BIKE RIDING SAFETY - TOUR REPORT

By Debbie Bulloch



I know, I know, lately I have been writing a lot about bikes and bike riding. It is just that this wonderful, warm weather that we are having in Southern California is very conducive to bike riding – or at least to thoughts of riding a bike. Add to that all the recent hoopla about the Tour de France and it is easy to see why bike riding has been so prominent on my mind.

I promise, however, once the Tour is over, and the warm days of summer are replaced by the chilly days of autumn and beyond, I will return the blog to more serious topics. Actually, today I will try to combine seriousness and fun and see how it works.

Yesterday, while on my regular after work bike ride, I came close to hitting a truck (or the truck came close to hitting me, depending on your perspective). I was on the return leg of my ride, fighting a constant headwind, when an idiot driving a pick-up truck turned left right in front of me. This is not the first time that a careless driver has turned left in front of me; this is an occurrence that happens with alarming frequency (the other scenario is the “I-am-in-a-hurry-and-I-am-more-important-than-you” driver who passes on the left only to turn right in front of the bike rider).

What made this particular incident worse was how close the truck was when it turned in front of me; it took all my bike handling skills to avoid hitting the truck and remain upright on my bike.

Yesterday’s near-hit was a reminder of how dangerous riding a bike on the streets can truly be. While researching the topic of bike safety, I came across the website for a group called Ride of Silence. The group sponsors a once-a-year bike ride honoring all the bike riders who have been killed on the road.

The poem below, from the Ride of Silence” website, really hit an emotional chord with me. I now wish to share it with you:

The Ride of Silence...

Tonight we number many but ride as one
In honor of those not with us, friends, mothers, fathers, sisters, sons
With helmets on tight and heads down low,
We ride in silence, cautious and slow
The wheels start spinning in the lead pack
But tonight we ride and no one attacks
The dark sunglasses cover our tears
Remembering those we held so dear
Tonight's ride is to make others aware
The road is there for all to share
To those not with us or by our side,
May God be your partner on your final ride

- Mike Murgas

Ride of Silence Poster



Ride of Silence Riders



I have previously written about another group, “Ghost Bikes” that is also involved in promoting bike safety. (You can find out more about Ghost Bikes by clicking here: Ghost Bikes or here: Ghost Bikes Wiki.

Remember, if you are a bike rider, ride safely and watch out for traffic.

If you are a driver, watch out for bike riders; help them arrive safely to their destination.

By the way, even Tour de France riders are not fully immune from painful and dangerous falls and accidents.

In Stage 16 of the Tour, in the opening kilometers of the descent toward the finish in Bourg Saint Maurice, speeds hovered at around 80 kilometers an hour. On a long, straight stretch German rider Jens Voigt (team Saxo-Bank) crashed when his rear wheel suddenly hit a bump on an uneven section of the road. Voigt’s bike wheeled around from under him, throwing him to the pavement, with the right side of his body and head taking the blow. He slid for about 15 meters before stopping, motionless. Voigt’s face took a big hit, as did his right arm and elbow. According to the Tour’s doctor, Voigt remained unconscious for about 4 minutes.

The three official Tour regulators--those who position themselves behind different groups within the race to monitor the racing--were very critical of Voigt's equipment. "They are using deep-profile carbon wheels and they are just too stiff," said Francois Lemarchand, a one-time teammate to Greg LeMond and now one of the Tour's three regulators. "You combine that with the stiff carbon frames and it is just too rigid. They can't absorb any shock."

On a day of climbing high mountains, most riders want a bike that is as light and as stiff as possible. A light bike is easier to “haul” up a mountain climb. A very stiff bike makes it easier to pedal up a mountain because a stiff frame delivers a greater percentage of the rider’s pedaling effort to the drive train – less flex equals more power. But what makes a bike ideal for climbing does not necessarily make it ideal for a fast descent.

SaxoBank team director Bjarne Riis was little interested in any technical flaws or equipment “malfunctions” and was simply concerned about one of his most devoted riders. "I saw him after the crash and he looked very bad," he said. "It's not nice to lose a rider like this but these are things that happen in a race and you have to accept them. I am just concerned with Jen's health right now."

(Note: The two videos of the crash, previously posted here, have been removed from YouTube by the video owners - accordingly I removed the link. Sorry for the inconvenience.)