Last week, I had the pleasure of taking a cycling skills course under the expert tutelage of Chloë Black. The course was created by the the League of American Bicyclists, formerly League of American Wheelman, and the reason North America has paved roads today. Canada does have its own cycling education / certification body (CAN-BIKE), but they don’t have a strong presence outside of major urban centres.
The LAB course is structured to give teen and adult cyclists knowledge and skills to participate in traffic. A few points about the course:
- The instruction focuses on vehicular riding; that is, riding a bicycle like a slow(er) moving vehicle in traffic, with the same rules and responsibilities. In Canada, this makes sense: bikes are defined as vehicles by the MTO. Vehicular riding means interacting safely and legally with motorized traffic, and is a high visibility position for cyclists to act as ambassadors and advocates for other bikes out on the roads. Study after study shows that increasing the number of walkers and cyclists on the road makes for safer roads.
- It’s really empowering to set out on the road knowing the law that backs you up. Sure, doing the in-class drills and maneuvers gives you some experience to draw on in emergency situations, but all of that is crystallized into a sense of confidence as you go out and take the 3 ft / 1 metre to yourself.
- Cycling is safer than you think it is! 45% of biking accidents are cyclist-error — the majority being solitary accidents (i.e., you fell over). The next most dangerous (and illegal in Peterborough) spot is to be on the sidewalk. Eliminate those two simple things with some skill, experience and wise choices, and you’ve cut out an enormous wedge from the danger pie!
