Bicycle Safety Public Service Announcement 4
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PSA4 Takes our crew to Santa Clara County, California for a beautiful spring ride
in the hills near Gilroy. The Tierra Bella Century is one of the West's preeminent
early season rides. A volunteer firefighter with the Uvas Volunteer Fire
Department
spoke with ShareTheRoad while serving in a medical standby role. A biker himself,
George offers sage advice for riding country roads. The message: Stay Right,
Hug the Line, Stay Alive. Share The Road.


Firefighter:                  George Gluck
Bikers:                        The Touring Crew
Video:                         Doug Morgan
Video / Editor:           LA Yarbrough
Still Photographer:    Dave McLellan
Intro:                            Steve Moore
Music:                         Highway 50, Stock 20

PSA4 is the fourth in a series of five PSAs produced as the ShareTheRoad
Productions PSA Campaign. The video may be posted (unaltered) to any web
site or used for any educational purpose. Contact us for broadcast quality digital
files.
Premier television broadcast 06/04/06 on Chew On This a progressive, thought
provoking, locally created, magazine format TV show . Many thanks to Michael
and the Public CommonWeath Project.

Posted version: beta d_splash
Time: 1:00 File Size: 10.3 MB

Got Comments?

Bob Bayn
LCI #685
Utah Bicycle Coalition board member
Cache Valley Veloists safety officer
                                                                     *****                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                            
((O.K. I was transfixed by that character and let slide some less than helpful suggestions. The interesting thing about PSA#4 is that non-bike
safety people relate to it.

There is a practical difference between being too narrow to share and being narrow but safely doable. The argument that the volunteer
firefighter is making is that it is better to "hug the line" than ride in the lane when hugging the line will allow safe passage for both car and
bike.

It makes sense. As does the argument that the rider should take the lane. But, in the mountains a biker taking the lane may not be seen (i.e.
just around a curve) until too late as many motorist take a Grand Prix approach to mountain driving (certainly here in California). I get the
argument that it is better to go into a blind curve as near the center line as possible so that visability will be maintained longer. The practical
reality is that as soon as the bike is not visible, is around the curve, it is blindly in the traffic lane for a speeding driver who is cutting corners
for sport. That is his argument.

My personal method of choice is to enter wide left and cut the apex as steeply as possible to be on the right side mid way 'round the bend.
Then hug that line until I'm clear and have straight road behind me. I think that most of us use a similar technique. We do that because we
sense that we are vulnerable for a few seconds and try to minimize the risk. I think that our friend was speaking to riders who don't realize
just how dangerous that situation can be. They expose themselves to unnecessary risk by staying exposed far too long. On a climb they may
be in the center of the lane going 5 mph as a hot rod SUV comes around the corner at 40 or 50.

His experience is that he has been called to multiple scenes to apply medical care to bikers who have been hit. He is not an LCI and he is not
speaking to all situations and, doggonit, he's a likable fellow. So, I went with it. From a LCI perspective he is totally wrong. Practically
speaking his words have merit, although they can be argued. And the counter argument is right.))

*****
"Thanks for your thoughtful and informative reply.  Sure you can post our exchange.  Emergency Medical folks tend to see only the bad
results and not all the other situations that their "solutions" would worsen.  And, maybe the mountain roads there are different than they are
here on the western front of the Rockies.  Also, my own perspective is more from regular transportation situations and less with organized
rides and races."  --Bob