight should stay on steady mode. First of all, a flashing headlight is blinding and annoying. It keeps other users from being able to gauge your speed and location. And most importantly, it can cause an epileptic seizure in a vulnerable person. You could literally kill someone with that thing.

If you want to have a blinkie to catch attention, there are lots of little low-powered lights you can pick up for a buck apiece and strap onto your helmet or bike. Here is some good advice on headlights.

Next: Safety

The next post will cover safety concerns. We’ll look at some path hazards, and discuss intersection safety.

Have fun out there!

* Yeah, there’s always some dumb law out there. This is no exception. Rhode Island requires pedestrians to walk on the left on shared use paths.

Starting and Stopping Smoothly

May 13, 2020/3 Comments/in The Savvy Cyclist /by John Allen

“Power Pedal” starting technique.

At CyclingSavvy we teach communication with other road users. But there’s a part of the course called “Train Your Bike.”

Cute catchphrase? Well, sort of. You are actually training yourself, but “training the bike” is how it feels. We want you to feel at one with your bike.

Many riders never learn to be one with their bike when they are starting and stopping.

It sounds so basic. Why spend time on it? How could people possibly screw up starting and stopping enough for that to be a problem?

Well, they can and it is.

Lowering the stress level

CyclingSavvy founder Keri Caffrey once had a student who was a super-experienced athlete. The student had completed a half-Ironman triathlon. But for her, starting and stopping were near-crashing events. She wobbled scarily at slow speed — and slow speed is part and parcel of every start and stop. Keri’s instruction lowered that student’s stress level enormously.

You don’t have to be a serious triathlete to need this instruction. Look around at other cyclists, and you’ll see:

People don’t stop at stop lights because their stop/start skills are so poor. (Double that when an unskilled rider gets a pedal-binding system.)
If someone does stop, it’s disturbing to watch, and so are the first 30 feet after restarting.
Just as you come to a stop sign, there is a gap in the cross traffic. Is it long enough? That might depend on your being ready for a quick restart.
Category IV (novice) mass-start road race starts are scary. People don’t accelerate smoothly away from the starting line.

The solution is right here!

This can be fixed. Easily. But you have to know how.

If you follow all the steps in sequence, every start is smooth. Every stop is smooth. None of these steps is difficult. None requires fancy bike-handling skill. But you have to know them and understand them.

This is exactly what we teach in Train Your Bike.

It looks so easy. Because when you start and stop the best way, it’s a non-event.

To start, you lift a pedal to the power position while straddling the bike, with your butt in front of the saddle. Stand on the one pedal, lift your butt up and slide it rearward. Put your other foot on the other pedal and continue pedaling.

To stop, use the brakes to stop the bike, slide your butt forward off the saddle and put your weight on one foot. Lean the bicycle toward the other foot — so it is outboard of the pedal. Put that foot on the ground just as the bike stops. You use that foot and your hands to hold the bike while it’s stopped. And you use the other foot to lift a pedal into the power position for your next start.

Putting a foot down for a landing

We love teaching starting and stopping — and other skills — because we love to see both novices and experienced riders discover entirely different and better ways to do things on their bikes.

Try practicing this skill. Watch the video a few times. Then follow up with practice, so the sequence unfolds smoothly. It takes practice, as the saying goes, to get to Carnegie Hall.

Starting and stopping is only one of the several essential bike-handling techniques covered in the CyclingSavvy Train Your Bike session. The video is included in our free online Essentials course, and the steps are covered in our Bicycling Street Smarts booklet, also available as an Amazon Kindle e-book.

Should I Be Riding Now?

April 18, 2020/7 Comments/in The Savvy Cyclist /by John Allen

Should bicyclists be riding now? Should bicyclists wear face masks now to avoid the risk of catching the COVID-19 disease?

Common sense suggests that masks help, but the US Centers for Disease Control until recently downplayed them. With masks in short supply, the highest priority has been to ensure first responders and medical professionals have protection.

Judgments like that are about the Greater Good. They aren’t just about saving you in particular. They are based on epidemiological risk assessments from one point of view or another.

