First Day. Three close calls

[spoonybard]

Sweet mother of god they must give licenses to anyone that has a pulse now. I never noticed how bad people drove while in my car until I got a bike. First day riding I almost got sideswiped and had 2 people pull out of side streets into the highway(right into the fast lane) going really slow forceing me to downshift and break hard. Love my bike though got it for 6k OTD

 

[milepig]

Sweet mother of god they must give licenses to anyone that has a pulse now. I never noticed how bad people drove while in my car until I got a bike. First day riding I almost got sideswiped and had 2 people pull out of side streets into the highway(right into the fast lane) going really slow forceing me to downshift and break hard. Love my bike though got it for 6k OTD

I've had days like that... sometimes it just seems like the cager's are out to get ya!

 

[dart1963]

Just remember, you are not as easily seen on a bike as you are in a cage, it's just human nature to look for cars, even when people stare right at you, they might not register that you are there. That's the whole, ride like they are trying to kill you attitude you need to have.

It's not necessarily they are any worse drivers, they just aren't used to "seeing" motorcycles.

 

[stuna]

do you ride with bright colored gear on ? you need to make yourself stand out from the crowd

 

[Marthy]

Especially at this time of the year in Florida... With all the snow bird driving 20 mph slower than anybody else in the left lane because they either see nothing, or just too hight on medicine! And some of them have cell phone too... not profiling here, but it is what it is. Then everybody get impatient and pass them left and right... got the picture.

If there was a book about motorcyclist survival, it will consist of 2 line.

1- Don't do anything stupid and drive within your limits!
2- Every single cager is your enemy! Stay away from them! If you pass them, pass them quick! Be visible! Be loud!

Enjoy your ride!

 

[creggur]

A few techniques I started using some time ago has helped reduce the number of these types of close calls. there are no magic pills, but in my experience, they do help.

1) When in heavy traffic I run with my brights on - some will dispute the usefulness of this - but with the abundance of daytime running lamps on cars it can't hurt.

2) Be aware of the location of the sun in relation to your direction of travel. If the sun is low in the sky - morning or evening - and behind you (in the eyes of those looking in your direction) realize you are even harder to see.

3) When I see someone looking to pull out, or make a left in front of me, I will move from side to side in my lane. This does two things: #1- moves you from a potential blind spot #2- it creates lateral movement in relation to the person in front of you. We aren't used to seeing vehicles swerving in their lane and the motion draws attention to you. Sometimes it's just a gentle sway from side to side in the lane and sometimes pretty aggressive swerving to and fro.

4) I always cover brake and clutch and stay "at the ready" to react to whatever may come my way. Always be vigilant - especially so in traffic.

While I have no scientific data to relate to whether these things actually help or not, it's been my experience that they do. Especially the lateral movement in my lane as I've seen cars start to go and then suddenly stop when I move into their field of view or grab their attention.

BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!

 

[A1A]

creggur,
All good points and anything we can do to help us be seen better is definitely a plus in my book.

spoonybard,
Make sure your headlights are adjusted properly and maybe even a little higher. When I first got my bike people were turning in front of me and pulling out in front of me.
So once I adjusted my headlight these issues all went away.

 

[nighthack]

I installed a headlight modulater on one of my other bikes 20 months ago. I have not had a single person cut me off in that time. I ordered one for the 6r the day I bought the bike back in July and no one has cut me off on that bike either....


Nighthack

 

[ry-mac75]

Not so sure about having the clutch and brake constantly covered - first thing they told me in safety training is that is a bad idea...

Mind you, it's done a bit more often when dirt riding. If you're worried about pulling in faster - I suggest shorties.

What I do have at the ready, is my thumb on the horn. I'd rather beep at someone and have them mad at me then not beep and be under them.

 

[dart1963]

Not so sure about having the clutch and brake constantly covered - first thing they told me in safety training is that is a bad idea...

Mind you, it's done a bit more often when dirt riding. If you're worried about pulling in faster - I suggest shorties.

What I do have at the ready, is my thumb on the horn. I'd rather beep at someone and have them mad at me then not beep and be under them.

our little "meep. meep" isn't generally loud enough.... let alone if the person even cares (remember, the cell phone has priority over other drivers )

and what I remember from the msf, is don't cover unless you're planning on using them (e.g. while just riding), in this case, you are planning on using them and it's that split second transition that could save you...

