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On Your Left!

08.02.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 6 Comments

I was recently riding the shoulder of a busy road in my area when I heard a muffled voice. It said something like, “Lllfff.” In another second, I was being passed by a guy on a high-end racing type bike. I realized he had called out a version of “On your left” to warn me he was passing.

The fact that I couldn’t understand what he said, although I knew what he said, concerned me. Thinking back to other times cyclists have announced themselves to me, I appreciated that most of the time, I can’t understand them. It’s the noise of the voice, rather than the spoken words, that serves as a warning.

The Bike Noob (right) passes another rider during the MS150 a few years ago.

That made me think about my own way of warning bikers I’m about to overtake. I do call out “On your left!” in what I think is a loud enough voice, and I make an effort to project it forward. Sometimes, it works. I’ve seen cyclists nod, or even wave, or simply ease a little to the right to give me more room to go by. Other times, it’s as though they never heard me — and they might not have.

Then there are the times I’ve called out and so rattled the cyclist ahead of me that it almost caused a crash. That seems to happen to family-type recreational cyclists who seldom venture onto roads and try to spend most of their rides on quiet suburban streets away from traffic.  I haven’t figured out if they’re startled by my bellow or if they’re unsure of what to do, so they flail about on the edge of control.

I long ago learned that “On your left” is a call wasted on children. They have no idea what it means and what is expected of them. If kids are ahead of me, I try to maneuver around them as quickly as possible, leaving a wide berth so they don’t feel compelled to do something. However, if I catch up to a child cycling alongside his parent, especially on a controlled track like Austin’s Veloway, I might turn that into a teachable moment. In that case, I’ll make a special effort to speak clearly and slowly: “Passing — on your left.” In most cases, the parent will lean in toward the child and explain what I meant, then instruct the child to move right to leave me a little room. Really. It’s happened that way a time or three.

Another kind of warning is the abbreviated version: “Left!” That usually comes immediately before the biker flies by. I think that’s what the guy at the top of this post was saying. I don’t think it’s an adequate warning most times, because the cyclist getting the warning isn’t expecting it, and because the cyclists usually can’t understand it. By the time he does, the other rider has already gone by.

In large group rides, the warning gets to be old hat, and that often leads to the single word “Left!” because riders get bored repeating themselves time after time. Of course, in a group ride, you’re probably expecting to be passed at any moment, as well as to pass someone else at any moment, so you’re probably alert for the possibility.

I think I’ll keep doing what I’m doing, which is enunciate clearly, project my voice, and give enough lead time before I’m even with the rider ahead of me. But in some situations, maybe I won’t. How about you? Do you have a preferred way to announce yourself to other riders? And are there times you just let it go?

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Categories // Safety, Technique Tags // passing, warning

Three Common Bicycling Accidents – and How to Avoid Them

07.31.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 3 Comments

This is a guest post from attorney Ray Thomas, who represents injured cyclists.

Sharing the road with motorists can be frightening, especially if you live in an area where drivers don’t consider bicycles as legitimate vehicles. I often hear bicyclists say they’d like to incorporate cycling more into their everyday lives, but they just don’t feel safe riding alongside high-speed traffic.

Many states are increasingly enacting laws that help establish and protect the rights of cyclists. While these laws can provide critical legal resource in the event of a collision, they don’t necessarily prevent such accidents from happening. Instead, the onus is still on the cyclist to be aware of how these collisions occur and get proactive about preventing them.

Here’s a look at three of the most common types of bicycling accidents – and how savvy cyclists avoid them:

1. Hit by a right-turning car (aka the Right Hook).

When making a right turn – whether at a stoplight or into a driveway – motorists often fail to look for bicyclists who may be coming up from behind. What’s worse, many drivers nowadays will simply turn suddenly, without signaling, giving the cyclist no advance warning. Whether you’re riding in a bike lane, on the road or on the sidewalk, it’s always safest to assume motorists traveling in the right lane may turn right at any time.

There are two things you can do to prevent this type of collision. First, when you’re at a stoplight next to a car in the right lane, stop either just in front of the car (out of the motorist’s blind spot) to make sure you’ll be seen, or just behind the car so you can gauge whether the driver is going to turn right. Second, never pass a slow-moving vehicle on the right. Instead, wait for an opportunity to pass on the left, assuming it’s legal to do so in your city. Having a rearview mirror on your bike is invaluable for this.

2. Smacked by a car door.

Street parking is another common hazard for cyclists. Many drivers who park by the curb will simply open up the car door without thinking to check for approaching cyclists. Often the cyclist has no time to react, or cannot safely swerve left to avoid the door.

If you’re riding on a street with curbside parking, it’s wise to stay on the alert for vehicles that have just parked or have people inside them. That way, at least you have enough warning to give these cars a wider berth. Again, a rearview mirror is also a valuable tool, as it allows you to continually monitor the traffic behind you so you know whether it’s safe to swerve in a pinch.

3. Hit by a left-turning car (aka the Left Cross).

You and a motorist are approaching an intersection from opposite directions. The motorist either doesn’t see you or misjudges your speed and decides to suddenly turn left just as you cross the intersection. This can be one of the most difficult types of accidents to avoid, because cyclists often simply don’t see it coming.

The important thing here is to make yourself as visible as possible to motorists. For starters, don’t cross an intersection by riding from the sidewalk into the crosswalk, as this makes it even harder for motorists turning left to see you. Instead, stay as far to the left as you safely can; if possible, consider taking up the entire lane as you cross the intersection. Also, by being aware of this type of hazard, you can adjust your speed while traveling through intersections in order to allow yourself to brake quickly if needed.

