Commuting Tips

[St0nkingByte]

I put together a page of commuting tips that I thought you guys might find interesting. I started off just writing to clarify my own thoughts but as it got longer and I dropped in a few pictures it started looking like a real 'article' so I figured I would share

http://st0nkingbyte.whizy.com/commuting_tips.html

[Lexcruiser]

Great work!

[C50dreamin]

Pretty good stuff...

[Clint]

Excellent job, mate! If I may be so bold, consider putting it in a table or a <div> tag with a width of roughly 700 pixels. Those long lines are tough on the eyes.

[QuacktheDuck]

+1 on the good info. Commuting is an adventure (especially on these roads) and not in a good way.

[St0nkingByte]

Originally Posted by RowdyRed94

Excellent job, mate! If I may be so bold, consider putting it in a table or a <div> tag with a width of roughly 700 pixels. Those long lines are tough on the eyes.

thx for the tip. I've updated the page, now 74% more readable!

[inspiron]

Good work!

You mention one point that is truly international: There is a common saying in Germany that Mercedes and BMW are so expensive because they come with "eingebaute Vorfahrt" - built-in right-of-way.

There is much more focus in Europe on keeping a cushion in front of you. The driving instructors here teach their students to keep 50% of the speed in meters. In other words, if you are travelling at 100 kmh, there should be at least 50 meters of space between you and the car in front of you. This is easy to measure, since the road markers are always 50 meters apart. The other rule is the rule of 2 seconds. When the vehicle in front of you passes a marker (a sign or a shadow), you should be at least 2 seconds behind them.

The traffic laws over here also make it a bit safer. Most highways are 2 lanes (only expanded to 3 lanes where additional capacity is needed). The law says that you drive in the right lane, and the left lane is for passing. Passing on the right is strictly prohibited, and is considered a major offense - up to $1000 fine and 1 month suspended license. Constantly driving in the left lane (holding up traffic) is a lesser offence and can be fined up to $250. Tailgating is also a major offense and can result in up to 3 months suspended license.

That said, we don't have any kind of traffic like in the USA (with the exception of the holiday traffic that rolls through a few times per year). I drive one of the most heavily travelled sections of the Swiss motorway, but traffic rarely comes to a complete stand-still. On a bad day, I need about 45 minutes to get to work (15 miles). On a good day, I'm door-to-door in 25 minutes.

The most important thing to remember as a commuter is that most of the cagers are not awake on their way to work. Their eyes are open, but the brain is not processing any visual clues. They are on autopilot, and motorcycles don't appear on the radar. Assume that they don't see you, and that they are about to do something stupid. In most cases, you'll be right.

[RampageRider]

Excellent advice on the road, keep it coming guy's

[Louis]

Deserves to be stickied

[Clint]

Originally Posted by St0nkingByte

I've updated the page, now 74% more readable!

That looks great - much more professional. Thanks.

[Rickster]

That is a very well written, and all good advice.
Other motorist fallowing me to close is something I find that I can usualy do something about. If it is convenient, I just change lanes, or pull over and let them go by. If it's not convenient, I watch them in my rear view mirror, than I let off the gas just enough for them to have to let off there gas. As soon as I see them slowing down, I speed up. The bike, any bike can pick up speed much faster than most cars. This creates a large gap, at least for a short time. Most pepole wake up if I do this two, or three times, and they drop back a bit. Sometimes the gap is wide enough that some other car, hopefully with a more couretous driver get's between us. There have also been a time or two when the driver behind me has gotten upset, when this happens, I get out of there way, even if it's not convenient. I think that the number of drivers out there that would run into someone on purpose is very few, but I'm not going to take the chance that that's not one of them behind me.

[Louis]

I usually just "flash" them my brake lights, 95% of the time this works and they leave more room.

[Zoe Dotes]

Very helpful info - thanks...

[blackie1491]

Good article.
Perhaps you should send it into a Magazine like Rider or such.
I have been using the approach that I do not share my lane and weaving to maintain it is one. I have found it works really good in road construction areas, of which we have lots right now.

Another area of concern here, is the drivers who slow down as they hit the creast of a bridge.

Having this article as a sticky would be good for new riders and a reminder to the rest of us.

Thanks

[POE-BOY SAMICH]

CHEERS, St0nkingByte!

As a new rider, I can really appreciate your tips.

I'll raise an ice cold barley pop in your honor after my next ride through city traffic.

[Fishpart]

Great, Great article, well written should be a must read for all riders. One of the best I've read and I've read a lot of articles none this good.

[TheDickies007]

Very nice job!! Thanks for the post!!!

[St0nkingByte]

Originally Posted by Fishpart

Great, Great article, well written should be a must read for all riders. One of the best I've read and I've read a lot of articles none this good.

aww shucks, thanks for the kind words. Honestly I spent about three months thinking about writing that article everyday as I rode to/from work. There are some things I left out because I didn't want to de-emphasize the things that are in the article. Also the writing is OK but a little rough in some spots. I think I'd need to hone my style before I turn pro

[michael spalding]

Hi. Thanks for the commuting tips. I just bought my bike in November in an attempt to be proactive this upcoming spring in regards to the high price of fuel. I bought a 1979 Suzuki GS550L that is absolutely clean and has been alot of fun to learn on. I will attend a MSF Basic Rider Course next month, then I'll be all set to begin commuting when Michigan weather allows.

[sundude]

Great article! Living in South Florida I can relate to almost everything that you mentioned.

One thing that I will NEVER understand is the person that is driving directly into the sun in the morning WITHOUT sunglasses! No wonder they don't see me!