Good Health and the Greater Good

I like to think that I advocate for the Greater Good, but I do better at that if I am in good health. I might take that idea farther than some people. By 1978, bicycle helmets were becoming common, and like many people I wore one. But I was unique in wearing an industrial respirator mask when riding in the city.

Should bicyclists wear face masks? The author wore one in 1978.

The author riding with helmet and mask in 1978 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Photo by Anita Brewer-Siljeholm

Cities were smelly in 1978. Most cars did not have catalytic converters. Brake shoes were made of asbestos, and they shed asbestos fibers into the air. But my respirator worked great. Car exhaust had a heavy, oily smell back then, but it came through the mask odorless. Acrid diesel-bus exhaust exited the mask’s activated charcoal filters smelling like a fresh slice of whole-wheat toast.

If I hadn’t been wearing a respirator mask while cycling in the late 70s, the damage to my lungs and body would have been as significant as if I smoked cigarettes. Then, things got better. As pollution control on cars improved, I used the respirator less. It deteriorated in storage, and eventually I threw it away.

Now we have a different problem.

The pandemic has created a new and different problem. CyclingSavvy outdoor sessions have been postponed or canceled. Bicycle clubs have suspended their group ride programs. Should I ride at all? Wear a mask?

There is no absolute social distancing. The widely cited 6-foot rule reflects a balance of risk against what people will tolerate. The good news is that you don’t get infected by just one individual virus spore. Exhaustive research on the AIDS virus has established that there is a threshold level of contamination below which it does not take hold in a person. With the virus that causes COVID-19, the principle is the same, though the amount is not yet known. Individual susceptibility varies, and a higher dose appears to result in worse symptoms. Wearing a mask does lower the risk of catching the disease, or transmitting it.

Are Masks Practical?

I happen to have a few N95 masks left over from sanding and painting projects (opened box, not accepted for donation). I have shaved my beard — for the first time in 50 years — to make the masks work better.

My wife and I reserve the masks for shopping trips. We use them only once every several days, so they have time to decontaminate themselves. (Viruses die outside of the host animal’s body.) Three or four masks between us will probably hold out until supply improves. I wear eye-protection goggles over my eyeglasses. We also happen to have a couple of surgical masks.

My experience:

An N95 mask proved practical only for short bicycle trips, especially in cold weather, because I couldn’t lift it off my face to blow my nose.
A surgical mask is not practical for me when cycling in cool weather, because it doesn’t seal, and fogs my glasses. Lifting this mask is possible, though, without unbuckling the helmet.
There are too many kinds of improvised cloth masks for me to come to a single conclusion. A bandana that hangs down and can be lifted up is probably going to allow blowing the nose.
An industrial respirator mask is practical, though it could become uncomfortable on a long ride. The degree of protection it provides depends on the type of filters.

Any mask will somewhat impair breathing.

Should Bicyclists Wear Face Masks For Shopping Trips?

While I have access to a car, I prefer to shop by bicycle. The bicycle is more convenient when I am bringing home a small load. Cycling to the store alone generally carries far less risk of infection than riding public transportation. But when shopping, I have to interact with people, and sometimes go into a store.

Should bicyclists wear face masks for this kind of trip? Yes, at least when going into the store, but also if having to ride under crowded conditions.

For shopping trips, I wear gardening gloves with rubber fingers and palms. I carry a small bottle with disinfectant solution, and disinfectant wipes. I disinfect the shopping-cart handle before gripping it. I also disinfect my gloves, then my hands after I leave the store. When I get home I disinfect them again after removing the mask, goggles and helmet.

The reusable shopping bag in the picture below does not go into the store. Stores in Massachusetts don’t accept them any more, as they might carry infection. I use the bag after I’m done shopping, to increase the carrying capacity of my bicycle.

Should bicyclists wear face masks? The author in full kit for a shopping trip.

The author, April 2020, in full kit for a shopping trip. Photo by Jacob Allen

When I get home, I lay out items that I bought in the driveway to disinfect them, or pour food out into clean containers. Apartment dwellers have to disinfect indoors. There’s plenty of good information online about how to disinfect foods, and yourself after handling them. Here’s one example.

