Staying safe

[pwa]

Someone once advised me not to cycle immediately behind someone else with a propensity for ending up on the deck. The latter were to be identified by clothing showing marks from crashes. The unfortunate person described by the OP seems unlucky, jinxed or whatever, but deffo someone not to ride behind. But maybe me too. My major "offs" have mostly been without the assistance of other road users. Black ice was responsible for my biggest spill, and I now avoid cycling on potential icy roads where I can.

[Cugel]

Is the OP's friend equally unlucky off the bike? Maybe he's just accident prone in general, some people certainly seem to be. OTOH others seem to get through life without a scratch .....

In 50 years of cycling, many of them within various bunches of others, I've come to the conclusion that some people are accident prone whilst others have a highly-honed sense of safety and caution. There seem to be many factors involved: the incautious are often just unimaginative, habitual in their general behaviour and often inclined to wishful thunks ("I don't want it to happen so it won't" - a mental condition common in well-protected modern societies).

Those who are more cautious can, paradoxically, take more apparent risk, as they have often edged their envelope of cycling skills wider and wider without stretching it so far that it deposits them into an "accident". Because they are more cautious, they become better at judging where the risk boundaries really lie. The incautious are just making wild guesses, generally via those wishful thunks. They oscillate between over-the-top caution and semi-criminal incaution!

Cugel the Cautious (and thus the fastest down hills and 'round bends).

[Carpediem]

Couldn't agree more with Samuel...conti 4 seasons (28mm) are brilliant for winter cycling,and touch wood extremely puncture resistant.
Might not be for 'proper' roadies but I never go out without lights either,day or night.

Daytime lights are basically a placebo unless it's almost dark - on bright days, you ain't gonna compete with the sun; on dull days, they serve to brighten your silhouette and reduce contrast with the background and it's contrast that research suggests is important; and when passing through dark spots on bright days, like trees, the danger is from motorists who don't slow right down while their eyes adapt and they can't see anything. But if they brighten your mood or you think they look pretty, carry on, as long as they're not dazzling other cyclists.

Anyway, what I was going to write before getting distracted: "extremely puncture resistant" may depend on your local road conditions. I think GP 4 seasons are regarded about as poorly as Gatorskins and GP 4000 around here, with the flint making short work of them, just less common.

Daytime lights don't 'brighten my mood' or 'look pretty',what a strange thing to say!
Its commonly accepted from expert trials using a large cohort that cycle daytime lights along with hi viz clothing does make you more visible to motorists, but doesn't of course guarantee they won't still run you over.
I know hi viz isn't fashionable amongst cyclists either,but if being seen by motorists might save me from serious injury or death then I'm prepared to forgo fashion.
Do you wear a crash helmet btw...one of my fellow very experienced riders wont wear one,and even argues against them,so I don't ride with him anymore,am I being a bit to picky?
On the light issue Ever wondered why daytime lights are now standard on most new vehicles?
Regarding conti 4 seasons I've been running them for 2 yrs on Lancashire roads notorious for lack of maintenance and truthfully only had 1 puncture in that time,but can only speak from personal experience
Although it should be noted that hundreds of reviewers gave them 5 out of 5 for winter grip and puncture resistance...they must all be lying maybe.
Maybe we should have a "straw pole" on daytime lights,results could be interesting.

[meic]

Do you wear a crash helmet btw...one of my fellow very experienced riders wont wear one,and even argues against them,so I don't ride with him anymore,am I being a bit to picky?

I know that helmets have been shown to prevent injuries to other parts of the body than the head but this is the first time that I have heard of them offering safety to those riding alongside the wearer!

[pwa]

Do you wear a crash helmet btw...one of my fellow very experienced riders wont wear one,and even argues against them,so I don't ride with him anymore,am I being a bit to picky?

I know that helmets have been shown to prevent injuries to other parts of the body than the head but this is the first time that I have heard of them offering safety to those riding alongside the wearer!

