nickp08

i had pretty much the exact same experience. i did have the benefit of beginning my riding in a suburban area where i could ride on sidewalks/quiet roads when i wasn't comfortable, and one larger road that had bike lanes. that was a great way to ease into riding in traffic. definitely agree with the last piece, though... riding on a road with a bike lane or a wide shoulder is great for building your situational awareness. use ALL of your senses... i don't know how guys here in the city ride with headphones on... I use my hearing A LOT when riding.

i ride pretty much all of my miles on roads in NYC. i'll alter my routes and add a bit of distance if necessary if it keeps me on a bike lane for more time, but this isn't always possible, so i'm pretty comfortable riding in traffic. cab drivers still scare the crap out of me and i have a fear of being "doored" in particular, but i think that fear keeps my situational awareness really high.

Carbon Unit

I wasn't thinking very clearly when I wrote this. No, I didn't did leave a motorcycle in the dust as I pedaled away on a bicycle-oh how I wish. I crashed a motorcycle, this what I meant when I say I dropped a motorcycle.

lhorn

I love riding during the middle of the day or on the weekend when there isn't as much traffic. I have a healthy fear of getting run over and I'm always a lot more relaxed riding at 10am than I am riding after work at 5:30pm.

Velo Vol 

Yes, I recommend building up your confidence on quiet streets/roads, then gradually mix in busier ones.

Velo Vol 

What are you talking about? The OP didn't even say he had been in an accident.

AlphaDogg

I rode on CO-93 the other day, on my ride from uptown Denver to downtown Boulder. It was scary. On a long slow climb, I had to dismount and walk in the gravel on the side of the highway (no shoulder) because there were so many huge semi trucks passing me with less than a foot of clearance. The next climb, there weren't very many trucks because there aren't very many destinations past a certain point on the previous descent that need shipments of things like gravel, so I was fine. Just the occasional close pass, but I lived! On the downhill into Boulder, I hit about 38mph (I didn't have my roadie yet, otherwise the speeds would have been in excess of 45mph. I am still confident in riding on city streets, but I'm not sure I ever want to ride on a highway again.

For you Coloradoans, I took the Cherry Creek MUP to Platte st, Platte st to 32nd, 32nd to McIntyre, McIntyre to 64th, 64th to CO-93. Even on that road populated (McIntyre) greatly by semi trucks, I felt safer than on CO-93.

Nick Bain

knowing when to take the lane is important.

AlphaDogg

Even more-so, holding your line and asserting your position in the lane is important.

abstractform20

loosely carry multiple hammers (do not secure too tightly)

icyclist 

"I took bad risks and was really quite scared."

Well, don't take bad risks and you'll be fine.

krobinson103

Been down on the motorcycle twice. Once on ice, once thanks to a truck. I'm no longer fearless, but you really can't be timid in traffic on any 2 wheeler so you just have to assert yourself. Never had problems with traffic on the bike. Mainly I think because I avoid all busy roads and ride on trails or at times when there simply isn't any traffic.

ColinL

this is true.

another HUGE tip is that you must anticipate others and prepare. if you think a car might turn left in front of you either because they don't see you, or they think you're just a 'slow bicycle' then it is wise to cover your brakes or slow down, because the consequences of a collision are far higher for you than a car.

if you ride like you expect every car to be doing stupid ****, if not outwardly trying to kill you, then you'll ride much more safely and you will have fewer incidents.

we cyclists can't kid ourselves, though. 'fewer' is not zero. you could get smacked by a drunk or inattentive driver on any given ride.

wphamilton

The number one imperative is gaining the judgment to know what really is risky, without injuring yourself in the process. Starting out, everything we say about vehicular cycling feels like a risk.

baj32161

Could this have anything to do with your fear? If so, stop taking bad risks. Not trying to sound flippant, but this seems to be the major issue here. There are always some risks while riding on the road, no need to take bad risks yourself and exacerbate the situation.

DeadheadSF

I'm strongly tempted to get some kind of mirror system so I can see what's coming up behind me. I know, there's the Fred Factor, but I'm more worried about the Death-By-Texting-SUV-Driver Factor. At least if I can see them swerving around behind me, I might stand a fighting chance to get out of the way before they plow into me in their Hummer...

Commodus

Well don't take risks. Just ride legally. Stop and stop signs and red lights. Pay attention to your lane position - stay as far right as safe, but no further. Don't be afraid to take the lane if you need to.

There are real dangers out there, but they are tremendously minimized by just not doing silly things. Cycing is, statistically, very very safe.

pallen

Choosing good routes is key. Plan where you are going and find the best way. Don't find yourself in a place where you really have no business being.

Velo Vol 

I would not use two verys there.

Commodus

Three?

ColinL

anything but a helmet mirror is hard to use on a road bike because of big variations in where your head is at when you're in the tops, drops and hoods. if you ride predominantly one position you can put a mirror somewhere on your bike and at least have that, though. downtube mirrors are good in the drops, and bar ends (like spintech) are ok for the hoods.


I tried two helmet mirrors and neither of them worked for me despite 10+ hours of trying. they were too small to see anything useful, very distracting anywhere near the primary field of vision, and I unintentionally ignored them when I put them on the periphery. (I just didn't notice anything.)

Never wear headphones and pay attention. That's what I do and you probably don't need mirrors.

Carbon Unit

I use a mirror mounted to my sunglasses and I won't ride without it. Where I find it most useful is if I need to cross a few lanes of traffic and go from the bike lane to the left turn lane. I have a hard time turning my head far enough to see what is coming up from behind, but with the mirror no problem.

dstrong 

If weight's not an issue, what about one of these?



Mounting the power source might be an issue.

Doohickie

1. Education: Go to Commute Orlando and learn how to ride in traffic. Some practices that seem dangerous (such as taking the lane) are much safer than common practices (such as riding the gutter).

2. Awareness: Get a helmet- or glasses-mounted mirror to monitor traffic behind you.

GP

Where did you get that number? Do you mean City of LA or LA County?

spunkyj

I usually find the numbers game reassuring. How many people commute by bike daily in the LA area? Even if only 1% of the 4 million population, you'd have to commute daily for 10 years before your chances of being involved in a fatal collision were at the 1% level.

Now, a 1% chance of death every ten years is high. Much higher than it should be. But what fraction of the time could safe cycling practices and precautions have avoided a fatal collision?--Probably a very large fraction of the time. And what fraction of fatal collisions involved seasoned bike commuters or road cyclists? If you're a safe, cautious, and law-abiding cyclist your odds of being involved in a fatal collision in your lifetime are probably well below 1%.