RE-POSTED from Bike DFW
“According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 718 bicyclists were killed and 51,000 were injured in crashes with motor vehicles in 2009 – yet many feel invincible in bicycle helmets. Bicycle clubs, event organizers, bike magazines, bike shops and school programs all strongly urge cyclists to wear a helmet – and many require it. Yet, these same organizations rarely offer any kind of safe riding instruction beyond the admonition, “Wear Your Helmet!”^#

“WEARING A HELMET IS NOT YOUR FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE. In fact, education is! Cyclists of all ages and abilities know riding in traffic or on trails can be hazardous if you are not prepared. Operators of motor vehicles are required to follow the rules of the road (we hope), to properly maintain their vehicles, understand avoidance tactics and practice defensive driving. While they are required to wear seat belts, and air bags are becoming the industry standard, it is widely understood that they are passive forms of protection, useful in the event of a crash. Seat belts and air bags do not prevent crashes, and neither do bicycle helmets. Lucky for us, the League’s Smart Cycling curriculum and their trained nationwide network of League Cycling Instructors (LCIs) are educating new and returning riders with the vital traffic skills needed to prevent accidents in recreational and traffic situations – in addition to wearing your helmet.”^#

Here’s an opportunity to learn skills to help ride safely and effectively!

Traffic Skills 101 Course
Sunday, April 29, 2012
8:45 AM – 2 PM
Location: Casteel & Associates, 10031 Monroe Drive, Suite 105, Dallas, TX 75229
Cost: $20 – includes a light snack and a printed copy of the Traffic Skills 101manual (a $10 value).
Instructor: Renee Jordan ( Reneej@plano.gov)

Come have some fun learning safe, effective cycling from Instructors certified by the League of American Bicyclists who are active riders and commuters. The course includes an online portion you can take anytime (as long as it’s completed by April 27th) and a 4-5 hour on-bike session learning skills and practicing riding in traffic under the guidance of your instructors. The riding portion includes a lunch stop so bring along some money!

Signup Instructions: Email Renee at the above address. Payments may be made via PayPal after you have signed up, or on the day of the class. The written portion is taken online at: http://bikeed.org/ and must be completed at least 48 hours before class time.

^#Text and cyclist photo reprinted from the Jan/Feb 2012 edition of American Bicyclist with permission from the League of American Bicyclists.

Ride your bike, challenge yourself, compete for your team, compete for Texas, save the planet!

BikeDFW is the regional host organization for The National Bike Challenge, sponsored by the League of American Bicyclists, the Bikes Belong Coalition, Kimberly-Clark Corporation, and powered by Endomondo. The Challenge is designed to inspire Americans to get up and ride bicycles more often.

Record your bike rides online and you’ll automatically see the miles you’ve ridden, the calories you’ve burned, and the gas money you’ve saved.  You can connect and share stories with other riders and follow The Challenge on the Facebook page.

You’ll be part of a network of more than fifty thousand riders (we hope) logging over ten million miles across the nation, demonstrating the power of the bicycle to build healthy people, healthy communities, and a healthy planet.

The National Bike Challenge – runs from May 1to August 31, 2012 and is a fun way to take your bicycling to the next level, get back into bicycling, or bike for the first time.

Participating is easy

• Go to the Challenge home page (http://www.nationalbikechallenge.org) to join and register.
• Once you register you can choose to 1) ride solo, 2) join an existing team (at your work place for instance), or 3) create a new team and become its captain.

Lots of ways to compete – on your own, as part of a team, on behalf of your company and community, and for Texas.

Enter your mileage – manually online or track it automatically via the free smartphone app. Miles and points accrue automatically to your individual account, your team, your employer, your community, and your state.

The Leaderboard – shows how you and your team are doing in real time.

Prizes – prizes for teams and individuals will be awarded monthly. The more Challenge points you earn, the better your chances of winning a prize. You become eligible for prize drawings after you’ve logged just three days on your bike.

Download the informational flyer