Premium Member GAZ Posted March 17, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted March 17, 2015 I expect the car at the stop sign to pull out in front of me and not see me at all. With that being said make sure if you're in a two lane situation check the other lane for a car so you can safely maneuver your bike/self out of danger of that car pulling out. ALWAYS expect the driver to not see you and plan accordingly. Riding a bike is always anticipating what others are doing/going to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fooschnickens Posted March 17, 2015 Share Posted March 17, 2015 Lots of good advice here. I'll add: scan as far ahead as you can so you get a good heads up as to any changing road conditions. Awareness is the key to avoidance and will buy you extra reaction time. The MSF course teaches you to have a 3-stage scan of the road ahead of you: 2 seconds, 4 seconds and 12 seconds. You pick a road feature and time how far it takes to get to you then gauge your distance to potential hazards. The 2 second is basically the minimum distance you should have between you and any other vehicle, 4 seconds for emergency stops/maneuvers and 12 seconds to identify potential issues farther up the road. It's easy to get the hang of once you get acclimated to how things look at speed. I expect the car at the stop sign to pull out in front of me and not see me at all. With that being said make sure if you're in a two lane situation check the other lane for a car so you can safely maneuver your bike/self out of danger of that car pulling out. ALWAYS expect the driver to not see you and plan accordingly. Riding a bike is always anticipating what others are doing/going to do. I do the same thing all the time at every intersection or even when passing a car in another lane. I always expect them not to see me and change lanes/pull out anyway so I'm ready with an exit strategy should anyone pull something stupid. Had someone change lanes right on top of me yesterday and they had the gall to slow down and yell at me after I blew my horn at them. They earned a double flying salute as I rolled on by. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
griffin Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 "SEE"- Search, Evaluate, and Execute. SEE constantly comes to mind while I'm on my bike. Use the various motorcycle accident studies to understand likely hazards. In short, build confidence thru education. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magsz18 Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 The biggest issue that i have besides the obvious latent fear of being run over by some asshole in a car, is the fact that NO ONE understands how to actually follow in traffic. Down here in Florida, EVERYONE tail gates to the point of stupidity. I can visibly see people getting pissed as they look around me on the highway when i have three car lengths in front of me. Nevermind the fact that ive MATCHED the speed of the car in front of me. They still expect me to suck into the bumper in front of me like they are trying to do to my rear wheel. It is the worst feeling in the world, extremely frustrating and i just dont get it. Instances like that MAKE me want to drive like a hooligan so that no one is ever actually following me, ie weaving through traffic to create my own flow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geteup Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Down here in Florida, EVERYONE tail gates to the point of stupidity. I can visibly see people getting pissed as they look around me on the highway when i have three car lengths in front of me. Nevermind the fact that ive MATCHED the speed of the car in front of me. They still expect me to suck into the bumper in front of me like they are trying to do to my rear wheel. It is the worst feeling in the world, extremely frustrating and i just dont get it. Instances like that MAKE me want to drive like a hooligan so that no one is ever actually following me, ie weaving through traffic to create my own flow. I agree, I cant stand someone on my tire. Even when i stop sometimes, they pull right up to within a 2-3 feet of me. Usually a look helps, i turn around and visisbly look at them then the back of my bike and back and put up a hand like ? Worst case scenario, i have to use a 1" ball bearing in my jacket pocket to get their attention. Thankfully its never been THAT hard to get someones attention, hopefully it will stay that way. I find also that if i keep a 3-5 mph speed advantage i am always aware of the sit. around me. The couple mile over everyone else lets me keep up with my surroundings because i know that the guy on my left that i just passed is there, then the one on my right......etc. Of course you always have the ones that only your mirrors or head turn will show because they are going much faster but for the most part it works good. Have you guys or do any of you use these? Motorcycle whips I have been wondering because i saw several of them last weekend at bike week. Look like they would be very effective if used properly..... 87' Honda VFR 700 F2 (sold) 03' Honda CBR F4I (donated) 05' Yamaha R1 (sold) 15' FZ-o7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest whitegas Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Ah, so that's what those are. Saw some harley guys with 2 foot long things dangling off their handlebars. I thought it was their un-sparkly streamers, I was looking for their daisy baskets up in front as well but didn't see any. This makes more sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member hippiebikerchick Posted March 18, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted March 18, 2015 Have you guys or do any of you use these? Motorcycle whips I have been wondering because i saw several of them last weekend at bike week. Look like they would be very effective if used properly..... Hahaha, I have a short hot pink one with skull beads on my cruiser. It's for decoration but I could use it at a stoplight if needed. Illegitimi non carborundum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member hobbs Posted March 18, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted March 18, 2015 For a cruiser with less lean angle and higher handlebars probably useful, but what can we get away with.. Like 12" or less? My neighbor has a softail and uses something like that. It's still only around 3' and he ran it over and lost the cool lead skull trinket attached to it. Everything went braap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cborcafz07 Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 The biggest issue that i have besides the obvious latent fear of being run over by some asshole in a car, is the fact that NO ONE understands how to actually follow in traffic. Down here in Florida, EVERYONE tail gates to the point of stupidity. I can visibly see people getting pissed as they look around me on the highway when i have three car lengths in front of me. Nevermind the fact that ive MATCHED the speed of the car in front of me. They still expect me to suck into the bumper in front of me like they are trying to do to my rear wheel. It is the worst feeling in the world, extremely frustrating and i just dont get it. Instances like that MAKE me want to drive like a hooligan so that no one is ever actually following me, ie weaving through traffic to create my own flow. Dude, I live in Florida. I hate riding around here. Nobody signals and boring ass roads. I have to create a fun ride by riding around imperfections in the road and marker lines. lol I don't hang out around other vehicles. I pass them if possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.