Safety guidelines for bike messengers
by Fred Matheny,
Bicycling Magazine, May 1998
J-Bone has seen it all, and it shows. A longtime bike messenger revealsthe secrets of urban survival.
When you think of bike messengers, traffic safety isn't the first thingthat comes to mind. Messengers are often stereotyped as curb- jumping,aggressive maniacs who flaunt their bike handling skills in front of taxis,buses and the local constabulary.
Take J-Bone, for instance. At first glance he's the standard-issue courier,with a rainbow mohawk, a network of scars and a two-foot rod in his femur- occupational hazards of 20 years of messenger experience in San Franciscoand Denver.
Time on the urban battlefield has also made him a bit of a philosopher.J-Bone on the uncertainties of daily survival: "On your next ride,you can run into a dragon. It will come out of the sky and burn you up,then fly away. And there's no one to cry to. Drivers will hit you frombehind and knocks you down and they're gone."
As you might expect, he also nurtures a major 'tude. J-Bone on law enforcement:"I'll bust police for retaliatory ticketing and harassment. Seventy-fivepercent of citations are given to messengers on working time." Anyonewho has seen the things J-Bone has seen in his years riding the mean streetscan be forgiven a little pontificating.
"Messengering is a brutal occupation if you let it get to you.I've lost 15 good friends to suicide, murder, accidents and AIDS sinceI left San Francisco 11 years ago. When I go back, someone else is gone.The stress of fighting traffic and dealing with hostile drivers forcessome couriers into alcohol and drugs. I'm a full-blown manic and I getcrazy if things don't go my way."
But the hard-riding, loud-talking, street-smart messenger is only halfhis story. In his other persona, J-Bone morphs into Jason Abernethy, headof the Denver Professional Bike Messenger Association, an organizationdevoted to making the streets safe for cycling. Abernethy on motorists:"Their aggression toward cyclists is a lack of civic approbation."
Abernethy also promotes a messenger competition called the "RoadRash Bash," a point-to-point race through city streets requiring couriersto perform the same types of skills they encounter on the job. In a recentevent, they had to haul firewood, newspapers and eggs. "If they don'tcome back clean," Abernethy chuckles, "they lose. This race isso hard, the winner is the baddest courier on earth." To fulfill hisdedication to "benefiting those less fortunate than ourselves, "proceeds go to various charities.
It's an interesting paradox - the toughest messengers are often themost safety-conscious. And when you think about it, messengers have a muchbigger incentive to ride safely than most recreational cyclists. For onething, their paychecks depend on being healthy and ready to ride. And medicalinsurance is often a rarity, so crash injuries hurt their wallets as wellas their bodies.
These days, Abernethy is a sadder, wiser man. "I've learned thatyou can't let yourself get crazy out there, even if you want to,"he says. "You have to do your job while at the same time dealing withhostile traffic. I've learned to take 99% of human nature, including theactions of drivers, in stride. The trick is to remain calm in the faceof any provocation. Turning into a crazed maniac doesn't solve anything.When cyclists confront buses, trucks and cars, the heavy machinery alwayswins." (For more on the state of cyclist/motorist relations, see "RoadRage," page 76.)
So if you want the best traffic-busting tips (learned from bitter experience)to make your training, commuting and errands less deadly, there's nonebetter to ask than Abernethy. If they work for a pro who hits the streetsevery day, they'll work for you.
Grow more eyes
"Be aware of everything in a 360-degree circle around you,"Abernethy advises. Don't focus solely on what's ahead. It's a matter ofintuition and experience - once you get a feel for the general flow oftraffic, you'll know what's behind without looking. It's a sixth sensethat develops over time."
Abernethy isn't a fan of mirrors. "The crash rate is higher indense traffic and helmet-mounted mirrors can poke your eye in a fall. Awarenessis better than a mirror any day." Trick: Focus on cars, not drivers."In my thinking, drivers turn into cars, they become cars," saysAbernethy. "I look at the car, not the driver. This helps me rememberthat I can get emotional and cars can't. They're just metal and plasticwithout feelings. It doesn't help to get upset at them."
Read the road
Watch the road surface as much as you watch traffic. Beware of roadcuts where city crews have been working on buried utility lines - they'reoften unmarked after they've been temporarily filled with tamped-down dirt.The dirt can settle over time and catch a bike tire, sending you over thehandlebar. Same thing goes for anything with grooves that run parallelto your line, such as runoff grates and light rail tracks. Manhole coversand other metal (or surfaces get slippery as ice in a mist or drizzle.The danger is even greater when the temperature begins to sink to freezingand below. "Black ice can form and it's invisible and deadly. Slowdown. If you have a choice, don't ride in these conditions."
Leave room on the right
Watch for cars making right turns in front of you and the doors of parkedcars opening suddenly. "You're required to ride as far to the rightas but that doesn't mean you have to hug the curb or ride up against parkedcars if it's unsafe," says Abernethy. Stay to the left a bit so turningdrivers can't cut you off. Scan parked cars for occupants who look likethey're ready to get out. Watch sideview mirrors for the faces of driverslooking to pull out into traffic.
Watch for walkers
J-Bone tries to yield the right of way to all pedestrians. "They'recattle roaming amongst technical machinery," he says. Use a bell ora polite voice reminder ("Excuse me" rather than "Move it,you idiot! ") so you can alert peds - but not startle them into unpredictablemoves. Always slow down in pedestrian zones. "Watch out for old peopleand children - they're usually less predictable."
Learn to love the law
Believe it or not, J-Bone insists that "good riders always obeytraffic signals. Blowing lights isn't professional and the fines cut intoyour profit." Besides, says Abernethy, "it's a very good wayto die."
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