Staying safe on the roads

masterofchaos said:
There is something to say about requiring ALL drivers to take a course for awareness. I started motorcycling in my 30s and took the PA Motorcycle Safety Course (class and riding course) and it opened my eyes to safety strategies which would give non-bike riders greater awareness. The riding part was cool too...I use tips even bicycling. But yeah, not everyone will be absorbing the info. So maybe it's just part of a solution.
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It's always a struggle where a certain part of the bell curve will "get it" but you'll never get everyone to play-nice. Sad but that's the way it is. I still fight the fight to get people educated and careful anyway.
 
I was thinking of this thread today while driving in my Jeep. Passed a lady riding her acoustic bike on a 45 MPH road. She had no helmet, no mirrors, no lights, and was wearing black. The worst part was she was swerving all over the right side of the road because she was biking with one hand while the other was holding her phone up to her ear.
 
Brand new to ebiking: observation, seems in CO we have many entitled cyclists that ride 2 & 3 abreast in bike lanes which puts at least 1 out in car traffic lane. Don't be one of those.
 
https://qz.com/1620913/the-best-cycling-hack-is-a-pool-noodle/
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CloneWerks said:
I've wondered several times if there was any point to having one of the tail-lights that project a laser line, but then again I really try to avoid biking after dusk.
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I actually have one of those laser light things with a bicycle symbol that gets projected to the ground about 15 feet from the rear of the
bike, along with 2 lines that go from the taillight out the 15 feet from the rear of the bike.

That being said, I never have used it :D

How're ya'll doin today?
 
Ya gotta always be careful out there and know your area.....two nights ago I went on a late afternoon ride.....we live rural....small roads.....wooded areas......riding along when a beautiful bull elk.....4x4 horns.....jumped out about 20 yards in front of me.....was able to stop in plenty of time but that was a first......have seen lots of deer over the past few months but this was my first elk while riding......I bet this bull was pushing 700 lbs....they can cause a lot of damage to a car.....glad we missed each other. Sure was pretty to see.
 
A lot of great things to remember from reading all your post. Never to old to learn. I'm new at my e bike riding streets more that when I had my mtn bike on trails not with cars. Bought new helmet, gloves and getting better clothes with reflected straps. But just 3 weeks ago it was a homeless drugged out guy try to grab me in town. Later I talked to our local bike policeman and he told me that they know e bikes are expensive and there'll knock you off to still it from yeah. Another reason I got e bike insurance for me and my bike.
Well everyone be safe and still go out and enjoy life. If it's your time at lease I was living.
 
Mysery said:
I can't tell you which is more statistically dangerous but I ride a motorcycle and an e-bike I feel much safer on the motorcycle. Moving with traffic instead of being passed all the time, better riding gear and better brakes just to name a couple of things. Don't get me wrong I really like riding my e-bike. Doesn't take me as long to check out the e-bike and to gear up for a ride. Anything 20 miles or less I take the e-bike 99% of the time. I like the relaxed pace of the e-bike. I find the time of day will dictate what mode of travel I take. 7 am to 9 am and from 3 pm to 6 pm I usually will not ride the e-bike. Be safe.
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I think a motorcycle, if ridden responsibly, is less likely to get hit by a car, but the stakes are higher since the speeds are higher.

I've had three motorcycle accidents over the years, and luckily, none of them had anything to do with anyone else. Except the deer, I guess.

re. your comment about what times you won't ride the eBike, I remember one time 20 years ago, I was sitting through my awful commute. 26 miles one way, almost all two lane roads in what was previously rural, but farms slowly sold out to housing developments, so there were never-ending stoplights and awful rush hour traffic. One day, I decided to ride my acoustic bike to work. I was exhausted that day, but I felt pretty safe. Cars were stuck; they were mostly no threat. Wish I had an ebike back then!

There were busier parts of that commute that were scary, though.
 
The time thing has to do with the 5 public schools, K thru 12, I have within 2 miles of me. So many people picking up students the traffic sucks. Sitting outside with the dog on some days and watching the world go by I've witnessed to many close calls and a couple of fender benders. Now that I've said that it's a nice day and little after noon so time to go for a ride. Peace
 
So out on my ride I was going around a barricade to cross over a new road, bypass, that is being built and I went down. I went to go up on the curb to pass around the barricade which I've done before when my front tire slipped back down to the asphalt, about a 2" drop, and down I went. Was going slow enough that nothing was damaged and I wasn't hurt except for my pride. I was wearing my helmet but do need to start wearing gloves. Luckly where I landed was mostly sand.
 
Danger riding on the street depends largely on your riding experience. Basically though, the most dangerous bike on the road is the slowest one. I come from a motorcycle background, and imo the laws pretaining to eBikes are insanely dangerous. There should be no law restricting an eBike to less than the normal surface street speed limit. Yeah I know the worry worts are afraid of fast eBikes racing on city trails with padestrians, but from my experience that's seldom a problem, and there's other ways to deal with it than assuming everyone riding a eBike capable of traffic speed is not able to restrain themselves from trying to break the sound barrier on a trail. One of the best new trends I''m seeing in eBikes is manufacturers are beginning to ignore these stupid dangerous laws by offering faster bikes, and I think that will make eBikes safer overall.
 
Mysery said:
I can't tell you which is more statistically dangerous but I ride a motorcycle and an e-bike I feel much safer on the motorcycle. Moving with traffic instead of being passed all the time, better riding gear and better brakes just to name a couple of things. Don't get me wrong I really like riding my e-bike. Doesn't take me as long to check out the e-bike and to gear up for a ride. Anything 20 miles or less I take the e-bike 99% of the time. I like the relaxed pace of the e-bike. I find the time of day will dictate what mode of travel I take. 7 am to 9 am and from 3 pm to 6 pm I usually will not ride the e-bike. Be safe.
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I was just reading this old post again, (don't know why) and came across this Causes of Death table.
Statistically, you're 4.7x more likely to die on a motorcycle than on a bicycle.

https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/all-injuries/preventable-death-overview/odds-of-dying/
 
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