Road Rules

So the big news in the pro men's peloton this past week was the big crash in the final sprint at the Tour de Suisse on Tuesday. Haussler came around Ciolek and was moving up on Cavendish and Cavendish moved over into him and the whole mess went down at 40 mph. Cavendish's deep dish wheel snapped in half from the impact of Haussler's front wheel. It was the end of Haussler's (and others', including a guy with a broken hip) Tour de Suisse. The next day the peloton protested Cavendish's act and delayed the start by 2 minutes.
article here:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/backlash-against-cavendish-after-swiss-crash
There were rumors that Cavendish spat on Haussler, and you can see Boonen runs over Cavendish (oopsie) in the video.


Interestingly, the announcer says it wasn't Cavendish's fault, but the guys who went through it obviously thought otherwise. These guys ride bikes for a living, and lots of money in the form of prizes and sponsorship is on the line for them, so they take chances and ride aggressively, and crashing is a fact of life and part of the deal, whether by accident or, unfortunately, sometimes on purpose.
Our mission and goal at Team Bikeway.com is to welcome everyone to the world of cycling and multi-sport, brand new or experienced, highly trained or not. To that end, I was glad this morning to welcome a couple of new riders at our girls only ride. As I chatted with them before starting our ride and went over a few important riding skills and things about group riding I realized I could probably talk for an hour about all of the things there are to learn and pay attention to on a group ride. As our team grows and more people join us on Saturday mornings, the group becomes a mix of people who have been riding together on the same roads for years and so don't even need to point out the potholes for each other anymore, really strong athletes who haven't been on a bike for too long, people who have been riding for a long time with much skill but ride for enjoyment, not necessarily speed, and everyone in between. Unfortunately, we've had a couple of accidents in the last two weeks so I just wanted to list a few things to be mindful of in a group ride, and which you should also be thinking of when training alone, to help keep us all safe.
(1) Follow the rules of the road. Cyclists must obey traffic signals and signs. You can and will get a ticket. Ride two abreast at most, and only when safe.
(2) Communicate with the group about traffic and obstacles, whether verbally or with hand gestures. "Car up", "car back", "car left", "slowing", indicate turns, point out potholes, roadkill, etc. At the same time, if taking your hand off the bars will cause you lose control, don't do it. And if you notice a pothole or rough patch at the last second, don't veer around it so violently you take out the person next to you.
(3) Hold your line. When you turn your head to talk to someone, reach down for a drink, clip in and out, get out of the seat to climb, or make a turn, keep your bike steady. When you are used to riding by yourself, you may not realize how much you are weaving around on the road when you do these things. The riders around you and only a few inches away from you are trusting you to be a steady wheel. Don't make unexpected turns without checking behind you and signaling. We can't read your mind.
(4) Learn how to keep one eye on the big picture while at the same time monitoring your position in the group. Be aware of what's ahead and behind you both on the road and on the side of the road, and anticipate events. If there is a car at the end of a side road (or even in a field where it's not supposed to be) always assume that the driver cannot see you/is stupid and will pull out in front of you. If you need to slow down, stop pedaling and sit up and put your knees out to catch some wind and let a bit of a gap form to the wheel in front of you, try not to panic and grab a handful of brakes sending the rider behind you into your back wheel.
(5) Remember you must learn to walk before you can run. Group riding skills are obviously best learned when riding in a group, and we are not born with the skills or the innate knowledge of the etiquette for group rides. But think about these things when training by yourself, and it will help us all on group ride days.
Thanks.