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What are some good rules/etiquette for new cyclists?

  • 19-09-2012 10:19am
    #1
    candy_pants
    Closed Accounts Posts: 140 ✭✭


    Hi all,

    Apologies if there's a similar thread downstream somewhere - point me in the direction if so - but have just started cycling and trying to learn some good behaviour on the road.

    My goal is to make cycling my main method of commuting and I love being on the bike but I'm not experienced with dealing with other road users. I've done a practice cycle to work and I know I can do it faster than my bus commute and with relative ease so now I'm just worried about behaving correctly with other cyclists and cars.

    I have the cycle lane for 95% of my journey which is great. I'm pacey enough but not terribly fast so I'm happy for people to overtake me as long as they don't mind. However, I can be overly cautious and my fear is if I slow down or stop too abruptly that this will cause problems for cyclists behind me. Any tips on this or hand signals?

    Really any advice from experienced cyclists about their new cyclist pet peeves or the things they know cyclists do to cause accidents would be very helpful so I can avoid doing those things!

    Thanks


«1

Comments

  • #2
    buffalo
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,095 ✭✭✭buffalo


    Don't jump the queue at the lights. :)


  • #3
    candy_pants
    Closed Accounts Posts: 140 ✭✭candy_pants


    Just reading this: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056752751
    So duly noted!

    But that's exactly the type of tips I need so keep them coming please!


  • #4
    Lusk Doyle
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,365 ✭✭✭Lusk Doyle


    When dealing with "real" traffic the cyclist is always wrong!


  • #5
    Dermot Illogical
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,131 ✭✭✭Dermot Illogical


    There is no queue at lights.
    If you're faster than everyone else feel free to take up an advanced position.
    What causes pandemonium is slower cyclists elbowing their way to the front and then slowing everyone down when the lights turn green.


  • #6
    rp
    Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 1,227 ✭✭✭rp


    Some things worth keeping in mind:
    • Avoid the car door zone
    • Keep out of blind-spots
    • Never go up the left of possibly-left-turning trucks unless you wish do die a horrible death
    • If on a cycle path, be careful crossing junctions: this requires a 270 degree head-turn to do safely
    • Don't do anything unexpected
    • Don't pass me out and then slow down again
    • Hydrate
    ...and that's just for starters


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  • #7
    Cookie_Monster
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 24,522 ✭✭✭✭Cookie_Monster


    Same rules apply as when driving, thats about as complicated as it gets.
    And rule 1: don't be a dick.


  • #8
    candy_pants
    Closed Accounts Posts: 140 ✭✭candy_pants


    I'll probably never go front of the queue unless I was alone! If you're dealing with a set of lights that's on and island - see attached/below - and I'm unlucky enough not to have room, I don't want to just cram up and force myself to fit in (or should I?!) so where would I go?

    Sorry for all the stupid questions but I don't want to be that ignorant new cyclist on the road in rush hour!

    Thanks for all the other replies too - some I knew but it doesn't hurt to be told again.


  • #9
    Lumen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 31,138 ✭✭✭✭Lumen


    candy_pants wrote: »
    my fear is if I slow down or stop too abruptly that this will cause problems for cyclists behind me. Any tips on this or hand signals?

    Don't bother. If you're responding smoothly and predictably rather than just slamming the brakes on for no reason, there isn't an issue. Concentrate on what's ahead of you.

    ...and even if it does cause a problem, it's their fault for following too close.


  • #10
    Surveyor11
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,036 ✭✭✭Surveyor11


    Always look over your shoulder before jettisoning a snot rocket.


  • #11
    awec
    Administrators Posts: 54,091 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭awec


    candy_pants wrote: »
    I'll probably never go front of the queue unless I was alone! If you're dealing with a set of lights that's on and island - see attached/below - and I'm unlucky enough not to have room, I don't want to just cram up and force myself to fit in (or should I?!) so where would I go?

    Sorry for all the stupid questions but I don't want to be that ignorant new cyclist on the road in rush hour!

    Thanks for all the other replies too - some I knew but it doesn't hurt to be told again.
    You mean if there's a bus or taxi stopped in the bus lane and the cycle lane is blocked by them being poorly positioned?

    At lights just get as near to the front as you can, if the lane is blocked or if there's so little room it'd be a hassle then I don't bother. Just wait behind the offending vehicle.