Should Bicyclists Wear Face Masks For Recreational Riding?

Should you wear a face mask while riding? Or not? Or just hang up the bicycle? Strategies are different if you’re riding solo or with someone else.

Each person’s circumstances are unique. In my case, it’s only a mile from my home to semi-rural outer suburbs. Traffic on roads there is very light now, and I’ll go on solo rides without wearing a mask.

Urban and suburban traffic is also light, though a friend — a high-mileage recreational road rider — has had to dodge many newbie wrong-way riders. (This is one more reason to stay away from riding on the edge of the road.)

Another friend who is a strong advocate for shared-use paths avoids them now, because they are crowded, largely with people who don’t know how to be safe on them.

In some places, notably New York State, masks are now required for everyone where social distancing is impossible. Spain and Italy have banned recreational cycling, allowing cycling only for some kinds of essential trips. That seems excessive to me, at least where I live, considering the low risk of contagion on lightly-used rural roads.

If You Ride With Another Person

The 6-foot rule doesn’t apply to bicyclists riding together, because bicyclists are moving, and the risk depends on which way the wind is blowing. One recommendation was to maintain 35-foot spacing, and greater at higher speeds. The front rider uses hand signals to indicate turns; the rear rider repeats them to confirm. Checking for confirmation is easier if the front rider uses a rear-view mirror.

Crash Risk

I do think about the risk of a crash that would require care in an already overburdened hospital. It could happen, but my last crash that required a doctor’s attention was in 1984, to no small extent because of the kind of skills that CyclingSavvy teaches. There is a balance to achieve.

Should bicyclists wear face masks? The author headed out on a recreational ride, no mask. Photo: Jacob Allen

April 2020: The author headed out on a recreational ride, no mask. Photo: Jacob Allen

I’ve been riding on the nearly empty semi-rural roads — without a mask, to stay in shape and avoid going stir-crazy. But you have to make up your own mind about this.

Something to Do at Home

CyclingSavvy online courses are available, and discounted during the pandemic. And my booklet Bicycling Street Smarts is for sale in print and as an e-book, with Keri Caffrey’s all-new illustrations (shameless promotion, sorry).

Even if you have hung the bicycle up for the duration, the time will come when you dust it off and ride again. This is a useful way to while away the time until then.

CS for LEOs

January 11, 2020/2 Comments/in Instructor, Law Enforcement, The Savvy Cyclist /by Karen Karabell

In 2019 Great Rivers Greenway contracted with American Bicycling Education Association to create this lunch & learn-style presentation for St. Louis-area law enforcement officers.

The contractual agreement includes allowing any CSI to adapt and present CS for LEOs in their markets. Download P...

Energy Is Real

March 21, 2018/11 Comments/in The Savvy Cyclist /by Karen Karabell

I’m shocked when motorists are rude to me. Here in St. Louis or anywhere I ride, it just doesn’t happen.

The driver’s anger poisoned the energy of the other drivers on the road. Everyone started honking.

riding a bike on a freeway-like surface street

Google Maps view of Forest Park Parkway

OK, I’m exaggerating. Last year one driver was obnoxious.

He or she apparently could not buh-lieve I’d ride a bicycle on that road.

I was riding on Forest Park Parkway, a road similar in design to a freeway. People on this section are typically zooming through to get somewhere else.

On a fateful afternoon last fall, a driver of a black Audi either stayed or got stuck behind me — I’m not sure which — and honked for what seemed like an eternity.

Here’s What’s Fascinating

The driver’s anger poisoned the energy of the other drivers on the road. Everyone started honking. I waved to acknowledge their annoyance, and my humanity.

What could I do? I was on a section where I couldn’t escape. I simply had to endure, until I got to my destination at the other end of this canyon-like stretch of road.

Forest Park Parkway between Skinker and Big Bend boulevards in St. Louis

On the rare occasions that I have problems, I don’t blame “stupid” motorists. I analyze what happened. What could I have done differently so it wouldn’t happen again?

Energy Is Real

A big reason I have such good experiences is because I expect to.

Attitude elevates your ride. Courtesy and cooperation are the twin pillars of every great ride.

