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After seeing a few "almost crash" stories in the Crash Test thread, I thought maybe we should have a thread dedicated to the subject. I know I've learned a lot as a beginning rider from my near misses and this thread could be valuable for learning what not to do. I'll start with my near miss the other day: I was riding on a city street that has two lanes of traffic. I was in the outside lane. The two lanes of traffic were going to merge up ahead and there was a left hand turn lane up ahead where people turn to get onto the Interstate. The left lane was bumper to bumper with stopped traffic because the left hand turn lane was full and backed up out into the left lane of thru traffic. In my infinite wisdom, I thought it would be smart to speed up a little to pass all of the waiting cars in the left lane before the lanes merged into one. The problem was that there were a set of railroad tracks, a really really rough set of railroad tracks as it turned out. I gave it a little gas and was probably doing 5 over the speed limit when I hit the tracks. When I hit the tracks, my left hand slipped off the grip from the impact which caused the front wheel to turn to the right. The front wheel must have been off the ground at this point. Immediately, I thought I was hosed and let off the throttle. Just as I was grabbing the bar again, the back tire hit the tracks and catapulted me off the seat. I'm not really sure how I didn't wreck. When I came down on the other side of the tracks, my left hand was barely grabbing the bars and I was 3/4 of the way off the seat on the left side of the bike. So, what did I learn? 1. Don't be in a hurry. There was no reason to speed up and try to get around the line of cars. I was just joy riding, nowhere to be so what the hell? Stupid. 2. Railroad tracks are not to be hosed with. Always assume they are extremely rough and slow down! I saw the sign and disregarded it since all tracks I've ever been over were smooth. I was lucky. I should have wrecked and it would have been no one's fault but my own. So, what are your near miss stories and what could you have done to prevent the situation? Edit: If a mod could change the icon from poo poo post that would be cool. I post as well as I ride.
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Oct 25, 2009 22:13
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I had a pretty good near crash myself the other day. Picture going down a five lane freeway at rush hour. The two slower lanes are moving at about 45 pretty much bumper to bumper, the next two moving at about 55 with some space and the fast lane pretty clear. I am cruising down the fast lane at about 60. No one in front, no one behind for a good ways. A car in the next lane over about 10 feet ahead of me. All good right? Well, this idiot comes off an on ramp doing at least 100 and flys across all lanes of traffic to almost rear end the car to my front/right. The offending rear end in a top hat locks up the brakes, goes sideways a bit and ends up with the front half of his car in my lane with smoke coming off the tires and him getting into a pretty good fishtail (this is about 3 feet from the front of my bike). Somehow I managed to use the 2 feet of shoulder next to the concrete barrier to swerve around the mess while he straightened out and kept going. If he had gone sideways and into the barrier I would have had zero ways to get out of that besides clamping down the brakes and hoping for the best. Definitely got the adrenal glands dusted off. No doubt. I'm really not sure what I could have done to prevent this almost wreck from happening. The time from when I noticed dude on his kamikaze swerve off the ramp to when he was mostly in front of me was no more than a second or two. Probably could have slowed down a bit more but I really wasn't expecting such crazy behavior.
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Oct 25, 2009 23:34
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Scrapez posted:After seeing a few "almost crash" stories in the Crash Test thread, I thought maybe we should have a thread dedicated to the subject. Stopped reading here. Learn your lesson. Get on with it, and don't. Just..don't. edit: quote:I gave it a little gas and was probably doing 5 over the speed limit when I hit the tracks. When I hit the tracks, my left hand slipped off the grip from the impact which caused the front wheel to turn to the right. The front wheel must have been off the ground at this point. You're either lying, don't belong on a motorcycle, or both. DiscoKid fucked around with this message at 00:21 on Oct 26, 2009 |
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Oct 26, 2009 00:16
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I thought it would be smart to speed up a little to pass all of the waiting cars in the left lane
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DiscoKid posted:Stopped reading here. Please explain yourself because I neither lied about anything or did anything that says I shouldn't be riding a motorcycle. I don't know where you stopped reading or what you're talking about. Edit: I see you stopped reading when I said I sped up to pass the cars in the left lane. Did you also read the part where I said they were stopped? I assume you think I'm lying about being 5 miles over the speed limit. You're wrong. Scrapez fucked around with this message at 00:55 on Oct 26, 2009 |
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Oct 26, 2009 00:49
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my story is best. i almost hit a wild turkey with my face while going 55 through the adirondacks. one turkey ran across the road ahead of me, i wasn't thinking too well and it didn't occur to me that they usually travel in groups, so i held the throttle on. then the other came up behind him, saw me coming, and started flying, which i've never seen a turkey do. he flew up about 3-4 feet just as i went by and ducked my head to the left. didn't even have time to hit the brakes. he was right at head height and went by close enough that i felt the wind from him on my shoulder. gently caress turkeys.
