The Road Respect Tour is up and riding for the second year in a row. “What is the Road Respect Tour,” you ask? The Tour is a joint effort between UDOT, Zero Fatalities, BikeUtah, a ton of sponsors, and drivers/riders around the state. The purpose of the Tour is to educate all road users on how to safety interact with each other. On their website they have a Ride With Respect/Drive With Respect section that outlines each road users rights, and obligations. For the last year they have been running ads, and billboards all over the state, and now they are out on their bikes spreading the good word in communities as far south as St. George, and as far north as Logan. Last year the Tour started up north and worked its way down. They even stopped in Provo, and were greeted by the Mayor as well as a bunch of riders who came out to show support (check our coverage here).
This year the Tour has started down south, which unfortunately has not saved them from the nasty wind we are experiencing right now. Here is a Facebook post from one of the riders;
Road Respect day #1 was a tough day from Beaver, Ut to St. George. We had 30 mph headwinds all day with gusts to 55. We were drafting the Mad Dog trailer at 10mph and struggling to stay with them. Wow! what a day. We head north tomorrow and hope the winds don’t change direction too soon.Â
You know these riders are dedicated if they are riding in 55mph gusts. I also heard that one of the riders, who must be as strong as Lance Armstrong, snapped his rear derailleur off mid pedal stroke. All of this and they have only been out one day. Fortunately the derailleur was repaired, unfortunately the riders are still fighting the wind. Even in the wind they are working their way up north though and will be in Utah Valley soon enough. When are they coming to Provo you might ask? Sadly due to some miscommunication Provo will not get the Tour this year. However, Evelyn Tuddenham (who is the head of UDOT’s Bike and Ped Department), promised that the Tour would come visit Provo in the Fall sometime perhaps to ring in the new bicycle master plan which should be done by then.
Until then you can find a stop near by to go and see the riders as they roll through. Â You can also make sure to be aware of the right way to ride wether you are behind the wheel or on them. Ride safe and make sure to spread the good word.
