Run Fast, Inc.

the most hated sound for a biker

2007-08-10T10:07:00.000-04:00

Pffssssst! Especially when you are miles from your destination.

Yup, I went out with soft tires yesterday; and I really had the time to put the needed air in the tires; and I really shoulda put the air in the tires; but I'm little Lance junior; and I'm too bullet-proof for all that non-sense-pinch-flat-road-on-trail-downhill-at-25-mph to happen; but at least I had a spare and CO2 catridge.

Sound like any guys on job sites - I'm too smart to get hit in the head with a girder; I won't get a fleck in my eye, I've been doing this for 20 years; hearing protection? what? humph!

Stuff happens to all of us - even little lance juniors - so be pre-prepared.

Sci-fi lines

2006-12-01T17:55:00.000-05:00

"No one is safe!!!"

Sounds like a line from a 1950s horror flick about a giant slime ball that was created as a result of a laboratory nuclear reaction gone awry, but it seems to be more of a truism about workplaces in this area - at my sons indoor soccer practice.

In yet another stunning unsafe act, Billy Bob was on top of a 3-story high movable platform being push around the gym by Jimmy Bob as he was leaning out of the platform to change lights and raise/lower basketball hoops. And, you've probably guessed by now - absolutely no fall protect. Eek.

Employer? Employee? Who would be responsible for Billy Bob, Jimmy Bob or my 8-year-old sons in an accident? Me? Nope. We left the gym - I couldn't stand to watch.

they're following me

2006-11-27T11:10:00.000-05:00

Dude, they're following me, they're after me, on the way to school, riding my bike, out golfing ... now they're in my front yard!!! Really, I am not making this stuff up - they a in my frickin' front yard - It's the death-by-construction safety idiots. Look for yourself:

This is not a doctored image for the purposes on making GCs looks bad - this is the real deal. Yes, the guy is sitting this scopp of the bobcat, ready to fall back on his head. And here's another - pick in hand, no helmets, eye protection, orange vests, yada-yada-yada:

One more (in my frickin front yard!!) - no PPE of any kind:

Golf sucks, but ...

2006-11-27T09:46:00.000-05:00

Ok, my golf games sucks, but I'd still rather go out and shoot a 110 on a 40-degree day (with a stiff 15 mph breeze - that's why my drives were so off - really) than get killed on a construction job site.

You may ask: 'Safety Blog Man, you're stretching the limits of trying to post safety stuff: how would you possibly come up with that juxtaposition - golf / death-by-construction?' Well, look at the picture. At the golf clubhouse -it's a little hard to see - I took the picturewith my phone - the lone guy in the red shirt on the second story - less than 2 feet from the edge - no fall protection - using a power drill and walking around like he could fly if he tripped over the cord.

Construction safety stupidity seems to follow me around - I don't make it. When will owners, GCs, subs, and individuals get the message?

Top 100 most frequently cited items by OSHA

2006-11-13T09:57:00.000-05:00

This kind of blew me away - look at the most commonly cited OSHA items (and I'm not making this up, here's the link: http://www.osha.gov/Publications/100most/100most.html). 5 of the top 6 items have nothing to do with actual conditions in the field ...

1) WRITTTEN HAZ. COMM. PROGRAM
2) EMPLOYEE TRAINING HAZ. COMM.
3) MSDS FOR HAZ. CHEMICALS (actual labeling of chemicals in the field)
4) OSHA POSTER
5) ACCESSIBLE COPIES OF MSDS
6) SAFETY TRAINING/RECOGNITION OF UNSAFE CONDITIONS

The rest of the top 15:

7) GUARDING OPEN SIDED FLOORS
8) HEAD PROTECTION
9) GROUND FAULT PROTECTION
10) ELECTRICAL GROUNDING
11) ACCIDENT PREVENTION PROGRAM
12) PROTECTIVE SYSTEMS FOR TRENCH/EXCAV.
13) GUARDRAIL SPEC. FOR TUBULAR WELDED SCAFFOLDS
14) OSHA 200 LOG
15) PPE USED FOR SPECIFIC OPERATION

Polar Bear Club for 5-year Olds

2006-02-13T09:46:00.000-05:00

Whoosh, ugghh, ahhh, Daaaaaaddddy, ohhhh, SPLASH! The sounds of the latest inductee joining the ranks of the polar bear club.

I felt so good - not walking up the sledding track like the other over-the-hill 40-something dads -- I was running up the sledding track, time after time after time. I could feel that sweet burn in my quads and lithesome tautness in my hammies. The hours spent with Bianchi in the trainer and Chris Charmichael in the VCR were paying off.

Then, in a flash, Son #2 is flying down the hill ... too far to the right for me to catch him ... got past ... get him before the lake ... got the sled ... not the boy ... SPLASH! Waist deep in Cattail Branch.

Nerds, nerds, nerds

2006-02-07T19:18:00.000-05:00

There are safety nerds; there are coding nerds; here in the DC area, we have politics nerds (lots of them). But now, at the ripe old age that I am at, I am firmly convinced that you will never be successful at anything unless you are a nerd at something. I mean deeply devoted to something(be it safety, writing software, or being a wonk) to the point at which some one else doesn't understand a) what in the heck you are talking about, or b) your motivation for diving so deeply into a topic that you read it, you think it and speak more than anything else, or c) you.

There's another type of nerd that I am trying to become - a bike nerd. Setting up a team for the local MS Ride in May, on the stationary training for hours, even reading Lance Armstrong's War, gift from my bro - the Lance of bros.