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Oct 26, 2009 00:54
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DiscoKid posted:You're either lying, don't belong on a motorcycle, or both. I've had it happen...a little gas plus hitting a square edged bump at the wrong angle and the front wheel can bounce up in the air, go to lock and then come back. This is why railroad tracks, trolley tracks, etc. all suck and can go to hell. As to my near crash..I've had a few of them over the years. The one that springs to mind is at buttonwillow, I was in the B group riding on Dunlop Qualifiers, and had just pulled my fastest lap ever. I look at the timer, see 2:08, and know that I have at least a 2:07 in me. Coming into turn one, I get on the gas, start to roll on out of the corner, and the back end hits a patched section of pavement, goes sideways, and right as I start to think I'm going to lowside, it catches, snaps me up, completely off the bike, luckily I somehow land back on the bike which is the midst of an immense tankslapper. I've got that sick feeling in my stomach as the bike continues to headshake madly as I'm heading towards the edge of the track but magically it slowly comes back, I get my feet on the pegs, and I look up to see the corner worker reaching for his red flag. I wave weakly at him, he gives me the thumbs up, I crawl around the track and pit. The other time I've almost crashed...it was the last session of my NRS, they had pretty much let me go out on my own because I'd completed the test and the only thing they told me was that if I crashed this session I'd automatically fail the course. I came over the top of turn 9, leaned back to wheelie down the hill, set it down crossed up, and carried the tankslapper almost to the edge of the track before the bike came back. I figured that that was a good time to end my session for the day 
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Oct 26, 2009 01:29
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This entire video of me driving really really badly and nearly killing myself and plenty of other people: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wsJLYdJKy4 Windscreen is tinted, sorry about the contrast. (USER WAS BANNED FOR THIS POST)
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Oct 26, 2009 01:37
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Good thing it's private!  Edit: That first slide in the video is pretty impressive, paired with almost ending up under a truck as a result. The guy that I bought the ZX6R from did something similar but he didn't save it. Z3n fucked around with this message at 18:46 on Oct 26, 2009 |
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Oct 26, 2009 02:58
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Last night. Me: thundering down a darkened road on a EX500, ~50 mph, Honda Accord full of friends behind me. Mature Adult Deer: across the road from me on my left swiftly transforming itself into a tan, wavy streak and prolonging itself from over there to my side of the road, its impatience so great that it was a dimly visible undulation from the first nanosecond of its appearance. Ninja 500R: sudden deceleration by force of a recently-replaced front brake pad through an intensely applied hand, causing the red-emblazoned body mounted on Sport Demons to fishtail. Result: missing the meteoric deer by nothing, by millimeters, by hairs brushing upon my headlight, along with the simultaneous eruption of fecal matters in the seats of the car behind me.
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Oct 26, 2009 03:26
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Jack the Smack posted:This entire video of me driving really really badly and nearly killing myself and plenty of other people: Did you not think it was time to slow down when you almost ate poo poo at the 19 second mark in that video? It really pisses me off to see riders going around 9/84/35 like that. Not to mention all the police up there because of it. AngryGuy fucked around with this message at 03:53 on Oct 26, 2009 |
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Oct 26, 2009 03:45
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I don't know if it makes me a dummy, but I was ATGATT and finding out what my bike was like on wet leaves this weekend. I'll tell you what, if I wasn't expecting my front wheel to push a bit on these leaves, I might have poo poo my pants. I looped back around for the irony of the sign (I'm a n00b at 3.5 months 3k miles).
