Originally Posted by Stucky

It's called a "road bike" because it's supposed to be ridden on the _______________. (Fill in the blank)

It takes a little guts and getting used-to, but learn top ride properly, i.e take the lane, where there are no shoulders or bike lanes; and ride with a mirror. THAT'S the safest practice for all concerned. The only difference between your bike and a slow-moving vehicle, like a piece of farm equipment, is that your bike is very narrow. Ride it like it's any other kind of slow-moving vehicle: Take the lane, and move over to let faster traffic by when the opportunity presents itself. Since your vehicle is narrower, the only difference is that you'll want to position yourself so that other road users aren't tempted to try and squeeze by you where/when it is unsafe to do so.