Novice Cycling Handbook

I'm currently working on a little handbook for a friend who's about to start cycling in London.

I’m also doing an accompanying spoke card, an idea I entirely ripped off from the LFGSS ‘What to do in an Accident’ card. I couldn’t find a printable one on this site, so I decided to make my own. I intend to adapt it to credit card size too once I'm happy with it. Below is a link to what I've got so far. If anyone thinks there are things I’ve left off or things I’ve got wrong please tell me.

Download PDF
N.B. Fonts may not display perfectly on GoogleDocs view.

My friend hasn't done a driving test or any theory so isn't very familiar with the roads and is unlikely to search this stuff out for himself because he’s got a rather twee view of cycling. While I want to encourage him – indeed, it was partly me who inspired him to buy a bike – and I agree that cycling in its essence is extremely simple and generally perfectly safe, I also enjoy drinking with him and would hate to see him get injured or have his bike nicked only to be too discouraged to get back on another. He can be quite quick to sack things off if they’re not working out straight away so I want to put forward an image of cycling being something that gets better the longer you do it and that you don’t automatically become a member of any cycling tribes (MAMILs, messengers, nodders).

I’m going to suggest we both go on cycle training. I’ve been riding around London for a fair while and would say I’m now a fairly competent urban cyclist, so enrolling together should keep his pride from welling up. Also I reckon I could use it anyway, so we both gain.

Back to the handbook though, my main concerns are for it to be:

Informative – basically how to lock up, how to position yourself, lights, etiquette etc.
Encouraging – after information, the most important part
Truthful – not to skirt around issues or simplify issues that aren’t simple
London specific
Easy to read – clear, well worded and entertaining
Simply designed – but also nice to look at

Once I’m happy with it I’m going to post it up here for several reasons:

Corrections – I may have got things wrong
Omissions – anything you think London cyclists should know that I’ve left off
Sharing – since much of the information in it will have come from here, and indeed a few pictures as well (all will be credited) it’s only fair to share it

Does anyone think I’m barking up the wrong tree here?
And thank you if you read all this.

I have a very tatty, water-stained, possibly-unreadable-now print out of 'what to do in case of an accident' for if I'm a bit doolally. A concise laminated one would of course be better.

If such a handbook doesn't exist then I think it's a good idea. I would just get on and do something without inviting input from here (ah - exactly as you have said). You won't ever get a concensus on LFGSS.

Thanks for the encouragement and wise words.
I'll finish it off, upload it and people can comment.
Any pertinent comments will be listened to.
Anything other comments will be discounted.

The link in the OP seems to be to the crash card, Japeseye, not to your own doc--was it meant to be the latter? Or are you saying that you started just by making a Google doc from the info on crashes?

The GoogleDoc link was supposed to link to a PDF of the Spoke Card accident information.
Still putting finishing touches to booklet, but will post here when first draft is done.

Ah, I see. It's certainly worth providing some very condensed information, as there's so much info out there already.

If you need any help making the storyboards/illustrations for road positioning, locking etc, I can help

Cheers!
I'm more of an InDesign & Photoshop man myself, but if you're handy with a pen or Illustrator that might be useful.

I did the original spoke card, you want?

Pretty sure Velocio's got about half a million of these left over from the cycle show. Ask him nicely?

Great idea. Let me know if you need any resources, You could use this if you like:
http://www.cycletraining.co.uk/index.php?pg=128#.TguVKeCLYjy

http://www.bikexprt.com/streetsmarts/lhd/index.htm

^ These are both great. Thanks so much!
It's taking longer to edit than I'd anticipated.

Good deed.