I will give some airtime here on ‘Safe Riding’. I believe if each and everyone of us continues to keep reminding each other, the accident rate will come down. Hopefully everyone will be very much aware that cycling outings with friends can be very safe when everyone of us plays our part. I am sharing this from my little experience riding from Singapore to Penang and Medan to Riau (Sumatra) and the training that I did in for about 12 months.
So what exactly is safe riding? And what makes cycling outings safe?
Each rider practices more or less the same set of riding disciplines when riding alone or in group. If each rider can understand the basic of safe riding, everything else will come in place naturally. Below are some points of what I think it is vital to be out riding safely:
Pre-ride check
Before I head out daily, be it for my training ride or during my actual adventure ride, I will put aside sometime (ideally the night before) to do a ‘once over’ on my bicycle. I will check every moving part, tighten anything that is loose and replace what needs to be replaced before my ride. To some, this is not important but not me. In Indonesia, riding alone and most part on a secluded mountain road, I take the pre-ride check seriously and if I find that the bike is not road worthy, I would delayed the ride or postpone it totally until I get it fix.
Listen to your body
Feeling giddy, having a slight headache, flu or simply not in the form to ride? It is a good idea to call it off. Being on the road 4 to 5 hours daily during training days, riding in the hot sun (sometimes in the rain), I need 100% concentration. If at anytime, I feel I am not well I would change to some other training, light training like going to the gym or just riding in the park. But if I am on my actual adventure ride overseas, I will simply take a day or two to rest. Safety always comes first.
Stay alert
The trickiest amongst a bicycling outing is in-group, big group. It is a nice feeling to be out with friends riding but this is when complacency sets in. Over confidence and underestimating the obstacles are very common mistakes. Give some space to the rider in front and next to you. I experienced one minor accident with a riding friend while riding recreation-ally. On my part, I call it complacency. Thinking it is easier to ride on the Park Connector, I relax a little and we crashed. Until today, I remind myself of that experience. I have nothing against riding in groups or riding on the Park Connector, if you are doing both, stay focus, alert and remind your riding friends around you to be alert, stay sharps and that ‘the ride is not over until everyone is safely home’. Always, not only just one or two outing. Always.
Basic Communication
Basic communication is vital too. “Hole in front left”, “Bus stopping”, “Car on the left”, “Bus is overtaking”. Keep it short and precise. This way, we are more aware of things happening around the riding group. To be able to do this, each rider needs to be alert at all times. Hand signals are good too if it's safe for you to do so.
Are side view mirrors necessary?
Again, this is subjective. To some riders, it is not necessary and to some it is helpful. I ride on the road for my training and adventure cycling and I take my safety on the road very seriously. In order for me to know what is coming behind me, I will need a mirror, because riding daily and to be turning your head regularly is not something I fancy doing. If you ride a motorbike, you will know why side view mirrors are important.
Is wearing a helmet necessary?
This is the cause of many arguments. There are thousands of riders in Singapore. Some helmeted some are not. Do we penalize those who do not wish to be helmeted? I do not know what is right and what is wrong as I ride with and without helmet on certain parts of my route. My instinct will tell me when to put the helmet on and when I can just go topless. It's common sense. If I am riding in a group, I will always have my helmet on as I know everyone else will be with their helmet and at the same time to spread the message across, ‘No helmet, and no ride’.
Where to ride and how slow?
If you are riding for recreation, do you think the road is necessary or Park Connector will suffice? How fast should I go? If you are riding recreationally, is it necessary to be riding at 25-30kmh? or 15-20kmh will suffice? This are some question the group need to ask before heading out for a group ride. If your group decides the Park Connector, try to stay on it for the entire ride. It’s very frustrating for some to be going up and down the pavement, in and out of the connector and in the process losing focus.
When is the safest time to ride?
There are no 'safest time' or 'safest place' to ride, at least to me. My training timing is fixed in the morning and my route varies from time to time. However I will try to choose a route with less traffic and if I need to ride in town, I will choose peak hour when the 'Bus Lane' is in operation. That way, I can ride on it with minimal interruption from other road users. Usually the buses will give way to me and in return, I will wave "thank you" to them.
