We love riding our bikes in Friday Harbor. Because we rarely have adequate shoulders or lanes to use, I teach my kids to use the road. That’s all about being seen.

To get into the road, I teach my kids to look, signal, then move when there’s room to do so. That’s all about being safe and predictable.

In defensive driving school, I learned to not only be responsible for my own actions, but to always expect the other driver to make a mistake. Cycling is no different. To the mantra “be safe, be seen, be predictable,” let’s add “and expect the unexpected.”

BE SEEN. Bright colors, reflectors, and flashing lights are the visual equivalent of the Harley Davidson mantra that “loud pipes save lives.” Ham it up! Being seen is your single best defense since most drivers will not intentionally hit you if they see you beforehand.

BE SAFE. The idea of my kids riding without my escort scares me. I’ve come to the conclusion that, at least in my case, I will lose every time I run into a vehicle. I can remember, as a teen-ager, slamming into the back of a mail truck on a wet day. The driver of the truck never even felt the impact. He drove on when the light turned green, leaving me dumbfounded and in a great deal of pain. I was not being safe because I did not leave an adequate distance between us on a wet day.

Here are some better examples of being safe:

— Be mindful of the conditions. Don’t ride fast where it’s crowded, wet, gravelly, or uneven.

— Take time to build up your comfort level around cars.

BE PREDICTABLE. With 100 percent honesty, I’d say that I’m the most predictable cyclist I know. I can almost always tell you what I’m going to do before I do it. Not everyone agrees, however, so there are a few things I try very hard to always do.

— I always ride with traffic and do my best to act like a car.

— If I move from the shoulder to a driving lane, or even back to the shoulder, I signal.

— With one exception, I never pass a vehicle on its right. The exception is when I approach a line of cars at an intersection. I’ll pass all of the vehicles on their right until I’m in back of the first vehicle in line. Then I wait my turn along with everyone else.

EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED. Whether cycling through town or out in the country, a little vigilance goes a long way. Watch for warning signs and think about your escape route:

— Stray pets and children that aren’t on leash can be unpredictable. Expect them to run out in front of you.

— Parked cars. Watch for people entering a parked car as they might back out in front of you. Watch for dome lights, which come on when the driver removes the key from the ignition or if an occupant cracks open a door as they might open a door fully in front of you.

— Vehicles that properly signal their intentions can always change their mind. Don’t expect them to be as predictable as you are!

— Especially if you are riding on the shoulder, watch out for debris in the roadway, or even stormwater grates so you can signal and change lanes well in advance.

— I try to ride as far to the right of the driving lane as possible and reserve the shoulder as an escape route. This is certainly debatable and depends largely on your comfort level when riding next to cars, the amount of traffic, etc.

Finally, being safe, seen, and predictable is not always enough to get you to your destination unscathed. Sometimes luck is needed to carry the day. Two summers ago, while escorting children home from Friday Harbor Elementary School, we signaled and moved from the right shoulder into the lane to prepare for a left-hand turn. One child, who was in front of me, was just about to turn left at the upcoming intersection when I heard a car’s engine racing behind me. I screamed for her to stop just as the car passed us on our left!

We lived to ride another day. We were being safe, predictable, and seen. I did NOT expect this unexpected, and reckless, behavior.

Sharing the road is an important mindset, just as is driving and riding defensively. These incidents don’t happen often, but they happen enough that we need to remind ourselves of them from time to time.

I want to thank The Journal for posting my letter, the Trails Committee and Island Rec for their support of the upcoming “Share the Road” event on May 15th, and most of all the considerate drivers of San Juan Island for making this a safe place for my family to ride. I hope to see everyone out there and would especially like to invite any inexperienced riders and families to join in the parade and consider even the longer ride to American Camp! Organized rides are a great way to build confidence and educate yourself and your children on how to share the road.

Marc Islam
Friday Harbor