First aid skills are essential when out on the road.

You may never need to use first aid, but if something should happen you can provide critical care when it's needed most. Let's face it, when you're out on a bike, you're placed in a position where you can easily become injured. From dirt in your eyes to dumping your bike at speed. Being able to get or render aid quickly can mean all the difference in the world.

Judy and I belong to the Gold Wing Road Riders Association. The association is designed around safety and education. Safety and emergency response is very much a huge part of their training. It's come in handy on a number of occasions and thankfully not for anything serious. Adding a basic kit to your bike can help immensely in an emergency situation.

Courses can be found all over, from local fire departments to the Red Cross and local community centers. You don't need to know everything, but learning the basics will help you maintain some control in an emergency and besides, you have all that stuff in your first-aid kit, you might as well know how to use it.

Automated External Defibrillators or AED's are the newest thing on the market and are easy to use. Some will talk you through the procedure and others work only if set up correctly, to ensure that you can't get it wrong. There are training classes for AED use as well and with them now showing up in schools, work places and even the shopping malls it's another great tool to learn how to use.

I'm not meaning to scare anyone at this point but like I stated above, riding a bike puts you in a place where you can become injured easily. So like when most of us grew up and were involved in scouting, learn what you need to respond quickly and "Be Prepared".

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