Patience

[Desmodromic]

i recently made a promise to myself and my boyfriend that i'd stop speeding and lanesharing over 40mph. i broke this promise once a week or so ago and got pulled over for speeding while lanesharing. the officer let me go but it was a reminder that you aren't necessarily going to get somewhere faster if you drive faster. you could just end up with a hefty ticket, or a serious injury/death.

i would encourage everyone on this message board to make a similar promise to themselves or a loved one. all too often i get passed on the right while in lane #1 by some idiot doing 95mph. think of something you do on a regular basis that is unsafe or illegal and stop doing it. bad habits are hard to break but good habits will eventually take their place.

ride safe so you can live to ride another day :ride

+1

 

[Marcoose]

In a rural area...

Having more than just the proverbial foot in rural areas, an unwritten rural traffic rule is the biggest, heaviest and especially the uphill vehicle ALWAYS has the right-of-way, regardless of the traffic signs, the traffic laws, and everything we learned in Drivers Ed.

 

[moto-rama]

Having more than just the proverbial foot in rural areas, an unwritten rural traffic rule is the biggest, heaviest and especially the uphill vehicle ALWAYS has the right-of-way, regardless of the traffic signs, the traffic laws, and everything we learned in Drivers Ed.

I lived in Utah for some time and those of us who needed a running start to make it up an icy grade on a narrow mountain road, appreciated the ability to make a full on charge up those hills in the winter.
Any lack of commitment would land you in some kind of snowbank.

 

[sanjuro]

As a new rider, I've been careful not to run any yellow/red lights.

I know if I put the on throttle, I can make it through any intersection, but as soon as you accelerate instead of slowing, you are at a huge risk. The obstacles are coming at you faster, your reaction time is diminished, and your handling worsens.

I find it a small challenge to brake safely in this kind of situation, which does make it fun. But I can wait a minute at a light.

 

[rapidrobbie]

What do you see here on this vid? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkZeQt1QHsw
I see two guys taking far more chances than they need to...but you may have a different opinion.

There was only one pass by the front bike on a grey lexus suv that was a little sketchy,the camera bike was fine,my only other problem was the amount of driveways,that bothered me more than the passing

 

[adoliver]

the officer let me go but it was a reminder that you aren't necessarily going to get somewhere faster if you drive faster. you could just end up with a hefty ticket, or a serious injury/death.

Recently had that reality check. "So where are you headed?" "Just trying to get to my hockey game officer."

I find that if I just pull over, flip off my helmet and have a quick cig or check tire pressure, it allows enough time for those slowpokes to clear the road ahead of me.

I thankfully had a more experienced rider show me this on a road he frequents which is always pretty busy. He just waited until a long enough time passed after the last pack of cars to give us room for a spirited ride.

 

[Misti]

Nicely written Data Dan.

I also like the point about "accidents" vs "crashes" and I do agree that sometimes people use the word accident to avoid taking any responsibility. I used to to something similar in that I would accuse drivers of cutting me off all the time and I would get really frustrated at all the "bad drivers" out there.

It wasn't until a friend of mine really called me out and said that it was partly my fault that drivers were cutting me off. He said it meant that I wasn't paying enough attention visually at what was going on and I wasn't reading the traffic well enough to anticipate what might happen. I resented the statement at first until I realized that if I did work on my visual skills and try to anticipate what the drivers around me might do, I might not be so surprised by their actions.

Once I started doing that, I never really got "cut off" again. Part of riding analysis also includes what Data Dan brings up and that is our Patience. It's hard to really read traffic and anticipate what will happen if all we can think about is how fast we can get by, or get home.

I think it is really important to always analyze our riding, our mistakes, our close calls, and our personalities to ensure that we are riding as safely as possible while still having fun.

