Bike Safety
Dear Editor: For many kids bicycling is about freedom and fun. In order to keep the good times going, I’d like to share some ideas for parents, grandparents and caregivers on how to keep kids safe while they get exercise pedaling around our beautiful town.
For starters, kids need a bike that is the right size for them. If a bicycle is too big it’s harder to control. Your child should be able to stand over her bike with both feet flat on the ground. The next thing to check is the bicycle’s overall condition especially the brakes. If you have any doubt about the safety of the bike, we have a wonderful shop and many trained mechanics who can do tune ups and identify issues.
The next thing that’s needed for 100 percent of rides is a helmet that fits so it is level, snug, and strapped. Sitka has a youth helmet ordinance for everyone age 18 and younger, and it applies not just to bicycles but also to scooters, inline skates and skateboards.
So where should your child ride? Before the age of 10 few kids understand how traffic works. They have trouble judging distance and locating sounds. Kids can ride with parents once they have mastered the basics. On these supervised rides, cyclists younger than 10 years of age can ride on sidewalks, except for the sidewalks downtown where everyone needs to walk their bikes.
Another good place for a family ride is the multi-use trail that goes along Sawmill Creek Road. Please note it’s a multi-use trail, not a bike path, which means it’s for people walking as well. Anytime you are riding in a group it’s important to have adequate space in between riders. For the parents who are in the lead I recommend getting a mirror that attaches to your handlebars. They are so incredibly helpful.
Sitka also has some great places for very young kids to ride — the covered areas at Keet Gooshi Heen and Baranof Elementary School, as well as the tennis courts above Crescent Harbor near the Sitka Sound Science Center. These are great places to learn how to ride and to work on skills.
Most crashes for cyclists of all ages occur when the rider loses balance and control. The four most important skills for parents to work on with young riders are: learning to ride in a straight line, looking back over their shoulder without swerving, starting off and, most importantly, braking/stopping. When kids do transition to the road they need to be ready to stop at a moment’s notice. A skills course covering all 4 skills will be erected at our “Kidical Mass” ride on Saturday, Sept. 17. This will provide a good place to practice, plus 4H and Big Brothers Big Sisters are providing delicious bike-powered smoothies, but that’s another story.
There are three places where youth bike/car crashes tend to happen and where some extra awareness and training is needed. The first is when an excited young rider quickly rides out of the driveway without looking. Just like when crossing the street, youngsters need to be trained to look left, right and then left again before bicycling out. The second crash type occurs when kids run a stop sign and the third is the “no look” left turn, where kids don’t look back and just cut in front of a car that is coming up behind them. Teaching children to walk across a busy streets is a must. At any point, any rider who is unsure how to proceed can dismount and become a pedestrian, especially at crosswalks. A final consideration is visibility since motorists can’t stop for people they can’t see. It’s much safer to ride during the day, especially for kids. If you must ride at night, make sure you have a solid white light on the front of the bike, a blinking red taillight, and plenty of reflective stickers for the front, back and sides. Making the helmet as bright as possible is anther useful strategy.
Finally, for pre-teens who are taking to the street they can benefit from knowing the rules of the road. Cyclists fare best when they act and are treated as drivers of vehicles. The most important thing to remember and do is to ride where people expect, on the right side of the road. About 25 percent of car bike crashes are a result of wrong-way riding, and the risk of serious injury or death is several times higher for people riding the wrong way instead of with traffic. Riding against the flow of traffic, in a bike lane, sidewalk or in the road, is illegal and unsafe. Just be visible and go with the flow.
Cycling on the right side of the road is generally a good place to be. Motorists can see you and pass with at least three feet of clearance when appropriate. The key is to have kids remember to ride on the right and to ride predictably; the common practice of swerving in and out of traffic is not a good strategy.
Unlike many sprawling and thoroughly car-centered places in the U.S., it’s possible and quite practical to get around in Sitka on foot or by bicycle. By enhancing our safety efforts Sitka’s young people can enjoy the freedom, fun, and fitness that come with cycling.
Thanks for helping to make Sitka bicycle friendly and if you have any questions on this topic, please call me at 747-0373.
Doug Osborne, Sitka
No to Alternative School
Dear Editors: I recently have learned more about the duplication of costs the public is carrying, by keeping an extra high school. My daughter enrolled in Pacific High School, where she will finish up a few graduation requirements. Her story gave me insights that reinforce my belief that we have an excellent staff, but that we are not deploying them in the most economical and effective ways.
What I gleaned from her conversation was that the staff at Pacific are warm, concerned, resourceful, accommodating and flexible.
I previously have written that it appears to be a waste of money to burden Sitka School District with the cost of operating an alternative school. I still believe that.
During my daughter’s decision process, she also interviewed with the Sitka High School counselors. They were warm, concerned, resourceful, accommodating and flexible. Perhaps they were not quite as flexible in their ability to schedule my daughter’s coursework. Perhaps they need to work on their flexibility. The talent is there.
Many people ask why we are paying for this duplication. Some time ago, I proposed that Pacific High School be phased out, with a concurrent building up at Sitka High, of flexible options for students with various situations. In my daughter’s case, her work as a deck hand places limits on the time she can devote to study. Sitka High School could save the public money by incorporating even more alternatives into the existing operational framework. The public should not have to bear the costs of an extra high school, when the alternative model may simply be folded into the traditional high school. Sitka High School only has a short gap to close to incorporate alternative practices.
I do believe that the staff and administration at Pacific High School are of the highest quality. They should not be eliminated, but should also be brought within the fold of Sitka High, where they will be invaluable in training and in developing integrated alternative programs, at considerable savings to the district.
Let’s save ourselves the costs of keeping two high schools.
John Welsh, Sitka
