Its now official...

[keepontriking]

GEM Motoring Assist have produced a booklet that they have been touting around recently named "A Guide to Safer Cycling".
Much of it is reasonable and it has a pleasant enough picture of a family bedecked with their helmets and local authority hi-viz cycling vests riding on a shared path...




But look more closely at the youngster on the left...




NO FRONT BRAKE

It must now be official.
You are obviously clearly completely safe if you wear a helmet and a hi-viz - never mind about the brake!

So much for a motoring organisation giving advice to cyclists; and what about those 'parents' - do they check their youngster's bikes over - and I wonder what West Sussex County Council think about this great advert for their road safety materials.
And - did the youngsters get them from their cycle training scheme?

PS: I'm not sure about that quick release lever either.

[reohn2]

I wonder if dad forgot to refit the front brake cable and completely close the Q/R when he put the front wheel in after unloading the bike from the car?

[WesBrooks]

Very well spotted! Have you emailed them? Would be amusing to see what sort of excuse they come up with!

[bikely-challenged]

That's hilarious!

Thanks for making me laugh and well spotted!

[2Tubs]

Genius!

Gazza

[robgul]

I wonder if dad forgot to refit the front brake cable and completely close the Q/R when he put the front wheel in after unloading the bike from the car?

Dad could well be the same bloke that frequently leaves front wheels from cheapo bikes at the car park by our local Greenway cycle path - you can see it .... take out front wheel and put it beside car, put bike in car, close tailgate, get in and drive away - forgetting the wheel.

Rob

[cranky]

Even if the brakes were working, I doubt very much that the kids hands have sufficient reach to use them the way the levers are set.

[random37]

Someone needs to send that to the newspapers..

[pioneer]

The best guide to safer cycling, is to get cyclists on the roads where they/we belong. Proper training in road safety and awareness would do much more good than pandering to the whims of "local safety officers" and so called "experts" who want us to ride on overcrowded,often poorly concieved, built and maintained shared-use paths.

And how far would you really want to cycle with all that clobber on?

We don't tell motoring mags' and organisations how to drive safely and with consideration for other road users (not that they'd take any notice if anybody did), so how is that they feel obliged to give advice to a group of people on a subject that they obviously know b****r -all about?

[keepontriking]

Someone needs to send that to the newspapers..

It is being done.

It looks as if GEM Assist had produced an article promoting cycling (and their leaflet) which has been picked up by local papers to fill space.
My local paper ran it as 'Top safety tips for keen pedal pushers'.

The support by 'Think' must also be questioned

[Tiddly Tom]

Very funny, well noticed

[reohn2]

I wonder if dad forgot to refit the front brake cable and completely close the Q/R when he put the front wheel in after unloading the bike from the car?

Dad could well be the same bloke that frequently leaves front wheels from cheapo bikes at the car park by our local Greenway cycle path - you can see it .... take out front wheel and put it beside car, put bike in car, close tailgate, get in and drive away - forgetting the wheel.

Rob

Possibly

[Fonant]

At least the rider with the lacking front brake has a front reflector - can't see one on his brother's bike. Perhaps only one of them ever goes out cycling in the dark?

The cycle path actually looks wide enough for two-way use, although it goes right up to the kerb, making passing interesting if there are lorries around (or a dog-walker).

From my years of Dr. Bike experience I can say that missing brakes are quite normal for children's bikes. Sadly safety campaigns very rarely put the emphasis on the things that really do make a difference to cycling safety

[eileithyia]

Dad could well be the same bloke that frequently leaves front wheels from cheapo bikes at the car park by our local Greenway cycle path - you can see it .... take out front wheel and put it beside car, put bike in car, close tailgate, get in and drive away - forgetting the wheel.

Rob

Not funny have done that one!

Well spotted re the brake though

[Firebird]

They won't necessarily be real cyclists. They are likely to have been recruited from an agency and may not even be a real family. The ad. agency would hav egot hold of some bikes, not necessarily knowing how to assemble them.