almost 2 years later I can discuss my crash

[HTLP]

As the title suggests I have had a very long time to think about what, if anything I could have done to avoid my second accident in fourteen years of riding. I would have posted here shortly after my crash but was advised not to until my case was settled by my attorney.

The crash:
I was traveling South down Port Chicago Highway in Concord passing John Muir Medical Center (formerly Mount Diablo Hospital) on my '97 CBR 1100xx. At that section there are two lanes each direction with a center island area where the columns for the BART tracks stand. Knowing the visibility coming off the side streets in that section is poor I always ride in the left lane in case anyone turns out from one of them.

Though I was in the left lane a Mustang turning out from the hospital at Almond Avenue was the cause of the accident. The driver turned out into the left lane as I entered the intersection. I got on both brakes but it was immediately clear I had only two options, hit her car or the center island area and possibly a concrete BART column. I chose to strike her car. When my bike contacted her car, she was still at a slight angle as she had not completed her turn yet.

I pushed away from the bike as it hit her car, I traveled about a quarter to a third of a block. I initially hit the asphalt with my shoulder and helmet and rolled. I was able to stabilize myself and was sliding on my side by the time my body hit the center island where I stopped. My bike slid about three quarters of a block hitting first the Mustang, then the asphalt, center island which it bounced off, across the street to hit the right side curb and flipped up onto the sidewalk where it finally stopped.

Though the accident was deemed the Mustang drivers fault (I don't disagree) I believe there are a couple of things I could have done differently to allow the driver of the Mustang slightly more time and a slightly better chance to see me.

Strike one, I was traveling about 40 MPH and the speed limit is 35 in that section. It is not a lot of extra speed but Going 5 MPH slower may have given the driver of the Mustang the little extra time needed to make a better judgement and would also have left me slightly farther from the intersection when she was making the decision to turn.

Strike two, this accident happened in the late afternoon and there was an abundance of ambient light. This should be good for visibility and make noticing my fairly large bike easier than if it were nearing sunset. However I was only using my low beam and the headlights on the '97 Super Blackbird are pretty dim in comparison to newer bikes. I could have been and will be from now on when riding during the day, using my high beam to increase my visibility.

I am now healed but have scars and lingering pain to deal with after many months of physical and occupational therapy. The bike was totaled but is back together and has finally received a new registration though it is now on a "salvaged" title.

If anyone has any constructive input regarding anything else that could have been done on my part to help avoid this accident I would enjoy reading it.

 

[DataDan]

Good to hear you're healed, and I hope you're soon back to 100%.

If your crash could have been prevented, it would have been with earlier recognition of the threat. As you say, reduced speed and better conspicuity may have allowed her to see you. What about your identification of the car as a threat? Sometimes there simply isn't any way to anticipate, but sometimes there is.

Apparently she made a right turn on red. Did she come to a stop? The visual clutter as you approached that intersection (37.9825, -122.0315) would have made it nearly impossible to anticipate the incursion if she simply blew through the red. But if she did stop, that would have given you a few seconds to assess the possibility she wouldn't see you and prepare by braking before she entered your path.

That's all I got. Nasty situation, and I'm glad you survived.

 

[HTLP]

Thank you for your comments Dan.

I did not see her until she was entering the intersection so I am not sure if she even slowed down after the last speed bump on Almond Ave. before turning onto Port Chicago. She did turn right on red as I had a green light. The investigating officer deemed the accident her fault and noted that she had made an "unsafe right turn into the intersection". He did not note if she had stopped at the intersection or not though.

There is little visibility for any of those side streets until you are close. It is likely that I was not scanning the right side as thoroughly as I could have though. Being in the left lane I would have a chance to see the car at the intersection sooner than I would if I were in the right lane. Having the cushion of the right lane for any vehicles to turn into and no other vehicles around me probably made me overly comfortable. I do not know how much earlier I could have seen her if at all though.

 

[EEEliminator]

So the driver made a right turn directly into the left lane, making a wide right turn? You mentioned hitting her or the median, but could you have gone into the right lane or was she blocking both lanes? If she wasn't completely in the left lane yet could you ahve squeezed between her and the median? Not saying what you did was right or wrong, just curious if there was a possible way out. Although I understand there isn't much time for considering and weighing your options in a scenario like this.

Did she accelerate hard into the left lane or was it a slow lazy right turn?

What were your injuries if you don't mind sharing?