Patience really is a virtue

Good post,

Misti

 

[EastBayDave]

Patience is the key. I came very close to a serious injury accident because I assumed the car I was about to pass was going into a driveway. I was on the ZX12R entering a favorite section of twisties, & just had to get past the last couple of cages before I got to the curves. I passed the 1st, & was upon the 2nd immediately & about to make the pass @ 70mph when the cars signal turned on indicating a right turn (I assumed into a driveway I could see on the right side of road.)

So knowing what he was going to do, I wicked it up to pass on the left as the car swung wide left to take the hard right into driveway, wrong!!! Then suddenly the signal changed from right turn to indicating left (I suddenly see another bush hidden driveway on the opposite side of the rural road.) It quickly dawns on me the cage is going into the driveway on the left side of the road, NOT the right I had assumed! :wow I now realize w/terror they had made a (now corrected) mistake on the initial turn signal.

I’m now passing on the left way to fast to stop, knowing I’m about to eat the left side of this Jeep Cherokee (it was too late for braking at this speed.) At the last moment the driver apparently sees me & stops in the middle of the road, before turning that last bit of left turn. Doing a quick countersteer left/right "S-swerve" I squeak by the left front side of the Jeep, & just barely miss the dirt shoulder. I now realize somehow I had just escaped death/injury. A horn blast shows the drivers a bit miffed. But luckily he stopped mid-road, saving us both a accident.

I still think about this, & thank God the driver saw me coming & jammed on the brakes, or I’d be splattered all over that Cherokee‘s left side. All because I assumed he was indicating correctly, which he wasn’t. My impatience to get into the twisties past these cars almost ended it for me. Never again; even when they signal I don’t trust them to go that way every time. Be wary my friends...:ride

-ebd

 

[Ducker]

^^add "even when they signal I don’t trust them to go that way every time. " that to my bag of even though they have a red light, doesn't mean that it will protect you if someone runs it.

 

[DataDan]

Where is your patience tested most? For me recently, it seems to be parking lots.

Down here in SLO we have a lot of folks who aren't natural-born drivers trying to maneuver Ford F-350s and such in areas better suited to Smart Cars. A few days ago I was trying to make a quick stop for groceries on the way home. Heading for the primo front-row motorcycle spot, I had to stop for an old goat trying to back his massive Dodge Ram out of a space without hitting the vehicles on the opposite side of the aisle. Must have taken him a full minute. I was yelling at him from inside my helmet: "Move that piece of shit!", etc., etc. Mothers were covering childrens' ears so they wouldn't learn any new vocabulary from the crazed motorcyclist.

That incident came to mind today when I read about a parking lot crash in Florida. Because I had let my event transpire in its own time--though hardly patiently--I wasn't in any danger. Unlike this guy:

A 52-year-old man riding a motorcycle was injured after crashing into a car that was trying to pull into a parking space Thursday morning.

About 10 a.m., a motorcyclist tried to pass a car on the right side in the parking lot of Lowe’s, according to a news release from the DeFuniak Springs Police Department. The driver of the car was trying to pull into a parking space.

According to the news release, the rider crashed into the car and was injured. He was wearing a helmet. He was taken to Fort Walton Beach Medical Center, where he was in stable condition Thursday. Police said he was at fault for improper passing but had not been charged.
​

Chill in parking lots. Don't move any faster than you normally walk. Don't expect turn signals. Don't expect brake lights. Don't even expect backup lights.

Keep your head on a swivel. They can attack from any direction, at any moment. They'll swing right to turn left, swing left to turn right. They'll turn without signaling, signal without turning. They'll pull in, then back out immediately to re-insert and correct a skewed entry. Space is your absolute best friend. The more distance between you and other vehicles, the more time you'll have to evade a bogey.

You have to track multiple threats. You may have one handled, only to be surprised by another that escaped your attention. Beware of pedestrians. Beware of kids darting hither and thither. Beware of errant shopping carts. Beware of what might emerge from a space that's hidden from view by a large vehicle.

