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If you decide to wear a brightly colored cycling shirt when you venture out onto the road, you will have quite possibly just made a life-saving decision – whether you realized it or not! But cycling shirts are not the only device you can use to give yourself a fighting chance of reaching your destination in one piece. They form a part of your self-preservation armory and belong in the category of Personal Visibility. The other parts are Lighting, Safety Equipment and Training. Your goals, through thorough training, high personal visibility and effective lighting, are to avoid the need to test out the effectiveness of your safety equipment – the last thing you want to do is find out through personal tragedy that it wasn’t effective!

So let’s take a look at some of the available options for staying safe cycling on the roads.

Personal Visibility

Your ability to attract the attention of other road users is paramount, because if they have seen you, there is a negligible chance that they are going to be in collision with you. Unless of course they are taking a chance or they underestimate your speed when approaching a junction – a common cause of accidents is a vehicle overtaking a bike and then cutting across to turn at the junction, usually forcing the cyclist to turn with them.

So to attract attention, wearing really bright clothing is a great start, whether that means cycling shirts, cycling jerseys or heavier cycling jackets. Some people use the terms cycling shirts and cycling jerseys interchangeably; often though, the former will be a short sleeved cycle top, whereas the latter will have long sleeves. But it doesn’t matter; firstly avoid black, grey, brown, dark blue or dark green ones – the kind that drivers will have difficulty spotting at night, or dawn or dusk. Bright yellow, or white, or light green, or red will be good colors. Anything you wouldn’t be seen dead in normally (that choice of words was deliberate!) is good, and the more garish the better. A safety green cycling shirt lie the one pictured is ideal.

If you happen to like your design of cycling jersey or jacket, and it is a dark color, maybe because you ride for a team or club, and those are the team colors, then the next thing to add to your Personal Visibility cache is a high visibility vest, like those often worn in the construction industry. They are great for keeping you highly conspicuous at night as these vests have light-reflective strips, and it is hard for a driver not to see you. And while on the subject of light-reflective strips, it is also a good idea to wear reflecting wrist straps. These have the effect of making you appear wider, as your hands will be positioned apart on the handlebars; they also allow you to indicate your intentions with clearer hand signals when  turning left or right.

Wearing combinations of some of these practical devices will help to make you stand out on the road to other users, and keep you safe. Remember, prevention is better than a trip to the hospital.

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Bike Lighting

Lighting comes in various forms, and includes both powered lights and reflectors. Many bicycles are manufactured these days with four reflectors, under the saddle, on the handlebars, and one on each wheel; it is a good way to prevent a bicycle accident, because you can be seen from all four directions. If your bike is missing any of these, go and find them so you can upgrade your bike safety!

If you are cycling at night, or other times when visibility is poor, you should have powered lights on your bike. Most savvy motorcyclists always have their lights switched on when riding, even in broad daylight, as it adds to their visibility. The norm, as for all other road vehicles, is a white light at the front and red at the rear. For bikes, the lights are usually battery operated, although some are operated by a dynamo and light up when the wheels are turning; of course, this can put you in some danger when you are stationary!

Many people these days also wear some personal lights, either on their backpack or bike helmet; these are LED type lights and flash randomly to warn drivers. It’s best to find a good quality flashing LED light that flashes randomly because people have a tendancy to become accustomed to a regular flash and after a while, begin to filter it out.

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Bicycle Safety Gear

If the worst does happen, and you end up in collision with a vehicle, you will need some bike safety gear to try to minimise injuries. The one piece of gear all riders need is a bicycle helmet. The law varies from place to place, and many countries do not make wearing a bike helmet compulsory. But whether compulsory or not, get yourself a cycling helmet – would you prefer to bash your head against the road after a bike accident, or have a padded helmet take most of the damage? You don’t need to be a brain surgeon really, do you!

As for other safety gear, you might wish to wear knee guards and elbow padding, and perhaps a pair of leather gloves. These will give you some basic protection against scrapes in minor bike accidents. To be realistic, if you suffer a head on collision with a truck, travelling at speed, you are going to suffer major injuries, and your prime concern in this situation is your head. Of course, your “real” prime concern is prevention!

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Bicycle Training

Some countries have formal tests for cyclists (eg the Cycling Proficiency Test in the UK); often they are not compulsory, but it is a wise idea to go and try the test, and learn as much as you can about staying safe on the roads. You will need to obey the rules of the road, and these days many cyclists get killed because they think a red traffic signal doesn’t apply to them, or a one-way street is just one-way for motor vehicles, and they can go the wrong way up it if they like. It does sometimes seem that many of the rules on the road are just there to bully road users; but most are there either for our safety or simply to keep traffic moving smoothly. Cyclists: for your own sakes, stick to the rules!

If you can find courses that teach defensive cycling, go on one. Similarly anything that teaches you awareness is great; think martial arts perhaps. And while on martial arts, find one that will teach you how to fall properly. Many bike accidents result in broken wrists, arms or collar bones as victims throw their arms out when flying over their handlebars. This is needless, as many martial arts teach people how to roll out of similar situations without any injury at all.

So those are some of the things you can do you keep yourself out of harm’s way when road cycling. Make sure you get yourself some super-shiny cycling shirts to improve your chances of being seen; always use your lights when visibility is poor, and perhaps even also when it’s not; always, always wear a bike helmet; and be aware of what is going on around you – that means no ipods or cellphone conversations etc. when riding.

If you want to see some more excellent practical tips on cycling road safety, then read How to Not Get Hit by Cars by Michael Bluejay.

