Is Buying Safety Gear Really That Important?

People ride bikes for a variety of reasons, but wearing safety gear shouldn’t require any reason at all – it should be something you do without thinking every time you get on your bike. Nevertheless, many people seem to be unaware of how important bike safety gear is. While cycling is lots of fun, accidents do tend to happen. After all, it’s an activity that involves wheels, roads, and other traffic participants, and as such it comes with potential risks a cyclist should always be properly prepared for.

Watch Your Head

A head injury can also mean a serious brain injury and considering this, an essential piece of bike safety gear is the helmet. That’s why the Australian government has created safety standards for the manufacturing of helmets and has made wearing them mandatory, with hefty fines should you be caught cycling without one. While getting a helmet is a must, not just any helmet will do. It’s important that you chose one that meets the relevant safety standard AS/NZ 2063:2008. A helmet manufactured according to this standard has passed rigid series of tests to prove its effectiveness against preventing head injuries.

Don’t Forget the Rest of Your Body!

While wearing a helmet is required by law in Australia, that doesn’t meanyou should not wear the protective gear which isn’t mandatory, like for instance knee and elbow pads for bike riding. In fact, the knees and elbows are the parts most affected by bicycle accidents. While you might think wearing knee and elbow pads for bike riding is something that only kids do and doesn’t look cool at all, do you know what’s less cool? An arm or knee cast! As the knees and elbows are very delicate and are only protected by a thin layer of skin, you could end up tearing ligaments and muscles or even breaking the bone and pushing it out of place. Ouch! Such an injury could have significant effects on your quality of life.

Wear Proper Clothing

The clothing you wear can also help keep you safe while cycling. Especially if you cycle on a busy street or late at night. In those cases, it’s essential that you wear something that will make you more visible to the other traffic participants to get safely from point A to point B. Wearing reflective or fluorescent clothing helps significantly reduce the risk of being hit by a vehicle. Besides being noticeable, your clothes should be bicycle-friendly as well. Baggy pants, long skirts, and other loose pieces of clothing can easily get caught up in the chain or wheels and cause an accident. So, be careful what you put on before you get on your bike.