Be The Bunny! Safe riding and motorcycle survival thread

Well said, words to LIVE by!!!

 

Being safe is our responsibility.
after many near misses I now wear floresent green or orange. I stand out from the background and find that cars do not ride up on my as@ any more.

the goal is not to blend in and to be seen. lane position is also important when in traffic. also when coming into blind curves.


head on a swivel know and whats behind you . Ride your own ride even when with others.


Be The Bunny! Safe riding and motorcycle survival thread

 

Unfortunately in the U.S. the vast majority of drivers have no idea what hand signals are, or how to interpret them.

 

I know one that's universally recognized..........but more likely used after an idiot does something stupid.

Tony

 

All very true. I'd add that plenty of motorcyclists (not most) are also ambivalent to your well being. I've had a busa fly by me on the other track of my lane. These squids are usually easy to spot, but only if given the opportunity.

I've also had a very near-miss at an intersection with a left-turning car. Intersections demand increased attention.

I've also committed some mild road rage on the bike. Just don't. It's never productive, and paints a target on your back with the wrong recipient. I wish I had advice for educating idiots, but educating idiots won't happen in the few seconds you have.

 

Busa riders are 99%...fornication idiots.

Other than single-rider accidents, left turning cars (right on rightt-side of the road countries) are the leading cause of motorcycle accidents.

 

Was watching on YouTube road rage videos, alot of idiots on bikes ...riding between cars , kicking the side of cars , riding wheelies in groups ...guess I'm an old man (54) . Ride on but be safe.

 

Yes too many idiots out there.

 

Hopefully they survive long enough to learn from their mistakes.
Like the rest of us.

 

I dont think they are taught any more . When I first got my lic they were taught and a car did not need functioning binkers to pass inspection, things have changed.

when I took my MC safety class they did not teach them . this was several years ago and needed to take class as my mc license expired a few years before.

 

The first thing I told my wife when I bought her a bike and started teaching her to ride:-- There is no such thing as a "fender bender" when a motorcycle and car meet. If it happens you are going to get hurt.

That said, my main concern when riding are intersections and side streets. Either folks don't see motorcycles very well or just believe we have the ability to do magic things on a motorcycle to avoid a collision.

 

motorcycles blend in with other vehicles.

when a car or truck is close behind a motorcycle it is difficult to see .
I have seen tractor trailers cars and pickup trucks coming toward me and on first impresion say why does that vehicle have 3 headlights?

turns out it was a motorcycle headlight between the headlights of the other vehicle. which were to close behind the motorcycle to differentiate between the 2.

there is an old study that suggests traveling 5mph faster or slower that traffic for the least amount of accidents ,

on the wooded roads many times the black or brown leather jackets blent in with the tree trunks so all you see is a shinny object (headlight) coming down the road.

a guy on you tube mcrider has some great videos about visability and how to be seen.

 

I have nearly pulled out from a stop sign into the path of a black scooter hugging the curb.
Scared the shite out of me and really shows how easy we are not seen.
Middle of the day, with shadows from trees and I was on my bike, looking for cars.
Ack.

 

this is a learning moment you can understand how cage drivers do not see us, because even knowing how "invisable" we are we do not see bikes ourselves.

 

My closest calls are cars pulling out on me through uncontrolled intersections or pulling out after stopping and going at stop signs that are not 4 way. They apparently don't see me. I have started to keep my headlight on bright in the daytime, which will probably help.

One of my office mates pulled out on me with his pickup truck several years ago while leaving work. I laid on the horn and rode up the curb onto the grass parking (25 mph residential area). He was very apologetic the next day, and embarrassed to see me.

 

Be seen: headlight modulater, florescent jacket.

 

Helmet too.

 

As much as I hate to nitpick, I think this thread would be best liked/merged, or the converstaion continued in our existing (and pinned) safety thread.
Be The Bunny! Safe riding and motorcycle survival thread

There are lots of great posts and resources in that thread which may be missed by people otherwise.
Just let me know what y'all would like to happen.

 

Better merged I think.

 

Today I had my first true pucker moment in a while, with an oncoming left-hand-turner stopping himself about halfway into my lane. At first, I was mad at him, shaking my head and yelling (to no one in particular), "No, no, no!" But before kicked a bumper or flipped a bird, I realized I'd let myself down. As I approached the intersection, I was absentmindedly hanging out in the left of my lane, tucked in behind (though far enough back from) the truck in front of me. As he slid into our left turn lane, the oncoming SUV was revealed. Had I been anticipating the intersection by positioning myself better (to the right, given the slight curve in the road), it probably would have been a complete non-issue. Just a reminder that a bright yellow helmet and day-glow suit are only good if you're actually out in the open - especially on something as small as a WR250R. All in all, the driver did nothing wrong given the view he likely had and made a good decision of stopping mid-turn instead of just going for it - still giving me plenty of 'out.'

Be safe out there. It's hard to stay 100% alert on commutes, but we've GOT to watch those intersections.