Sierra Club -- cycling is scary

01-04-2005, 05:14 PM

>From the January issue of the Sierra Club's magazine, ostensibly trying
to encourage people to ride:

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"But I'm scared stiff of biking"
Well, you should be. There are a lot of idiots behind the wheel, and
662 cyclists were among the more than 42,500 Americans slaughtered in
motor vehicle accidents in 2002. Bikers should learn safety measures
and, above all, wear a helmet. About 85 percent of those cyclists were
not wearing helmets. Avoiding main roads and staying sober greatly
increase your odds of survival, since about 60 percent of bike
fatalities occur on major roads, and over a fourth of the dead cyclists
had been drinking. Also, the fatality rate soars at night.