Please Don't Cling

Please Don’t Cling

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by Thomas Zermeno, PCI #1390T-B EMSCI #412T-B
Norman (OK) Police Department
IPMBA Education Coordinator

Ed.’s Note: On November 26, 2021, Little Rock (AR) Metropolitan EMS (MEMS) suffered the loss of EMT Dean Douglas. On November 21, Dean was on bicycle duty during the Little Rock Marathon. While responding to a call, Dean made the decision to hold onto the roll cage of a department utility vehicle in order to arrive on scene more quickly. Tragically, this proved fatal as he was pulled under the vehicle and sustained serious injuries. We join MEMS and the community of Little Rock in mourning his loss. This article is intended as a timely reminder of the dangers of attaching oneself to a moving vehicle when operating a bicycle or any other conveyance.

On July 4, 2021, I was riding in an annual parade. It is one of the longest running and largest parades in the Norman area. I have always enjoyed working this particular one because there are rarely critical incidents and everyone has a great time. Near the end of the parade route, I observed that one of the children on a bicycle hanging onto the back of the fire truck. I immediately directed the child to let go of the vehicle with the admonition that it was extremely unsafe.

Afterwards, I got to thinking about Back to the Future, when Marty McFly was late for school. He was riding a skateboard and grabbed onto the back of a vehicle so that he could get there more quickly.

It was a very memorable scene: The Power of Love by Huey Lewis and the News was playing and nothing bad happened to Marty. He made it to school safely and almost on time, until Mr. Strickland caught him in the hallway and issued him a tardy slip.

We as public safety cyclists have to bear in mind that, inasmuch as we want to respond rapidly to a call for help, clinging to a vehicle is a very unsafe and illegal activity, despite what we see done by actors, stunt-persons, and professional bicycle racers. We need to model positive behavior and set the standard for obeying the law. We must also remember that we need to arrive safely to the scene in order to make the positive difference we intend to make upon our arrival. Most importantly, we must remember that it is our duty is to go home at the end of each and every shift, and to help ensure that our fellow cyclists do, too.

So please remember: let the actors and stunt-persons do dangerous and illegal things. We need to stay safe, go home at the end of our shifts, obey the laws, and uphold the standards we set as IPMBA-certified public safety cyclists.

Thomas joined the Norman Police Department in 2009. He is currently assigned to night shift patrol and is the training coordinator and instructor for the bike team. He has been active with IPMBA since 2011, after taking the IPMBA Police Cyclist Course. He was certified as PSCI in 2013 at the Baton Rouge conference and cross-trained as an EMSCI in 2017. He became an Instructor Trainer in 2019, BRT certified in 2020 and BRT instructor certified in 2021. He currently serves on the IPMBA Board of Directors as the Education Coordinator. He can be reached at Thomas.Zermeno@yahoo.com.

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