2/28/2023 0 Comments Bike signalsThe signals shown in this article are are combination of signals recommended by the United States NHTSA and signals that are commonly used in group rides. Now that you know it’s important to use bike hand signals, what ARE the specific cycling hand signals you should use? More Reading: 5 Tips for Your First Group Ride.An awesome helmet meant I was ultimately OK, but that was after a fancy ambulance ride and a number of stitches on my face.Ĭalling things out, coupled with appropriate hand signals, is a surefire way to keep everyone in your group in the know, and keep everyone safe. I went into the back wheel of the bike in front of me, fell, and hit my head and slid along the pavement. My worst cycling crash ever was in a group ride when the riders in front of me abruptly slowed without calling out or signaling. One of the most important things to signal and call out in group rides is when you are slowing and stopping. Saying “left turn!” or “hole!” or “tracks!” certainly goes a long way to making sure those behind you know what is on the road in front of YOU. The most obvious way to do this is to call things out. You want to be sure everyone in the group knows turns that are coming up, and hazards that are in the road. This makes it tough to see what’s coming ahead. When in a group ride, you are often “on the wheel” of the cyclist in front of you. In addition to making your intentions clear to motorists, you also want to communicate clearly to cyclists. Communicate In a Group Ride to Avoid a Cycling Crash As a road cyclist, you want to do everything you can to communicate your intentions to drivers and stay safe. Still, there are also times where motorists hit cyclists due to a miscommunication. Of course there will be motorists who are simply not paying attention. In order to stay as safe as possible on the road, it is important to communicate clearly to motorists and to other cyclists if you’re riding in a group, and a great way to do this is through cycling hand signals. Even though traffic on the roads decreased by as much as 40% for months at a time, there were still over 600 cycling deaths in 2020 according to an in-depth study by Outside magazine. You may think that since there were fewer cars on the road in 2020 due to the pandemic that statistics would improve significantly, but they did not. This was the deadliest year of cycling crashes since 1990. Fatal cycling accidents have been on the rise since 2010, and in the US in 2018, 846 cyclists were killed in traffic crashes according to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). I know of many cyclists who prefer to cycling off the road on trails because of the harrowing statistics regarding cycling accidents. Communicate Your Intentions Clearly to Avoid A Vehicle Accident You might be tempted to skip it altogether, but this is a huge mistake. It definitely can feel like a lot, and if you are a little challenged in the coordination department like I am, it can feel scary and intimidating. Now you have to take one hand off the handle bars to signal! You are just getting comfortable on your bike and getting used to clipping in. When you first start cycling, hand signals can feel a little awkward. Some signals are honestly better to use in a group vs, solo, so we will go over that too! Why You Need To Use Bike Hand Signals So, that being said, what are the best bike hand signals, and how and when should you use them? In this article, we will review the commonly used hand signals on the bike, and discuss when to use what signal. Different group rides, for example, may have different rules/norms or different commonly used signals than what you are used to using while riding on the road. Now, this all seems quite obvious, and should be rather simple, but unfortunately it can start to feel a lot more complex. Safety on the bike is so important, and it’s absolutely vital to clearly communicate to motorists and other cyclists where you are going and what you are planning to do. When riding a bike, whether you are riding solo or riding in a group, you must know and use cycling hand signals.
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