Attitude elevates your ride. It’s important to understand the dynamics of truly dangerous situations, and how to avoid them. Once you’ve got that down, courtesy and cooperation are the twin pillars of every great ride.

If you’re a mensch, you have every reason to expect other drivers to be mensches, too.

Ever since my honking takedown, I’ve wanted to revisit the scene, and see if I could control the energy around me this time. I’d be more careful to actively communicate with the motorists who would most assuredly be on the road with me.

I finally rode it again last Friday. You can see what happened below.

Daytime Lights: Magic Bullet Or Not?

February 7, 2018/13 Comments/in The Savvy Cyclist /by John Schubert

Two recent tragic bicyclist deaths in Florida resulted in a local newspaper column extolling the importance of daytime running lights. Without going into detail about these tragedies, I’ll say one thing: It’s doubtful that either death would have been prevented by daytime running lights.

That’s the thing about tragedies and safety equipment. Whatever safety equipment you’re enamored of — daytime running lights, protective padding, helmets — it will help some times, but not others. But when you’re upset because a friend died, that kind of thought-chopping doesn’t come to mind.

Of this you can be sure: Safety equipment is an area where “always” and “never” don’t exist, and where emotional baggage leads all of us to want to cling to a magic solution.

As an expert witness in bicycle crash reconstruction cases, I believe daytime running lights are usually superfluous. Yes, there are specific occasions where they do help. But they often are used as a makeshift solution for problems best solved by behavior change. If daytime running lights are offered as a do-it-all solution, they become grist for victim blaming when a cyclist was doing nothing wrong.

When To Light Up

Let’s start with the situations where daytime running lights do help. These would include fog, heavy rain, the sun low on the horizon, confusing lighting, and short sight distances on curvy roads.

Fog can reduce visibility to a very short distance. Where I live, in the hills of eastern Pennsylvania, the hilltops can be in the clouds and the valleys can be clear. Sometimes I may need daytime running lights — very bright ones at that — to be seen in the fog. But a half-mile later, I’m out of the fog, and visibility is good.

Some of the curviest country roads make a case for daytime running lights. Even so, if you measure the actual sight distance on a curvy country road, you’ll be surprised at how far it really is. There’s plenty of space to slow down from curvy-road driving speed to cyclist speed. But there’s no harm in giving the overtaking motorist a wake-up call.

Scott Slingerland, executive director of Bethlehem, PA’s Coalition for Appropriate Transportation, demonstrates the effectiveness of daytime running lights earlier this month in Easton, PA.

view from rear of man cycling with daytime running lights

Scott is easy to see coming and going. But is this because of his lights?

Lane Position

It’s your lane position that affects how soon you’re seen, often more than any light can. This is especially true on curvy roads. If you’re hugging the curb on a curve to the right, you come into view later than a rider using a lane control position.

Dappled mottled light, on a tree-shaded road, makes a case for daytime running lights. The brain takes longer to assemble the picture of a bicyclist in such lighting conditions.

Daytime running lights need to be bright enough to be conspicuous in daylight. If not, they’re no more effective than a rabbit’s foot. How often have you seen a bicycle light, in bad need of new batteries, blinking feebly — in broad daylight? I saw several on a recent trip to Philadelphia. A dim, poorly aimed daytime blinkie just sucks up the electricity to make the light even less effective at night when that rider absolutely needs it.

Brightness costs money. The least expensive bike lights (less than $10 for a front-and-rear set from a major discount retailer) are usually bright enough for nighttime use. But I wouldn’t bet on those lights being noticed on a sunny day. To be seen in daylight, you want a more powerful light. The taillights that have a strobe function (Portland Design Works Danger Zone and Planet Bike Superflash are two that come to mind) cost more than this. So do brighter headlights.

I recommend that you test daytime running lights in the situation when you might use them. Turn them on, take them outside, and see how they appear from 50 paces away. Do they jump out at you? Are you sure? Remember, you’re an alerted observer, and you are far more attentive to them than the people you want to see them. Those people are un-alerted observers.

When the Sun is Low: Your Shadow Points to the Danger

Does a daytime running light really solve the sun-low-on-the-horizon problem?

