Off Road Hand Signals

Most OHVs don't have brake lights or turn signals.  However, it is still a good idea to let other riders around you know what you are going to do.  The hand signals you might have learned way back in traffic school to use in cars and trucks can be used to indicate when you are slowing, stopping, or turning.  That can be really helpful to riders following you in a group or approaching you from ahead of you on a trail or at an intersection.  It can be especially helpful when ride leaders use signals to help those following them to know what is happening.

Standard motor vehicle hand signals include signals for slowing, stopping, and making turns.  Slowing is usually indicated by extending your left arm out at shoulder level and slowly moving it up and down.  Stopping is shown by extending the left arm down a few inches from your body.  A left turn is indicated by extending the left arm straight out and holding it steady at shoulder level.  A right turn is signaled by lifting the left arm to the square.  You might signal you are going to speed up and want riders following you to do the same by raising your left arm up by your helmet with a closed fist and moving it quickly up and down.  This is based on the signal used by leaders of military units to instruct their folks to double time (run).

These hand signals are helpful for both approaching riders and riders behind you in your group.  You might be surprised how much nicer it is on a ride when approaching rides or riders ahead of you let you know what they are doing before they do it.  Be sure to return the favor and make proper use of hand signals to communicate appropriately with other riders around you.  Knowing how many more riders are still coming in a group makes is easier and safer to plan your own progress.

There are some other handy signals often used by trail riders that can add safety and convenience out on the trails.  They are used by two groups of riders approaching each other to alert the oncoming riders to the number of riders following the rider doing the signalling.   It can be VERY helpful to know how many riders are coming at you.  If you see a raised fist they probably are not shaking their fist at you (especially if the fingers are facing you), they are letting you know there are not more riders in their group behind them.   Other hand signals are pretty self explanatory.  Raised fingers tell you how many riders remain in the group behind the group behind the rider doing the signaling.  Holding up one finger (not the middle finger!) indicates there is one rider behind you, two fingers means two riders, etc.  Holding up a closed fist means you are the last rider in your group.  Always hold it with your fingers forward so it doesn't look threatening.  If there are more than five riders in the group behind you extend all five fingers and close them and extend them about 3 times.  The idea is to let oncoming riders know there are lots (at least more than 5 riders) coming behind you not to try to count how many are actually there.  So, for example, if you are number 1 - 15 in a group of 20 riders,  you might show all five fingers three times but just holding up all five fingers lets oncoming traffic know there are AT LEAST 5 or more riders behind you.

The use of hand signals to alert oncoming traffic to how many riders are behind you contributes to better safety as two groups pass each other from different directions on the trail.  Once you have experienced it you may feel it inconsiderate or thoughtless of oncoming riders who don't give signals.   It can be frustrating not knowing if there is yet another rider coming around the corner in front of you and can help keep your safe is there is! Even if the approaching group doesn't use signals, try always to use them yourself as it can be helpful to approaching riders, make it safer for the riders behind you in your group, and might even inspire other riders to learn more about it and how to use them themselves.

Talking about hand signals reminded me of something that happened during my Army Basic Training many years ago.  The instructor was testing us on hand signals and one of the guys in my platoon was really, really good at them.  Two instructors fired off different hand signals in rapid succession and he never missed one.  After several valiant tries to trip him up they gave up and told him "Get lost!" To which, without hesitation he flipped them the bird!   Quick thinking!  And, BTW, the instructors were not offended but were rather impressed with his skill and creativity under pressure.

Hand Signals are Handy!