|
We Are All Responsible For Bicycle Safety
You can purchase the tools and accessories, from us, to keep your family's bicycles safe and in tip-top condition!
Don't Wait For An Accident
One of the most frightening experiences of my life was receiving a phone call from a hysterical wife telling me to hurry to the hospital, our youngest son, 13 years old, had been struck by a truck. He had been riding his bike and was taken by an ambulance to the emergency room. That was all the information I had. I went to the emergency room to find that he had survived with a broken arm, a very bruised hip and back, and a concussion. It could have been much worse. The experience reinforced the desire within me to push for safety in bicycling.
What Is The Cause Of Bicycle Accidents?
You can always find a cause for accidents. In the case of my son, his bicycle was in good condition and he was following the traffic rules. So what happened? When you look into the cause further, the only thing he might have done was choose a different route to ride. The road was narrow with very little shoulder. More of the blame rested with the driver that hit him. The driver was cited for inattentive and reckless driving. He was also driving on a suspended license. Perhaps I should have stressed even more about defensive riding, although the speed my son was hit from behind did not leave much time to react. It was estimated the driver was traveling from 45 to 50 miles per hour when he struck my son.
Wear Your Helmet!
I credit the fact that my son was wearing his helmet with his surviving the crash. He had a severe headache and nausea for several days following his accident, but if he had not been wearing a helmet he probably would not have survived at all.
How Can We Help To Prevent Bicycle Accidents?
There are several things we can do to help to prevent bicycle accidents from happening. As parents, we must teach our children bicycle safety from the time they begin to ride their tricycles as toddlers. You can get information from many sources, on the internet, on bicycle safety to teach your children. A couple of excellent sites are from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and also the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. Both have checklists for youth and adults as well as bicycle safety checklists for children. One thing we must do as parents, to teach safety to our children, is to teach by example. How can we teach them to wear their helmets if our actions say it is OK to ride without one? How can we teach them to follow traffic laws if we do not stop for stop signs? We must also ensure that the bicycles our children ride are in good mechanical condition. Our company can help you out with advice, procedures, and also with the proper tools to help to maintain the bicycles.
The Bike R.A.T.
337 SE Railroad Blvd. Suite: C
PO Box 1896 (mailing)
Redmond, Oregon 97756
USA
Phone: (541)693-4885
A division of Steven Graves Enterprises, Inc.
© Copyright 2007 - The Bike R.A.T.
Privacy Policy
|
HOME