Giordana apparel is not just beautifully designed and manufactured; it is also among the most highly advanced technical wear around, with features such as elasticated sleeve cuffs and waistbands to reduce drag by preventing the jerseys from ballooning by filling with air. The clothing is made to benefit all cyclists and allow them to perform better, using advanced moisture removing fabrics, a result of such a long-standing relationship with generations of top race cyclists.

Having become such a well-known and well-respected manufacturer of cycling shirts and all manner of other gear – including cycling shorts and bib shorts, jackets, head wear, cycling gloves and socks, and other accessories – Giordana has been able to provide top quality attire to serious racers as well as to the budding amateur cyclist. Some of the racing teams that have sported such apparel are the CSF Pro Team, the Colavita/Sutter Home Pro Team and the Toyota-United Pro Team.

But Giordana cycling jerseys are not just for the serious professionals and those teams with sponsorship from huge international corporations. They also provide excellent and affordable technical clothing for the small up-and-coming teams and for individuals who ride for fun and keeping fit. They even have a great range of so-called “Lifestyle” clothing designed for people to wear both on and off their bikes. Their catalog separates the various levels of jerseys (and other gear) into several categories. Gone for 2010 is the Easy Rider category from 2009 which was designed for mountain bikers and for cycling for fun and relaxation.

The categories for 2010 are:

• Body Clone – this range is designed to fit like a second skin, the aim being to fit the anatomy of a rider in the riding position. After all, what’s the point of having a snug and perfect fit when you are standing upright next to your bike, if as soon as you start racing the jersey slides up your back and the shorts prevent your legs from pedalling freely!
• Ultimate – designed for the ultimate in performance during aggressive racing at the top level.
• Pro Level – this collection includes authentic Giordana designs, offering an identical feel, fit and performance as that experienced by the Pro Team riders.
• Performance – this is the range for all-rounders. Great performance and value to offer amateur cyclists everything they need whatever their level of ability.
• Sport – relaxed fit is good for general sports training on the bike. One for the recreational rider.
• Lifestyle – a wonderful collection of cycling clothing originally for women, but extended in the 2010 season to men. This clothing offers a mix of practical everyday casual fashion combined with high performance technical cycling features to enable you to look good on and off the bike.

So performance-wise, there is definitely a category that will easily fulfil your needs. The Giordana cycling jerseys also have the usual options of long sleeved or short sleeved, long front zippers (in many cases a full length zipper), and pockets at the back. For quality and for an Italian cycling shirt that is still actually made in Italy, Giordana is possibly the best on the market today.

Obviously the professional racing cyclists wear specialized cycle jerseys to display which team they ride for, and also to advertise their team sponsors. But if you just like to hurtle along normal streets in town, you may be better off wearing a cycling shirt as many of them are made in a vast array of eye-catching and sometimes garish color schemes. This is a good thing if you are riding in busy towns with a lot of traffic on the roads – basically you want to be seen by other road users. So if you are not a racer, think of the bright colors as a safety feature.

A quite separate advantage of wearing cycling shirts is that they are tailored to be longer at the back than the front. You will be leaning over most of the time if you are riding at speed, and will prefer for your shirt not to slide halfway up your back. The front is normally fastened using a long zipper, and obviously you can adjust this to where you want it, to cool down if you’ve been training hard or the weather is very hot.

On the subject of comfort, many cycling shirts these days are made from Hi-Tec fabrics which allow breathability. In other words, like specialized garments that runners wear, the material wicks away moisture from the skin surface of the wearer, and so these shirts help to keep you comfortable and dry.

Cycling jerseys generally have pockets which are on the rear; heavy items can get in the way if the pockets are on the front of the shirt. Some have multiple pockets, some have zips on the pockets, which are the ones I prefer as things don’t fall out of them!

If you are cycling in colder weather you can wear long sleeved cycling shirts, some of which are designed to keep you warm, with elasticated cuffs and waistbands, and the all-important moisure wicking ability.

So the main tips (and reasons)  for getting a cycling shirt are to decide on long or short sleeves; aim to buy a jersey that wicks moisture away from your skin, as it will keep you so much more comfortable during rides which require periods of high and low intensity. And use a cycling shirt that allows you to be highly visible to motorists – bright yellow, green or red are good colors to try.

Tour de France yellow jersey

The fiftieth anniversary of the Tour de France saw the introduction of a new cycling shirt color – the green jersey, or maillot vert. This shirt gets worn by the racer with the highest number of individual points, the points being awarded for sprints at the end of each stage of the Tour. There are four different types of stage, each with its own scoring system. In order of highest points on offer, they are: flat stages; medium mountain stages; high mountain stages; and time trials. Not only are the points lower for the winning rider in each of these types of stage, but the number of riders awarded points also reduces. So in flat sprints, the first 25 racers are awarded points, the winner receiving 35; but with time trials, only the first 10 get points, with the winner awarded only 15. The wearer of the green jersey is the rider with the most cumulative points. If more than one rider has the same points total, then the number of stage wins is taken into account.

The third important cycling shirt color in Tour de France racing is white with red polka-dots, and is worn by the cyclist called the King of the Mountains. Points are given to the first to reach the peaks of certain hills and mountains along the route. The climbs are divided into categories according to steepness and duration, with the easiest numbered 4 and the hardest numbered 1 – and even climbs dubbed ‘beyond classification’. As with the green jersey system, the polka-dot jersey sees more points-winners and higher points awarded for the more difficult climbs; and on the last climb of each stage, double points are earned if the hill is classed as ‘beyond classification (hors categorie)’ as well as categories 1 and 2.

So in future, when you see these colored cycling shirts whizzing past (except perhaps for the polka-dot one!), as you watch the Tour de France, you might ponder how much sustained effort these cyclists have had to put in, on their quest to win the final yellow jersey!