Does 13 year old biking to school need a safety vest?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If he is biking during dusk/dawn - yes, absolutely.

OP, will this be the case in the mornings after the Oct time shift?

[Anonymous]

What do you do about backpacks? Wouldn't that cover the vest anyway?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The vests are like bike helmets used to be. Not required by law, but a good idea to improve safety. Getting kids to wear bike helmets 10 years ago was hard as well.

Until it is the norm, a 13 year old generally does not want to wear it. Don't force your kid to wear one if he will get teased for it. Teach him to ride safely and only in daylight.

Um, would it have made sense to have said that about helmets?

[Anonymous]

Vest--not necessarily--but visibility in anything but broad daylight-absolutely.

So:
--Any jacket/windbreaker he'd be wearing on the bike should have some kind of reflective parts or trim,

--The bike should be well-lit, meaning:
---red light on back
---white light on front
---ideally some additional lights--I like tireflys (they screw onto the valve stem and light up when the bike is moving) and bikeglow (fiberoptic cable that can be wrapped around the bike frame)
---and maybe even some light(s) on the helmet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The vests are like bike helmets used to be. Not required by law, but a good idea to improve safety. Getting kids to wear bike helmets 10 years ago was hard as well.

Until it is the norm, a 13 year old generally does not want to wear it. Don't force your kid to wear one if he will get teased for it. Teach him to ride safely and only in daylight.

i did not want to wear a bike helmet when i was 13 but my parents still made me (before it was a law) and i'm glad they did. if it's dusk or dawn or cloudy or raining i think OP should treat the vest the same way. if it's 100% sunny, eh...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Vest--not necessarily--but visibility in anything but broad daylight-absolutely.

So:
--Any jacket/windbreaker he'd be wearing on the bike should have some kind of reflective parts or trim,

--The bike should be well-lit, meaning:
---red light on back
---white light on front
---ideally some additional lights--I like tireflys (they screw onto the valve stem and light up when the bike is moving) and bikeglow (fiberoptic cable that can be wrapped around the bike frame)
---and maybe even some light(s) on the helmet.

This. You don't need a vest per se, but he should have some bright reflective material on his clothing and backpack to improve visibility. You want to make it easier for cars to see him, even when light conditions aren't ideal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Vest--not necessarily--but visibility in anything but broad daylight-absolutely.

So:
--Any jacket/windbreaker he'd be wearing on the bike should have some kind of reflective parts or trim,

--The bike should be well-lit, meaning:
---red light on back
---white light on front
---ideally some additional lights--I like tireflys (they screw onto the valve stem and light up when the bike is moving) and bikeglow (fiberoptic cable that can be wrapped around the bike frame)
---and maybe even some light(s) on the helmet.

This. You don't need a vest per se, but he should have some bright reflective material on his clothing and backpack to improve visibility. You want to make it easier for cars to see him, even when light conditions aren't ideal.

Be careful with this - Consumer Reports just tested "reflective" clothing and none of it came close to the benefit of a certified safety vest.

[Anonymous]

Consumer Reports just tested reflective clothing for what? What benefits of a certified safety vest did they find, and for whom?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Consumer Reports just tested reflective clothing for what? What benefits of a certified safety vest did they find, and for whom?

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2015/05/biking-to-work-with-a-reflective-jacket-can-be-a-smart-move/index.htm

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Consumer Reports just tested reflective clothing for what? What benefits of a certified safety vest did they find, and for whom?

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2015/05/biking-to-work-with-a-reflective-jacket-can-be-a-smart-move/index.htm

Thanks. So what they found is that a safety vest (without a backpack over it) is most visible when reflecting car headlights at 300 feet in the dark, compared to reflective items that cover less of the body. Which is good to know, but I don't think it says much about biking in the daytime.

[Anonymous]

Similar to other comments, a vest is good. But, if can't/won't do that, have DC wear:

= a brightly colored helmet -- red or orange or yellow. This is an easy solution.

= a brightly colored backpack to carry DC's school stuff. Again -- easy.

= lights at front and back that are easy to turn on and off.

= training in how to ride carefully on the street.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's about 2 miles, moderately busy streets - nothing horrible.

It wouldn't hurt. Better safe....you know the rest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Similar to other comments, a vest is good. But, if can't/won't do that, have DC wear:

= a brightly colored helmet -- red or orange or yellow. This is an easy solution.

= a brightly colored backpack to carry DC's school stuff. Again -- easy.

= lights at front and back that are easy to turn on and off.

= training in how to ride carefully on the street.

The Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) offers city cycling classes.

http://www.waba.org/adult-education

The website says that the classes are only for ages 16 and up, but I would contact them and ask about classes for 13-year-olds.

[Anonymous]

I used to bike all the time on the roads, up until about 10 years ago. It's just dangerous, plain and simple. A new study came out saying child bike injuries are down significantly (probably because of helmets), but adult injuries are up by 300%. Your kid is engaging in a more adult bike riding activity -- commuting. Only you know the roads, but I'd err on the side of safety. How many high schoolers, for example, might be driving cars and texting on those same streets? If it's during the rush hour commute, people tend to drive more aggressively, IMO, because they are late for work.

[Anonymous]

Only if you want him to eat lunch alone...

You can make him leave the house in it, but I promise you it will be off just after he rounds the first corner.