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Oct 26, 2009 06:45
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2 biggest dummy mistakes I had since I've started riding back in early April (just now broke 2000 mile mark): 1. Traveling on a 3 lane one way road in the far left lane. I got frustrated because big car in front of me was driving a bit under the speed limit. I sped up and switched lanes and saw immediately that someone was crossing on the designated crosswalk (bunch of them with no traffic signal, just a sign). I braked pretty hard and my rear tire locked and skid a fair distance. I almost had a heart attack because it was the first time I locked a tire. 2. I was riding home after work and I wasn't entirely focused on what's in front of me. As I approached the last intersection I stopped right on top of a fresh oil spill, I even remember my mind was thinking "Hm... that's a really black spot." When the light turned green I accelerated somewhat quick and my rear tire fishtailed right through the whole intersection. Again a near heart attack that I could have easily avoided.
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Oct 26, 2009 07:39
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Z3n posted:As to my near crash..I've had a few of them over the years. The one that springs to mind is at buttonwillow, I was in the B group riding on Dunlop Qualifiers, and had just pulled my fastest lap ever. I look at the timer, see 2:08, and know that I have at least a 2:07 in me. Coming into turn one, I get on the gas, start to roll on out of the corner, and the back end hits a patched section of pavement, goes sideways, and right as I start to think I'm going to lowside, it catches, snaps me up, completely off the bike, luckily I somehow land back on the bike which is the midst of an immense tankslapper. I've got that sick feeling in my stomach as the bike continues to headshake madly as I'm heading towards the edge of the track but magically it slowly comes back, I get my feet on the pegs, and I look up to see the corner worker reaching for his red flag. I wave weakly at him, he gives me the thumbs up, I crawl around the track and pit. I managed something similar going in a straight line. Down the back straight at Oulton Park, going over the little rise on a bike with too much rebound damping at the back and a bit of a rearward weight bias (and no damper), I experienced a full lock-to-lock slapper and ended up with both toes on the ground and one hand on the bars. The guy behind me couldn't believe I'd stayed on. Neither could I at the time... True professionals can actually crash there. I remember once watching a BSB race from the inside of the next corner. Lots of booming noises from the straight, a sudden silence, then a 955 surfs into view on its side, completes the straight and exits into the kitty litter. The rider presumably had either left the track to one side, or was still re-entering the Earth's atmosphere. Other than that, I've only had the usual going round a familiar corner, encountering unexpected dirt/gravel etc. right on the apex and doing some unplanned two-wheel drift. Sometimes without even spotting the crap on the road. Only thing recent but not very exciting was borrowing a friend's 929 after doing most of a trackday on my CBR400 with its 2-pot sliders. Got to the end of a short straight into a chicane and had forgotten what the 929/954/RC51 Nissins can do - cue back end in air and graunching from the front wheel as it locks momentarily, but somehow manages not to tuck on me. All in front of a small crowd of spectators. In my defense, the 929 is quite a bit more wayward than my old '954. Oh, another memorable (but probably boring) one on the '954 was a fast 100mph+ right at some place in the Carolinas (NCMP?) on a very hot day. I'd been caning the poo poo out of the bike on normal road Diablos, and the back decided it'd had enough as I got on the power. Cue extended sidewaysness and some screaming from me - it felt like the back tyre was actually liquefying itself for the rest of the lap. Just to make me feel better, I got it back under control for the exit, only to be greeted by a fireball right in front of me. Someone with a Dayglo orange GSX-R had crashed on the exit and the bike had caught fire just off the track. And not just a bit on fire - proper Hollywood style. It was like Days of Thunder, only without midgets. Saga fucked around with this message at 07:55 on Oct 26, 2009 |
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Oct 26, 2009 07:48
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Jack the Smack posted:This entire video of me driving really really badly and nearly killing myself and plenty of other people: Awesome street racing video, brah!
