Categories: Defining MomentsLa Vie VelominatusMusings from the V-Bunker

On Motors and Bikes: The Next Ride

Rider and car (nearly) collide on the Koppenberg in the 1987 Tour of Flanders.

Every time I go riding, I know I subject myself to masses of cars and motorcycles, each of which has the potential to momentarily occupy the same space my bicycle and I are occupying, a physical impossibility that Nature will resolve via a messy process involving my death. I don’t know very much about the vehicles surrounding me or their drivers, apart from that they likely don’t know how vulnerable a Cyclist is, or how much longer it takes us to stop than it does them, particularly in the wet. I know that they don’t appreciate how fast a bicycle can travel, or that I likely can’t see or hear them coming up from behind, or that I don’t know whether they can see me at all or whether or not they will pull out in front of me even if they do. But I am certain that they don’t appreciate how lethal their vehicle is and I am even more certain that they are likely distracted; they might as well be pointing a loaded gun at me.

This reality comes with the territory of being a road Cyclist, and I accept that. I take every reasonable precaution I can to be safe, apart from not riding my bike in the first place; a life without Cycling on the road hardly seems like a life in the first place. I am also fortunate to have ridden as long as I have and that my experience has allowed me to develop a sort of sixth sense when it comes to recognizing which drivers are about to do something that will put me at risk. I accept the risk, I do whatever I can to control those factors I can, and hope for the privilege to return home safely and ready for The Next Ride.

I am terribly saddened by the death of Antoine Demoitie during Gent Wevelgem after being struck by a motorcycle involved with the race. I understand that motor vehicles are a part of the race, including for the purpose of providing live pictures for us, the fans. But I personally find it unacceptable that riders are being put at the same risk that we encounter on the street when we go out training. A bicycle race is already rife with danger; adding the risk of being hit by a car seems reckless.

I read Breaking the Chain shortly after it was first published. Apart from the shocking tale of drug use in the peloton, the story relays how many stimulants are used by the drivers in the following caravan. The notion that the bike race is packed to the gills with vehicles whose drivers are not only distracted and stressed out but are also intoxicated sends the imagination to dark, dark places. We will never be able to eliminate the risk of vehicles hitting riders, but we can certainly take measures to reduce their frequency. Race vehicles hitting riders isn’t new, but their occurrence have dotted race history with a frequency that makes the individual accidents noteworthy, the 1987 Tour of Flanders being a standout case. But it seems like every recent race involves an incident between a rider and a race vehicle, to the point that these accidents have even influenced the outcome of the race on several occasions. It all points to the fact that we’ve prioritized the publicity of the events over the safety of the riders. That prioritization is perverse and entirely in the race organizer’s control. It is time they take whatever measures necessary to minimize the risk to the riders who already stand to lose their lives without the help of the vehicles in the race.

On Sunday, Antoine was denied his Next Ride. Our thoughts and condolences go to his wife, family, and friends. Changing our approach to the motorcade will never bring Antoine back to life, but it can help us avoid repeating this tragedy. If the solution involves less live television coverage, then I’ll be the first to raise my hand and say I’ll happily give up the privilege of seeing the races live. I hope Antoine is the last rider to suffer his fate.

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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View Comments

UHJ says:

Mar 30 2016 at 11:56 pm

@Teocalli

@UHJ

Thanks for clarifying,

You're most welcome.
frank says:

Mar 31 2016 at 9:29 am

@ClydesdaleChris

Such fantastic insight. Thank you for sharing!

@RobSandy

@gilly

Paolo Salvoldelli in a one to one profile stated that he had not fully understood how dangerous his sport was until he rode into Frank Strack.

Sorry, couldn’t help myself.

Solid. Fucking. Gold. +1 badge!
ClydesdaleChris says:

Mar 31 2016 at 4:30 pm

@Teocalli

The part I’ve never understood is that the photomotos seem to be free to thread as and when they please. I’d have thought that they should be allocated to “ahead” or “behind” and then have clear rules on what position they can take in splits.

OK I guess they will often want to get ahead to take static shots and then jump back on to catch up but the timing of when they can thread seems to need policing as often they can be seen tooting horns to thread a massed peleton spread the full width of a narrow road. That always just seems to be asking for trouble and in such time they should not be allowed to pass.

And that's my fear as well. They do WTF they like....

FML I turn around and there's a million* replies!

@everyone, thanks for the positive comments. There has been a number of very similar thoughts to mine put forward here (which is encouraging and pleasant to see), but also mirrored from Kristoff Ramon, Mr Hair himself- Marcel Kittel and others I cant think of right now.

And as for team cars- OMFG!

I say lets take a step back, review the WHOLE race autobus and see if anything can be done to improve safety such as training, simple driving rules and limits on journalist vehicles.

(*ok so I exaggerated)
frank says:

Mar 31 2016 at 7:06 pm

@ClydesdaleChris

@Teocalli

The part I’ve never understood is that the photomotos seem to be free to thread as and when they please. I’d have thought that they should be allocated to “ahead” or “behind” and then have clear rules on what position they can take in splits.

OK I guess they will often want to get ahead to take static shots and then jump back on to catch up but the timing of when they can thread seems to need policing as often they can be seen tooting horns to thread a massed peleton spread the full width of a narrow road. That always just seems to be asking for trouble and in such time they should not be allowed to pass.

And that’s my fear as well. They do WTF they like….

FML I turn around and there’s a million* replies!

@everyone, thanks for the positive comments. There has been a number of very similar thoughts to mine put forward here (which is encouraging and pleasant to see), but also mirrored from Kristoff Ramon, Mr Hair himself- Marcel Kittel and others I cant think of right now.

And as for team cars- OMFG!

I say lets take a step back, review the WHOLE race autobus and see if anything can be done to improve safety such as training, simple driving rules and limits on journalist vehicles.

(*ok so I exaggerated)

Chris, these insights are so helpful; we all watch from outside and while I'm (pleasantly) surprised that the tele camera bikes are not the issue, I am feeling very melancholy that our armchair quarterbacking doesn't seem to be too far off the mark. I wish we were more wrong than that.
LeoTea says:

Apr 1 2016 at 4:42 am

@frank

This week's episode of the Cycling Podcast has coverage of this issue. They've an interview with a guy who pilots a motorbike for a photographer, and also with Mick Bennett, who runs both Tours of Britain. I've not listened to the whole thing yet, but one thing I have taken away is that it's not a total wild-west out there: there are restrictions in place on what the photo bikes are allowed to do.
Scott Shannon says:

Apr 1 2016 at 11:01 am

@Gianni

The two worst crashes I've had were in a bike lane (broken drainage grate...5 broken ribs), and on a bike path (dog took out my front wheel, I separated my shoulder on impact). I'll take the road!
ErikdR says:

Apr 4 2016 at 2:26 am

Not 100% certain whether this has been mentioned/posted before (and if so; my apologies), but what Marc Madiot had to say on the matter also makes sense to me:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/blogs/author/marc-madiot-blog-the-cyclist-is-the-centre-of-our-world/