When riding a bicycle, how do you signal a right or left hand turn?

Students were learning the basics of bicycle safety Wednesday morning at Southwood School as part of Manitoba Public Insurance's Bike Rodeo program. Community Relations Assistant Jason Friesen says their goal is to promote and teach bicycle safety skills at a young age which will, hopefully, carry into their adult years.

"Basically what we're trying to do is promote bike safety for kids. We're showing them the signals and what they can do when they're on the road; all the things they should be doing to make sure they're safe when they're biking on the road."

Physical Education teacher Angie McPherson says they, "set up a bit of a bike course so we can teach the kids about bike safety. How to use your turn signals, how to be safe on the road, helmet safety, and all the good stuff you need to know when riding bikes."

McPherson adds there were students who do not bring their bicycles to school but would still benefit from learning, so they were able to participate by being pedestrians, trains and police officers.

"I think one of the most important things that we went over was the ABC's of the bikes," says McPherson. "Some of the kids knew it and some of the kids were like, 'oh, wow, I didn't know that.' Like the air pressure in the tires, the brakes, chain checks and making sure your bike is in good working order before taking it out on the road."

Friesen adds he finds the toughest skill for students to learn in the turn signals because they can be confusing at times in terms of which way to point your arm and how to ride with one hand while performing the signals with the other.

Students said the track was a lot of fun and the course was exciting to participate in, adding, they were able to take lessons with them about bike safety and how to stay safe on the road.