Are some time trials inherently dangerous?

ianspeare

One of my regular local time trials is run on a dual carriageway. Now I know that smooth roads are needed for this kind of race, but I would fear for my safety if I were to race on this road. I use said road on my commute to work and regularly do 60-70mph and that's not to mention the many lorries that use the carriageway. The thought of a cyclist on this road fills me with dread. It seems like an accident waiting to happen.

I wouldn't mind TTing on single normal roads, but dual carriageways are basically motorways, so why is it ok to organise events on these roads?

imposter2.0

Just checked the cupboard - I've run out of popcorn....

DeVlaeminck

Some roads are more dangerous than others, personally I would class the average dual carriageway course as carrying a higher risk than I'd want to take riding a time trial......unless I was in great form, had invested in a tt bike and thought I could set a stonking pb.

It's really a matter of personal freedom - I don't consider it so dangerous that it should be banned and I wouldn't say never again, I just have reservations about doing it myself these days - much like riding a motorcycle.

mamba80

the law allows TTs and cycling in general to be on DC.
Is it anymore dangerous than being on a single carriage way A road, with close proximity of on coming traffic and limited visibility?

Once you start banning cycling on DCs, what next? A roads, then B roads? heck why stop there?

okgo

Rather them have two lanes to overtake me than one. Many people go just as fast down a single carriage ways as they do dual anyway.

Statistically time trials are very safe. Far safer than road racing.

DeVlaeminck

No doubt there are dangerous single carriageway A roads as well - I still think the average dual carriageway course carries a greater risk than the average single carriageway course - there have certainly been more deaths on DC courses in the last 10 years and I doubt that more miles are raced on DCs than SCs. As for road racing - yes there is more risk of crashing, not sure there is more risk of being killed so it depends what your definition of "safe" is, but the last year or two have shown that the worst can happen in amateur road racing too.

okgo

Go ahead and look at what most of the deaths are attributed to. There is a reason every startsheet you get now says LOOK AHEAD AT ALL TIMES in big letters...

richk

If you don't want to TT on a DC then don't. Your choice. Simple.

I can & do TT on the local DC courses. My choice. Equally simple.

ju5t1n

okgo wrote:

Statistically time trials are very safe. Far safer than road racing.

Do you have a source for these statistics?

okgo

No, but if I think about the number of TT's I've done, which is say, 15 (not aware of any crashes in an event I've done, apart from me stacking at low speed on a roundabout). And then lets think about road races, I crashed once and snapped my frame, and there were too many crashes to count over the course of the last two years, including one fatality for an NEG rider.

I think its fairly obvious that road racing is far more risky than time trialing, you could argue that if you do get hit in a TT then its probably game over, but as I said of all the accidents I've heard of in TT's almost none are related to being struck by a vehicle.

John.T

On most DC courses the only risk is some dozy prat not looking where he is going. I agree the results are not good. I do not ride if the traffic is too heavy to make overtaking safe.
There are far more risks on SC roads. Blind bends and summits which drivers can see round if/when there is a cyclist in front, joining roads, people crossing, etc. The chances of an accident are higher but the resultant damage is probably less.

sub55

you pays your money and takes your choice

suspect statistically the most dangerous thing the OP will ever do in his life is drive along at 60/70 MPH on a daily commute

bexslack

On the plus side, DCs offer good sight lines, few junctions and a decent road surface. They should be the safest roads for us to race on. In reality though, it's not the roads that kill TTers but the inattentive drivers on them. Since I've been TTing (5 years), I believe 100% of all TTing fatalities have been on DCs. While 2 were possibly rider error, the others weren't. Innocent people are being hit from behind all too often by inattentive drivers. RIP Karl Austin, Cath Ward, Gareth Evans, Alec Anderson and Len Grayson. Jane Kilmartin, Jane Barfoot and Michelle Grieg somehow cheated death after being hit from behind, but all suffered serious injuries.

I think it's important to do a proper mental risk assessment before deciding whether to ride on a DC. I believe that if an organiser goes to extraordinary lengths to make the event as safe as possible by erecting lots of event warning signs, insisting that ALL riders use rear lights, having a high density of riders on the course (ie using 30 second intervals between riders), laying out the field in such a way that overtaking is minimalised, and marshalls positioned at each end of the course and at any intermediate roundabouts, then the risk posed by inattentive drivers can be mitigated. I believe the only organiser who ticks all these boxes though is David Collard Berry from a3crg.

Personally I'd rather ride a traffic free or rural course any day. But I'm in the minority.

John.T

A rural course does not need much traffic to become just as dangerous as a DC. Short sight lines, on coming traffic, drivers going too fast, etc. As long as traffic density does not prevent cars from moving into the other lane to pass I find them safer or at least less worrying.

mm1

bexslack wrote:

I think it's important to do a proper mental risk assessment before deciding whether to ride on a DC.

Agree - there's some fast 10 courses on a newish main road near me, on which I have entered 4 or 5 events over the past few seaons, but DNS every time due to weather conditions (showers / spray), or how I was feeling. There are some courses I won't ride because of the road layout - spearpoint junctions, fast roundabouts and day / start times are a factor too. 2pm starts on Saturday, may produce fast times, but 6 am on a Sunday generally feels safer.

Personally I'd rather ride a traffic free or rural course any day. But I'm in the minority.

I agree with this too. Our club 10 course is "slow", but its relatively quiet and I like it for that reason (lack of traffic hasn't stopped Hutch and Alex Dowsett from doing 19' rides on it though).

fish156

okgo wrote:

Statistically time trials are very safe. Far safer than road racing.

Depends what you mean by "safe". I suspect your chances of injury while road racing are far greater, but chances of dying greater when time-trialling.

markos1963

I had a big accident on a DC last June putting me out for the rest of the season. Cause was the shocking state of the road surface, bringing me down. I was very lucky as the following cars managed to miss me. Would they have missed me if we had been on a SC? Not sure but at least there was plenty of room for people to get past as I lay in the road waiting for the ambulance to come and scrape me off the road.
Would I ride a DC again? Yes. Do I think they are dangerous? Yes. Are they more dangerous than a SC? The dangers are different. Should they be banned? No, but organisers must work harder to minimise the risks and not bury their heads in the sand waiting for the next fatality to happen.
My club have taken our organisation of our two Open TTs very seriously(both DCs) We now have a compulsory helmet and flashing rear light policy, we flood the course with marshals to make it very visible to drivers and others what's going on. We also have a travelling marshal looking for head down riders who will be DQ'd. All riders signing on are made fully aware of risks by a large( not A4) sign warning of danger areas.