Cycling Tips & Stories

Michael Paine has compiled much interesting research into the how vehicle speed affects the amount of collisions, injuries, and fatalites. A few excerpts:

Swedish research (Nilsson 1993) into speed limit changes throughout the developed world suggests a fourth power relationship between mean traffic speed and the proportion of fatal crashes. A 3% reduction in mean traffic speeds can produce a 12% reduction in fatal crashes.

The faster a motorist is travelling the less chance they have of avoiding a crash and the higher the impact speed if they do crash. This double whammy effect means that travelling at just 5km/h over the speed limit doubles the risk of being involved in a serious or fatal crash . . .

[S]tudies in the USA have shown that, in effect, every minute saved by travelling in excess of the speed limit results in a one minute loss in life expectancy across the community due to the increased risk of a fatal crash.

On another page he adds this tidbit:

At 20km/h [12MPH] 4% of collisions are fatal. This rises to 9% at 30km/h [18MPH], 25% at 40km/h [24MPH] 83% at 50km/h [30MPH] and, in effect, 100 % at 60km/h [36MPH].

Other relevant facts:

• Pedestrians have represented 11-17 percent of all U.S. motor vehicle deaths since 1975.
  
• In 2001, pedestrian deaths made up almost one- fourth of traffic deaths among 5-9 year-olds
  
• In 2001, pedestrian deaths made up 16 percent of traffic deaths among people age 70 and older.

All this is relevant to the provision in the proposed highway safety legislation, supported by the resolution passed by the Missouri PTA, to set a statewide standard 20 MPH speed limit for school zones, and several provisions in the legislation helping to improve pedestrian safety.
permanent link to article: "Slower vehicle speeds dramatically reduce injuries & deaths"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/30/2004 09:45:00 AM |comment on this article

Lars S. Mulford writes on alt.rec.bicycles.recumbent:

I went from an overweight fat guy who could barely PONDER exercise without breaking a sweat, into a guy who dropped 82 lbs and is in the best shape of his life. I work out every day, ride every day. Most days, I'm joined on my bike by Rachel, my youngest daughter. . . .

I am in much better shape now and I ride in part to maintain my health. BUT BUT BUT... ...THE MOST important reason that I ride is because I LOVE IT. I love to ride. My family loves to ride. We ride together. It is relaxing. It is fun. It is great! We all love to ride and it is good for us to boot! Being good for us is really an extra, because when we ride together we do it solely because we have so much fun together.

Read the rest of his article here. permanent link to article: "85 lbs lost cycling--because it's fun . . . "
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/30/2004 09:29:00 AM |comment on this article

According to two recent KCStar articles, KCs repeated listing among the nation's fattest cities in Men's Fitness magazine's yearly ratings (No. 14 this year) has finally brought a response:

Mayor Kay Barnes and Research Medical Center launched a yearlong citywide fitness campaign Tuesday after Men's Fitness magazine again ranked the city as one of the nation's fattest - No. 14 in this year's list.

Participants in the campaign, called "Get Moving KC," can pledge to adopt healthier habits by losing weight, quitting smoking, eating better and exercising more.

permanent link to article: "KC hits "fattest cities" list again, resolves to change"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/28/2004 08:44:00 AM |comment on this article

Just in time for the Lewis & Clark bicentennial celebration, I dug up this detailed journal of two Kansas City-area men who rode the entire Lewis & Clark route. permanent link to article: "KC duo ride the entire Lewis & Clark Trail"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/18/2004 05:40:00 PM |comment on this article

How to lock your bike up--complete with photos. If it can survive in New York, it can survive anywhere . . . permanent link to article: "How to lock your bike up in a high-risk area"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/17/2004 11:08:00 AM |comment on this article

STLToday ran article last week about cyclocross and roasted goat.
permanent link to article: "Cyclocross and roasted goat in St. Louis"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/17/2004 10:51:00 AM |comment on this article

Several studies in the past have indicated that as the amount of people walking/bicycling increases, the injury rate decreases. A recent study in Injury Prevention reinforces this conclusion and gives some reasons for it:

The common wisdom holds that the number of collisions varies directly with the amount of walking and bicycling. However, three published analyses of collision rates at specific intersections found a non-linear relationship, such that collisions rates declined with increases in the numbers of people walking or bicycling. . . .

This result is unexpected. Since it is unlikely that the people walking and bicycling become more cautious if their numbers are larger, it indicates that the behavior of motorists controls the likelihood of collisions with people walking and bicycling. It appears that motorists adjust their behavior in the presence of people walking and bicycling.

permanent link to article: "More walking/biking leads to lower injury rate"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/17/2004 10:06:00 AM |comment on this article

According to a Science Daily article

Children from the United States were the most likely to be overweight. Among 13-year-old boys in the U.S., 12.6 percent were overweight. Among 13-year-old girls, 10.8 percent were overweight. For U.S. 15 year olds, 13.9 percent of boys were overweight, and 15.1 percent of girls were overweight. . . .