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  • #12
    rp
    Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 1,227 ✭✭✭rp


    candy_pants wrote: »
    If you're dealing with a set of lights that's on and island - see attached/below - and I'm unlucky enough not to have room, I don't want to just cram up and force myself to fit in (or should I?!) so where would I go?
    If you are going straight ahead at that junction, I would stay as far to the right of your lane (forget the red paint) as you can: too many times, cars will lash up the outside and cut across to go left. Road positioning will save your life in such circumstances....


  • #13
    ednwireland
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 14,453 ✭✭✭✭ednwireland


    10 posts and no mention of the Velominati

    http://www.velominati.com/the-rules/
    ;)

    My weather

    https://www.ecowitt.net/home/share?authorize=96CT1F



  • #14
    candy_pants
    Closed Accounts Posts: 140 ✭✭candy_pants


    ednwireland wrote: »
    10 posts and no mention of the Velominati

    http://www.velominati.com/the-rules/
    ;)
    I found that site last night while doing a general search! I think the Velominati will hate me. For now I just have two rules

    1. Stay alive
    2. Irritate fellow cyclists as little as possible


  • #15
    sled driver
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 227 ✭✭sled driver


    In the words of Graeme Obree "look wobbly" :D


  • #16
    MB Lacey
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,277 ✭✭✭MB Lacey


    I'd advise not doing what a lot of (usually female) cyclists do, cower into the kerb at the sight of a faster/ 'more experienced' cyclist wanting to overtake, cycling near to the kerb is dangerous for you!
    Keep to your safe position in the middle of the cycle lane, if someone wants to overtake you and they're experienced, they'll overtake whilst giving you and them plenty of space - keeping you both safe.


  • #17
    Terence_om
    Registered Users Posts: 1 ✭Terence_om


    Finally a place to vent ...

    ... please if you are on the front after a climb, continue to pedal over the crest of the hill, shift down to a small cog and pedal down the other side. There is nothing more annoying than lads on the front coasting, everybody behind has to hold the brakes to avoid going into the back of the lad in front.

    Unless you have been the one hammering it front on the climb to drop the big lads. In which case it is completely acceptable to coast down the descent, looking behind you impatiently until the group reforms.


  • #18
    Lumen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 31,138 ✭✭✭✭Lumen


    Terence_om wrote: »
    Finally a place to vent ... please if you are on the front after a climb, continue to pedal over the crest of the hill, shift down to a small cog and pedal down the other side. There is nothing more annoying than lads on the front coasting, everybody behind has to hold the brakes to avoid going into the back of the lad in front.

    This is excellent advice for a newbie commuter.


  • #19
    Jawgap
    Closed Accounts Posts: 20,297 ✭✭✭✭Jawgap


    Surveyor11 wrote: »
    Always look over your shoulder before jettisoning a snot rocket.

    Snot rockets go to the inside unless you are trying to discourage a wheelsucker!

    Don't be afraid to say good morning / afternoon to a cyclist you are passing or being passed by, or acknowledge another cyclist going in a different direction

    Safety trumps convenience - in that context, observe the Rules of the Road in spirit and letter (feel free to ignore the RSA in respect of cycling though) - no point in being legally right when you're in the A&E

    Signal

    Don't filter at speed / dangerously through stalled traffic

    Shouting at peds or other road users even when they are being thick or stupid is not cool

    Enjoy the 'race-that-cannot-be-mentioned' - do not talk about Bike Club!

    If riding two-abreast (as opposed to work :-) ) don't half-wheel

    Enjoy and be excellent to anyone you meet, and as the RSA say "don't get into shouting matches with motorists."


  • #20
    rp
    Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 1,227 ✭✭✭rp


    candy_pants wrote: »
    I think the Velominati will hate me.
    The rules on the velominati site only apply to leisure cyclists: couriers, commuters and anyone else not just doing it for the fun of it can ignore them.


  • #21
    buffalo
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,095 ✭✭✭buffalo


    rp wrote: »
    The rules on the velominati site only apply to leisure cyclists, couriers, commuters and anyone else not just doing it for the fun of it can ignore them.

    FYP


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  • #22
    Seweryn
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,487 ✭✭✭Seweryn


    Lusk Doyle wrote: »
    When dealing with "real" traffic the cyclist is always wrong!
    Thake it the way as there is no such thing as "you and real traffic".

    You are traffic.


  • #23
    Lusk Doyle
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,365 ✭✭✭Lusk Doyle


    Seweryn wrote: »
    Thake it the way as there is no such thing as "you and real traffic".

    You are traffic.

    Ah, but you see I already am aware of this Mr Seweryn!

    These are from here.