While the world probably looks clear to this cyclist, his shadow points toward drivers on a high-speed arterial road who have the sun in their eyes – and may not see him as he violates their right-of-way

As we teach in CyclingSavvy, the sun low on the horizon can be a serious problem. Your shadow points in the direction of people who can’t see you. And in the class, we tell people to take a different route or to wait a few minutes for the lighting conditions to change.

The need to verify your lights’ adequacy is most especially true when the sun is low and casting glare. In that situation, you’re asking your daytime running lights to overpower the entire sun! If you do a good observation experiment — with several observers, please — take good notes and tell us what you saw. We’ll publish it. Bonus points if you take a good photo.

Blinded By The Light

What if your light is too bright? At a minimum, you annoy people. You distract drivers from their ongoing job of absorbing visual information and then going on to the next bit of visual information.

It’s a fad — a bad fad, in our opinion — to make emergency vehicle lighting so bright and so discordant that it’s difficult to look away from it. But look away you must, in order to focus on the path you need to travel. The driver needs to watch where she’s going, and watching the light display interferes with that.

Some of today’s lights are strobes, rather than light-emitting diodes. Are they too bright? In some situations, yes. For daytime running lights in pea-soup fog, probably not.

Remember, in normal lighting conditions, a cyclist in a black shirt is easy to see from 200 yards away. And all of us have an obligation to be looking when we drive.

Daytime running lights make you more visible, certainly. But if you were already visible, does making you more visible help? I don’t think so. You need to be relevant as well as visible. The nature of driving is that the driver discards most visual information. When he sees a bicyclist on the shoulder, his brain thinks, “That cyclist is out of my way, and he’s not a factor.” A blinking light is unlikely to change that thought process.

Any search engine will find you dozens of articles in which daytime running lights are praised as if they are mother’s milk. In those articles, people who don’t use daytime running lights are badmouthed. This is stunningly irresponsible, because it aids and abets victim blaming where it matters most — in court.

Imagine yourself, the victim of a motorist-at-fault car/bike collision. You were plainly visible. But the defense counsel brings out a stack of articles telling you what a jerk you were for not using daytime running lights. He asks you to read them aloud on the witness stand. Your emotions go south and your blood pressure skyrockets. After the first dozen articles, he calls for a break, and out in the hall, offers you $100 to settle the case then and there.

So. . . use daytime running lights mindfully. And promote them cautiously.

Road Witches & Wizards Unite

October 31, 2017/0 Comments/in The Savvy Cyclist /by Graduate

No need to be afraid, my pretty.

Yes, it’s true.

You’re a puny and fragile human awash in the elements when you’re out riding your bicycle.

But within this very thing exists great power.

Unlock it!

Say good-bye to being helpless and dependent.

Control your cycling experience.

Discover the might of being “slow.”

Learn how to cloak yourself in a bubble of protection everywhere you ride.

Cast a spell into your world and watch motorists suddenly become smart…

…give you more space.

…treat you with courtesy and respect.

That’s power! And you have it.

You have inborn magical abilities. Your power is great, if you decide to wield it.

Unlock the joy of human-powered transportation.

Study Cyclomancy in person or online.

Become a full-blown Road Witch or Road Wizard.

Leave the road warriors behind.

Wizardry awaits.

Sidewalk Strife

October 25, 2017/7 Comments/in The Savvy Cyclist /by Mighk Wilson

Leave the roadway,

and you leave

some important rights behind.

I work for MetroPlan Orlando, Central Florida’s regional transportation planning agency. Each morning when I get to my desk, I log in to a statewide database of traffic crashes and review the latest pedestrian and bicyclist crashes uploaded for our area. This system allows me to review detailed police reports and classify the crashes based on the behaviors of pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. If you’ve taken CyclingSavvy you’ve seen some of the results of this ongoing analysis.

Crashes with motorists involving sidewalk cyclists are increasing both in number and as a percentage of the total. When I first did such analysis in the mid 1990s, less than half of crashes involved sidewalk cyclists; today it’s at 70 percent. Much of this increase is likely due to more of our major roads having sidewalks today than they did 20 years ago, and most now have curb ramps for wheelchair users, making sidewalks more accessible to cyclists.