Billion Dollar Wrap

2005-11-28T10:07:00.000-05:00

"ahh, I've run billion dollar wrap ups with paper and video tapes"

Really, that's what a guy said to me the other day -- he ran all the safety training for a 7-year, billion dollar wrap up with using a paper-based tracking system and videotapes. AND, he is about to kick-off 5 more multi-hundred million dollars projects the same way next year. Wow, the old-dog construction industry really has a hard time learning new tricks.

Here's what a job site is supposed to look like ...

2005-11-11T13:25:00.000-05:00

It's pouring, it's raining; you really should be training

2005-10-21T10:25:00.000-04:00

It's pouring, it's raining; you really should be training.

Really you could be getting your OSHA 10 card today. The entire northeast will be wet for the next few days and many jobsites will slow down operations because of the weather. So why not do something productive -- like get trained. This would real nice for the guys slaving over at Belmont Ridge Road.

Least Safe Job Site Ever

2005-10-20T10:32:00.000-04:00

What a coincidence -- the least safe job site I have ever seen in my life is actually right next to the bike trail!

On Belmont Ridge Road, there is a new Mini Storage place going in: they've done extensive excavation and blasting, lots of grading and clearing, started paving and started masonry. Today, on my way home from the trail, ABSOLUTELY NO ON WAS WEARING A HELMET!!!!!

Mini Storage = not sexy; which means the guys are probably really low-paid; and the job is being run on a really tight margin. But what the eff? Shouldn't someone step in a get these guys some basic PPE even just some helmets? I couldn't tell from the road, but I'm guessing there was no hearing protection, eye protection or steel-toed boots either.

Safety Watch is Safe, but the trail isn't!

2005-10-13T09:55:00.000-04:00

So our chums at Safety Watch are keeping the world safe one respirator at a time. I wish we had a similar statement to make about the status of construction here in Northern Virginia or the status of the W&OD bike trail.

Why do people get speeding tickets or drunk drivers spend time in jail? Is it because speeders and drunks will get in accidents? No, it is not. These idiots get tickets and jail time because they are creating the conditions that allow accidents to happen; and when the accident actually happens, that's when the bad things start -- loss of money, loss of life, bad things.

So why doesn't the construction company that sends people into the field without helmets, hearing protection, gloves, boots or training get a ticket? A little financial pinch to get their attention? Well, I guess there the never-present OSHA inspector to slap a little fine on ne'er-do-well employers.

And what about the bike trail -- eek! Lots of safety issues. Look them up at Safety Insite.

Bike trail safety

2005-10-03T10:40:00.000-04:00

"Find something you love to do and you'll never work a day in your life."

I don't know who said it, but man, is it true.

Basketball practices never seemed like work; band practices never were a burden. But unfortunately, I am 6' 1", can't jump, tone-deaf, and, well, generally not well-suited for the NBA or a Grammy award. Enter cycling and safety; but how and where do those interests intersect? On the W&OD Trail.

RunFast.net is now in the process of using its Safety Insite product (hand held inspection SW) to inspect the length of the W&OD trail in Loudoun County VA. You can check out the results to date at www.safetyinsite.com, username and password are 'trailuser'.

Safety Watch heading south

2005-09-12T09:06:00.000-04:00

"Our paramedic group may be deploying south for hurricane relief soon. If so, I will send along info from the field on what safety items I discover in the zone."

I received this email from Al Kalbach, President, Safety Watch, Inc., who happens to be one of the leading business partners in RunFast.net's SafetyZone program. Good luck, Al, and please, keep us posted.

Helmets! Helmets! Helmets! No-where!

2005-09-03T17:52:00.000-04:00

Ok, who's worse -- the construction industry or bike riders???

I mentioned the 20 construction workers in my neghorhood without helmets; well, I am not kidding you here, I rode this morning for couple hours on the W&OD trail in Loudoun County VA and I counted 58 people w/out helmets. Why are people sooo opposed to wearing helmets? I don't get it!

I'll tell you a secret -- I ain't got no hair. (There, I said it.) So I don't understand the ruining a finely coiffured mop thing. But in the balance of protecting your brain or protecting you hairdo, which should be winning?

Do we need an OSHA 10-hour or PPE course online for bikers? We'll we have them for construction. Bottom line: how do you get people to wear helmets?

Thanks, Ralph, but no more Mr. Nice Guy

2005-09-01T19:44:00.000-04:00

Can anyone tell me why so many people in the field don't have helmets?! Work gloves!? Steel toed boots?!

It drives me nuts; there are countless workers in my neighborhood alone -- Verizon installers, guys putting in a county pool, residential builders; jeez you name it, not even the most basic PPE. What gives employers?! I could post 20 pictures a day of guys with absolutely no PPE in place.

How do you get your people to wear their PPE -- or don't you provide it?

Safety Blog is Up!

2005-09-01T19:31:00.000-04:00

Yeehaw, the first official blog devoted strictly to construction safety is here -- SafetyBlog. Tips, best practices, content -- usable stuff -- for you to take back to your operations and have an impact - financial and human.

We are devoting our first post to a client of multiple years -- DPR Construction, specifically Ralph Brasfield, the safety manager in the Mid-Atlantic region. Ralph and his teams have been using hand-held inspection software tools for years -- way ahead of the curve. Per Ralph: "
Safety is an issue of critical importance in the industry." Also, "I can look at a lot of information to evaluate performance. These audits were done by many team members."

Way to go Ralph! Thanks for keeping your teams safe and allowing up to tell your story.