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Oct 26, 2009 07:58
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Riding the loaded down KLR through some wonderful curvy little back roads in virginia, I was having a grand old time zipping through the corners at about 20 over the recommended speed, when I came across an immediate sharp left hander after a fairly easy right hander. Nothing to do but throw the bike over on its side and go for it, so I did. No time to slow down. I scraped the toe of my left boot and was wandering toward that scary ditch when I remembered the MSF class and forced myself to look at the road, not the ditch, trust the tires, and push it even farther over. I made the turn with inches between my tires and the ditch, doing about 45 on a posted 25 mph curve. Then I stopped and composed myself. What did I learn? Take it easy on unfamiliar roads, even knobbies grip surprisingly well on dry pavement, and target fixation is a bitch.
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Oct 26, 2009 09:30
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My best almost-crash results from me doing basically nothing wrong except listening to music too loud. A few events that conspired against me: 1) I was driving merrily along towards a green light. 2) The car 15 feet in front of me drove right on through the light. 3) The left turn lane was full of waiting cars, blocking my view of everything going on to the left of the intersection. 4) As mentioned before, the iPod was cranked up pretty well, and I heard nothing. Until I saw the ambulance blazing through the intersection from the left. I slammed on the brakes about 2 feet short of T-boning an ambulance. Good thing this was before the days when I sped everywhere 
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Oct 26, 2009 13:08
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Dark Knight posted:My best almost-crash results from me doing basically nothing wrong except listening to music too loud. This is why I love my Etymotics...they let you keep the volume at a reasonable level but still hear stuff around you. Another near crash story: When I first got my ZX6E, I was taken under the wing of a couple of guys who I'd met with Es. One of them was an older guy, who taught me how to wrench and was a supremely fast rider. I'd just outpaced one of my other mentors on the track, and I felt that I should be able to keep up with some old dude who doesn't even hang off the bike. After all, how fast can you go without hanging off?  I go up to his place for the weekend, he lives near yosemite and there are some amazing roads out there. We head out to his favorite twisties, and I manage to keep up by gassing the hell out of it in the straights and parking in the corners. Little do I know, he uses the first part of this road as a warmup and isn't even going that fast.  We get to this pullout, chat a bit, and then continue on down the road. We approach the first corner, a long sweeping left hander, and I brake, lean the bike in, come out of the corner...and he's gone. I can't believe it, I was keeping up just a few seconds ago! I immediately pin the throttle and go flying through the next couple of corners, and see him down below me on the road just a few turns ahead. He's RIGHT THERE, goddamnit, I can catch him! I will remember the next corner for the rest of my life. A wide entrance to a blind right hander, marked 25mph. I come hauling into the corner, lean the bike over, knee down, get on the gas, and start looking for the exit. There have been half a dozen blind corners just like this one already, I'm just waiting to see it open up...and all of the sudden my helmet is tapping my right shoulder pad as the road tightens up. I have a split second moment of clarity. I know there is gravel to the outside of the corner but I can see nothing but blue sky, as the bike is leaned over far enough to block any view of the runoff. I know that I can stand it up and try and brake and probably fall of the edge of the world at the end of the short gravel runoff, or I can grab my balls, keep on the throttle, push the bike in tighter, blow the DY, and if it sticks, I will come out alive. I push the inside bar. The bike kicks over farther, I drag knee, shin, toe, peg, and feel the road start to nip angrily at the too large leathers hanging out of my boot. I approach the DY. I give a quiet prayer that it's not slick. The bike crosses the DY like it doesn't even exist. I am now truly committed, hanging myself out in the wrong lane, with another prayer for no oncoming traffic. As long as the corner doesn't tighten up any more, I'll make it. I'm approaching the outside edge of the road when the corner finally ends, there are no cars coming down the road, and I stand the bike and up and slowly swerve back into my own lane. I roll out of the throttle, humbled. I have a momentary flash of what could have happened, and crawl down the rest of the road. My friend is waiting for me at the bottom. He feels horrible about the entire thing, as he has pulled more squids out of that corner than he can count, including a number of them that have dropped off the side of the cliff, and he feels like he should have warned me...but I learned a number of far more valuable lessons that day. Never, ever, ride over your head. Never expect that a blind corner will stay constant radius, and never try and keep up with someone on the street. I'd like to think that that was the beginning of the end of my squid days. It took me a few more years to really figure things out, but that corner marked the turning point for me. Even having not ridden that road in probably 2 years now, I know when I go back I will instantly recognize it. Some lessons you just have to learn for yourself...
