Braving the Bike with the BTA

In an effort to be more sustainable, healthy, and to avoid my morning dose of road rage, I have recently become very interested in biking to work. However, the thought of braving the city streets on two wheels scares me to death. In an effort to better educate us all, last Thursday Stephanie Noll, Programs Manager from the Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA), came and spoke to our office about the "rules of the road" as they apply to bicycle safety. (Side note - Stephanie road her bike here in a skirt! Who said you can't look great while you ride?!)

In the words of the BTA, the workshop "tells new and old riders alike about the laws, skills, and basic gear and basic maintenance that they need to know about to be safe and comfortable biking to work." Stephanie brought maps of bike routes, and taught us the basics of bike riding from hand signals, and easy ways to mount your bike to public transportation, to the best way to stay dry in our oft-times rainy climate. One of the biggest topics covered though, was how to share the road and pathways with cars and pedestrians alike, giving all of us novices a bit more courage to brave the road ahead.

Thanks to byCylce.org (a bicycle trip planner, similar to mapquest) I now have my safest and easiest route to get to work. With my helmet on and my lights lit, I plan to soon be brave enough to face the traffic (and the weather!) and truly enjoy the outdoors on my way to work.


-Hannah Hasbrook