Bicycle Board Members,
"Blinky lights" make terrible reflectors when they're off, e.g. dead
battery. The law requires a rear red reflector that's visible from
50-300 feet when illuminated by a motor vehicle's high-beams. Having a
blinky light with a dead battery and no reflector is a violation of the
law. Reflectors are effective if they are positioned to reflect light
from the motorists' headlights back to the motorists' eyes. Test your
blinky lights and reflectors by sitting in a car and viewing your bike
from behind. Studies show that blinky lights are more effective when
the light is on steady rather than blinking.
Why am I writing this? On my way home from work tonight, I came upon a
guy riding a bike with
a dead blinky and no reflector. He was totally invisible. Right now,
I'm freaking imagining that he might not have made it home alive.
Novice cyclists fear getting hit from behind although getting hit from
behind constitutes only 3% of crashes. Half of those happen at night
when the driver didn't see the cyclist. Most of the other half happen
during the day because the cyclist wasn't riding straight.
Practicing the knowledge and skills taught in Traffic Skills 101 can
reduce the chance of all crash types by one to two orders of
magnitude.
6 of our bike board members haven't taken the Road I/Traffic Skills 101
course. I think any bike board member should know such things that the
course teaches.
Only one member of the Bicycle Board responded to my 11/11 call for
members to join our education committee to implement the $68K grant we
received for a Morgantown Effective Cycling Education program.
I can't do it myself. Help.
Frank
Cyclists fare best when they act and are treated as drivers of
vehicles