Cyclists and Situational Awareness
 

Curious as to how cyclists would define "situational awareness."

Basically being aware of what is happening around you to understand how information, events, and your own actions will impact you. and otheres. Some examples could be, anticipating when a motorist is going to give you a left or right hook. getting over to the left lane in time to make the turn without trying to race a car to the same spot.

Having a general overview of the current situation as well as a good idea of what's coming up. In addition, situational awareness involves pre-emptively figuring out evasive manuvers based on the assumption that your prediction(s) will be wrong.

Do you think we would define it differently than non-cyclists?

Not getting hit, and not hitting others. Nuff said.

Being aware of the situation.

Not texting so much while you're riding.

+1...also constantly visualizing worst case scenarios and riding in a manner that leaves options open to avoid said scenarios whenever possible, similar to what gmule mentioned. I'm curious as to what led the OP to ask this question.

Situational awareness is knowing AND understanding what is happening around you, understanding the dynamics of your environment and using that information to predict how events within your environment will change with time.

way incorrect. nuff said.

Right.

I mentally reprimand MYSELF if anything or anyone surprises me with a potentially unsafe situation. Then I catalog these instances in order to learn from them and prevent being caught off guard in a similar incident. I consider it %100 my responsibility to keep myself safe.

it meeans knowing about cars which might could run you overr

I just wanted to prompt discussion SA. It isn't discussed much in the cycling community. And, to bring awareness that good SA can prevent accidents. Here are some stats and with good SA, you can reduce your percentages of becoming a statistic:

Statistics again from Bob Mionske (RBR.com, 2007): There are about 500,000 cycling accidents each year and this is how the numbers sum up: 59% involve no object or other person, 14% involve a fixed object, 11% involve a moving motor vehicle, 9% involve another bicycle, 3% involve an animal, 3% involve a pedestrian, 1% involve a stationary motor vehicle, 1% other. Accidents involving a moving motor vehicle (11%): 45% in an intersection, 25% entering a roadway, 14% riding with flow of traffic, 8% riding against traffic, 9% other.

Take care.

Not in a webster dictionary sort of way but we would use SA differently while cycling. Not only do we use SA but also risk management, communication, decision-making, error control, etc. All of which if used effectively, reduce our chances of becoming a statistic on the road. We ride smarter incorporating these principles. Hope that helps and see the stats I posted in this same thread.

Not wearing your iPod headphones while riding (like I saw some idiot the other day doing), even worse, same guy was riding right after dusk with nary a single light or reflector anywhere on his road bike.

incorrect - please don't project your own limitations upon others

SA and planning for Murphy are not exactly new concepts to A&S or those who have been riding safely in traffic for many years. ;)

No, sir, you are incorrect. Wearing headphones cuts down on your SA, whether you think so or not. Also, most state laws (if not all, I am not fully aware of all state laws) prohibit the wearing of headphones by car drivers; as I understand, bicycle riders have all the same rights and responsibilities as car drivers, where applicable. So, in addition to being unsafe, it is most likely illegal, though I admit I am unsure on the illegal part.

Headphones without a doubt will diminish your SA as, generally speaking, any distraction does. That said, as far as headphones "being unsafe", I can't think that it's an inordinate risk. Are you seriously biking down the street evading into the ditch everytime you hear something growl? I understand that it provides you a little more sensory input, but between the wind and all the road noise it's next to impossible to get all that much useful information from your ears while biking (knowing that the vehicle coming up behind you is a truck isn't useful unless that actually causes some reaction, which I'm guessing isn't the case).

It's correct for me. Your mileage may vary.

Some folks have trouble walking and chewing gum too.

Nuff said.

If you have a rear-view mirror, it really helps. I can see well enough ahead, and I have good periphial vision, but my aging neck is tired of craning over my left shoulder to see what's coming up behind.

Stay well clear of trucks. "Situational Awareness" could be intepreted to mean that the cyclist is aware that trucks are very heavy , wide, and have blind spots.

If you see a car pulling out from a parking space in front of a bar, you would be aware of the situation if you assume the driver has had a few drinks.

If you see a car with lots of dents and broken headlights, you should be aware that the driver has lots of accidents. Steer clear.

If you are riding down a city street and a ped raises his/her arm in front of you, be aware that he/she is hailing a cab and look over your shoulder to see the taxi cab.

Be aware of things that increase your risk of being hit. That is Situational Awareness.

Situational awareness is a buzzword that was invented because saying keeping your head out of your asss takes too long.

Let me add another twist...so what breaks down (road blocks) our Situational Awareness (SA)? I'll start with an easy one: FATIGUE. We begin to lose focus, feel tired and slowly begin to lose our SA. This is when our cycling becomes critical and the time we are most vulnerable on the street with those several thousand pound cars and multi-ton trucks zooming around us.

My definition of SA is being able to compile all your body's sensory and mental factors to determine what benefits or dangers that one's immediate surroundings has.

A short simple sentence to say, but one that takes many years to learn.