Confident City Cycling 1 Class (7/7 – 6pm-8pm)

[Tim Kelley]

Just a reminder that a BikeArlington/WABA Confident City Cycling 1 class is being held on Thursday evening in Arlington and there is still room. Many of you are seasoned riders, but please think of family or friends who may be interested and could benefit from a class.

Here are the details:

CCC1 (2 hrs.) covers basic bicycling information and on-bike skills such as: bicycle selection, fit, inspection, gearing, cadence, clothing, accessories, and bike handling basics like starting and stopping, riding straight, scanning and signaling. Half of this class will be an on-line course and half will be on-bike practicing bike handling skills. This class is recommended before taking CCC2. Participants must bring their own bikes, helmets, and water. Participants will be required to sign liability waivers. ($5 for WABA Members, $10 for non-members)
Location: Quincy Street Deck, Parking Deck (N 15th St. & Quincy St. Arlington, VA 22203)

For more information on Bike Education classes and to sign up visit this page.

Topic

[acc]

I’ve taken both classes and cannot count the times they saved me from getting hurt. Last weekend I had to make a split-second decision when a cyclist stopped directly in front of me. There was no shoulder to my right and a big SUV closing in fast behind me. Because an LCI took the time to talk through evasive actions and let me practice in a parking lot, I was able to think my way through what to do.

Happy trails,
ann

[DCLiz]

Can you tell us how the format has changed from previous years? I want to retake at least CCC2, but I’ve been wondering what the new “on-line” section means.

[CCrew]

Anyone know why CCC2 recommends against clipless pedals?

[Tim Kelley]

I’ll see if I can get someone from WABA to post an explanation on the changes in the course.

The reason why clipless pedals are not recommended for CCC2 is because they do an number of obstacle/evasive move type drills and prefer students to be able to get off of the pedals quickly.

[henrymesias]

The “on-line” component covers everything in the League of American Bicyclists Traffic Skills 101 manual. In previous years the material was taught in a class room setting with a Power Point presentation. With the online component there is no need for a class room or Power Point. Instructors review the material briefly at the beginning of class so the majority of class time is devoted to on-bike skills development.

[henrymesias]

WABA recommends against clipless pedals for the CCC2 class because some of the drills we practice like the quick stop and instant turn may cause a rider to dismount suddenly and may be harder for some people to do with clipless pedals. In short, some of these drills, if not done right, may result in falling and having clipless pedals could prevent you from landing on your feet or preventing a fall. Does that answer your question?

[CCrew]

@henrymesias 5355 wrote:

WABA recommends against clipless pedals for the CCC2 class because some of the drills we practice like the quick stop and instant turn may cause a rider to dismount suddenly and may be harder for some people to do with clipless pedals. In short, some of these drills, if not done right, may result in falling and having clipless pedals could prevent you from landing on your feet or preventing a fall. Does that answer your question?

It explains your position on it for the class, but isn’t the stance paramount to saying WABA doesn’t advocate the use of clipless pedals? By inference, you’re saying that what you’re teaching may not be possible utilizing clipless.

I’m not trying to poke a stick at you here in a public forum…. but as an experienced rider that would like to believe that *everyone* could benefit from these classes, you’re effectively excluding those of us that exclusively ride clipless. 15 bikes in the garage, none have regular pedals

[KLizotte]

Thanks for the head’s up and info on this class. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that my boss and the weather cooperate so I can leave work early to attend.

[henrymesias]

I think you may be reading a bit too much into this. We are not advocating against clipless pedals at all. These drills can definitely be done with clipless pedals. We have people of different skill levels showing up to our CCC2 class. Some may have been riding for 1 year and some may have been riding for 10. For many people the drills we practice in the CCC2 class are not the type of things people are used to doing on their bicycles, so we recommend not having clipless pedals at first. Once a student can get the drill down with regular pedals and feel comfortable with the maneuver then we recommend taking the next step of performing the drill with clipless pedals.

We have had people show up to our classes before with clipless pedals who are experienced riders like yourself and do just fine. We have also had people show up to class with clipless pedals they just put on their bike 2 days before class and not do so fine.

I in the end this is just a recommendation. It does not say clipless pedals are banned from our classes on our website and we would not turn someone away with clipless pedals, nor have we ever, so I don’t believe WABA is excluding folks who ride exclusively with clipless pedals. Do whatever makes you feel most comfortable.

[CCrew]

@henrymesias 5362 wrote:

I think you may be reading a bit too much into this. We are not advocating against clipless pedals at all. These drills can definitely be done with clipless pedals. We have people of different skill levels showing up to our CCC2 class. Some may have been riding for 1 year and some may have been riding for 10. For many people the drills we practice in the CCC2 class are not the type of things people are used to doing on their bicycles, so we recommend not having clipless pedals at first. Once a student can get the drill down with regular pedals and feel comfortable with the maneuver then we recommend taking the next step of performing the drill with clipless pedals.

We have had people show up to our classes before with clipless pedals who are experienced riders like yourself and do just fine. We have also had people show up to class with clipless pedals they just put on their bike 2 days before class and not do so fine.

I in the end this is just a recommendation. It does not say clipless pedals are banned from our classes on our website and we would not turn someone away with clipless pedals, nor have we ever, so I don’t believe WABA is excluding folks who ride exclusively with clipless pedals. Do whatever makes you feel most comfortable.

Naa, makes perfect sense. My day job has me trained to ask too many questions

[acc]

CCrew, just for your added consideration and god knows I’m not trying to tell you how to ride, that would be an exercise in futility , but the exercises are done at slow speed. It’s harder to do them using the clipless system, I did but it was harder. And I was new on the bike, things like looking over my shoulder and maintaining a straight line seemed like mysterious skills known only to Bike People. A year later I’m looking over my shoulder, pulling up my shorts, and playing with my water bottle all at the same time. You’d be fine with your regular bike.

ann

[CCrew]

@acc 5401 wrote:

CCrew, just for your added consideration and god knows I’m not trying to tell you how to ride, that would be an exercise in futility , but the exercises are done at slow speed. It’s harder to do them using the clipless system, I did but it was harder. And I was new on the bike, things like looking over my shoulder and maintaining a straight line seemed like mysterious skills known only to Bike People. A year later I’m looking over my shoulder, pulling up my shorts, and playing with my water bottle all at the same time. You’d be fine with your regular bike.

ann

Thanks. I signed up, don’t know if I’ll make it or not. Had a bit of a senior moment leaving the house this am and rode my full suspension BMC mountain bike in this am. May be a bit overkill for the class If not it’s $10 to a good cause regardless.

And you can freely tell me how to ride, or even where to go anytime :p

-R

[acc]

And you can freely tell me how to ride, or even where to go anytime :p

-R

Yeah, right. Those discussions never go well…

You will see every kind of bike that rolls across the face of the earth and some that probably shouldn’t. My experience was the classes cut across age and experience demographics with more women than men attending. The instructors are great, the fun and games outside are sort of like a grownup version of a Bike Rodeo. Have a good time. I’m off for my weekly dose of humility @ Wakefield tonight.

ann

[Author]

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