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Safety Note and Warning !
Recently some new Strays, and unfortunately some long time Strays
also,
have endangered other members of our ride group by not observing the LAB
verbal
passing warning protocol.
I have been too tolerant of this dangerous and inconsiderate behavior
in
the past, but that is over. From now on if you have
to
be warned to let others know that you are passing them by calling out
'ON YOUR LEFT', 'passing', or similar, and you persist in
passing without warning, you will no longer be a Strays
member. Observe this all important safety protocol or find
some
other group to ride with; I don't want anyone on my rides who has a
cavalier
attitude about the safety of their fellow riders. Get with the
program
or get out.
As a rule when you are about to pass someone ahead of you, you should
warn
them verbally as you approach (not when you are already beside them), allow
at
least a yard (3 feet) of distance between your right handle bar and their
left
handlebar (more distance if possible), and avoid passing on the right. If
you do
have to pass on the right, make especially sure that the rider you are
overtaking is aware that you are passing on that side by calling out loudly
'on
your right'.
If you are passing with 6 or 7 feet of space between you and the
cyclist
you are passing, it might not seem necessary to warn them of your approach,
but
doing so will reduce the likelihood of them veering in to your
path or
suddenly doing a left turn on you.
Never fail to provide a verbal
warning simply because the
person being passed has a mirror, they may not be looking in the
mirror.
I am aware that some other ride groups behave differently,
in
terms of warnings and passing distance, than what I am demanding of
Strays;
but I do not have to account for the accidents that occur on those rides.
Those
other rides are available to anyone who finds the Strays safety protocols
too
much of an imposition on their riding style.
If you need to review the safety protocols provided by the LAB check
them
out via the link from the Strays web description: http://gccfla.org/strays.html
Strays have had an impressive record in terms of avoiding bike to bike
accidents, lets keep it that way.
Rob Wilt
Strays Leader
GCC
VP
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