Those who have taken CyclingSavvy or read other knowledgeable sources on cycling safety understand the many ways sidewalk cycling increases crash risk. Sidewalk cyclists have more conflicting movements, poorer sight lines, and reduced predictability.

But in addition to the increased crash risk, sidewalk cyclists involved in crashes with motorists may be at a bigger legal disadvantage.

In all states, a bicyclist on a roadway has all the rights and duties of the driver of a vehicle. In most states, bicyclists operating on sidewalks and crosswalks have the same rights and duties as pedestrians. Of course, sidewalk cyclists are not actual pedestrians. Cyclists can easily ride much faster than pedestrians walk.

While motorists are required at crosswalks and driveways to yield to pedestrians (and bicyclists operating as pedestrians), all states have a variation on this language from the Uniform Vehicle Code:

“No pedestrian shall suddenly leave a curb or other place of safety and walk or run into the path of a vehicle which is so close that it is impossible for the driver to yield.”

This applies at crosswalks as well as at driveways and mid-block locations. This language provides for quite a bit of wiggle room in the mind of a law enforcement officer.

A person propelling a vehicle by human power upon and along a sidewalk, or across a roadway upon and along a crosswalk, has all the rights and duties applicable to a pedestrian under the same circumstances. No pedestrian shall suddenly leave a curb or other place of safety and walk or run into the path of a vehicle which is so close that it is impossible for the driver to yield. … has all of the rights and all of the duties applicable to the driver of any other vehicle under this chapter …

Compare the law for bicycle drivers to the law for bicyclists as pedestrians.

I see many reports in which the officer stated that the cyclist committed such a violation, even though the cyclist was entering a crosswalk or crossing a driveway (driveway traffic is supposed to yield to pedestrians and other approaching traffic). No doubt in some cases the officer was correct in his or her assessment, but in many I see little evidence for that conclusion. It’s often the cyclist’s word against the motorist’s, with no independent witness involved. Because I didn’t see the actual crash, I can’t say for certain if the cyclist was violating that statute or not, but then, in most cases, the officer didn’t see it either. Reports rarely indicate whether the cyclist received a citation in such situations, but officers will mark the violation in a “contributing action” field.

Imagine you’re involved in a crash. You want to file a claim for damages against the insurance company of the motorist. If the crash report says you violated the law, you’re going to have a very tough time making your case.

Another disadvantage for sidewalk cyclists is at signalized intersections. At many signals the pedestrian walk phase — the only period during which a pedestrian or sidewalk cyclist may lawfully enter the crosswalk — is less than 10 seconds, and then shifts to a flashing “Don’t Walk.” The green traffic signal for the adjacent lanes is much longer, and the roadway cyclist can enter the intersection during that entire green phase.

Sidepaths have all of the same disadvantages, plus most paths include stop signs for path users at locations that wouldn’t have them if it was just a regular sidewalk. Cyclists using the adjacent roadway are not subject to those extra stop signs.

Let’s compare two similar crashes. Cyclist Jane is traveling in a regular travel lane with the flow of traffic. She’s riding along the right edge of the lane approaching an intersection with no stop sign for that direction. (Edge riding is entirely legal, but we explain its risks in CyclingSavvy.) A motorist comes up from behind and makes a right turn across her path. The two collide in a classic “right hook” crash.

The next day Cyclist Jack is riding on the sidewalk going with the flow of traffic approaching the same intersection. Another motorist makes the same maneuver, also causing a crash.

In the first case, the officer would be guided by statutes to find the motorist violated the cyclist’s right-of-way. In the second case, the officer knows that the motorist must yield to pedestrians legally in the crosswalk. But since cyclists can go much faster than pedestrians, it’s likely Cyclist Jack was not yet in the crosswalk when the motorist initiated his turn.

Knowing that in this scenario the cyclist has the rights and duties of a pedestrian, the officer might conclude that Cyclist Jack should not have left a place of safety and moved into the path of a driver who couldn’t yield.

My point here is not to criticize law enforcement, but to show how statutes work against the legal interests of bicyclists on sidewalks and sidepaths.