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Oct 26, 2009 15:20
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Z3n posted:I'd like to think that that was the beginning of the end of my squid days. It took me a few more years to really figure things out, but that corner marked the turning point for me. Even having not ridden that road in probably 2 years now, I know when I go back I will instantly recognize it. Some lessons you just have to learn for yourself... Good story. At least if you're going to go fast on a road like that, do it a few times slowly. Hell, walk it if you have to... Professional racers have no shame in walking a track before riding it.
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Oct 26, 2009 18:33
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sigtrap posted:Awesome street racing video, brah! This wasn't the first time I posted it so I didn't realize it was against the rules, would posting the entire story have been better? Charles 1998 fucked around with this message at 18:39 on Oct 26, 2009 |
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Oct 26, 2009 18:37
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My nearest ate poo poo moment was last year. Sitting at a light I'm up front, visor up enjoying the weather. I'm about 5 miles from my house and light turns green so I gun it, getting up to about 90mph, visor still open. Wind gets to be a bit too much, I wipe a wind tear from my eye and move into the right lane because a box truck was in the middle and as I got into the right lane I had about .75 of a second to react because a stalled car is sitting in the lane I'm in. I headshaked the front in my nervousness I guess and was able to steer to the right of the car with about an inch to spare and put my visor the gently caress down and cursed in my helmet all the way home. I don't really ever drive recklessly, lane split a little but that's about all so that was the most rediculous thing to ever happen to me.
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Oct 26, 2009 18:51
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Jack the Smack posted:This wasn't the first time I posted it so I didn't realize it was against the rules, would posting the entire story have been better? pretty sure he is referring to the fact that because you are racing on open public roads you are a retard, especially if you do not have a lot of skill, experience and perfect knowledge of the roads you are driving. If you are going to race do it on a track.
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Oct 26, 2009 20:32
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farcry posted:pretty sure he is referring to the fact that because you are racing on open public roads you are a retard, especially if you do not have a lot of skill, experience and perfect knowledge of the roads you are driving. In my defense, it was a group ride that was announced on a forum, with speeds said to be "spirited" which I thought meant a steady pace at the time. I had no clue what I was getting into and I could barely keep up with them. They had to stop for me several times cause I fell behind. Lesson is, instead of trying to keep up with these people I should have made a U-turn and just ditched them. Although they would have probably thought I crashed had I done this.
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Oct 26, 2009 20:36
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I think anytime you're passing cars when there's a double yellow, you're not doing it right. That's just asking for it.
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Oct 26, 2009 20:50
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Scrapez posted:I think anytime you're passing cars when there's a double yellow, you're not doing it right. That's just asking for it. Strangely enough it's also ... I don't know ... ILLEGAL.
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Oct 26, 2009 20:54
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Scrapez posted:I think anytime you're passing cars when there's a double yellow, you're not doing it right. That's just asking for it. You're right. I remember an incident where I was trying to drive my drunk friend back to her house, and I was riding on the freeway. When I came to a banked interchange I had to stop (it was banked real hard and I was scared that I was gonna tip and fall off). There had just been a drunk driver who crashed on it and flipped, with the entire road blocked off. Cars were backed up pretty far and after waiting 15 minutes impatiently I made a U-turn and went backwards on the freeway, then made another U-turn and went on a different interchange, with a passenger on the back. I had nothing to drink that night since I was driving, but looking back on it for the past year I can't believe I actually decided to do that.
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Oct 26, 2009 20:57
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Jack the Smack posted:You're right. Can you elaborate on this "backwards on the freeway" thing? Two years ago I was riding north on highway 1 on the California coast. At one point the road transitions from the coast and into the mountains. After 100 miles of mellow sweepers with good visibility the road suddenly turned into the woods in a much harder right than I'd been expecting. I spaced out and lock the rear, nearly blowing the turn into some trees. I got off the brakes and made the turn, but I crossed the double yellow. It wouldn't have been a bad wreck, but we were a 1000 miles from home, and a good distance from civilization too. My mistake was riding for too long. My buddy and I were riding 15 hour days for 6 days...