 

[Stephenfz6r]

Sweet mother of god they must give licenses to anyone that has a pulse now. I never noticed how bad people drove while in my car until I got a bike. First day riding I almost got sideswiped and had 2 people pull out of side streets into the highway(right into the fast lane) going really slow forceing me to downshift and break hard. Love my bike though got it for 6k OTD

Ride your bike as if you were invisible. You will certainly change the way you ride and will only have only have pleasant surprises when you "are seen":thumbup:

 

[nighthack]

Let me put on my MSF ridercoach hat on for a minute. The range rules states to" keep the clutch covered first riding day"." Keep a wrist flat position on the throttle" This is what most coaches say next."keep all four fingers on the throttle, don't touch the front brake unless your going to use it." OK the reasoning, when a true novice gets uncomfortable with their speed or path of travel they have a tendency to start grabbing things, like the front brake and or the clutch. Grabbing the clutch can be a good thing, taking away the power to the rear wheel, grabbing the front brake not so good.Plus riding while covering the front brake means they are trying to work the throttle with the palm of their hand.
Day two in the class room we show a video called "Common Situations" where it shows a motorcycle approaching a intersection with a car on the right pulling out.The old failure to yeild to the motorcyclist right of way. The MSF suggest "adjust speed and cover the controls".

Ok, I'll take my hat off now.

Nighthack

 

[stevet]

Creggur,
Good things to remeber. We need to pay extra attention to safety. Too many of us are getting hurt on bikes. I'd love to see more safety tips and mods from everyone.

 

[firefighter57]

I'd love to see this mentioned in drivers ed classes. I only took drivers ed 6 years ago and I am pretty sure not a word was mentioned about motorcycles. If people had a bit more of an idea that a bike might be around them, they might actually take an extra second and look... Then again like all of you said, talking on the cell or doing their make up comes way before taking an extra second to make totally sure no one is in the lane next to you.

 

[Detrich]

good to hear you're ok... ride safely, and try to find roads with fewer cars to practice on...

the thing that bothered me the most when i first started riding was getting tailgated or squeezed by impatient drivers. it creates a lot of mental stress- plus newbies are more likely to stall at a traffic light or stop sign. if you move slow, then hopefully the tailgaters will simply move around you and get out of the way. but, stay calm and be alert of your surroundings at all times. if they are squeezing you too much, then just pull over and let them pass. better that then getting rear-ended...

 

[yellowfz]

It is a lot better than it use to be , that said , look out for them (cagers) because they don't look for you .
Countermeasures is a good word , be ready to take/make countermeasures for the ones that don't look . Being seen and heard is the key as everyone knows .
Oh when racing dirt bikes , I never used the clutch that much , just to start and stop mainly , maybe on some corners , lot less idiots pulling out in front of you on a closed course .
Today I still only use the clutch for starts and stops and a occasional corner , using the clutch wears it out faster . :thumbup:

 

[spoonybard]

Jeez I don't think I was called for bike riding. I had a cop follow me around some backstreet's for awhile. Thinking its because my license plate has a mandatory "Under 21". I'll defiantly have to invest in some loud colored gear.
Then again I did find a local mechanic that seemed extremely honest and had his shop full of bikes. He said he could do my first 600m tuneup for 25 dollars

 

[Spunky99]

Jeez I don't think I was called for bike riding. I had a cop follow me around some backstreet's for awhile. Thinking its because my license plate has a mandatory "Under 21". I'll defiantly have to invest in some loud colored gear.
Then again I did find a local mechanic that seemed extremely honest and had his shop full of bikes. He said he could do my first 600m tuneup for 25 dollars

You didn't ditch the Cop?

Kidding!

 

[stuna]

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[ry-mac75]

our little "meep. meep" isn't generally loud enough.... let alone if the person even cares (remember, the cell phone has priority over other drivers )

and what I remember from the msf, is don't cover unless you're planning on using them (e.g. while just riding), in this case, you are planning on using them and it's that split second transition that could save you...

Disagree, but to each their own. Just don't know if riding around with an itchy clutch/front brake finger is wise (depending on speed mostly). I know sometimes obstacles present themselves without much warning, but hovering over top of the levers won't do much to speed up your reaction time... it's not like they're that far from the bar anyway. It's not like you'd drive a car with your foot hovering above the clutch and and your hand on the E-brake, would you?

The point of not having them over the levers is that if you were to hit a bump or something, you won't unexpectedly clamp down on the brake or clutch lever - causing a whole new safety problem you could have controlled.

And you're right, our horn does suck - which is why I have the TBR and tend to clutch in and rev it a bit to get my point across.