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Riding Strategies that might just save you

16K views 79 replies 47 participants last post by  RMarcil34 
#1 · (Edited)
With all the conversation going on about rear-end collisions and riding tactics…..
I thought I would capture a few techniques I have used of many years of riding to stay safe on the street.


The things that will hurt you are... a high speed impact with a fixed object ( leaving the roadway ),
a high speed impact with a vehicle that took away your path of travel or getting struck by a vehicle at speed.

Falling down on your own is small potatoes by comparison.


STOPPING AT LIGHTS

Getting struck from behind by a vehicle at speed will cripple or kill you.

There are a few things you can do to avoid this.

I normally ride in the left wheel track of the car lane. As I finish my stop I go to the center of
the lane ( carefully as this can be slick especially at stoplights ) then stop with my front wheel
in the left track, rear tire in the center with the bike at a bit of an angle in the lane. Why ?
1. It makes the side profile of your bike more visible from behind.
2. At a slight angle, your left rearview mirror now looks straight down the lane behind.
3. It angles the bike so that if you move you go to the left of the vehicle ahead of you.

Leave adequate space in front of you to do this.... do not get too close the car in front.

Once stopped, I leave the bike in first gear, clutch in ready to move and watch the traffic behind
me intently….. until one or two cars are completely stopped behind me.
Then, if it’s going to be a long light I might put the bike in neutral and let the clutch out.


INTERSECTIONS…..

There are two primary threats at an intersection….

The LEFT turner….. Approaching vehicle turning left into your path.

If I am riding behind a car on a two-lane street or in the left lane on a
multi-lane street I move to the extreme left of my lane so that the car
in the left-turn lane can clearly see my headlight. The WORST place to
be is behind a vehicle that obscures the turning cars view !

If I am in the right lane on a multi-lane street I try to use a car in the left lane
as a blocker as I approach the intersection…so that a left turner would have to
drive through the car in the left lane to get to me. You cannot ride NEXT to
a car in the left lane….. here’s why.

RIGHT TURN ON RED -- > Vehicle coming from right, right turn on red into your path.

SO you are in the right lane riding NEXT to your blocker in the left lane…..all good
now right ? Wrong. Soccer-mom rolls the stop and turns right on red and pulls
out in front of you at 5MPH….. choices ? hit soccer mom or evade left….. oops.

Lesson ? If you are going through an intersection ( or a shopping district with driveways )
you have to leave a GAP in the left lane you can slip into if your path is obstructed.
Position yourself next to this gap. My Preferred spot is LEADING the car in the left
lane by a little…. so I can see them in my left mirror….. if things go bad I can steal
their lane and evade.



LEAVING THE ROADWAY

This will get you dead…. in fact, cause of death in most single-vehicle MC accidents
is left road, hit solid objects. This occurs because you get into a corner too hot and
convince yourself you cannot make it.

This is what you must do…..

Brake hard in a straight line, pick the spot where you must turn in

When you get there…..

FADE off the brakes
LOOK through the corner to the exit < ----- This is hard
TURN --- DAMMIT TURN !

All this while the bike is shedding speed and decreasing the angle of
impact ( running straight is never good ). And now if you are *actually*
too fast you may grind parts, lose grip or lowside but with the turn partially
behind you it reduces the speed of impact and the distance to fall.

Maybe you learn something about what your bike can *actually* do !



Hope this gives you something to think about…… I know I am thinking *all* the time.



Tom
 
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#3 ·
To add to the Leaving the Roadway section (and riding in general)

Keep GOOD TIRES on your bike and keep them properly inflated.... With this, in most cases, you will run out of guts before you run out of tire. Do the above, and TRUST them.. scream it to yourself if you have to and just DO IT... Look through the turn where you really want to be and just do it. You've got nothing to lose and everything to gain at that point.
 
#4 ·
Hmm i like the last part trust your tires. had one of those today caught myself leaning over farther then normal but made the turn and got to where i was going safely. I know have a new thoughts on my Pilot road 2's now
 
#6 ·
For example......

With a set of Pilot Powers and a clean road I can lean a GSXR over until the PEGS
DRAG ( which is a REALLY deep lean angle ) and not run out of grip if I am under
100 MPH or so........



TRUST YOUR TIRES.



Tom
 
#9 ·
pull you knee in alittle more and you have alittle extra room :neener:
 
#8 ·
99.9999% of the time lowsiding is better for you and the bike rather than running off and hitting something or even just loosing the front in the grass while straight up and down cause you panicked and didn't get off the front brake.
So at least try to make that turn!!

Thanks for taking the time to type that out TOM..great stuff!
 
#15 ·
Great post.