When students in cycling courses ask me “who is at fault” for a given type of crash, I always respond, “The law doesn’t protect you on the road, only in court.”

But too often the law won’t protect you in court, either. Cycling on the road gives you the best advantages for both preventing a crash and protecting yourself should one occur.

Stories From the Road

October 18, 2017/1 Comment/in The Savvy Cyclist /by John Brooking

We all have stories. When it comes to bicycling, they are all too often negative. Bicyclists gripe about motorists, motorists gripe about bicyclists, media outlets play up the conflict with an endless stream of “bikes vs. cars” stories, and social media magnifies all of it. It can get downright discouraging.

Too frequently, it’s these negative stories that stick with us. We remember the one motorist who honked at us, and forget the other 99 who passed us safely with no drama. But not only do we get a great majority of drama-free interactions, we also sometimes have good interactions! At least I do. I hope you do too. Let’s try to remember some of them.

Motorists are excellent at taking direction.

CyclingSavvy “stay back” gesture

To start, there are many positive situations that happen too often for me to remember specific instances. For example, I may need to hold back a motorist in an unsafe passing situation, then release them afterwards. If I have held them back with the CyclingSavvy “stay back” gesture, left arm diagonally downward, palm back, I like to release with a friendly wave. That’s usually the end of the situation. That typically happens up to a half dozen times on my 5-mile commute.

If they’ve had to stay behind me a longer-than-normal time, I try to make my gratitude more pronounced by not just waving, but turning my head and mouthing “Thank you” as I wave. Occasionally, I’ll be rewarded with an obviously friendly short beep. A few weeks ago, I even got a thumbs-up!

That reminds me of at least once in the past when someone slowed next to me after a turn to say he appreciated that I knew the hand signals and used them.

We talk about this kind of communication a lot in the CyclingSavvy classroom session. I like to say that communication is the most useful thing that most cyclists never do. One of the things motorists sometimes say they dislike about cyclists is how often they seem to be oblivious to what is going on around them. While I think it’s probably not always true that they’re completely oblivious, many do seem unaware of how much communicating would help the situation. They are shy about interacting with motorists, or don’t even know how.

Two Lights Road in Cape Elizabeth, Maine

A motorist thanked me for preventing him from making an unsafe pass on this road!

I always try to tell the story in my classroom presentation about my trip to a seafood restaurant in a nearby coastal town, which I blogged about here a few months ago. Spoiler alert: The motorist behind me for 1/2 mile or so actually thanked me for actively holding him back when passing was not safe, and of course releasing him when it was.

Riding in the "right tire track" in a travel lane can encourage unsafe passing.

This bicyclist may not realize he is tempting motorists to pass too closely

In a recent conversation about this topic with my wife, she said that whenever she happens to be behind me on my bike when she’s in her car, she appreciates how clear I am about my intentions, by my lane position and signaling. I’ve had several other people say the same thing over the years. From the opposite perspective, someone told me once that what she finds most difficult about dealing with cyclists on the road is not getting any indication from them of what she’s supposed to do. I think part of that confusion is how many cyclists hug the edge as close as they can even in an unsafe passing situation, subconsciously tempting following motorists to do just what the cyclist fervently hopes they don’t. Ever since I heard that, I’ve tried even harder to be clear in such situations.

Sometimes we can read too much into a situation. For example, we’ve all experienced motorists gunning their engines as they pass. It always sounds aggressive, like they’re expressing impatience towards us. But years ago, someone on a mailing list pointed out that it could just be that this is the way engines sound when the driver is trying to get back up to speed quickly, especially if they are going uphill. Maybe, just possibly, it’s not about us!

Closely related is the common aphorism which I would express in this context as: “No need to attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by carelessness or misunderstanding.” Sometimes the motorist may actually be unaware of what they did. Pursuing a discussion with a motorist is often unproductive, but on occasion, it has ended well.