    The problem is that no matter how good and well behaved you are there is always someone for whom that is not enough.


  • #24
    Sagi
    Registered Users Posts: 217 ✭✭Sagi


    Cycle with lights and ideally reflective gear when it's dark


  • #25
    Seweryn
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,487 ✭✭✭Seweryn


    Lusk Doyle wrote: »
    Ah, but you see I already am aware of this Mr Seweryn!

    These are from here.

    The problem is that no matter how good and well behaved you are there is always someone for whom that is not enough.
    Yeah, all true and unfortunately, this is a seriously annoying problem based on the way we grown up and were educated.


  • #26
    Hungrycol
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,246 ✭✭✭Hungrycol


    I find it safer to take the lane on a roundabout, i.e. cycle in the middle of the lane on approach and on the roundabout.


  • #27
    Wishbone Ash
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 25,011 ✭✭✭✭Wishbone Ash


    Read the road ahead to maintain your momentum. If you see an obstruction ahead, check behind you and, if safe, move out and take up your position early. Don't wait until you are right up to the obstruction before trying to move out.


  • #28
    Dermot Illogical
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,131 ✭✭✭Dermot Illogical


    Cycle far enough away from car doors that you are safe when one opens, as it inevitably will.


  • #29
    Colonel Panic
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,029 ✭✭✭Colonel Panic


    I just assume everyone is trying to kill me and cycle accordingly.

    It's also worth reading Cyclecraft. Helped me a lot when I went from being someone who mostly drives to commuting by bike.


  • #30
    candy_pants
    Closed Accounts Posts: 140 ✭✭candy_pants


    Thanks everyone - really helpful info. I can't wait to actually get on with it now. In a nutshell, don't skip queues or prevent someone faster than me from being able to overtake, don't be stupid, have sense and all will be fine. Hopefully.


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  • #31
    Piercemeear
    Registered Users Posts: 200 ✭✭Piercemeear


    I know this is probably something you are already doing, but: stop at red lights! New commuters often see so many cyclists going through red lights that they begin (I think) to feel like an idiot for not doing the same. Hold your nerve.

    Another half-way point is cyclists stopping at the red light (of a crossroads perhaps), but only after cruising through the pedestrian crossing that is currently green for pedestrians. Pedestrians are unpredictable and squishy. Better to stop at the white line (or just beyond it).

    Slow down if you're filtering through traffic up to a red light. Walkers will appear heedlessly from behind larger vehicles.


  • #32
    RobertFoster
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,228 ✭✭✭RobertFoster


    Stay on the road and off the footpad.

    Don't cycle against traffic, even if there's a (single lane) cycle track. It's called salmoning, and it's dangerous.

    Enjoy yourself.


  • #33
    Jawgap
    Closed Accounts Posts: 20,297 ✭✭✭✭Jawgap


    A document that deserves wider circulation.....

    Sean Kelly’s Guide to cycling

    Pg 40 to about 55 has some useful stuff about etiquette, positioning etc - some of it is race or group oriented, but a lot is sound practical advice for people cycling to work or just out for a bit of a spin.


  • #34
    Flandria
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 398 ✭✭Flandria


    ;)Sock length


  • #35
    Lumen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 31,138 ✭✭✭✭Lumen


    Flandria wrote: »
    Sock height

    Fixed that for you.

    See, I thought I understood everything about sock height until I tried to apply the well-documented rules to women. In the informal survey I conducted it appeared that the women were not liking of the tall socks. Initially I thought this was just because they hadn't thought it through properly, or because of some mental association with school uniforms, but recently I spotted an otherwise perfect physical specimen wearing tall socks and...it just looked wrong. I do not know why.


  • #36
    Flandria
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 398 ✭✭Flandria


    Lumen wrote: »
    Fixed that for you.

    See, I thought I understood everything about sock height until I tried to apply the well-documented rules to women. In the informal survey I conducted it appeared that the women were not liking of the tall socks. Initially I thought this was just because they hadn't thought it through properly, or because of some mental association with school uniforms, but recently I spotted an otherwise perfect physical specimen wearing tall socks and...it just looked wrong. I do not know why.

    Was she a short physical specimen with average socks per chance?


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  • #37
    Lumen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 31,138 ✭✭✭✭Lumen


    Flandria wrote: »
    Was she a short physical specimen with average socks per chance?

    No. Normal height woman. Tall crew socks. It was bad.

    Although I'll accept that crew socks are wrong in and of themselves, the tallness definitely wasn't helping.