One thing that I've found helps me when leaving a major roadway onto a little street is, depending on speed and traffic, I weave my bike back and forth a few times before I put on my turn signal. It gets the attention of 'spaced out' drivers behind me. After a while it seems like they are looking through you rather than at you and snaps them back to reality. It seems to get their attention better during the day than just flashing brake lights.

I also do this if I am getting tailgated hard and I don't have the room to change lanes.
 
#18 ·
You forgot these ...

SOCCER MOMS APPROACHING FROM BEHIND

If you see a soccer mom fast approaching you in your lane in your rear view mirror:

(1) Get out of the lane immediately. She doesn't see you because you're not important enough for her.

(2) Let her pull ahead into the space you were in (and ironically the space where you would have been spread on the pavement had she run over you).

(3) Exit the bike, then approach her on the driver's side. She won't see you coming: She's too busy smacking her kids, yacking on her cell phone, and drinking her coffee to notice you.

(4) Remove the cell phone from her hand and throw it down the nearest sewer, then exclaim "Pay attention to the road, you stuck up cunt!"

(5) Smack her bratty, spoiled, out-of-control kids.

(6) Return to your bike and proceed.
 
#28 ·
SOCCER MOMS APPROACHING FROM BEHIND

If you see a soccer mom fast approaching you in your lane in your rear view mirror:

(1) Get out of the lane immediately. She doesn't see you because you're not important enough for her.

(2) Let her pull ahead into the space you were in (and ironically the space where you would have been spread on the pavement had she run over you).

(3) Exit the bike, then approach her on the driver's side. She won't see you coming: She's too busy smacking her kids, yacking on her cell phone, and drinking her coffee to notice you.

(4) Remove the cell phone from her hand and throw it down the nearest sewer, then exclaim "Pay attention to the road, you stuck up cunt!"

(5) Smack her bratty, spoiled, out-of-control kids.

(6) Return to your bike and proceed.
Tell me you've done this for real.
 
#20 ·
With the kids in the back seat watching??? ... wow ... that's kinky! :)
 
#22 ·
One piece of advice not yet mentioned: roads which carry lots of rush hour traffic or shopping traffic are often slicker than your usual roads. Sure, we often expect oil in the center of the lane at intersections, but there's also oil in the middle of the intersection, too. Dont go in to hot to make the turn before a car coming towards you gets to the intersection. If you low side, he'll run you right over. BaDump BaDump.
 
#26 ·
must spread rep before giving to blarney again. wtf? lol
good stuff. im getting this tattooed on my wrist and read it before i go to bed. u should bring some of those fun techniques to odysseys newbie course. i'd pay lol.
hey if enter a turn and it has gravel in it, should i just lowside it or drive straight through? p.s. theres a ditch in the turn
 
#32 ·
hey if enter a turn and it has gravel in it, should i just lowside it or drive straight through?

Stand bike up
Brake HARD in straight line
Ease off brake BEFORE gravel
Pick turn-in point after gravel
Turn bike harder
Turn head
Make corner
Avoid ditch

This is the CLASSIC Wisconsin cow-road two step


Tom
 
#27 ·
i got to reread this later on after my exam, but doesnt the motorcycle illinois road book suggest being in the center of the lane? i know ive had this problem numerous times cuz most people dont look whats behind them or check their blindspots and just merge into me.
 
#36 ·
I would also add to push the handlebar forward to the direction you want to turn. I used to remind myself of this all the time when I first started riding. Sure enough, everytime I entered a corner too hot and my mind thought I was going to crash, I pushed the handlebar, the bike leaned right over and I was ok.

After you've ridden for years and years it becomes second nature, but countersteering is a hard concept to grasp.
 
#37 ·
then stop with my front wheel
in the left track, rear tire in the center with the bike at a bit of an angle in the lane. Why ?
1. It makes the side profile of your bike more visible from behind.
2. At a slight angle, your left rearview mirror now looks straight down the lane behind.


Firebretha disagrees with this extremely.


most bikes use an LED taillight which when you go off angle will reduce the performance of your taillight and make you LESS visible.

red is red in peoples eyes. whats better than having a dim blob (side view of bike) is to tap your brakes a couple of times as someone is coming up behind you, the flashing will grab peoples attention better.
 
#38 ·
A little tid-bit that is necessary out here in nowhere.
Follow the tire track of cars when on tar and chip roads and never "apex" turns.
The reason is that the cars brush the loose pea gravel into strips down the center of the lane. By staying on the path of the cars tire tracks (I usually ride the center track) you will have clean pavement that is about 2 feet wide.
 
#39 ·
Also quit doing 3 times the speed limit in town. Guy died in Stoughton Sunday after a car turned left in front of him. I should add he was going around 80 in a 25. People dont expect others doing 3 times the limit. Alot of people (especially older drivers) have problems judging bike speeds and distance.
 
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