"Since most obese adolescents remain obese as adults, this age group is a very important group to reach through preventive programs addressing issues of diet and sedentary lifestyles," the study authors wrote.

permanent link to article: "U.S. teens fattest in world . . . "
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/17/2004 10:01:00 AM |comment on this article

The Lawrence LJWorld reports on a Kansas group that works to build and maintain rail trails in Kansas:

On an old Missouri Pacific Railroad corridor near Bushong recently, a stalwart group of volunteers braved winter winds to demonstrate what they do -- work hard to turn sections of unused rail line into trail for bicyclists, hikers and equestrians. . . .

The connection is part of the Flint Hills Nature Trail, a 117-mile trail from Herington to Osawatomie, intersecting the Landon Nature Trail, from Topeka south to Lomax, and the Prairie Spirit Trail from Ottawa to Iola, a developed trail. . . .

The Flint Hills trail is a link in the southern route of the 6,830-mile-long coast- to-coast American Discovery Trail.

permanent link to article: "Kansas group works on rail trails"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/13/2004 08:42:00 PM |comment on this article

The Sikeston Standard Democrat has an article about the consequences of inactivity and poor diet in youth:

Today’s youth are considered the most inactive generation in history as the percentage of children and adolescents who are overweight and obese is now higher than ever before, according to the American Obesity Organization (AOA). . . .

The prevalence of obesity quadrupled over 25 years among boys and girls. Approximately 30.3 percent of children (ages 6 to 11) are overweight and 15.3 percent are obese. For adolescents (ages 12 to 19), 30.4 percent are overweight and 15.5 percent are obese. . . .

While the number of American obese children is on the rise, the figures for adults aren’t any better. The number of obese adults has doubled in 20 years, and is now up to nearly 59 million people, or almost a third of all American adults, according to AOA.

Click here to visit the AOA's web site. permanent link to article: "Today's youth the most inactive ever"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/13/2004 08:10:00 PM |comment on this article

Ed Chasteen's ride to support MS (10,000 miles in 2003; he reported on his efforts regularly in Sun-News of the Northland) made the Sun-News list of the top 10 news stories of the northland for 2003:

Dr. Ed Chasteen, a retired William Jewell College professor, announced in February that he would ride his bicycle 10,000 miles to aid the Multiple Sclerosis Society and HateBusters, a group that combats racial and religious bigotry. If the idea of riding so far sounded like something out of "Man of La Mancha," Chasteen's friends would not have been surprised, as he said he considers Don Quixote his favorite literary character.

permanent link to article: "Bike ride makes top 10 news list"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/08/2004 04:33:00 PM |comment on this article

MOSports.com has a nice profile of John Howard, who is #15 on their list of the top 100 MO athletes of 2003:

Springfield native John Howard has been a member of three Olympic cycling teams and represented the United States for 12 years as a member of the national team. In his 30-year career as a cyclist, he has won 12 national championships in 3 separate categories: road racing, cyclo- cross and off-road mountain bike racing. John won a gold medal at the Pan American Games in Cali, Colombia in 1971, becoming America’s first international road racing champion. He held the world land speed record of 152 mph for 11 years, and still holds the world 24-hour endurance record of 539 miles.

The 152 mph record is with motor pacing, by the way (makes those of us who have a hard time maintaining 15 MPH on level ground feel better . . . ) permanent link to article: "Cyclist John Howard is in MO top 100 athletes for 2003"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/08/2004 04:30:00 PM |comment on this article

STLToday has a nice article about two women who are preparing for next year's MS150:

[T]wo Jefferson County women are beginning preparations for the 20th annual Gateway MS 150 Bike Tour, a 150-mile bicycle ride in and around Columbia, Mo., on Sept. 11 and 12. The event raises money for research, education and support programs for those afflicted with Multiple Sclerosis.

permanent link to article: "Preparing for the MS150"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/08/2004 04:24:00 PM |comment on this article

According to research into fitness levels of type 2 diabetics (reported in ReutersHealth), fitness is actually more important than thinness in lowering overall mortality:

Investigators found that diabetic men who were physically fit were less likely than their less-fit peers to die of any cause over about 15 years. What's more, men who were heavy yet fit had death risks similar to those of fit normal-weight men.

"This is a testament to the power of being physically active," said lead study author Dr. Timothy S. Church, medical director of the Cooper Institute in Dallas. "Essentially, fitness totally negated the effects of being overweight," he told Reuters Health. . . .

[L]ooking at the findings from a different perspective, thinness did not protect study participants from the ill effects of being out of shape. Among normal men, those who were the least fit were nearly seven times more likely to die than the most fit.

Doctors, Church said, should talk to all patients about getting and staying physically active.

Exactly why fitness cut death risk in this study is not fully clear, but better cardiovascular health almost certainly factored in, according to Church. However, the Cooper Institute researchers have also found that fitness is related to a lower risk of cancer death.

permanent link to article: "The power of fitness"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/07/2004 05:07:00 PM |comment on this article

Take at look at this from comics.com.

[courtesy of Sarah Gibson, posting on criticalmasskc, who's just returned from trying out her new studded bike tires.] permanent link to article: "Winter cycling comic"
posted by Brent Hugh at 1/07/2004 12:49:00 PM |comment on this article