And if you only cycle with people who agree with you on every topic you will always ride alone.

[Annoying Twit]

I've fallen off three times in ten years. In all of these cases, I was off-road on cycling paths. All were due to turning or braking on slippery surfaces. A muddy rut in grass, ice, and rotting leaves. In all cases, nothing was hurt except for my pride.

On the road, as others have said, I assume that every motorised vehicle could kill me and act defensively.

I don't think that my lack of accidents on roads is due to just being careful. Roads tend to have fewer slippery substances on them than cycling paths.

[tykeboy2003]

Been off loads of times, the only serious injury being a broken shoulder blade (the actual blade - not where it forms part of the joint which is much more common). Your mate has been extremely unlucky I'd say.

[mjr]

Daytime lights don't 'brighten my mood' or 'look pretty',what a strange thing to say!
Its commonly accepted from expert trials using a large cohort that cycle daytime lights along with hi viz clothing does make you more visible to motorists, but doesn't of course guarantee they won't still run you over.

Who cares about "more visible"? (I assume by that, you mean being visible from further away.) I don't. I care about safety. It's commonly accepted from research that conspicuity aids have basically no effect on casualty rates. Some studies like http://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/12855/ even suggest there might be a minor increase in casualty rates.

I know hi viz isn't fashionable amongst cyclists either,but if being seen by motorists might save me from serious injury or death then I'm prepared to forgo fashion.

And what if being seen by motorists from too far away might result in your serious injury or death?

Do you wear a crash helmet btw...one of my fellow very experienced riders wont wear one,and even argues against them,so I don't ride with him anymore,am I being a bit to picky?

Nice try to get this discussion moved into the ghetto. Open a new discussion or post to an existing one there if you want to know (unsurprisingly, I'm one of the majority group...), but I think yes, you're being too picky, acting on irrational beliefs, although it's probably good for him to have one less dangerous-sounding rider nearby.

On the light issue Ever wondered why daytime lights are now standard on most new vehicles?

No because I remember it happening. It's another well-intentioned overgeneralisation of near-irrelevant research to screw all other road users, like some research about railway workers was overgeneralised to promote hi-vis on the roads. Have you seen the fantastic evidence in the directive adopting them? Oh, wait, it says stuff like "are expected to have a positive effect". Well that's great logic for forcing adoption of these devices that distract attention from unlit road users, animals and so on, then.

Regarding conti 4 seasons I've been running them for 2 yrs on Lancashire roads notorious for lack of maintenance and truthfully only had 1 puncture in that time,but can only speak from personal experience
Although it should be noted that hundreds of reviewers gave them 5 out of 5 for winter grip and puncture resistance...they must all be lying maybe.

Probably not lying but riding in different conditions. Also, the current sad state of cycling product reviews is lamented in many discussions on this site.

Maybe we should have a "straw pole" on daytime lights,results could be interesting.

They'd more likely be depressing.

[[XAP]Bob]

Maybe we should have a "straw pole" on daytime lights,results could be interesting.

They'd more likely be depressing.

DLRs - should be banned.
People with badly adjusted headlights - should be fined, and have them fixed (with a big hammer if needed)

Frankly in a street lit area headlights shouldn't be used, they certainly aren't needed - sidelights suffice quite easily.

[Vorpal]

Maybe we should have a "straw pole" on daytime lights,results could be interesting.

We've had previous discussions on DLRs...

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=47293
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=57128
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=83943

[jgurney]

What do readers here do to lessen risk?

Good tyres, regular maintenance, ride in accord with the Highway Code, support organisations that seek better law enforcement and better driver education.

The best protection against solo falls and own-fault collisions are care, attention and a bike in good order.

The best protection against dangerous drivers is their knowing that they may be caught and held accountable.
(Being very highly visible has it's uses, but drivers knowing they, having brought a dangerous machine into a public place, have a duty to control it is more important, especially for pedestrian safety).