I've had a couple of close calls with cars making right turns at red lights recently, more than left turns in front of me surprisingly. Recently I was crossing Contra Costa Blvd at the intersection near In and Out heading towards the freeway on ramp. I was in the intersection when a sliver quad cab 4x4 pick up decided to make a right turn on the red, to my surprise he was also pulling a double axle dump trailer too! I was able to change lanes in the intersection since I had out accelerated the car in the adjacent lane, otherwise it would have been ugly. I could not and still cannot believe someone would pull out in front of oncoming traffic (I had cars behind me) pulling a trailer. Of course if I was just going slower maybe I could have just stopped in the intersection and hoped the car behind me would do the same.

 

[HTLP]

Correct, she made a wide right turn into the left lane and did so under acceleration. When I noticed the threat and got on the brakes she was still partially in the right lane and partially in the left but apparently did not notice me at all as she was completing her turn. I did not have room to go right without clipping her rear bumper. The decision I made was split second. While braking I realized the gap to the left was not large enough to get through and with no way to go right my thought process went "car or concrete?".

Injuries included a broken foot, 3" laceration to the ankle, punctured hand, muscle damage, road rash, etc. I was wearing gear but not enough on my lower half. I now have a pair of Spidi leather pants being altered and the seamstress has already sewn the zipper half into my leather jacket. As such in the future I will have a leather 2 piece suit. I will not go back to textile either as my jacket tore in the shoulder. Leather is hot in the summer but I am willing to deal with that.

 

[budman]

Man. That is tough. Glad you are up to discussing it.

My initial thought was a SMIDSY might work, (weave to make sure they see you) but it sounds like there was no time.

 

[Cincinnatus]

I'm paranoid enough about being seen that I run two Clearwater Lights, "Darla" model (2,000 lumens) and a Kisan headlight modulator. Due to the wiring configuration, I have to have the Kisan wired to the highbeam, so the highbeam has to be on, and the Darla's are at full-strength. This makes me painfully bright and very visible. I wear hi-viz gear (helmet, jacket, pants, boots, and Helimot HI-5 gloves (modified with four reflective strips per glove). I am NOT stealthy in any way, shape, or form. Even with all that, I got side-swiped on 13 August 2014, where a commuter on NB 880 didn't check his 6 and merged into my lane, with no time for me to react. Three broken ribs, concussion, and soft tissue damage to my left ankle. Sometimes the only thing you can do is be as prepared as possible and hope for the best.

I'm glad you're making a good recovery and that you will be riding again! :thumbup

 

[HTLP]

Budman and Cincinnatus, thanks for your comments.

I am sorry to hear about your accident Cincinnatus, it sounds pretty horrible. I am glad you survived it though.

 

[bigbadandugly]

I'm paranoid enough about being seen that I run two Clearwater Lights, "Darla" model (2,000 lumens) and a Kisan headlight modulator. Due to the wiring configuration, I have to have the Kisan wired to the highbeam, so the highbeam has to be on, and the Darla's are at full-strength. This makes me painfully bright and very visible.

While I think you have the right idea, having the Darlas and your headlights on high beam is irresponsible. I'm hoping you don't ride with this lighting configuration in high mode in the evenings.

I have a set of Denali D2 lights. They are high/low lights and connected to the headlight switch. They illuminate bright white light, making my headlight look yellow-ish. The three lights from the light form a triangle of two different light colors/intensities (on low the D2's are bright white, but not as bight as on high). The lights make me very conspicuous. On the rear I have an Admore light bar and formerly had the P3 lights (which I thing are also a good product).

 

[guineapig]

Examining the Google maps of the area you pointed out:

https://www.google.com/maps/@37.983...!1e1!3m2!1senhq2GMOdkd84mjSe8mBvA!2e0!6m1!1e1

There are a lot of trees blocking any car coming out from the hospital which makes it sketchy.

One thing I've noticed after a few years of driving / riding, is that drivers have become more impatient, and they do not follow the common sense rule of: 1st turn into right lane, 2nd, signal then turn into the left lane. I estimate about 10%-20% of times they jump straight into middle lane without looking and they expect you to stop (whether you are a bike, car or truck or whatever). This often peeves me off (even when driving a cage), as doing so not only puts me at danger, but if I'm forced to slow down rapidly, I can get rear-ended.

Hence, when riding, I mentally identify areas where cars are likely to do the 2 lane cross, to get to left-lane / side scenario.

This usually is when they need to make a u-turn to get onto the other side of the street, make a left turn, near highways / intersections, or whenever there are areas with confusing road features (like this BART overpass).