I think the above are some points that I will always look out for. Of course, there are other contributing factors to make your ride and your friend's ride safe at all times. The most important thing is that your routes need to be announced way ahead of the ride so your riding friends can download the route into their brain and be prepared for it.
(Right turning is one that you need to execute it with extra care if you riding on the road and with big group)
Click here to read more on safe cycling
and more here on Cycling skills
That is all and remember safety is everyone part to play. GO spread it. If you think you can contribute a little bit on 'Safe Riding', drop me an email at fluidrider@gmail.com. Keep riding happily.
So what exactly is safe riding? And what makes cycling outings safe?
Each rider practices more or less the same set of riding disciplines when riding alone or in group. If each rider can understand the basic of safe riding, everything else will come in place naturally. Below are some points of what I think it is vital to be out riding safely:
Pre-ride check
Before I head out daily, be it for my training ride or during my actual adventure ride, I will put aside sometime (ideally the night before) to do a ‘once over’ on my bicycle. I will check every moving part, tighten anything that is loose and replace what needs to be replaced before my ride. To some, this is not important but not me. In Indonesia, riding alone and most part on a secluded mountain road, I take the pre-ride check seriously and if I find that the bike is not road worthy, I would delayed the ride or postpone it totally until I get it fix.
Listen to your body
Feeling giddy, having a slight headache, flu or simply not in the form to ride? It is a good idea to call it off. Being on the road 4 to 5 hours daily during training days, riding in the hot sun (sometimes in the rain), I need 100% concentration. If at anytime, I feel I am not well I would change to some other training, light training like going to the gym or just riding in the park. But if I am on my actual adventure ride overseas, I will simply take a day or two to rest. Safety always comes first.
Stay alert
 |
| Always give some space to your riding partner and depending on the terrain, ride at a safe speed |
Basic Communication
Basic communication is vital too. “Hole in front left”, “Bus stopping”, “Car on the left”, “Bus is overtaking”. Keep it short and precise. This way, we are more aware of things happening around the riding group. To be able to do this, each rider needs to be alert at all times. Hand signals are good too if it's safe for you to do so.
Saying "thank you" - raise your hand
(or raise higher to make yourself more visible)
(or raise higher to make yourself more visible)
Are side view mirrors necessary?
Again, this is subjective. To some riders, it is not necessary and to some it is helpful. I ride on the road for my training and adventure cycling and I take my safety on the road very seriously. In order for me to know what is coming behind me, I will need a mirror, because riding daily and to be turning your head regularly is not something I fancy doing. If you ride a motorbike, you will know why side view mirrors are important.
Is wearing a helmet necessary?
This is the cause of many arguments. There are thousands of riders in Singapore. Some helmeted some are not. Do we penalize those who do not wish to be helmeted? I do not know what is right and what is wrong as I ride with and without helmet on certain parts of my route. My instinct will tell me when to put the helmet on and when I can just go topless. It's common sense. If I am riding in a group, I will always have my helmet on as I know everyone else will be with their helmet and at the same time to spread the message across, ‘No helmet, and no ride’.
Where to ride and how slow?
 |
| I always chose roads with less traffic for my endurance ride |
When is the safest time to ride?
There are no 'safest time' or 'safest place' to ride, at least to me. My training timing is fixed in the morning and my route varies from time to time. However I will try to choose a route with less traffic and if I need to ride in town, I will choose peak hour when the 'Bus Lane' is in operation. That way, I can ride on it with minimal interruption from other road users. Usually the buses will give way to me and in return, I will wave "thank you" to them.
I think the above are some points that I will always look out for. Of course, there are other contributing factors to make your ride and your friend's ride safe at all times. The most important thing is that your routes need to be announced way ahead of the ride so your riding friends can download the route into their brain and be prepared for it.
(Right turning is one that you need to execute it with extra care if you riding on the road and with big group)
Click here to read more on safe cycling
and more here on Cycling skills
That is all and remember safety is everyone part to play. GO spread it. If you think you can contribute a little bit on 'Safe Riding', drop me an email at fluidrider@gmail.com. Keep riding happily.
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