Tagesarchiv: 7. Februar 2010

In the not so distant past a group of riders encountered a big obstacle on a small road and a incident turned into an accident. Since that time I have wondered what could have happened and what did happen. At the end of it all I realized there was one thing missing in the equation, what should have happened. So I have been researching this and came up with a fairly good list of the „Rules of the Peloton“ of which I think there will be many additions to and hopefully a lot of discussion. As a team this discussion is a long time coming and may have happened and I missed it, I have been out for some time.

1. Pointing down at the ground (left or right) would indicate danger on the appropriate side. Move in the opposite direction to avoid hazards. Hazards would include potholes, cateyes (NB), painted lines (very slippery in wet weather), stones etc. Remember, it doesn’t have to be a large stone or boulder for you to indicate danger. Rather be safe than sorry – indicate any potential dangers. Make sure you also call out loud any obstacles in the road so people can hear you and take note of the problem.
2. Patting the bum. Patting YOUR left ‚cheek‘ with left hand would indicate to all riders following your wheel that there is something hazardous on the left and to move over to the right. This could be due to a parked car up ahead, slow riders which are going to be passed, a big patch of gravel or dangerous road ahead. Patting the right bum cheek with right hand indicates that the cyclist has riders must move over to the left.
3. Finger or hand up in the air – indicates that a rider has punctured or incurred some or other mechanical trouble that will result in him/her having to stop. When riding in a bunch, you can’t just pull your brakes and come to a screeching halt. Keep rolling and hold your line until everyone behind has passed, then pull off to the side for assistance.
4. Arm out with forearm at 90degrees towards the sky, hand up with all finger extended/or with a fist. Indicates that the group must slow down to stop – traffic lights or stop street or anything else that would bring the group to a stop. If it is traffic lights call out „LIGHTS“ loudly to get everyone’s attention.
5. Hand left or right with fingers normally extended shaking back and forth – indicates loose gravel or small stones in the path. Very common at intersection. Slow down and try and avoid ‚infected‘ area. Cornering should be done at slower speeds.
6. A 2-fingered downward point moving laterally, would indicate railway tracks ahead. The direction of the hand should indicate the angle at which the railway tracks cross the path. Be extremely cautious when crossing them and also go over the tracks at a 90degree angle, even if this means going wide and then cutting across to achieve this angle.

These are the main hands signals used whilst riding in a bunch.