BENDIGO cycling ace Peta Mullens has lent her support to a Transport Accident Commission campaign to reduce cyclist road trauma.
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The Australian road and mountain bike champion was one of two national cycling identities used to promote the new road safety message.
In a two-minute video clip produced before last month's Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, Mullens offers viewers a glimpse of her hectic lifestyle and offers a few choice tips to riders and drivers on sharing the road and taking responsibility for each other's safety.
Mullens warns that cycling is "a dangerous sport and we realise that when we race, but obviously the time we're most susceptible is when we're training and we're sharing the road with cars."
"(Cyclists) deliberately choose roads that are quieter, I only do efforts on roads that are either a one-way road, or a very, very quiet road," she says.
"To me safety is more about what we can do to make ourselves safer rather than expecting other people to make the environment safe for us."
The videos, also featuring commentator Matthew Keenan, come in response to eight cyclists losing their lives on Victorian roads last year.
According to TAC figures, cyclists are 34 times more likely to be seriously injured than vehicle occupants and 4.5 times more likely to be killed in a crash.
TAC chief executive officer Joe Calafiore said Victorians could expect to see the number of two-wheeled road users swell during the warmer months.
“With the warmer weather comes more bikes, cars and motorbikes on the roads so we are asking everyone to be aware of this and think about the decisions they can make to keep each other safe,” Mr Calafiore said.
“Whether this means cyclists thinking about the route they take or motorists being more conscious of cyclists, it’s up to everyone to look out for each other.”
Between June 2015 and June 2016, 423 cyclists were hospitalised after incidents on Victorian roads.
Fifty remained in hospital for longer than 14 days.
“Our bodies simply were not designed to survive impacts at the speeds we regularly travel at and this is even truer for riders, who don’t have the benefit of vehicle safety features like airbags and seat belts,” Mr Calafiore said.
“We’re working with cyclists and drivers to remind everyone that the choices they make can help us achieve our goal of zero deaths on Victorian roads.”
Meanwhile, Mullens will be back on the mountain bike this month, chasing her fourth win in the 100 kilometre Otway Odyssey.
The 28-year-old starts the event as defending champion and will also line up in the inaugural Great Otway Gravel Grind the day after the Odyssey.
Mullens previously won the race in 2011 and 2012.
She will ride this year's overseas road season with United States pro-cycling team Hagens Berman Supermint.