Sometimes the most dangerous part of the ride isn't the two hours of triple-digit corner carving, but the five-minute stop for a six-pack on the way home.

 

[vought]

I can't say how much this new rider appreciates this forum. Huge. Patience is one of the biggest keys to avoiding accidents in any vehicle - but especially on a bike. Cagers may be looking out for us or not, but the sheer speed of acceleration can fool even the most diligent and aware car driver.

 

[DataDan]

Apropos my post above about parking lots...

Alleged reckless motorcyclist critically injures pedestrian

A motorcyclist who might have been driving erratically hit and severely injured a woman in the Sonic Drive-In parking lot in southeast Gilroy, police said.

About 3:45 p.m. Saturday, police received multiple calls regarding an accident involving a motorcycle and a pedestrian in the parking lot of Sonic, 6921 Cameron Blvd. Police arrived at the scene to find a woman who had suffered severe injuries and was unconscious, police said. She was taken by helicopter to a nearby hospital, and was still in critical condition as of today, police said.

Multiple witnesses said the motorcyclist, a San Jose man whose name police did not release, was driving in a reckless manner before he lost control and struck the woman as she crossed the parking lot, police said.​

 

[TravisF]

Thank you for this thread.

This is why I waited to get a street bike. I knew I couldn't keep myself contained in my younger years.

 

[MCSFTGUY]

Know what's great about riding a motorcycle in traffic? No waiting. Because it's small, maneuverable, and fast, nothing stays in your way very long. A quick yank on the bars, gas it, and go. Whatever was in front of you pissing you off is now just a dot in your mirrors.

What's not so great is when that impulsive reaction to leave an annoyance behind goes wrong. And it can go very, very wrong.

• Rounding a right-hand bend, a rider sees a tractor-trailer pulling out to make a left turn from a dirt road on the left 600 feet ahead. He doesn't want to get struck behind a damn truck so he tries to beat it to the clear roadway by passing on the right before it completes the turn. But he's too late and there's not enough room. He hits the right rear corner of the tractor.
  
  
• In a rural area, a rider turning from a side road onto a state highway tries to make his turn ahead of a log truck so he'll get to the nearby bridge before the truck. But in the dim predawn light he misjudges the truck's speed and is hit even though the driver tried to veer off the road to avoid the crash.
  
  
• Stuck behind traffic in the freeway's slow lane as he nears his exit, a rider swerves into the onramp lane that becomes his offramp lane a quarter-mile ahead and gasses it hard. But a van merges into the offramp lane just ahead of him, and the motorcycle rearends the van.
  
  
• Following his buddy through an intersection, a motorcyclist gasses it in an attempt to get through before the light turns red. But at the same time, an oncoming pickup driver is trying to make a left turn, also before the light turns red, and he doesn't see the second motorcycle. The motorcycle's speed in the resulting impact is enough to amputate the pickup's right front wheel and send it flying 60 feet.
  
  
• As an apparently confused driver slows to turn at an intersection, the motorcyclist following her expects her to turn right and begins to pass on the left. But the driver was actually turning left and the motorcycle hit the car in mid-turn.

Traffic has a rhythm set by surroundings, vehicles, and drivers. While a rider can often use his machine's speed and agility to stay safe and negotiate traffic more efficiently than in a car, he must also be aware of the limits the environment imposes. The operative virtue is patience. Think about your actions and potential consequences. And don't overestimate your abilities or those of the drivers you share the road with.

Dan,

More very nice work. Just to add a little bit to this to think about. A few weeks back I recall a thread about a rider splitting lanes and a BARFer saw him go down. Got to him and is foot was pretty much torn off. Not a lot of people wanted to discuss that part of it, but it would appear that the bumper got clipped and the foot got wedged into this area and almost removed. Many years ago I went to a crash scene where a rider in a hurry tried to pass a slow moving vehicle on the right... the car was slowing to turn right. The ride lost his leg from the knee down. We were able to remove the leg from the right side of the bumper of the car to take to the hospital but there was way too much damage.