When I identify these "high-risk" areas (whether on a bike or car), I slow down and expect cagers to make the maneuver to block my right of way (even if they look like they saw me, I slow down anyway).

That is at least my 2 cents that might help others.

Also, I had a similar incident and ABS prevented me from crashing. If you do decide to keep riding, make sure you get ABS on your next bike as it will stop you fast in panic situations and you will remain in control in situations like this. (Cheaper than hospital bills).

 

[HTLP]

guineapig, Thanks for the feedback.

You are correct about that intersection being difficult to see due to the trees and other landscaping. I should always expect cagers to be impatient to turn. I thought I was mitigating that factor by being in the left lane of the two going that direction, of course I was wrong. It may stem from my seeing the 2 lane jump so rarely on city streets.

I have repaired the bike and have been riding it regularly for the last few weeks. I am trying to be more attentive of all intersections now regardless of the color of the light or what lane I am in. Especially so at intersections that are hard to view on approach.

As for ABS it has it's place but even in cars I have never been a fan of it (nor traction control), I would rather modulate the brakes (or throttle and clutch) on my own. Though my bike has a linked brake system which was shown to reduce stopping distance it is still a heavy bike at just over 550 lbs before I mount her. If I had been on my old 250 or even a 600 I might have been able to stop before impact but that is really just speculation at this point.

As is the case for everyone who has responded, I truly appreciate your taking the time to read my post and respond. We all learn from each others experience.

 

[EastBayDave]

I'm paranoid enough about being seen that I run two Clearwater Lights, "Darla" model (2,000 lumens) and a Kisan headlight modulator. Due to the wiring configuration, I have to have the Kisan wired to the highbeam, so the highbeam has to be on, and the Darla's are at full-strength. This makes me painfully bright and very visible. I wear hi-viz gear (helmet, jacket, pants, boots, and Helimot HI-5 gloves (modified with four reflective strips per glove). I am NOT stealthy in any way, shape, or form. Even with all that, I got side-swiped on 13 August 2014, where a commuter on NB 880 didn't check his 6 and merged into my lane, with no time for me to react. Three broken ribs, concussion, and soft tissue damage to my left ankle. Sometimes the only thing you can do is be as prepared as possible and hope for the best.

I'm glad you're making a good recovery and that you will be riding again! :thumbup

Sorry for your crash & happy to hear your well on your way to recovery.

My latest bike came w/a Kisan modulator. I had never thought about getting one until now. First few rides I immediately notice more folks are waiting for me to pass before pulling out of side streets. In the past it was be ready for panic braking & a dive for the gap. Now I can relax a bit more, yet I still always have a fingie on the brakes & ready to evade if needed.

It was quite surprising to see how people who wouold normall just pull out; wait for me to pass. It was like Moses parting the Red Sea. I was astonished the difference it makes. Nowadays I always run it; excepting I may turn it off on freeway drones if the next cage in front is showing irritation to the light in his mirror. It must be nasty I figure so I will shut it off in light traffic long drones. Turning it back on when needed...

Highly recommend them, I like the Kisan one the best. I also agree on the "weave" movement toward a possible encounter, just to be sure.

-ebd

 

[pt65]

I agree with what DataDan says.

Also agree with the highbeam - I always ride with the highbeam on, wether day or night. At night, obviously flick to low beams anytime you have head on traffic. However, flick straight back to high beams. One single highbeam MC light, unless its an HID, is not so bad that it will blind anyone coming at you. Cars have TWO headlights, and how often do you find yourself driving into their highbeams (its annoying but doesnt leave you momentarily blinded). And newer cars and trucks - dont even get started on those that come factory new with military grade gazillion lumen low beams.

Don't be afraid to flick on your hazard lights for a few seconds. When I'm driving my cage and I back out of a parking space, these days, I ALWAYS turn on my hazard lights until I'm done backing out and on my way. I've had one too many close calls backing out of a parking space only to find some idiot about to crash into me or maybe recklessly hoping I would hit them.

Threat assessment. Every single car, bicycle, other motorcyclist, unseen dog or deer, is a threat to me. If I were to assess the levels, let me go with a Star Trek analogy: Yellow Alert, Red Alert, Evasive Action.

Yellow Alert: Always.

Red Alert: Any car, pedestrian or even MC, that could POSSIBLY (have the slightest reason to) pull out in front of me from a side street / intersection / driveway, or change lanes into mine, or accidentally hit the accelerator b/c of a twitch, bee, dropped butt / coffee / makeup.

Evasive Action: Any time it looks like any of the above MIGHT happen.

