Since the inception of road cycling racing, there has been little change in terms of rider safety. We have seen an increasing number of crashes due to negligence from the race officials and organizers. Many of the serious injuries sustained are from unmarked hazards, unsafe descents, extreme weather conditions, poorly designed finish lines, and even civilian cars on course. 

Despite a slew of riders in critical condition, we have seen little action from Union Cycliste International (UCI) or the race promoters themselves. Often race officials place the blame back on the sport, itself saying, “that’s just cycling,” or casting the blame on individual riders. We disagree with this sentiment. Riders should not have to subject themselves to additional dangers beyond what is already required of them. Cyclists are often forced to put themselves in harm's way just to complete the day—racing in unsafe weather conditions and poorly designed courses. Cyclists do not have the protective gear and are not equipped to crash at such high speeds. The UCI’s lack of oversight in race planning and complacency in the matter costs the sport of cycling, resulting in severe injuries and even death in some instances. 

Amateur racers are also subject to unsafe road conditions with local promoters given little guidance on what protocols are needed for conducting a “safe” event.  It is unfair that in amateur racing, athletes have to sign waivers to release the organization of responsibility when there has been no formal process to oversee that the safety of the competitors has been implemented in the planning of the event. 

It’s time that the sport of cycling takes responsibility for their athletes by first acknowledging that in a competitive scenario, many athletes will go to the absolute limit of their physical ability to win a race, making them vulnerable to serious injury. With that in mind, we need to reverse-engineer from the inside mindset of the athlete, willing to risk it all, and figure out how to do the most we can to keep that individual safe in competition. 

To make the sport we love safer for athletes we propose the creation of a Third-Party Rider Safety Coalition. We believe that pro-active approach that is centered around preventing dangerous scenarios is crucial to make headway in this matter. 

By signing this petition, you agree that all cycling events should require the approval of this third-party Rider Safety Coalition for the event to be raced by the riders. This takes the responsibility off of the professional riders, and the rider union who have had a difficult time making significant changes in regards to protecting riders from these dangerous and avoidable hazards. 

 Third-Party Rider Safety Coalition would be in charge of but not limited to -

1. Ensuring finish lines are free from metal barriers.
2. Course reconnaissance dangerous parts of the course and road “furniture” are clearly marked with a marshall and or signage.
3. Sending out a preemptive email to teams before the race identifying the potential areas of caution with the kilometer they will come across them. This will allow the race directors to communicate the potential hazards to the riders in real-time via race radio. Emails can include pictures and videos of dangerous sections on the course. 
4. Assess weather conditions and make the appropriate decision based on weather conditions with rider safety in mind.
5.  We recommend that the third party consists predominantly of former World Tour racers who have a deep understanding of what constitutes safe and unsafe cycling events.

This third party must be unbiased and funded by a set fee to be discussed for each professional team as well as a portion from each UCI, and affiliated cycling associations memberships and/or individual fundraising so it is not beholden to UCI.

Professional teams should see this program as a massive loss prevention and risk management solution. If implementing these measures can result in saving even one professional rider from serious risk, the entire program could pay for itself. 

We believe in this instance that changes occur from the top down. With your help we plan to bring this petition to the UCI, World Tour Teams, and local federations to make cycling a safer sport for all that compete.