Stupid Drivers

[black_boxxx]

I was on my way to work today, and some car slammed on the brakes this morning, while I was busy thinking about things in my life, i grabbed the front brake, and did an endo, it cam back down, but i was still in the air grabbing the bars and then the darn thing hit the pavement, :o(, lucky me i had frame sliders so all it did was scuff the slider, and pip and mirror a tad, still sucks though, i wasnt hurt, but now i have to get new sliders, so it doesnt look bad, anyways enough of my griping

[frank5079]

At least you're okay; one of the reasons to keep your distance, stay alert, and be watchful of the traffic around you, behind you, in front of you and the traffic in front of the car in front of you!!!

[nhoel]

It all goes back to Basic MSF training... Always keep the 2-sec, 4-sec and 12-sec zone in check.

[JES883]

Lucky. And yes, most drivers (including me in a car sometimes) are stupid.

[SuzukiGirl1]

Yeah, but in rush hour, it's impossible to keep a safe distance...as soon as you back off to the appropriate distance, someone cuts in front of you...

[nhoel]

Originally Posted by SuzukiGirl1

Yeah, but in rush hour, it's impossible to keep a safe distance...as soon as you back off to the appropriate distance, someone cuts in front of you...

Yeah, but in rush hour traffic... a 2-sec distance is only a foot away from the next car in front of you. Here in LA, safe distance during rush hour means not hitting the cage(s) beside you... since you're going in between them...

[viper94bite]

then cover your brakes and be very alert.

[JES883]

Originally Posted by SuzukiGirl1

Yeah, but in rush hour, it's impossible to keep a safe distance...as soon as you back off to the appropriate distance, someone cuts in front of you...

This is where creative riding comes into play. Since your yellow bike is zippy, you need to intermittently speed up and slow down. Do this in a very controlled, but abrupt manner. You may add the occasional position shift within your lane (ie. move from the left rut to the right rut). What this will do is enourage the cagers to give you a wide berth, thinking that you're either inexperienced, an idiot, or drunk.

They won't get in front of you for fear that you'll run into them. They won't merge into you, because they're afraid you're about to merge into them. And they won't follow too closely because they're afraid they'll run into you.

I'm being a little serious with this post, despite how it sounds.

[blackie1491]

I find when they crowd me a slow weave in the lane blows their mind.
I have seen cars drop 50' back. When a car crowds me on the right I crowd them back. I take possion of every inch in my lane. If I have a merge lane on my right, I ride in the right portion of the lane.
I try to ride with a cushion around me, I share my lane with a motorcyclist, but have once or twice pushed them off, if I find they are a risk.
In a car you have some protection, on your bike it is being alert. And sometimes that is not enough.