I've been on moto's and bicycles and have had people looking STRAIGHT at me and still started to pulled out in front of me until I honked or yelled "OYYYY!!!!!!!!" at them, and the shocked look on their faces comes as no surprise anymore.

Especially on a bicycle, yelling "OYYY!!!!" draws lots of attention, from not only the drivers, but all the people walking within hearing distance. Never be afraid to yell at anything when on a bicycle.

On a moto, a decent horn blast never hurts - but don't use the horn as the first option. Use the horn only AFTER you have assessed that the threat is still just potential or after it has PASSED (within a half second or so).

Glad you are healing up.

 

[canyonrat]

First off, I'm glad your getting along with healing and that the legal stuff is done. Rate of speed is often not the problem. Brightness of your head light is often not a problem.

What I teach people, since around 2002 with my first BARF post in 2004, to do in these situations is; when entering an area with traffic like a shopping district or business area, is to weave your bike about 2 feet from side to side in your lane when you spot or even suspect a vehicle is about to turn into or across traffic in front of you. You must also be aware of any road gravel or oil during the weaving. What this maneuver accomplishes is not only getting the other drivers' attention, but almost always getting 100% of their attention, as they will simply just stair at you wondering what you are doing.

A second thing you can do for protection is employ an maneuver called "shielding". Shielding simply means stay close to the vehicle in front of you. Cars are great, pickups are ok, and SUV's, pickups, & delivery trucks, are not as good as you can't see through them clearly. Staying close to the car ahead of you works well for a motorcycle because we can break very quickly and this allows for a closer following distance than you can safely achieve in your car.

Third, is more theoretical. From what I have personally witnessed and seen on videos of vehicles turning in front of motorcycles, is that the motorcycle rider is often, nearly always, perfectly still and at a near perfect steady constant speed just before being cut off and impacting. So my theory is this, and of course goes into the "Jedi" realms. What I have observed is the rider is in a "calm mind" or "zoned out" both mentally AND psychically. I theorize that this state makes it more difficult for other drivers' to subconsciously "sense" the approaching motorcycle rider and estimate the riders speed. So to counter this, the rider must be aware of their surroundings, of their body, and attempt to be in "contact" psychically/spiritually/telepathically (what ever you want to call it) with the other drivers. These can be achieved by: knowing the area you are entering, looking at traffic, feeling your body and moving it such as your turning your head, raising and lowering your head/back, moving your shoulders, changing your bikes speed slightly, & weaving your bike slightly. More “Jedi” like includes breathing with the intent to connect with others around you, silent prayer can be used to achieve this, as well as several “Eastern Spiritual” techniques.

All of this takes time to develop. It is developed through practice, one piece at a time. Later it becomes habit. After habit you can tell others about it. And finally it is hoped that it helps another to avoid and accident and that someone else can continue to improve upon these general ideas and techniques.

Mark

And I like pt65's Star Trek alert rating.

My first BARF post on weaving http://www.bayarearidersforum.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1438991&postcount=5

 

[Enchanter]

First off, I'm glad your getting along with healing and that the legal stuff is done. Rate of speed is often not the problem. Brightness of your head light is often not a problem.

I see where you're going..

What I teach people, since around 2002 with my first BARF post in 2004, to do in these situations is; when entering an area with traffic like a shopping district or business area, is to weave your bike about 2 feet from side to side in your lane when you spot or even suspect a vehicle is about to turn into or across traffic in front of you. You must also be aware of any road gravel or oil during the weaving. What this maneuver accomplishes is not only getting the other drivers' attention, but almost always getting 100% of their attention, as they will simply just stair at you wondering what you are doing.

Yup. This can be useful, the Brits call it SMIDSY.

A second thing you can do for protection is employ an maneuver called "shielding". Shielding simply means stay close to the vehicle in front of you. Cars are great, pickups are ok, and SUV's, pickups, & delivery trucks, are not as good as you can't see through them clearly. Staying close to the car ahead of you works well for a motorcycle because we can break very quickly and this allows for a closer following distance than you can safely achieve in your car.

'Sheilding', as you call it, can be useful when the motorcycle has some lateral separation from the vehicle it is using as a shield. Decreasing following distance may have some theoretical benefit when it comes to cross traffic, but it raises the risk between you and the 'shield', negating the benefit.

Also, hanging your hat on braking distance alone, ignores the 1.5 sec (average) perception and reaction time of the average human.