Defensive cycling skills can take time and practice to develop. However, hyper-awareness coupled with the ability to think quickly and plan an escape route can go a long way toward preventing collisions.

Ray Thomas, a founding partner of the Portland law firm Swanson, Thomas, Coon & Newton, applies his personal injury litigation expertise to the area of bicycle and pedestrian law in the state of Oregon.

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Categories // guest post, Safety Tags // guest post, Safety

Re-Learning How to Ride in the Rain

07.01.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 11 Comments

The club ride was heading south to Kyle this morning. It’s a ride I enjoy, and I was looking forward to riding it on the Airborne. We had a brush with rain the previous evening, but it petered out before it got to our neighborhood. Still, things have cooled off quite a bit, and we headed out into an overcast morning with threatening clouds and temperatures in the 70s. The hour-by-hour forecast indicated we might get rain this afternoon, but our ride would be long over by then.

Our regular ride leader is out of town, and the volunteer who took over led us down Slaughter Lane. It’s a main east-west corridor through South Austin, and the heavy traffic we usually find on that road keeps me away from it. Today, though, we kept going — past the high school where we usually turn off, past a couple of north-south arterials where we could have turned. At least Slaughter has a bike lane for much of its length. But it’s only wide enough for one bike. Finally, we reached a cross street and turned south.

Riding this stretch, I chatted with Rick about the Airborne. It’s his bike, and he’s letting me use it for a few days while mine gets some TLC from the club bike mechanic. It turns out the bike size is 62 cm. No wonder I had trouble fitting it to my body. My own bike is 56 cm. But as we talked, I felt small raindrops hit my face. We pulled into the parking lot at the Walgreens in Buda in a light drizzle. Some riders debated whether to keep going or turn back now.

They were uncertain about riding in the rain, and I don’t blame them. After last summer’s drought, we’re all out of practice with our wet weather riding. We had some rain earlier this spring, but lately, it’s been dry as  a bone once again. The upside is, we get to ride all the time. The downside is, we don’t get much chance to hone our rain riding skills. But most of us gamely got back on the road — and then the skies really opened up. A few more riders turned back. “I don’t like riding in the rain,”one said, as she passed me going the other way. Our peloton split into two groups, and the leaders quickly left us behind.

As I slogged on, I mentally recalled some of the rain techniques I once knew. Ride slower — not a problem for me; remember that your brakes won’t stop you as quickly as when dry — that was very much the case with me today; and when turning, lean your body, but keep the bike upright.

Just past downtown Buda, it was hard to even see in the downpour. A rider at the head of our small group turned into an elementary school, and parked his bike under a covered walkway. We all joined him, making a compact pack of six in the narrow space.

Laura was on her brand new bike for only the second time — and the first time on a ride of any length. “I can’t believe it,” she wailed. “Riding my brand new bike and this happens.” It’s a custom carbon fiber Seven, white with teal trim. It even had her name on the top tube.

I realized that five of our six bikes were carbon fiber. I was on titanium. “It wouldn’t be good to wipe out on a plastic bike,” noted Rick.

“The last bad crash I had was during the rain,” said Pippa. Mine, too.

“It could be worse,” said Brian, the club Canadian. “It could be snow.”

But the rain subsided within ten minutes, and although it was still coming down lightly, we decided we’d risk it. We would ride west on FM 967 until it met FM 1626, and then head north back to our starting point. We would have an abbreviated ride today, but that was okay.

The problem is, both those roads are two-lane with no shoulder. Traffic was heavy in both directions, so cars coming up behind us had to wait for oncoming traffic to pass before they could swing out and pass us. To complicate matters, the edge of 967 was pock marked with cracks, patches of gravel, and small potholes. “As far to the right as practicable” turned out to be in the center of the lane sometimes.

The worst part came when we had to make a left turn off 1626 onto Brodie. It has a left-turn lane, but we had to “take the lane” to get to it, slowing down a line of cars behind us even more. I must say, most drivers were patient with us. I heard one honk, and Rick said someone shouted at him, but that was it. We rode several miles up Brodie, made a dangerous left across oncoming traffic into a residential neighborhood, and took a shortcut through Bowie High School’s parking lot. It emptied us out onto Slaughter again.

“What do we think about Slaughter?” asked Steve T., an A rider who wound up with us today.

“After getting through 1626, we can handle Slaughter,” I remarked.

We turned onto Slaughter, and the first thing to catch our eyes was a warning sign: “Loose Gravel.” Laura let out a yelp. Pippa laughed. The road on this side had been resurfaced, so loose gravel covered both lanes for another mile. Not only were we all soaked to the bone, but now a layer of grit covered us from head to foot. The neighborhood Starbuck’s couldn’t come fast enough.

“I think I broke about five of my riding rules,” observed Rick. “Don’t ride in the rain. I did. Don’t ride on wet roads. I did. Don’t ride carbon in the rain. I did. Don’t ride on Slaughter Lane. We did that both going out and coming back.”

But we were back. No one was the worse for wear. The barista at Starbuck’s even gave Laura a free coffee, because she looked so miserable.

“I don’t want to ride in those conditions again anytime soon,” I told Rick. “But when you do, it makes you a better biker.”

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Categories // Rides, Safety Tags // rain

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