On June 24, 2006, Education Program Manager Robin Hendershot and Education Administrative Assistant Allison Seale traveled to Texas State University in San Marcos to hold a one-day Bicycle Rodeo for a Texas State children’s fitness camp with children ranging in ages 6 to 13. As part of the week-long camp, the kids learned the Seven Texas Bike Laws and other bicycle safety lessons from the Texas SuperCyclist Program in order to prepare for the Bicycle Rodeo. Proper arm signals to indicate stopping, turning left and right and the parts of a bicycle were among some of the important lessons that the children reviewed before the event.
1. Always wear a helmet. Don’t let the Texas summer heat tempt you to ride without full protection for your brain! Consider investing in a helmet with extra vents for air flow and cooling properties. Learn more about proper helmet fit.
2. Drink before you’re thirsty! Dehydration is a leading cause of heat exhaustion. Keep hydrated to reduce your risk and improve your performance.
3. Always do an ABCD Quick Check before you ride. Checking the air pressure, tire condition, brakes, crank, chain and quick releases before your ride will reduce the likelihood of getting stuck on the side of the road with a mechanical problem. Nobody wants to fix a flat in the middle of nowhere with the Texas sun beating down on their neck. View the bicycle inspection checklist.
4. But just in case, learn how to fix a flat if you don’t already know how!
5. Go with the flow! Ride in the same direction with traffic and follow the other Texas Bicycle Laws.
6. Wear sunscreen and sunglasses to protect yourself from the sizzling summer rays.
7. When riding on trails, follow the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) Rules of the Trail: leave no trace; always yield to pedestrians, horses and slower moving traffic; and never scare animals. For more information on the Rules of the Trail, visit the IMBA website.
Youth Participate in Kids Kup Race at Houston Grand Criterium
Houston ISD Teachers Receive Bicycle Safety Training
On April 24, 2006, forty-two physical education teachers from Houston ISD attended a six-hour Texas SuperCyclist Curriculum training geared toward teaching fourth and fifth grade elementary students bicycle safety. To date, Texas Bicycle Coalition has provided the free bicycle safety curriculum training to more than 2,800 teachers across the state.
With great enthusiasm, the Houston ISD teachers participated in the training that was scheduled in response to the tragic deaths of two Houston-area schoolchildren in bicycle-automobile crashes in 2005. With the implementation of the Texas SuperCyclist education materials in classrooms by Houston ISD teachers, tragedies like these may be avoided in the future.
Coalition Surveys Effectiveness of Texas SuperCyclist Curriculum
Texas Bicycle
Coalition is gathering data from teachers trained in the Texas SuperCyclist
Curriculum to learn how the program has been disseminated into Texas elementary schools.
Since 1996, at least 2,845 teachers have been trained. If you are teacher who
has been trained in the Texas SuperCyclist Curriculum, please respond to the
brief 8-question survey at www.BikeTexas.org/teachersurvey
and receive up to 500 free colored bookmarks for your classroom. Feedback from
this survey provides the Coalition information on how to improve the curriculum
to create the best fit for the classroom.
IMBA