Trying to save a matter of just a few seconds cost this rider his leg.

 

[mosquito]

As gnarly as the story is I think it's good for me to read, MCSFTGUY. Thanks for sharing.

 

[mweitz]

I make it a habit not to pass anyone that looks like they have any amount of indecision in them. It has saved my ass quite a few times.

The last time was a few weeks ago. I was on Canada, turned left (S) onto it at Edgewood. I waited at the stop sign for a black Audi to go by. I pulled out behind him, and cruised at about 50 or so with a bit of space between us.

As we approached the 280 SB entrance he slowed down and started bearing to the right, but he didn't use his signals. He kept slowing down, a little too much it seemed. I was about to pull around him on the left, but decided to wait until I could see him commit to the turn. Instead of pulling onto the freeway, he flipped a bitch, right in front of me. He would have ran me and the bike over and he never even looked behind him. I treat people that drive like this as druggies with a handgun, with a lot of care.

He pulled over on the other side of the road, and I followed him and explained that he just almost killed me. He was pretty shaken and apologized. I just asked him to make sure he used his signals and looked in the future. Maybe it will help the next guy.

When I'm on a bike, I seem to have a lot of patience. I know I can get through pretty much any obstacle, and that knowledge keeps me from doing anything crazy "I can jam outta this sitch as soon as I want, but I'm going to let it play out a little bit first just to see what happens". I also try very hard to leave early (this took me 25 years to learn) in any vehicle I drive so I'm not in a rush and my driving and driving record show it, and I've adjusted my expectations of being late so I just don't care. I'm usually spot on time, and people know that so they don't think twice when I'm 5 late, as it is pretty unusual.

Where is your patience tested most? For me recently, it seems to be parking lots.

Down here in SLO we have a lot of folks who aren't natural-born drivers trying to maneuver Ford F-350s and such in areas better suited to Smart Cars. A few days ago I was trying to make a quick stop for groceries on the way home. Heading for the primo front-row motorcycle spot, I had to stop for an old goat trying to back his massive Dodge Ram out of a space without hitting the vehicles on the opposite side of the aisle. Must have taken him a full minute. I was yelling at him from inside my helmet: "Move that piece of shit!", etc., etc. Mothers were covering childrens' ears so they wouldn't learn any new vocabulary from the crazed motorcyclist.

That incident came to mind today when I read about a parking lot crash in Florida. Because I had let my event transpire in its own time--though hardly patiently--I wasn't in any danger. Unlike this guy:

A 52-year-old man riding a motorcycle was injured after crashing into a car that was trying to pull into a parking space Thursday morning.

About 10 a.m., a motorcyclist tried to pass a car on the right side in the parking lot of Lowe’s, according to a news release from the DeFuniak Springs Police Department. The driver of the car was trying to pull into a parking space.

According to the news release, the rider crashed into the car and was injured. He was wearing a helmet. He was taken to Fort Walton Beach Medical Center, where he was in stable condition Thursday. Police said he was at fault for improper passing but had not been charged.
​

Chill in parking lots. Don't move any faster than you normally walk. Don't expect turn signals. Don't expect brake lights. Don't even expect backup lights.

Keep your head on a swivel. They can attack from any direction, at any moment. They'll swing right to turn left, swing left to turn right. They'll turn without signaling, signal without turning. They'll pull in, then back out immediately to re-insert and correct a skewed entry. Space is your absolute best friend. The more distance between you and other vehicles, the more time you'll have to evade a bogey.

You have to track multiple threats. You may have one handled, only to be surprised by another that escaped your attention. Beware of pedestrians. Beware of kids darting hither and thither. Beware of errant shopping carts. Beware of what might emerge from a space that's hidden from view by a large vehicle.

Sometimes the most dangerous part of the ride isn't the two hours of triple-digit corner carving, but the five-minute stop for a six-pack on the way home.