  • #38
    Lusk Doyle
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,365 ✭✭✭Lusk Doyle


    RobertFoster wrote: »
    Stay on the road and off the footpadth.

    Don't cycle against traffic, even if there's a (single lane) cycle track. It's called salmoning, and it's dangerous.

    Enjoy yourself.

    Fixed that for you.


  • #39
    Harrybelafonte
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,450 ✭✭✭Harrybelafonte


    Wear something that covers your lower back and arse, more applicable to men I guess. Seriously, I just had breakfast, and muffins weren't on the menu.

    Ladies, leggings are not yoga pants and I can see your underwear when you're sitting on the bike. Some pervy types may like this, but personally I feel your white underwear displays a lack of creativity.


  • #40
    Overature
    Registered Users Posts: 908 ✭✭✭Overature


    DO NOT use the bus lane or road when there is a cycle track availible


  • #41
    Lumen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 31,138 ✭✭✭✭Lumen


    Overature wrote: »
    DO NOT use the bus lane or road when there is a cycle track availible

    Give over.


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  • #42
    Flandria
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 398 ✭✭Flandria


    Overature wrote: »
    DO NOT use the bus lane or road when there is a cycle track availible

    Unless you feel like it


  • #43
    buffalo
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,095 ✭✭✭buffalo


    Overature wrote: »
    DO NOT use the bus lane or road when there is a cycle track availible

    The bus lane is also a cycle lane, unless the bus lane is contra-flow.


  • #44
    Jawgap
    Closed Accounts Posts: 20,297 ✭✭✭✭Jawgap


    Overature wrote: »
    DO NOT use the bus lane or road when there is a cycle track availible

    Why not?


  • #45
    jinkypolly
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 514 ✭✭✭jinkypolly


    Overature wrote: »
    DO NOT use the bus lane or road when there is a cycle track availible

    Gawd, another petrol head.


  • #46
    CramCycle
    Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 25,172 Mod ✭✭✭✭CramCycle


    Overature wrote: »
    DO NOT use the bus lane or road when there is a cycle track availible

    Unless of course said cycle path is unfit for use and dangerous to cycle in eg finely coated with shattered glass, manhole covers slippy from rain and grime on corners, littered in pedestrians, blocked by parked cars, pitted with potholes, you have to jump a curb that would could damage you or your bike on the ascent, one that ends randomly either at a bus stop, at a dust bin, at a lamp post, in a position where you would have to dismount as the designers never considered what would happen if there was a cyclist on the cycle path, one without proper signage because if they forgot the signage, who knows what other minimum requirements they have neglected to include and so on.


  • #47
    candy_pants
    Closed Accounts Posts: 140 ✭✭candy_pants


    Jawgap wrote: »
    A document that deserves wider circulation.....

    Sean Kelly’s Guide to cycling

    Pg 40 to about 55 has some useful stuff about etiquette, positioning etc - some of it is race or group oriented, but a lot is sound practical advice for people cycling to work or just out for a bit of a spin.

    I've just been reading this - it's fantastic so thank you!


  • #48
    RobertFoster
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,228 ✭✭✭RobertFoster


    Lusk Doyle wrote: »
    Fixed that for you.
    But it wasn't broken :(


  • #49
    doozerie
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,830 ✭✭✭doozerie


    Overature wrote: »
    DO NOT use the bus lane or road when there is a cycle track availible

    Ah Ian, 'tis yourself. Welcome to boards.

    ian_paisley.jpg


  • #50
    billyhead
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,962 ✭✭✭billyhead


    doozerie wrote: »
    Ah Ian, 'tis yourself. Welcome to boards.

    ian_paisley.jpg

    Always be alert and expect the unexpected with drivers. Dont listen to a radio or Ipod when cycling as it can distract your focus. Basically once your on the road make sure your on the ball and tuned in


  • #51
    whacker00
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 235 ✭✭whacker00


    Jawgap wrote: »
    Snot rockets go to the inside unless you are trying to discourage a wheelsucker!

    Don't be afraid to say good morning / afternoon to a cyclist you are passing or being passed by, or acknowledge another cyclist going in a different direction
    ."



    This is a great one, just started out cycling myself. my first spin about a month ago everyone was saluting and waving as i passed, i didnt know what was going on at first, i know us irish are a friendly bunch bbut i couldnt figure out why everyone was saying hello, thought i had a big NEWBIE sign on me back :) Now its great to see it especially as you reach the bottom of a steep climb and you see other cyclists flying down the other side and a big "best of luck salute"


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