Safety gear for your commute
Originally Posted by
mdadams1
What precautions do you take while commuting...ie lights, clothing etc.
Mike Adams
Originally Posted by
caloso
I wear a helmet and use a blinkie.
But the most important safety precaution is to anticipate.
Originally Posted by
Steely Dan
…i try to make myself visible with color: bright red bike, stark white helmet, and a bright colorful shirt.
in the darkness of winter i wear a hi-viz jacket with lots of reflective striping + reflective striping on my helmet. and of course front and rear lights.
and of course the most important safety measure: caution
that's about it.
Originally Posted by
Digger Goreman
As others mentioned: heightened vigilance and expect every possible person and thing to do "the stupid"....Clothing, lighting, reflectors, horn, and maintenance... all important.
On these perennial threads about cycle-commuting safety, as well as cycling safety in general I have frequently posted as a decades-long lifestyle cyclist, including year round cycle commuting.
This my approach to inculcate anticipation in my cycling:
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
So often on these threads about calamities or near misses, I post about my mindset that I believe gives me that extra edge.
Originally Posted by
FBinNY
In all fairness, I don't think there's anyone who's been riding for a long time, who hasn't at some time (or many times) ridden in that zone where the only thing separating us from disaster is favorable alignment of the stars. (Note the "us" rather than "him")
We all take chances and make mistakes, but fortunately life is"organized" with plenty of forgiveness.
In my experience the difference between disaster and "whew, that was close" is millimeters and microseconds, and not anything we can take credit for.
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
I try to keep safe with certain aphorisms in my head that come to mind to alert me when I encounter a situation where unseen dangers may lurk, such as “
Like a weapon, assume every stopped car is loaded, with an occupant ready to exit from either side.” or“
Don’t ride over an area (such as puddles or leaves) when you can’t see the road surface"
…I was hit from behind by a “distracted” (? inebriated) hit and run driver on an otherwise seemingly safe and peaceful route. By good fortune, I’m alive and relatively unimpaired.
Over the past few months I have come to realize that my safety aphorisms (link), collected over the years by personal or vicarious experience, are my way of actively aligning the stars in my favor, to anticipate those unseen and otherwise unanticipated dangers.
FWIW, for my own information at least, my other aphorisms beside those above [see the link: Total of nine (9)]