The Bombay Bicycle Club promotes a high standard of safety and rider etiquette for the wellbeing of you and your fellow riders. Please be lawful and respectful by following WI State bicycle laws and the below BBC Safe Riding Code.

Please also be courteous to all road users. For example, offer to assist a fellow rider in need of help. Be friendly and courteous to runners, walkers and town residents - say hi, wave. Share the road by riding single file when needed so vehicles can pass you safely. Allow space for vehicles turning right at intersections when your group is going left or straight. Read this document periodically to remind yourself about riding safety.

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Feeling Unwell or Been Exposed?
Please be respectful of your fellow riders and avoid riding and socializing with the Club if you are feeling unwell or have been exposed to anyone with flu, Covid or RSV.

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BBC Safe Riding Code

• Every close call or worse, an accident is the result of something unexpected. The pothole lurking in the shadows, the gravel on the corner, the fallen branch or the speeding car coming over the brow of the hill. Your best defenses are:
  
  • Remain present, alert and focused on riding. Don't let your mind wander to thoughts that will distract you
  • Never get complacent about safety. An accident free record has no influence on your next ride
  • Constantly check what's happening around you, especially at intersections and any time you're out to the left of your line
  • Trust but verify when a rider says "all clear" or that a green light doesn't have a vehicle running a red light
  • Anticipate other road users' actions
• Obey red lights and stop signs. Don’t assume a Stop intersection is 4 way. Always watch out for vehicles coming across you at high speed
• Ride 3 ft from the edge of the road and parked vehicles
• Never cross the actual or an implicit center line, especially going fast downhill. Be aware that a fast downhill turn to the right will cause you to veer towards the center line
• Ride single file if you're going slow uphill. Riding slow and two abreast makes it unsafe for other riders to overtake you
  
• Don't ride more than 2 abreast and only when safe and not impeding traffic (This is WI State law)
  
• Left turns:
  • Call out the turn
  • Check behind before signaling and moving out. Vehicles can come up fast from behind
  • Change to an easier gear so you can accelerate quickly through the intersection
    
  • Just because the rider in front turns, don't assume it's safe for you to do so
• Right turns:
  • Adjust your speed, especially if it's a downhill turn
  • Assume there's gravel at the intersection, call it out as needed
• Overtake riders on the left. 5-10 bike lengths in advance, call out “on your left". Always look behind before moving out
  The exception to overtaking on the left is riding in an organized paceline. If you're unfamiliar with paceline safety and etiquette, checkout USA Cycling's Paceline Tips
• If you're about to be overtaken, stay to the right
• If you stop and get off your bike, quickly move off the road away from other riders and traffic. Ask others to do the same
• Be predictable. Don’t make rapid changes in your line or slow/stop suddenly
• Assume there's gravel at every turn, reduce speed before the turn to avoid braking while turning on gravel
• Call out and use hand signals for all turns, slowing and stopping
• Point to and call out road hazards
  • Car up, car back, car passing, holes, gravel, rough road, ice, glass, branches, road kill, chip seal and tracks
  • Upcoming parked vehicles, riders, runners/walkers, animals
  • If you're in a group, the riders behind may not see you pointing out the hazard, make sure to loudly call it out.
• Know when a turn is coming up, don't rely on the rider(s) in front to tell you
• Be visible     
  • Wear bright colored clothing
  • High quality front and rear blinking lights significantly improve your visibility
  • Remember to have your lights charged and to turn them on at the start
• Helmets are required. Check it is undamaged, fastened and the chin strap and rear adjustment are snug
• Emergencies and Accidents:
  • Take your phone (and waterproof bag) for emergency or navigation assistance. Don't use Airplane mode as it disables safety features. If battery power is an issue, put you phone in Low Power mode. Your phone can be a vital resource to help you in many situations
    
    • A mechanical or medical issue requiring a pickup or Uber ride home
    • An accident with yourself or another rider
    • You get lost
    • To find a shortcut back to your start point, for weather, fatigue, mechanical
    • Someone needs to contact you for their emergency
    • Selected contact(s) will know where you are (if you have enabled Location Tracking on your device)
    • You are in an unsafe situation
  • Be identifiable without the use of electronics
    • Carry a waterproof ID card with your name, address and an emergency contact phone number (phones can get broken in an accident)
    • ROAD iD is a popular emergency contact wristband for athletes
    • Setup Emergency SOS and Emergency Contacts on your phone
  • Consider turning on fall detection notification on your phone, watch and GPS device
  • If you see or hear about an accident or medical emergency with a BBC rider, make sure the Ride Leader is informed. Select here for Ride Leader contact information

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• 60% of adult cycling crashes are the result of motorist, not cyclist, error. The most common is a car making a left turn across the path of an oncoming cyclist. Source WI Department of Transportation 
• For your helmet to work effectively it must stay in place during an impact. This means wearing it with the chin strap and retention adjustment snug. An easy test is one or two fingers fit tightly between your chin and the strap and the helmet doesn’t move backwards/forwards. Checkout this GCN video. Helmets are designed for one impact only. If your helmet is impacted in an accident, get a new one
• Watchout for oncoming farm vehicles, they can occupy a lot of road. Be aware they may be about to suddenly turn into a field or driveway
• Don’t overlap your front wheel with the rider in front’s rear wheel. If they suddenly move to the side or slow down, it can cause you to crash
• Keep your eyes on the road, look ahead frequently to anticipate turns, traffic, parked vehicles, road hazards etc
• Don't drink when the road surface is rough, you'll need both hands on the bars for stability
• Be especially aware when climbing, riding in the drops or using aero bars as your head tends to lower, significantly reducing your forward vision
• When passing cars parked perpendicular to the road, watch out for reversing lights coming on, ie they may be about to reverse into your path
• Consider a handlebar or helmet mirror and/or a rear facing radar. Note: these complement ie do not replace looking behind
• Change to an easier gear as you approach intersections and stop lights. This helps you accelerate through the intersection in less time. Unclip from your pedals early so you don’t fall over when you stop
• When your stop light turns green, check left and right for drivers running a red light
• Don't draft too close to a rider until you have confidence in their riding abilities. Let the rider in front know you are on their wheel
  
• If you're about to miss a turn, it's often safer to keep going and do a controlled U-turn than to slam on the brakes and risk bringing rider(s) behind you down
• If your front wheel touches the rider in fronts rear wheel, you'll intuitively want to steer away from their wheel. The way to stay upright is counterintuitive. By leaning towards/into their wheel, it supports you until you can rebalance and steer away from their wheel
• Ensure your bike is safe and in good maintenance, especially brakes, steering, tires and shifting. If you have electronic shifting, make sure all its batteries are sufficiently charged
• Be prepared by having the following with you on all rides. if you're running tubeless tires, it's still a good plan to carry a spare tube(s):
  

• Inflation device, spare tube(s), self-adhesive patches, tire repair boot (in a pinch, use a $ bill or bar wrapper) and tire levers
• Multi tool for basic roadside adjustments and repairs
• The most recent Ride with GPS route on your GPS device or a printed map/cue sheet