Topic: Probably the closest call yet tonight..

[excellrec]

Been riding for around 5 years now, a lot of commuting and riding for fun, and a lot of miles.  Somehow I've not managed to go down yet, but I've had some close calls, such as tonight. 

I was riding home from having dinner with a friend.  It was exceptionally nice out and so I decided to take the long way home to get an extra break from paper writing for finals.  I was going down a divided 50 mph highway.  There was an on-ramp to the right and I was in the left lane going 50-55mph.  I saw an SUV coming quick up the on-ramp until he was directly parallel with me, going about the same speed.  Something about their approach up the on-ramp made me uneasy, I don't know why.. maybe I'm just projecting back on it that way.  The SUV started merging left pretty fast across both lanes and directly into mine and straight into me.  Apparently I slowed it down enough to avoid them, and the sound of my rear tire squealing off the pavement got their attention enough to move into the right lane.  The SUV slowed way down and the driver stared at me as I drove past.  The driver gave me this angry and hateful look. I know there probably isn't any sense to it, but I couldn't help but to wonder why he would give me a dirty look, as though I had done something wrong.  It's a pretty powerless feeling to have almost been killed or seriously injured, and not being able to convey the magnitude of that feeling to the individual who'd done it to you.  I didn't stop, or say, or do anything to the driver because I didn't think there really was any point to it. 

I have been getting lax on wearing all my gear.. that's going to change now, hopefully for good.  I had my helmet on, but just a hoodie, jeans, and sneakers otherwise.  Sometimes I wish I wasn't so in love with riding and building motorcycles.  It's one of the things I love about life, but worries me the most.  I'm sure similar scenarios and thoughts have occurred with other members here.  I can't really tell anybody else when this type of stuff happens.  The girlfriend worries too much as it is, and my friends worry somewhat as well (none of them ride).  Just wanted to put my thoughts out there somewhere I guess.  Thank you for reading.

[GammaFlat]

Glad to hear you're okay.  Bikes do have their risks.  The riding gear is a good idea.  I usually wear helmet, jacket (no matter the weather) and boots.  Other bikers are often puzzled by my leather jacket in hot weather but I don't mind it. 

[dave500]

im with gamma I always wear leather and its always hot here,i don't ride much in suburbs unless I have to,too many suv idiots like yours around!just don't forget every car is your enemy and is out to hurt you!

[andy750]

Your close call situation is almost a daily occurrence for me riding to work on I-95 in Boston. You get used to it and learn to be vilgilant ALL the time. Take the approach that no car can see you and ride accordingly. Never assume they can.

[HondanutRider]

ATGATT...that's the motto.   Also remember that every other vehicle on the road is potentially "out the get you" - ride like that is the case and never let your guard down.

[madmtnmotors]

Also remember that every other vehicle on the road is potentially "out the get you" - ride like that is the case and never let your guard down.

I try to be prepared to "Yield right of way" at ALL TIMES. Just because you have right of way doesn't guarantee survival.

You can be dead right just as easily as dead wrong.


Glad your "Spidey senses" were on full alert! 

[DH]

I was following a friend who was new to riding, and something similar happened to him. The roadway was narrowing, left lane ending with a concrete island ahead. Just as he was merging right, some arrogant idiot in a pickup decided to pass him on the right, squeezing him back into the lane that was narrowing/ending.
He clipped my friend's right hand mirror on his way by. We stopped a short time later
and he made me promise not to tell his wife, or she'd forbid him to ride any more.
Words can't describe the anger it brought me, along with the fright of it. And I wasn't the one involved. Just glad buddy didn't get hurt. So, yeah, be vigilant, because you never know.

[Stev-o]

The problem is they just don't see you.

I had a recent "scare", I was riding on a four lane highway only a couple miles from my house, I was in the right lane, no traffic to speak of.
All of a sudden, a car pulls out onto the highway right in front of me, natural reflex was to move over to avoid running into him, there was no time to make that decision, I was going 50mph, the speed limit. If there had been a car in the left lane, I would have not had an escape route.  It chilled me, did not mention it to my wife, she would have freaked out.

