Making traffic signals on your bike?

[foxfirefey]

So, I have a vague idea of what traffic signals you're supposed to do on a bike. The problem is, I apparently don't always have the talent to bike *and* signal at the same time! I totally tumbled onto the road today trying to signal a right turn with my right arm.

Is there a better way? Does anybody have particular strategies? Should I just practice more in non-traffic areas until I'm more confident? Do they matter that much in your experience--how bad a sin is it to not do them?

Comments

[roadrunnertwice]

I put signalling in the same family as looking over your left shoulder without swerving, riding no-handed, stealing a sip out of your water bottle on the go, and, in the more degenerate reaches of the skillset, texting or futzing around with your iPod.

Which is to say, yeah, practice: it's fiddley cerebellum bidness, so there's no way around it. Your idea of going someplace less populated is a good one, though I wouldn't have had the patience for it, I don't think. Also, like someone else said above, going faster makes it easier to keep your balance.

The type of bike also matters, I think; I used to ride a mountain bike with barely any trail, and everything got an order of magnitude easier once I got Brigadelle.

Also, if you're right-dominant and have a harder time controlling the bike with left only, you could switch to the old auto-style right-turn signal (left arm bent at the elbow with the forearm sticking up); it's less explicit, but drivers are theoretically supposed to be able to understand it before they can get licensed.