I have been ruminating on this a while now. I ride for peace, pleasure,
and sometimes punishment (when I eat too much). But I mostly ride for peace.
You know, get out the frustrations and get some exercise in the great outdoors.
Just be at one with nature. But, some rides I have been on are the noisiest,
least peaceful places I can think of.
HOLE!
CAR UP!
STOPPING!
I know these callouts are for safety, but many rides and riders seem to
take pleasure in disrupting the beautiful silence of riding sometimes. So, I
have started do some things of my own to try and be more quiet and efficient
without jeopardizing the safety of other riders.
Here are my voice warnings.
UP, BACK, LEFT, RIGHT – I never use the UP voice warning on striped
road. The car has their side, and we have ours. No need to break silence for
the obvious. I don’t add the word CAR… we know what’s there.
STOP – saying “stopping” is wasted breath… I need all the oxygen I can
get! LOL If I am mid-pack or back I use hand signals instead.
CHANGING – When a light is going to go green. This means pay attention and
get ready to clip in and go.
HOLE – Only to be used when there is a large and dangerous road defect.
For almost everything else I use hand signals.
CRAPPY ROAD SURFACES – Point to it… especially if you are among the front
riders.
JOGGER UP or passing a cyclist – use the right arm behind the back
signal (aka Hammer lock pose)
CLEAR – Well, unless you are willing to take responsibility for the
rider(s) behind you or put your life in the hands of the rider(s) in front of
you, you should NEVER call clear or follow that signal without looking
yourself. I might say clear quietly, so only the nearest riders to me can hear
it. Otherwise I use a tomahawk chop above my head with my finger pointed. Kind
of like signaling “charge!”
LEFT/RIGHT TURN – Stick out your arm!
SLOWING/STOPPING – Put your left or right arm down and palm facing
behind you.
HELLO/THANK YOU/BEING NICE – Wave or give a thumbs up to everyone else
you see out exercising, running, cycling, etc. Also give this signal to the
friendly drivers that yield.
There may be other signals and warnings, but these are the main ones. Don’t
get me wrong here… you can talk to your fellow riders all you want. But in
terms of riding signals and commands… a quiet ride is a peaceful ride, and
usually a safer one.
