Separate versions for the US and for Canada
No matter what type of riding you do, or want to do
commuting • recreational • touring • triathlon / sport / competitive
this course will help increase your comfort and competence out on the street.
What will you take away from this course?
- Gain significant skills to help you be more competent & comfortable riding in traffic.
- Discover the rights and duties you have while riding your bike.
- Explore proven ways to encourage more drivers to respect them.
- Understand the impact of your actions in traffic, and how you can bring about positive interactions.
- Reduce your likelihood of crashes or collisions, or receiving traffic citations.
- Increase your chances of gaining work involving cycling or transportation demand management.
- 4 hours of interactive content incorporating video, descriptive text, photos, graphics, animations, and quizzes.
- Learn from any location, at your own pace.
- View it all at once or a bit at a time.
- Perfect for yourself, or as a gift for a friend or family member.
*** Coming soon: an abbreviated 2-hour version will be available.***
Valuable for experienced riders, as well as beginners.
- Includes separate module for your state or province, and city (as available).
- Only $34.95 for 6 months of access.
- 30-day money-back guarantee.
- You may return as often as you like to review and improve.
Here’s what we’ll explore:
How people behave in traffic
How people behave in traffic
- Our reaction to other people’s errors
- Video: It’s a 3-Way Street
- How do these behaviors come about?
- Our attitude and its impact
- Monitoring our thoughts
- Evaluating our skills
- Learning from our experiences
Bike handling skills
Bike handling skills
- Parts of the bike
- Does your bike fit you?
- Braking
- Pedaling cadence
- Riding in a straight line
- Scanning behind
- Optional section: Shifting gears
Being an MVP-C
Being an MVP-C
- Maneuverable: Creating space around you
- Visible: Being seen, day and night
- Predictable: Helping others make the right decisions
- Communicative: Getting across the right messages
Your rights & duties
Your rights & duties
- Knowing your true place in traffic
- “But you don’t pay for the roads!” (Yes, we do.)
- What’s the point of the law?
- What we expect, and what drivers expect of us
- Our effect on other cyclists
- A summary of traffic laws for cyclists:
- Three levels of traffic laws
- Definition of a bicycle
- Required equipment
- General operation
- Where to ride on the road
- Obeying traffic control devices
- Right of way
- Riding on sidewalks
- Parking your bike
- Legal doesn’t equal safe
- What if we disagree with a law?
Scanning & signaling
Scanning & signaling
Scanning for traffic
- Why it’s important
- Review of steps to make it easier
- When to scan
- Using mirrors
Signaling
- Why it’s important
- What we need to signal, and tips to make it easier
- Turns
- Lane changes
- Change of position within a lane
- Stops
- Pulling onto the roadway
- Waving thanks
- Signaling–how, and how often?
Putting it all together
- Scan, Signal, Scan, Go.
- How this looks in real life
Choosing your place on the road
Choosing your place on the road
Choosing a lane and lane position
- A reasoned approach
- Seeing things from a driver’s perspective
- Ride with traffic
- Risks of wrong-way riding
- How we choose our lane position
- Avoiding roadside hazards
- Giving ourselves space
- How far right?
- When we can move left
- Controlling the lane
- How this helps drivers
- What our options are
- Communicating with others
- Some important considerations
- Riding on one-way streets
- What does controlling the lane look like?
Parked cars
- The potential risks
- What’s a safe distance?
- Legal responsibility for drivers & passengers
- What a safe distance looks like
Bike lanes
- Do we have to ride in them?
- What are our options?
Intersections
Intersections
Lane position at intersections
- A, B or C position?
- Common driver errors at intersections, and how to discourage them
- Stopping at an intersection
- Positioning in bike lanes and at 4-way stops
- Travelling through the intersection
- If you ride in ‘C’ position
- If a driver turns across your path
- Regardless of what lane position you take…
- Right turn only lanes
When stopping is required
- Stop signs and red lights
- What might you miss?
- Go! No, stop!
- Fewer decisions are needed
- Drivers’ perceptions
- The cost of a ticket
- What is the point of the law?
- Where to stop
Right of way
- Don’t assume you have it
- First come, first served
- Yield to the person on the right
- Yield if you are turning
- Taking your turn
- Pedestrians’ right of way
- Which is a legal crosswalk?
- Communicate with others
Traffic lights
- Why a green light doesn’t mean ‘go’
- Judging the timing
- Starting off quickly
- Triggering traffic lights
Making turns
- Right turns
- Left turns
- Changing lanes: moving from ‘C’ position
- Changing lanes: with traffic around you
- Changing lanes: signaling
- Changing lanes: with no traffic around you
- Using the gaps
- Preparing for the turn
- Lane position for the turn
- Waiting position
- Making the turn
Traffic circles & roundabouts
Other riding situations
Other riding situations
Passing on the right
- Good reasons not to
- When and how we can do it
- Lane-splitting
Sidewalk riding
- Why do people ride on sidewalks?
- Potential risks
- Making the decision
Other situations
- Riding near buses
- Riding in parking spaces
- Riding side-by-side
- Riding on paths & trails
Equipment
Equipment
Required & optional equipment
- Brakes
- Lighting: what’s needed, and when
- Helmets
ABC Quick Check (bike)
A more detailed check
Sizing, configuring, & adjusting your bike
Parking your bike
- Deterring bike theft
- Where to park your bike
- How to lock it up
- What kind of locks?
Summary & feedback
Summary & feedback
- Includes an option for a brief survey so you can let us know what you think of the course.
It only takes a minute to sign up for 6 months of access!
30-day money back guarantee!
I’m certain that you’ll gain valuable insights you can use on your very next ride. If for any reason you’re not fully satisfied, your money will be refunded.
– Allan Dunlop, Director
“Do I have to ride at the edge of the road, or can I control my lane?” • “How can I encourage drivers to give me enough space, and to cooperate with me?” • “What laws apply to me as a cyclist?” • In this course, you’ll find the answers.
Government organizations • Businesses • Advocacy groups • Charity ride organizations • Colleges and universities • Cycling clubs
Bulk purchase discounts and coupon codes are available. Details here.
Sign up now:
6 months of access, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Are you a cyclist who has received a traffic ticket?
Have your fine dismissed by signing up for the Defensive Cycling course.
This online cycling course is accepted in many jurisdictions to dismiss a ticket. If your city isn’t on the list, ask the Court if this option will be accepted. We can help.
Now available for implementation in jurisdictions across the USA and Canada.
