Bike To Work Day Friday. Use Your Head And Wear A Helmet!

Tomorrow is Bike to Work Day. MCFRS would like to remind all of you participating in this wonderful event to Use Your Head and Wear A Helmet!

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Highway Loss Data Institute, helmet use has been estimated to reduce the odds of head injury by 50 percent, and the odds of head, face, or neck injury by 33 percent.

So, please enjoy Bike To Work Day safely! Our fire and rescue personnel do not wish to meet you by "accident" tomorrow!

More safety tips below from the University of Utah.

10 Bike-Related Recalls to Check Out Before You Hit the Road

Bike to Work Day is this Friday.  In advance of that I would encourage all of you to take a peek at the chart below from our friends at the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to check to see if your bikes,  components or accessories have been recalled before taking them out on the road this Friday (or any day).

As always when riding your bikes: Use Your Head and Wear a Helmet!

Happy biking this Friday!

Note: by clicking on any of the images below, you can view a larger version.

Product	Recall Press Release	Hazard	Photos
Bridgeway Bicycles (91,000 units)	11-331	The bicycle chain can break, causing a rider to lose control and fall.
Trek 2012 FX and District bicycles (27,000 units)	12-024	The bolt that secures the seat saddle clamp to the seat post can break posing a fall hazard.
Fuji Saratoga Women's Bicycles (10,500 units)	12-112	The bicycle's frame can break in the center of the downtube during use, causing the rider to lose control and fall.
Public Bikes 2010 through 2012 Model Year Bicycles (4,100 units)	12-145	The pedals can crack and break, posing a fall hazard to the rider.
Specialized 2012 bicycles with Advanced Group carbon forks (460 units)	12-096	The brake component housed within the bicycle’s carbon fork can disengage from the fork and allow the brake assembly to contact the wheel spokes while rotating, posing a fall hazard.
Chariot bicycle trailers (44,000 units) and bicycle trailer conversion kits (70,000 units)	12-085	The bicycle trailer’s hitch mechanisms can crack and break, causing the trailer to detach from the bicycle. This poses an injury hazard to children in the bicycle trailer.
Topeak Babyseat® II Bicycle Carrier Seats (40,000 units)	12-143	A child can place his or her fingers in the opening at the grab bar’s hinge mechanism. When the consumer lifts the grab bar to remove the child from the seat, the child’s fingertips can be caught in the hinge mechanism, posing a laceration and fingertip amputation hazard to the child.
Little Tricky Bicycle Helmets (30,400 units)	12-082	Product testing demonstrated that these helmets do not comply with CPSC safety standards for impact resistance. Consumers could suffer impact head injuries in a fall.
GT, Giant and Trek Bicycles with SR Suntour Suspension Forks (17,000 units)	12-149	The suspension fork's internal support tubes can break and cause the rider to lose control, fall and crash.
Gore Bicycle Brake Cables for Road Bikes (9,700 units)	12-125	When the brake cables are installed on Campagnolo® style brake levers, they can detach, causing the brakes to fail and posing a fall hazard.

---

Safety Tips for Bike To Work Day

Are you riding your bike to work today?  If so, make sure you do so safely!  Use your head and wear a helmet!

I found these Five Steps to Riding Better from the League of American Bicyclists that I thought some of you might find useful.

Be safe out there today and be seen!

-Bill

Five Steps to Riding Better

1. Follow the Rules of the Road
• Ride with traffic and obey the same laws as motorists.
• Use the rightmost lane that heads in the direction
that you are traveling.
• Obey all traffic control devices, such as stop signs,
lights, and lane markings.
• Always look back and use hand and arm signals
to indicate your intention to stop, merge or turn.

2. Be Visible
• Ride where drivers can see you.
• Wear brightly colored clothing at all times.
• At night, use a white front light and red rear light
or reflector. Wear reflective tape or clothing.

3. Be Predictable
• Ride in a straight line and don’t swerve between
parked cars.
• Make eye contact with motorists to let them
know you are there.
• Do not ride on the sidewalk.

4. Anticipate Conflicts
• Be aware of traffic around you and be prepared
to take evasive action.
• Learn braking and turning techniques to
avoid crashes.
• Be extra alert at intersections.

5. Wear a Helmet
• Make sure that the helmet fits on top of your
head, not tipped back or forward.
• After a crash or any impact that affects your
helmet, visible or not, replace it immediately.