Third, is more theoretical. From what I have personally witnessed and seen on videos of vehicles turning in front of motorcycles, is that the motorcycle rider is often, nearly always, perfectly still and at a near perfect steady constant speed just before being cut off and impacting. So my theory is this, and of course goes into the "Jedi" realms. What I have observed is the rider is in a "calm mind" or "zoned out" both mentally AND psychically. I theorize that this state makes it more difficult for other drivers' to subconsciously "sense" the approaching motorcycle rider and estimate the riders speed. So to counter this, the rider must be aware of their surroundings, of their body, and attempt to be in "contact" psychically/spiritually/telepathically (what ever you want to call it) with the other drivers. These can be achieved by: knowing the area you are entering, looking at traffic, feeling your body and moving it such as your turning your head, raising and lowering your head/back, moving your shoulders, changing your bikes speed slightly, & weaving your bike slightly. More “Jedi” like includes breathing with the intent to connect with others around you, silent prayer can be used to achieve this, as well as several “Eastern Spiritual” techniques.

What? Uh, let's keep these types of things where they belong (Kitchen Sink), because they don't belong in Crash Analysis.

All of this takes time to develop. It is developed through practice, one piece at a time. Later it becomes habit.

Yup, practice. Do the right thing every time you ride, and you will be more likely to do the right thing in a high stress / emergency situation.

 

[DataDan]

A second thing you can do for protection is employ an maneuver called "shielding". Shielding simply means stay close to the vehicle in front of you. Cars are great, pickups are ok, and SUV's, pickups, & delivery trucks, are not as good as you can't see through them clearly.

Sometimes this is good advice, but there were apparently no other vehicles around when the OP approached the intersection.

However, shielding must be used with great caution, because it can also cause a crash. Hurt described one such incident in his 1981 report:

A representative accident case illustrates this problem. A motorcycle is proceeding in the curb lane and a van is travelling ahead in the parallel fast lane. Approaching an intersection, another automobile in oncoming traffic waits until the van clears and turns left as it passes. The left-turning automobile then moves into the right-of-way of the motorcycle. In such case, the culpability is clearly that of the automobile driver but both the motorcyclist and automobile driver had view obstruction (the van) before the crash. The strategy appropriate for the motorcycle rider is to ride abreast, or ahead, or much farther behind the van so that he (or she) could see and be seen. The strategic position is important to insure a clear view of prospective challenges of right-of-way and high conspicuity should increase the likelihood of being see.​

Ride alongside a blocker if you can. Otherwise, ride ahead or well behind so you can see and be seen.

Staying close to the car ahead of you works well for a motorcycle because we can brake very quickly and this allows for a closer following distance than you can safely achieve in your car.

This is a dangerous myth. Motorcycles DO NOT have a substantial braking advantage over cars on the test track. And the average motorcyclist on the street is at a distinct disadvantage.

In the US over the past 20 years, twice as many motorcyclists have died in rear-end crashes where the bike struck the vehicle ahead as in crashes where the bike was struck from behind.

 

[Losmeister]

"In the US over the past 20 years, twice as many motorcyclists have died in rear-end crashes where the bike struck the vehicle ahead as in crashes where the bike was struck from behind."

hmm. sorta confirms what i suspected. that all this stuff about splitting at higher than recommended speeds saves you from getting run over from behind is specious

 

[danate]

"In the US over the past 20 years, twice as many motorcyclists have died in rear-end crashes where the bike struck the vehicle ahead as in crashes where the bike was struck from behind."

hmm. sorta confirms what i suspected. that all this stuff about splitting at higher than recommended speeds saves you from getting run over from behind is specious

Well it's still relevant. Having a slightly increased speed over other traffic is generally safer (on a multi-lane road of course) as cars coming up behind and trying to pass you is an increased risk. It comes down to the speed delta, not the overall speed of traffic and the bike. Bikes running into the the rear ends of cars is a problem with following distance, speed delta, vision, and often not being able to use their bike's braking ability to full potential.

 

[HTLP]

Thank you all for your responses.

There were no other vehicles around me going South when the accident happened so I could not use a shield. I have used the practice before but only while next to the shielding vehicle never from behind.

 

[ludovico]

Second Shielding

I have been using "shielding" ever since riding. Of course in this crash, as there was nobody else, this wasn't an option, so weaving to get noticed and of course high beams are the next choice.

Anticipating what people "might" do - and the quick right/merge left immediately (no signals...) to get into the U-turn lane is a good one.
Hospital (problematic state of mind?) exit is another, but to be honest I never really thought about that one before, until now.