Bike shop owners tell me they're selling more bikes this year to people who are returning to cycling for recreation and commuting. It seems that $4-a-gallon gas will prompt many people to consider the bike as an alternative to for their SUV. 

I applaud the choice - it's good for their health, it's good for the environment, and it's good for our friends at the bike shops (whose advertising dollars help make this magazine possible).

Two incidents in the last week prompt these thoughts:Story 1 - publisher Jeff Herron was in a bike shop and overheard a customer describe that she was returning to cycling, and asking about accessories she might need and whether it was true that the law required you to wear a helmet in all the parks. The shop staff clarified that only the Huron-Clinton Metroparks required helmets, and then asked the customer if she had a water bottle cage for her bike.

Story 2 - while waiting to make a left turn at a traffic light I saw a young women riding towards me in my side view mirror. Her helmetless hair and summer skirt flowed freely. She was clearly enjoying her new bike. Alas, she was riding on the sidewalk, against the flow of traffic, and when she came to the intersection she barreled into the pedestrian crosswalk at full speed without stopping or looking, directly into the path of a car as it made its left hand turn. An alert driver narrowly avoided hitting her.

These two anecdotes may not signal a massive trend, but in the current bike climate those of us who've been riding for years will be joined by riders who haven't been. They may not know the rules of the road or the importance of helmets.

So what's a cyclist (or editor) to do?

I'm not sure - I resisted the temptation to lower my car window and yell to the cyclist that she's not a pedestrian when she's on her bike (and to get a helmet!).

It seems Jeff couldn't resist the temptation to suggest to the bike shop customer that wearing a helmet is a really good idea everywhere, park rule or not.

Maybe these newbies present an opportunity - if you're a bike club president maybe this is a time to hook up with your bike shops to offer rider safety clinics. Or maybe a helpful hint about bike etiquette to a new rider will lead to an invitation to join the club for a group ride.

At a minimum it's an opportunity for patience. We were all new riders once. Doing what we can to help new riders learn the ropes will improve their introduction to cycling and make the roads a bit safer for all of us.

Thanks for reading.

Peggy Herron

Editor, Michigan Sports & Fitness Magazine 

Comments

Add New Search RSS

Write comment
Name:
Email:	do not notifynotify
Website:
Title:
	Please input the anti-spam code that you can read in the image.

Powered by !JoomlaComment 3.12

Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved.