Something to Think About: Sharing the Road

Last Wednesday I rode outside on some roads where I was climbing with limited shoulders and on some flat roads that have decent shoulder space, but there are some very tight turns on the descents where you may have to move into the car lane to manage them — sometimes going faster than the cars are.

That ride prompted me to put together some suggestions for riding outside. Note that in most places, bike law legally defines bikes as vehicles, and there are many bike-friendly provisions in the law — though the details vary from state to state, so know the rules where you ride. The issue is that, despite equivalency, if you get hit by a car on your bike, things don't end well for you. So, even if you are in the right, you are still the one on the ground.

I ride outside a lot both on my Time Trial Bike and my Road Bike, either in groups or by myself. As such, I have become, to the best of my ability, a very “predictive” rider, meaning I recognize that “Share the Road” is a slogan directed at car drivers to be cognizant of cyclists, but, I've come to realize that there are things that I can do while riding to be more cognizant that car drivers have places to go and no one comes up on a group of cyclists and thinks “Great, I get to slow down and try to pass these folks”.

So below are some practices that I have engaged in when out riding. There are plenty more riding topics and things that you can do (e.g., rear blinking red lights, bright riding kits); but, in this case, just wanted to provide some suggestions for you. Although much of what is shared are “Common Practices”, you'll also see reference to “Personally” which means these are things that I do when riding. So, this isn't dogma, it's just some advice on how to “Share the Road”.

Sharing the Road Suggestions

Riding Alone

1) Where on the road does one ride? Personally, I try to ride halfway between the white line and the shoulder of the road (but, if I have more space I tend to ride 6" to 12" from the shoulder of the road as I want to stay as far away from the car lane as I confidently and comfortably can based upon road and weather conditions). I want to have room enough so that I can maneuver left or right to avoid obstacles or pot holes without crossing the white lane into the car lane. When there is little shoulder, at a minimum, if possible, I try to stay 6" to the right of the white line so that my handle bars are to the right of it. I do this as car drivers may not consider that their side mirror may stick out pretty far and could brush my shoulder or arm. Further, if my riding space is limited, I do glance back more frequently to see if there are cars behind me, again, in the case I need to maneuver around an obstacle in front of me and enter into the car lane. (Story: I was out riding and a U-Haul truck came by me and, the side mirror, which stuck out really far, brushed my shoulder. The guy could have easily moved over to give me more space, but didn’t. Up ahead, there was some construction and the flagger stopped all the cars. So, as I caught up to him, I was going to call him, something similar to "A Big Dummie", but when he rolled the window down on my request, I changed tack and just told him that I need him to give cyclists more space as the mirror sticks out really far. He said that he didn’t realize, apologized, and thanked me for letting me know.)

2) What if I have to cross the white line into the car lane to avoid an obstacle? Personally, when I need to cross the white line into the car lane to avoid an obstacle or, if the road narrows (for example, a short bridge eliminates the shoulder of the road), before I cross into the car lane, I glance back to make sure there isn’t a car immediately there and I’ll need to brake a bit as I need it to pass, but, if the lane, at the time, is clear, before I enter, I put my left arm out at a 45 degree angle and gesture left and right hoping that they recognize that I need more space, glance over my shoulder again, then very slowly move to the left to avoid the obstacle and keep my right hand ready to hit the brake if I need to. If I have more time to work with, I glance back to make sure there isn’t a car immediately there and then put my left arm out at a 45 degree angle down, hand wide open with my palm facing the car, and with a shaking gesture, indicate that I need them to slow or move over as I need to move over. After I avoided the obstacle, I regain my original line on the shoulder. If the car driver hadn’t passed me, I turn my hand around and swing my arm/hand forward indicating they can pass. As they do, I wave and give them a thumbs up. My effort to safely deal with my obstacle and "Share the Road". (Story: On my ride last Wednesday, up a canyon climb, I got dropped by my skinny friends and was left on my own for the remaining 15 miles. I decided to do a test where, some cars I’d wave my hand to pass and others I would do nothing but move over a little to the right as there was little shoulder to work with. I found that every single car I waved forward moved all the way over to the opposite lane when passing me while those I didn’t wave forward and just moved over only went over a half lane; yeah, and one dude buzzed me...)

3) What if the road is twisty and the car wants to pass, but they are in a solid yellow line, "no pass zone"? Those are the cases where I find car drivers can be frustrated as they really can’t safely pass me. I want them to recognize that I know they are there and, as I am ahead of them, try to look up the road to see if they can safely pass. When I am confident it is safe, I will gesture to them to pass me by waving my hand in a forward motion. And when they do, of course I give them a wave and a thumbs up. :) Note, every time I’ve done this, I find that the cars move into the opposite lane and accelerate quickly to pass me.

4) What about making a left turn? Personally, when I am going to make a left turn, similarly, I first look over my left shoulder to see if there are cars, then signal with a straight arm and pointed finger that I am turning. I don’t assume that the cars will wait for me, so further look back to see if the coast is clear or the car has slowed to let me turn. Then, I signal again and as I make the turn, wave to the car and give them a thumbs up.

5) What if I am riding pretty fast and see a car at a stop sign on my right? Personally, my biggest concern is that the driver of the car sees me and doesn’t realize just how fast I am going or doesn’t see me at all and I am coming up on them quickly. In these cases, when I have concerns, I feather the brakes with my right hand and wave to them with my left hand in hopes of them seeing me better. Generally what happens is that, when they notice you, their eyes will open wider (you can actually see the "whites of their eyes") so I know, at least, that they see me coming but always put my hands back on the brakes and assess options if they do pull out in front of me.

6) What about descending at high speeds? Being comfortable descending at higher and higher speeds is a skill to be developed and another topic for a different day. But, for the sake of this discussion, personally, when descending at high speeds, I do slowly creep out into the car lane depending on how fast I am going as I want to be sure I have room enough to maneuver around obstacles or pot holes and be able to use as much of the lane as I can to navigate sharp turns. I do take a look at the speed limit so I know if I am going as fast as the cars are and really have the right to use the full lane. But, before I do move out, I always check over my left shoulder to make sure there isn’t a car right there trying to pass and, if there is, will either wave them through or will use the open hand gesture (shared above) to indicate to them I want them to wait to pass me. When the road flattens a bit, I always glance over my left shoulder quickly to see if they are trying to get around me, move closer to the right shoulder, then wave them through. Again, sharing the road by letting them know I am aware they are there and that I want them to pass me when it is safe to do so.

Riding in Groups

7) What distance should I ride between myself and the rider in front of me? When riding in groups, work to stay within a bike length or less and work to stay in a straight line (Note: the law in many places allows you to ride side by side as long as you aren’t impeding traffic, but, personally, I don’t like it as you almost always end up impeding traffic.) If the line of riders is very stretched out; for example, spacing is 2+ bike lengths per rider, the problem created for the car driver is that it makes passing the group difficult as a driver has a much longer space to manage. The spacing distance is determined based upon your capability as a rider, how familiar you are with rider in front of you (i.e., if you ride with the same people, you tend to learn how they ride and their tendencies so you become more comfortable moving a little closer), and the condition of the road (i.e., the worse the road conditions or weather, the more space you want as you need to see). As much as you want to trust folks to call out obstacles, if they don’t and you hit a hole and crash, yeah, it’s their fault for not notifying you, but you’re the one on the ground... Another critical point about riding in groups is to never cross your front wheel with the wheel of the rider in front of you as they may need to make a sudden move and could hit your front wheel which can result in a crash. Personally, this is a problem I run into as, due to being 200+ lbs, I often have 30 - 50 pounds on folks I ride with, so anytime we get on a road with even the slightest descent, I will start to overtake them, so I’m very cognizant of who is in front of me and my spacing based upon that.

8) When leading a paceline, how do I drop off the front? Personally, if I am leading a pace line and going to drop back, I glance over my shoulder to be sure I can move off the lead and there’s not a car there. I then wiggle my right arm if I intend to move to the left (and my left if moving to the right). If I am new to many of the riders, I wait to go to the front until I get a sense of which direction the pace rotates so as not to cause a problem. If you are riding on flat terrain where there is a lot of opportunities to do real pace lines, it is good to come to an agreement as to which way the paceline will rotate.

9) What should I be sure to call out when riding? The goal is to provide necessary information to others in the group. There’s a lot to be said, but the big one is to call out obstacles and holes; for example, "Hole Right" (and don’t hesitate to be loud). Others are "Car Back", "Car/Runner Up", "Stopping" or "Slowing" (to include making a hand signal behind your back by showing your palm backward with your fingers pointed down), and when passing someone, saying, "On Your Left" (I like to throw in a "How are you" or "Good Morning" pending time of day...)

In Summary

Sharing the road goes both ways. Drivers need to be aware of us, but we do ourselves — and every cyclist who comes after us — no favors by acting like the road is ours alone.

Be predictable. Communicate early and clearly — look, signal, gesture. Let drivers know you see them, that you know they’re there, and that you’ll help them get around you when it’s safe. And when they do, thank them for it. A wave and a thumbs up go a long way.

Because here’s the bottom line that runs through every one of these suggestions: you can be completely in the right and still be the one on the ground. Riding this way won’t make every driver happy, and it won’t eliminate the risk — nothing will. But it will make you a safer, more welcome presence on the roads you ride, wherever those roads are.

We all want the same thing: to get home safely from the ride. Share the road like it.

About the Author

John Bye is a USA Triathlon Certified Level 2 Coach based in Golden, Colorado, and the founder of Bring Your Everyday Beast Coaching (B.Y.E.-BEAST LLC). At 200-plus pounds, he is a relative giant in the sport and understands the challenges of racing as a high-BMI athlete. He coaches highly motivated athletes of all shapes, sizes, and ages — including his ‘Wolfpack’ team ranging from first-time triathletes to competitive age-groupers. John has completed well over 150 triathlons at all distances, including multiple Team USA World Championship appearances, Ironman 70.3 World Championships, and Ironman World Championships in Kona. Visit www.bye-beastcoaching.com or contact him at hijohnbye@gmail.com or 312-320-9606