Booklet/Safety

General safety

• Animals (bears etc.)
• General advice in countries that we travel through? Also about police
• Belarus is the most affected country by the nuclear catastrophe of tschernobyl. It is may be not a good Idea to eat wild mushrooms and berrys. Researching on contamination and consequences of the MCA is mostly forbidden by the government, so its not clear how contaminated food is. Apparently milk is the worst product.

The most contaminated area is in the south-east. We don't go there. < When I asked a local person, she said this is not true. It's not recommended to pick mushrooms near the Chernobyl area but this doesn't mean the whole Belarus (or the whole south-east). And she said milk products are of much better quality than in the neighbouring countries.

Safety on the road

Road positioning

• Never hug the kerb, rather be in the middle of the trafic stream, you'll be more visible and treated more like traffic.
• The more to the edge you are, the more dangerous it gets. Cars leave you less space, you ride through more debris like broken glass which swept to the edge by cars, and roads are usually more broken on the edges.
• By riding further out from the edge of the road, you force following traffic to overtake you properly instead of squeezing past dangerously close.
• Never be closer than 50 cm from the kerb.

• When to take the lane (ride in the middle part of the stream):
  • Approaching a pinch point, such as pedestrian island in the centre of the road.
  • Approaching and negotiating a roundabout.
  • Approaching Give Way markings.
  • Approaching a side road, to prevent drivers from 'left-hooking' you and to help drivers on the side road to see you.
  • Approaching traffic lights.
  • Approaching a blind corner.
  • Negotiating a junction.
  • In queues of stationary traffic.
  • Overtaking parked cars.

• When not to take the lane:
  • If you're not confident in taking the lane.
  • If the road is busy and the traffic is moving faster than you can, either because it's a fast road or a steep hill.

• Changing positions:
  • Any change in position should be gradual – particularly when moving out to take the lane. Check back to see where any following traffic is, then gradually move into your new position. If you check back early enough, you may not need to signal to change your position within a traffic lane. Signal when you need to communicate your intention to drives who are closer.

Source: [1]

Bike safety