[demon78]

I've found in 50 some odd years of riding two things, everyone is out to get you and if your 6th sense is telling you there is something wrong listen to it, we pick up on things in many different ways rather than just visual cues and sounds.
Bill the demon.

[BobbyR]

Your close call situation is almost a daily occurrence for me riding to work on I-95 in Boston. You get used to it and learn to be vilgilant ALL the time. Take the approach that no car can see you and ride accordingly. Never assume they can.

I know the road of which Andy speaks and it can be life changing.  Wear your protective gear, since sweat will not kill you. When you are one the road a motorcycle is a second class Citizen. Legally you may have the "Right of Way". Practically speaking you don't.

I was given some advice once that you should remember:

"Gentlemen, today everyone will be trying to kill you. Act accordingly."    So far the advice has served me well!

[excellrec]

I don't know why you think you "will" go down as a rider? I've ridden for over 35 years, >450k miles and never seen the pavement, a ticket, or wrecked. Close calls? Sure. But never wrecked or ditched the bike.

My statement was probably reflective of my perspective.  I know in a probabilistic way it is not a certainty that I will go down, nor is it necessarily even more probable than not.  It's more the perspective I have.  If I think it's a real possibility that I will go down at some point maybe I will be better prepared for it (both mentally and with gear and etc.), but if I don't think it's possible why would I prepare for it?  I'm not saying it's a fool-proof way to trick myself into being prepared all the time (obviously I've become more lax on my gear despite that thinking), but it's just a manner of thinking I adopted early on in my riding.

I believe some degree of cautious behavior prevented an accident. I was covering the clutch and brake when I saw the person coming (again, not sure why I thought they might do something stupid), which might have stopped me a crucial few feet before impacting the other vehicle.  I usually do cover the brakes and clutch when I am coming along area that someone could pull out (intersections, cars waiting to pull out from somewhere, etc).  I've also had people merge over into my lane plenty of times, just a lot more slowly.  What was unique about this situation was the aggressiveness and speed at which the person merged into my lane.  They just darted straight across the lanes with no regard for caution.  If they had been trying to kill me I don't think they would have been able to do a better job at it. 

I will be taken back one of my summer jackets to get the zipper fixed today.  Probably one reason I stopped wearing a jacket regularly is because the only one I have working right now is a full on Alpinestars jacket with the back hump and everything.  I do not, however, know why I was wearing sneakers or gloves.  That was pretty out of character for me.

[Jerry Rxman Griffin aka MuthaF'er]

Glad it turned out OK. I've had 2 head ons on my bikes in the last 12 years. It hurts.

Why were you in the left lane going 50-55? I'm hoping it was to allow the truck to merge vs just out there cruising at a slow pace. Perhaps the truck wanted to be out there going faster and you should have been in the right lane instead?! Whether either is the case the other 4 wheeled vehicle will be the winner. Ride with that in mind at all times.

 

[Pecantree]

Glad you handled it well!
Listen to that voice.
Austin is crazy with drunks. I try not to ride in the evening and weekend afternoons in town.
Austin police were responding to a drunk driver/pedestrian fatality when ANOTHER drunk tried to drive between the cop cars. Local tv got video.
http://kxan.com/2014/04/27/driver-blows-102-after-deadly-crash-documents-reveal/

Be safe yall

[Stev-o]

Glad you handled it well!
Listen to that voice.
Austin is crazy with drunks. I try not to ride in the evening and weekend afternoons in town.
Austin police were responding to a drunk driver/pedestrian fatality when ANOTHER drunk tried to drive between the cop cars. Local tv got video.
http://kxan.com/2014/04/27/driver-blows-102-after-deadly-crash-documents-reveal/

Be safe yall

Pecan - you had a bad collision last year, you are very lucky, my friend.

