Cycling can have great health benefits for folks of all ages. This athletic activity has become very popular, more so among people age 45 or older. However, the increased popularity comes with rising risks. A study conducted by UC San Francisco over a 17-year period found that with the increased popularity of cycling, medical costs due to cycling accidents increased by $738 million annually last summer. The same study found that in 2014 alone, bicycle accidents cost around $24.4 billion, considering both fatal and non-fatal accidents. The study stated that rising costs were due to increased vehicle traffic, changes in vehicle designs, and increased use of bicycles for community purposes. Outside of increased financial costs, data showed an increase in hospital admissions by 120%. Emergency department visits, especially among men, were found to have the most significant increase in accident costs. Many of these accidents also involved older people ages…
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If you ride your bike enough, you’re bound to experience a few close-calls. Theoretically, knowing what to do in common bicycle accident-inducing situations should help you to prevent them. In that vein, here are the most common bike-on-bike accidents and how to avoid them. Most Common Bike-on-Bike Accidents Bumping shoulders – If your riding in a group or participating in a race, it’s common to bump shoulders. No worries, this sort of contact is unlikely to cause an accident. You can further mitigate them, however, by always keeping your elbows tucked in against your body. Touching tires – Front wheels can grow a mind of their own and make contact the back tire of the person in front of you. Should this happen to you and contact is imminent, steer into them. It may go against your gut, but unless you pivot your front wheel into their back tire, you’re…
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Unfortunately, our nation is committed to blaming cyclists for their own deaths. San Francisco police were quick to do so after a 47-year-old veteran cyclist was killed in a bike accident after a collision with a bus. According to the police, the victim had been riding in the lane and attempted to pass the slow moving bus when his wheel got stuck in a Muni track, causing him to lose control and be thrown into the path of the bus. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Now, a local news station has confirmed that the police department is blaming the victim for his own death, saying that he should have been riding in the bike lanes. However, as pointed out by the same news station, there are no bike lanes in the area where the victim was killed. To add insult to injury, the police reportedly have in their…
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10620 Treena Street
10620 Treena Street