Safety Tips while Riding Your Bike Taking care of your bike is
only one aspect of staying safe while riding. Take these steps
to reduce strain on your body, protect your bike, and improve
safety while your ride: Pay attention to the road in front of
you. Your goal is to avoid obstacles like rocks, potholes, and
other hazards, which, if you hit them, could result in a bent
rim or other incident. Instead of jumping or riding across a
curb (which could damage your rim or, at worst, cause you to
crash), dismount and walk your bike. Shift into your lowest gear
before you reach the steepest section of a climb. Trying to
shift when you’re barely moving puts a lot of strain on the
chain and derailleurs, and if the chain springs off the largest
cog into the spokes the damage will be even greater. Plus, you
may not be able to shift in time, causing you to come to a stop.
If you have to go over a bump, raise yourself off the saddle and
use your arms and legs as shock absorbers as if you were a horse
jockey, to lessen th