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Oct 26, 2009 22:09
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Scrapez posted:I think anytime you're passing cars when there's a double yellow, you're not doing it right. That's just asking for it. Doctor Zero posted:Strangely enough it's also ... I don't know ... ILLEGAL. Meh, I disagree. Simply because they've repainted lines on assorted roads in my area, and it seems like any time they repaint lines, dotted lines go to solid. How about instead you let me make the determination about the conditions, the ability of my vehicle to pass, and let me figure out what is safe and what is not safe? Also, in CA, technically you can pass in the same lane, thanks to lane sharing laws, as long as it's done in a reasonable and prudent fashion. So it's legal for me to pass someone as long as I stay in their lane, but if I move up to straddle the DY as I pass it's illegal. Stupid. The same goes for if someone pulls to the right side of the lane and waves me by. Even if it's completely clear and it'd be much safer for me to just cruise on past in the oncoming lane, it's still illegal. If I got a ticket for DY passing, I wouldn't complain, after all, I'm breaking the law. But it's a silly law that's designed to replace common sense, and in my mind, looking at the risks and the rewards of it, it's an acceptable risk to take. I'm not going to say that other riders should break the law, but I don't think it's a horrible thing to look at the conditions and the road and make a decision to pass over the DY.
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Oct 26, 2009 22:26
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I doubt they consider a motorcycle's potential when designating passing sections. I pass on the double yellow at times, but its always in the back woods.
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Oct 26, 2009 22:30
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Gullous posted:Can you elaborate on this "backwards on the freeway" thing?  Click here for the full 1575x470 image. I went with the flow of traffic, but then it stopped completely dead and I waited for 15 minutes where the green line ends.  Click here for the full 1575x470 image. Then I made a U-turn and went a different route instead of the one I originally went. It was 1 A.M. when I did this. I guess it felt more banked that night, since I almost dropped the bike, than how google maps portrays it. Also I crossed over where the yellow object is in that google maps picture, across the solid white lines. Gullous posted:Two years ago I was riding north on highway 1 on the California coast. At one point the road transitions from the coast and into the mountains. After 100 miles of mellow sweepers with good visibility the road suddenly turned into the woods in a much harder right than I'd been expecting. I spaced out and lock the rear, nearly blowing the turn into some trees. I got off the brakes and made the turn, but I crossed the double yellow. It wouldn't have been a bad wreck, but we were a 1000 miles from home, and a good distance from civilization too. Was this before or after the golden gate bridge? Cause I know of that area pretty well.
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Oct 26, 2009 22:33
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Z3n posted:Meh, I disagree. Simply because they've repainted lines on assorted roads in my area, and it seems like any time they repaint lines, dotted lines go to solid. How about instead you let me make the determination about the conditions, the ability of my vehicle to pass, and let me figure out what is safe and what is not safe? I see part of your point here because on a straight road with minimal hills, a double yellow is usually uncalled for. However, going around a blind curve that's double yellowed and passing, as was done in the video, you just can't defend that. As to your point of DYs removing common sense, I'd say that's only partially true. by that logic, we should only have yield signs instead of stop signs and people should be able to make the determination of when to go and stop. I see both sides of the argument but really how long does it take to wait for a passing zone? Not long here in Iowa...maybe that's why I'm biased.
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Oct 26, 2009 22:40
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Jack the Smack posted:
haha you're crazy I was way north of SF. This right hander http://tiny.cc/LxgnW
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Oct 26, 2009 23:00
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Scrapez posted:I see part of your point here because on a straight road with minimal hills, a double yellow is usually uncalled for. However, going around a blind curve that's double yellowed and passing, as was done in the video, you just can't defend that. Generally, passing over the DY in a corner is pretty loving retarded. Of course, common sense would also say it's drat stupid to pass midcorner period, too much going on. That goes double when it's blind. I don't pass midcorner on the street except in very specific situations (usually someone pulling over to wave me by) but even then I prefer to wait until the straight. I didn't watch the complete video...too hard to see what the gently caress is going on with the tinted screen. I will say that I have shot video in the past where I could clearly see but the camera couldn't. Our problem is that while we have a lot of turnouts in CA, usually at least one every mile or so, they seem to be going after DY lines like it's their job. Combine that with people that absolutely refuse to use turnouts, and riding up your favorite road can turn into a very frustrating experience as people crawl around, under the speed limit, while driving very slowly past every turnout and gawking at the trees or some other bullshit. I try and be polite, but if people aren't willing to slow down for 5 seconds to let me by, then I don't have a problem passing them in a safe spot on the DY. Courtesy should go both ways, they use the turnout, I don't pass them illegally. Hell, it's illegal to refuse to yield to faster traffic anyways, so turnabout is fair play there.