[70CB750]

Glad you OK!  The hours of riding likely saved you tonight, nothing like time under your belt to react properly.

[fendersrule]

I enjoy reading these. I think we should all post our close calls, because it gives everyone more knowledge. Don't keep your knowledge to yourself!

Riding without boots? TERRIBLE idea. Sneakers won't do squat to protect your feet. Search motorcycle foot injuries, and you will never wear sneakers again riding. I wear riding shoes, all the time, no exceptions, same goes with helmet, armored jacket, and armored gloves.

About regular jeans. They don't protect you either, but I'm guilty of "relaxing" only in that sense. Driving 5 miles to work going 40 MPH in stop and go traffic, I ride with my "regular" jeans often. It's a calculated risk. But I always wear everything else. I always wear my Kevlar armored riding jeans when I'm not doing my in-town work commute.

It sounds like you were doing the right thing by riding in the left lane. That's where less problems happen. Think of it this way, if you were in the right lane, you may have been hit. I want to make sure I was reading your scenario correctly...the vehicle was coming onto the highway, from the on-ramp? When did you first notice the other vehicle?

Ask yourself, what could YOU have done differently next time? You have to always learn from every encounter.

I've been "driving" for 15 years. Many close calls. Zero accidents. I learn from EVERY close call. There's no reason to not do the same with motorcycling. I like to think that I see things happen before they happen; I've done it many times and laughed because I slowed down when people do illegal u-turns or turn out in front of me because I already saw it several moments before.... I can say with a straight face that I am a defensive driver!

[excellrec]

It was asked why I was riding in the left lane:  I honestly can't say for sure.  This was around 9-10 p.m. with no other cars visible in front or behind me.  I might have passed someone earlier on and just not moved back over because nobody else was on the road.  I suppose if I had been in the right lane and seen that individual coming up on the right I would have probably gotten in the left lane anyways.  If the individual intentionally veered across two lanes without using any signals just to teach me a lesson about proper lane use, that's really psychotic. 

I am trying to think what I could learn from the event.  It's a tricky one because I wasn't doing anything obviously stupid (aside from the lack of gear, that is).  I will say that it strengthened my desire to keep my bike in top notch running condition, which is something that helps you out in every situation, and I enjoy doing anyways.  I have a 750F with recently rebuilt dual discs, braided stainless lines, a rebuilt master cylinder, rebuilt forks with new progressive springs, and a front tire less than a year old.  Those things alone may have made the difference enough to get me stopped in time. 

[rb550four]

You have learned something. The time between when you recognize the danger and react to it is all the time you get , period. What you do in this time can make the difference between rider and rag doll.
 I've slide under 2 cars, slid across the hood of one other, and have been pushed off the road by oncoming traffic twice, and ran into a German Shepard. In all of these events, time was slow as it happened, can't explain why.
Each time I was in full leathers ,gloves,boots and helmet and it still hurt allot, leather gets torn up and gets hot too you know and does nothing to absorb impact .... I never slid off the road surface and got into the trees, signs or guardrails, you don't want to do that. My good friend did that, didn't have a chance, we buried him at 18 .
The last time I remember sliding behind a spinning bike, I caught up with it and laid on it till it stopped. Always slide on your butt facing the direction of the slide, so there is a chance to maneuver away from objects, never head first if you can help it. And contrary to the kung Fu idea that rolling with the forward motion  will slow you down and deflect energy by not absorbing it....that's when bones get broken.
  I always ride by the tenth of a mile , what I see in front of me has an escape scenario, when there 's traffic it's multiple  trouble and multiple escape scenarios. It's all about survival first and the spaces in between the thought process is the enjoyment and thrill of the ride but, most folks won't realize the thrill until the kickstand goes down.
  The fact is that you must be prepared for evasive action at all times, it's not for everyone , that's why those who ride are special.

[Terry in Australia]

I've been riding for over 40 years, have had several crashes in that time, and broken many bones. As much as there are things that you can do to reduce the risk of a crash, shiit happens and there's bugger-all that you can do about it.