Two months ago on a 4-lane road, a motorist passed me somewhat closely (not completely in the next lane), at what felt to me to be a high rate of speed. I admit that I was ticked off enough that I kept an eye out for the distinctive pickup truck, and saw it in a parking lot a few blocks up. I decided to approach it, and the driver was still sitting in it, so I calmly asked her about it. She was unable to tell me how fast she was going, but was very apologetic. She explained that she had been the second car behind me, and didn’t realize I was there until the car ahead of her changed lanes to pass, so she was a little startled. She then told me that she used to ride a motorcycle, but stopped after having gotten in a crash. I still feel she could have been more careful, but she apologized multiple times, and we left on good terms. I hope she is more careful in the future.

Once a “student driver” car passed me and did something I didn’t like, I forget exactly what. Maybe passed a little close, or honked. I happened to catch up to them at the next light and asked what that was about. The teacher in the passenger’s seat said that they hadn’t meant anything bad by it, and that I certainly had the right to be riding where I was.

Another time two guys in the car I caught up with at their apartment building lot told me that as a bicyclist, I had more right to the road than they did! That’s not exactly correct, but I’ll take it.

Of course, every once in a while, a motorist is undeniably a real jerk. Even then, it’s possible that they are just a jerk to everyone, not just you on your bike. Riding an arterial road past some interstate ramps a few years ago, I heard some honking quite a distance behind me, and looked back to see a car driver apparently harassing another car driver. When the harasser passed me, my annoyance was immediately replaced with great amusement by this bumper sticker on the back of the car he (yes, he) was driving:

His wife’s car? If so, he was certainly proving her point! Maybe he was already put out by having to drive her car around with that sticker on it.

Winter Cycling Cartoon (copyright Calvin & Hobbes)

Me and my son? :D

It’s always nice of course to have friendly interactions that just arise organically, rather than out of a potential negative interaction. The one that stands out in my mind is the motorist who complimented me one snowy winter day because he had seen me out there every day, and just wanted to tell me that he admired my tenacity. (I think he may have been a fair-weather cyclist himself.)

Friendly interactions also happen with other non-motorized users. For example, it’s always nice to stop for pedestrians and have them thank you as they cross. I especially hope that when I do this in our busy Old Port area where the tourists roam, it gives them a positive image of our city, so friendly that even the cyclists stop to let them cross! :-)

Most recently, just a few weeks ago a “roadie” in full kit passed me on my morning commute and complimented my on my new CyclingSavvy jersey that I was wearing that day. (Thanks, Gary Cziko!)

Just another day biking in traffic. :-D

John Brooking modeling the new CyclingSavvy jersey. If you would like one, consult the sizing charts at hubbubonline.com to determine your size, then email Gary Cziko at [email protected]. They are fitted jerseys, so you can order a size or two higher if you want a more relaxed fit.

Three Part Course: Waltham MA – May 2020

November 22, 2018/0 Comments/in CyclingSavvy Full Course /by John Allen

Maximize your cycling experience!

The full CyclingSavvy Course INCLUDES Truth & Techniques (classroom session), Train Your Bike (bike handling) session, and our signature on-road experience — Tour of Waltham.

Truth & Techniques (classroom session) and Train Your Bike (bike handling) are included in this 3-part workshop. Completion of these two sessions is required before taking the Tour session, and you may sign up for individual sessions — see their listings to do that.

Truth & Techniques – Friday, May 8, 2020, 6:30-9:30 PM at Linwood Avenue, Newton

Train Your Bike – Saturday, May 9, 2020 at 9 AM – Noon at MacArthur School

…Lunch break…Pizzi Farms deli and ice-cream stand is just across the street.

Tour of Waltham – Saturday, May 9, 2020 at 1 PM – 4:30 PM from MacArthur School

The Tour of Waltham is an experiential tour of our city’s roads. The course includes some of the most intimidating road features (intersections, interchanges, merges, etc.) a cyclist might find in his/her travels. The students travel as a group, stopping to survey and discuss each exercise location. After observing the feature, discussing the traffic dynamics and the best strategy for safe and easy passage, the students ride through individually and regroup at a nearby location.

Train Your Bike (bike handling) and Truth & Techniques (classroom session) are included in this 3-part workshop. Completion of these two sessions is required before taking the Tour session.

The ticket below gives the time for the first (classroom) session, but it is for the full three-part course, including the Tour of Waltham session.