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Oct 26, 2009 23:19
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Z3n posted:turnouts On my previously mentioned ride in CA, I noticed traffic was a lot more likely to use a turnout than up in Washington. Hell, people get on the gas when you pass up here. Big sur was full of priuses that wouldn't pull over, though...
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Oct 26, 2009 23:32
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Gullous posted:priuses I don't know what it is about those things, but they consistently seem to be driven by the worst drivers around. I always give them a very wide birth.
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Oct 27, 2009 01:23
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In my experience, although I know it's a state-by-state thing to some extent, the US is crazy about double-yellow lines. Basically if there's a corner within the next 3 miles, there will be double-yellow lines. It's stupid even in a car in most states. Here in the UK, the double (white) lines usually get used only if it would unsafe for the average car to pass a dawdling tractor. So you will have single white or normal dashed lines even in situations where a car couldn't manage a safe overtake of another vehicle doing under the limit. Have to agree with Z3N on this one - it may be illegal, but on the bike you have the road space requirements of a bicycle, the height of an SUV (or a 7 1/2 ton truck, if you're standing up) and the acceleration of your average supercar. There will be many situations on a bike where passing is both illegal and completely safe. Z3n posted:Meh, I disagree. Simply because they've repainted lines on assorted roads in my area, and it seems like any time they repaint lines, dotted lines go to solid. How about instead you let me make the determination about the conditions, the ability of my vehicle to pass, and let me figure out what is safe and what is not safe?
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Oct 27, 2009 10:01
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Many years ago when I was riding to and from my engineering school every day I was getting a little too complacent and had a few sketchy moments. 1. Stopped at a light waiting to turn left. Light changed and I took off, cut my turn just a little too sharply and crossed the very end of the double yellow lines in the middle of the perpendicular road. Lost the front tire and just barely managed to slam my left foot down and somehow saved it. Worst part was I had seen them repainting those very lines on my way to class and just didn't give it a second thought. 2. I stupidly assumed the car in front of me was going to go through a yellow light. She slams on the brakes and actually locks up the tires on her car. I had been accelerating thinking I would get through the yellow as well. I ended up locking both wheels and slid a good distance in a straight line, somehow keeping the bike upright even though the back wheel was trying to pass the front. That was pretty exhilarating. What to take away from that? Be careful? Slow down? Pretty common sense stuff to anyone other than a stupid college kid with an adrenaline problem.
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Oct 29, 2009 03:40
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Almost every time I'd take a right turn on my Vulcan. That stupid bike was slammed with long drag pipes. Right turns were dicey once that pipe contacted pavement. It's nothing like scraping a peg, those are hinged. I am glad to be rid of that bike.
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Oct 29, 2009 04:00
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redscare posted:I don't know what it is about those things, but they consistently seem to be driven by the worst drivers around. I always give them a very wide birth. They're too busy looking around trying to see who else is noticing that they are Captain loving Planet instead of watching the road.
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Oct 29, 2009 15:47
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Doctor Zero posted:They're too busy looking around trying to see who else is noticing that they are Captain loving Planet instead of watching the road. Out here in cali they're playing the "maximize the gas mileage gauge" videogame.
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Oct 29, 2009 16:42
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Doctor Zero posted:They're too busy looking around trying to see who else is noticing that they are Captain loving Planet instead of watching the road. Now I'm trying to figure out how I give a car a wide birth. Doesn't sound pleasant   berthAnd yeah, like Z3n said, its more mileage-meter fixation than being noticed because they're probably more common than Camrys around here.
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Oct 29, 2009 16:46
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