There'll always be the car (or bike) that you don't see, and no matter how much you learn from every near miss, if it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen. No point worrying about it, or you'll quickly lose the enjoyment that riding brings. Don't stress about what you can't control. Stay alert though, the world needs more lerts............

All of the above advice about proper riding gear is good, something that hasn't been mentioned yet is a nice loud horn, not the pissy things that came with our bikes, but something that sounds like it's coming from a vehicle larger than the one wandering into your lane. To car drivers at least, size DOES matter.

I installed twin Stebel horns on my GS1000 a few years ago, and I've seen car drivers physically jump in their seats when I gave them a blast with those bad boys. They might not match the aesthetic of your bike, but they're worth their weight in gold. Cheers, Terry.

[RodPlunger]

I'm not really anywhere near calj737's numbers, but after 100k, I can agree with almost everything everyone has said on here...

Remember, "might equals right". They have the mass, you don't. Most of the time cagers are complete f'ing idiots, and unfortunately, not only can you not fix stupid, but you can't legislate it either. And in our case, that means a world of hurt from somebody just being dumb...

Sixth sense. Cultivate it. Mileage tends to increase its ability and strength. Listen to it. I could write a small book on how many times it has helped, and only one time where it failed me (or maybe I just didn't listen)....

Gear. I always, always, always wore my Aerostich when I had it. I always wear my leather jacket now, am actively looking for a good pair of riding pants to match our bikes, and always wear over the ankle boots. There is a reason they require them for MSF courses.

And what I probably would have done after your event...? Ridden beside said idiot offender, extended my clutch hand and raised middle finger proudly and prominently all while cursing said m*ther f*cker to open their f*ing eyes. Might not be politically correct, and usually they are so stupid that they have no idea (never saw you) why you would be doing that, but I would have a hard time resisting.   

[dave500]

you need good horns in pairs to get that harmonic proper sounds bigger than it is sound,they aint costly,this pair was 35 bucks at a truck supply place, you gotta change your riding style in the suburbs though,and be aware,be very aware of the dreaded"P" plate driver,especially female ones!for those overseas that don't know we have a "P' plate much like a learners plate that must be displayed on cars for new licence holders,its different from state to state,some are displayed for the first year other states have red and green for the second years etc,they are probationary license holders and have strict rules,some states have a passenger capacity etc,im cruising along here and give way to my enemy to my right at the round about,who is in the right hand lane,as I carry on through in my left lane she diverges across into my lane and doesent even try to avoid and move back into her lane as she demands to turn in front of me even with some serious horn action,in the old days id have touched the drivers door with my boot as i went past but i thought better of it being easter,im not an aggressive rider or driver,she didn't give a #$%* though,you can lock the rear brakes on these old bikes and skid steer easier than a late model sport bike i think?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGDOYSoeS3c
 

[Terry in Australia]

I always think it's nice to remind female drivers that they've got outside mirrors Dave, by tearing them off their cars and throwing them thru their open windows................  

[dave500]

how about that print on them that reads"OBJECTS IN MIRRORS ARE BEHIND YOU"?

[andy750]

It was asked why I was riding in the left lane:  I honestly can't say for sure.  This was around 9-10 p.m. with no other cars visible in front or behind me.  I might have passed someone earlier on and just not moved back over because nobody else was on the road. 

Please never drive in Europe like this especially on the German Autobahn. Even in the US the possibilities of being hit from behind by a fast moving car are increased. I see this kind of laziness every day, slow drivers sitting in the left hand lane because there is nothing in front of them. Move back to your lane after passing!!! Its a basic rule of the road.

[Duke McDukiedook]

They don't call it a passing lane fer nuthin'.
And I-95 is filled with nothing but maniacs and Andy, I thought my parents were kidding when they told me about the horrible driving habits of people on I-95 and then I got to see it myself. 
Words cannot describe the insanity.