JUNE 16, 2025 – Have you noticed all the bicycles on the roads lately? The sun is out, the weather is nice, and more and more people are outside enjoying the fresh air and sunshine on their bicycles while sharing the roads with motorists and motor vehicles, big and small.
Leann Fraka and LaShaun Chappell see this and know this and want to make sure everyone else does, too. As part of their “safety starts with me” campaign, the brigade safety team from the 405th Army Field Support Brigade wants people to focus on bicycles and bicycle safety during the Army’s 101 days of summer safety.
One of the people Fraka and Chappell talked to about bicycle safety was Christopher Ambridge-Adams from Base Support Operations Transportation, 405th AFSB. To say Ambridge-Adams is a seasoned cyclist would be an understatement. He has over 120,000 kilometers of experience on the roads in Europe.
“Cycling requires 100 percent attention and concentration at all times,” said the chief of outbound transportation support at BASOPS Trans. “You must be constantly scanning for potential dangers. The most common safety concerns for cyclists are pedestrians who step into the cyclist’s path without looking, both on roads and on cycle paths. For this reason, the cheapest safety gear of all is one of the best – a bell.”
But motorists are equally dangerous, Ambridge-Adams said. Despite a lifetime of experience on a bike with 100 percent attention to road hazards and potential bike safety threats, he’s still managed to find himself on the wrong end of more than one road mishap and cycling accident.
“I have been side swiped twice by cars and knocked down twice more by other cyclists who failed to pay basic attention to their surroundings in broad daylight,” Ambridge-Adams said.
Ambridge-Adams recommends bicyclists do a thorough check of their bikes before taking them out to ensure everything is operating well and there’s no problems. He said it’s maybe not necessary to do so every time you ride but at least every so often and especially at the beginning of the riding season. He said tires are the most important thing to check, followed by brakes.
Bicycle riders should wear high visibility clothing with fluorescent colors and retro-reflective material to ensure they stand out and are seen on the road, similar to what most motorcycle riders wear. Of course, the right protective wear is also a must, especially a helmet. The benefits of wearing a helmet and the right gear far outweigh any inconveniences, most riders say.
“Also, anyone who rides without lights is both foolish and in violation of the law,” said Ambridge-Adams. “Reflective tape is a simple but great safety enhancement, too. It works well on both the bike frame and the wheels.”
Herb Gately agrees. The program analyst and contracting officer representative for the 405th AFSB cycles with his wife in the evenings, on weekends and during the holidays. Gately said bright clothing and lights make a huge difference and can save lives. And he’s not the only one. Guy Vossen said the same thing.
“I always go for high visibility to include a fluorescent yellow jacket and yellow helmet,” said Vossen, the safety and occupational health specialist at the Zutendaal Army Prepositioned Stocks-2 worksite in Belgium assigned to Army Field Support Battalion-Benelux, 405th AFSB. “And I always try to ride defensively and select my route carefully, even if the safer route is a bit longer.”
Vossen also stressed the importance of protection. When it comes to choosing a helmet, he said some of the newest helmets on the market are incredibly high-tech. In fact, some of these helmets are developed by brain surgeons and biomechanic scientists and designed to help redirect rotational motion away from the head, which helps reduce the risk of brain injury. One of the most basic considerations when choosing a helmet is picking one that’s designed and intended for the activity, he said. Don’t wear a climbing helmet or a skateboard helmet when riding a bike, for example.
According to an article from the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center hundreds of cyclists have been killed and tens of thousands more were injured in preventable crashes over the past few decades. For the Army, during a 10-year timespan, more than 200 bicycle accidents were reported to USACRC, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that only 10 percent of all bicycle accidents are reported. So, for the sake of argument, if the Army’s reporting rate is similar, that means the Army has had closer to 200 bicycle accidents each year for 10 years rather than 200 total for the decade.
“Soldiers are being injured and even killed in bicycle-related accidents,” said Peggy Adams in the USACRC article. “It’s important that Soldiers realize there are dangers associated with riding [a bicycle] and take precautions to protect themselves,” said Adams, a program manager at USACRC.
But overall, the physical and psychological benefits of commuting by bicycle or riding a bicycle for pleasure far out way the dangers, said Ambridge-Adams, as long as all safety risks are mitigated, and safe riding is practiced. Have fun on your bikes during the 101 days of summer safety and year-round but stay safe.
To learn more about bicycle safety and other types of sports and recreational safety, go to USACRC’s sports and recreation safety page at https://safety.army.mil/OFF-DUTY/Sports-and-Recreation.
The 405th AFSB is assigned to U.S. Army Sustainment Command and headquartered in Kaiserslautern, Germany. The brigade provides materiel enterprise support to U.S. forces throughout Europe and Africa – providing theater sustainment logistics; synchronizing acquisition, logistics and technology; and leveraging U.S. Army Materiel Command’s materiel enterprise to support joint forces. For more information on the 405th AFSB, visit the official website at www.afsbeurope.army.mil and the official Facebook site at www.facebook.com/405thAFSB.
Story by Cameron Porter
405th Army Field Support Brigade – Europe & Africa