look left look right and look bike - Page 2

**Professor Farnsworth** · 25-08-2011, 03:30 PM

so get a clunker to drive around in peak hour. When in Rome..

irish2 · 25-08-2011, 04:48 PM

One thing bike riders should all do is get a reasonably noisy exhaust. It makes drivers much more aware of you if there is some noise coming from you. I have seen many quiet bikes almost get taken out by people who don't check their blind spot, but not any noisy ones.

Franco Cozzo · 25-08-2011, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sgt_doofey

One of the reasons I now ride with a 720p video recorder on my bike.

Probably won't work when you and the bike are sliding along the road at 100km/h.

Not too long ago on the ring road there was someone on a harley lane splitting past everyone, wouldn't take much for someone to accidentally knock them off the bike, particurily when its busy.

Today, I was driving home on our single lane each direction country highway, its 100km/h, and usually everyone is doing 110-130km/h, anyways I was sitting on 100, a lady on the side of the road decided she'd pull out in front of me and I had to jam on the brakes and go half onto the grass to avoid her. The Falcon behind me up my *** did the old nose dive as well.

No crap, it took her about 2 kilometers to reach 100km/h.

Merging onto a highway = as fast as legally possible, not 15km/h.

**98TLS** · 25-08-2011, 06:41 PM

My 20 year old cousin Julie was killed riding a wee GN250 back to an Air Force base where she worked and lived,old bloke turned directly into her on a 3 km straight

My brother was killed on 2 wheels doing what he loved but overcooked it and paid the price.After 38 years riding and racing them there's one undeniable fact which is motorcycles by there vary nature are dangerous,factor in humans and there fallibility (spelling) the risk increases eh,i still ride and do the occasional track day at 48 years old,i try and allow as best i can for other road users ....ups,tis all you can do really.

**98TLS** · 25-08-2011, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by irish2

One thing bike riders should all do is get a reasonably noisy exhaust. It makes drivers much more aware of you if there is some noise coming from you. I have seen many quiet bikes almost get taken out by people who don't check their blind spot, but not any noisy ones.

Just like Hi vis vests a noisy bike wont make any difference mate,The excuses will still be "i just didnt see him".

irish2 · 25-08-2011, 06:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 98TLS

Just like Hi vis vests a noisy bike wont make any difference mate,The excuses will still be "i just didnt see him".

It is useful when on multilane arterials, as you can hear there is something there. People are too lazy to turn their head to check their blind spot.

**98TLS** · 25-08-2011, 07:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by irish2

It is useful when on multilane arterials, as you can hear there is something there. People are too lazy to turn their head to check their blind spot.

Possibly though ive watched drivers turn..see me but still keep coming.

Caused me a trip over the roof of a Hillman Hunter years back,of all the things eh

had to be a Hillman Hunter

Pis-ton broke · 25-08-2011, 07:50 PM

I rode to work in Sydney traffic for 2 years , and had only one car problem that comes to mind. also i did hit a kangroo one morning going to work not far from my house (yes i live in the bush), he jumped into the side of my bike,hit the farring (smashed that) and came back onto my foot. when it happened i thought that my foot was broken, but it was ok. I did lane spill on most days, but when you see a car jam for over one kilometre, why not! you soon learn where your bike will fit. and after doing it for a long time you get really steady and can creep in between stopped cars at walking pace. In all the cars that i passed lane spliting, not once did i clip a cars mirror.
As said earlier some motorists many think a rider is going quick though traffic. Well it was my style to do so to, as its easier to watch traffic in the front and on the sides and not have to woory to much about some dummy behind you. and when i rode i had a rule for my self which was, if i can,t focus 100% on traffic etc. then it wouldn,t ride, if i was a bit tyierd then i,d drive instead.

Road_Warrior · 25-08-2011, 10:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 98TLS

Just like Hi vis vests a noisy bike wont make any difference mate,The excuses will still be "i just didnt see him".

I disagree. I've noticed drivers 'noticing' me more with a rowdy set of pipes, especially when approaching vehicles from behind. With the stockers back on, that added "aural conspicuity" simply isn't there.

When I say "rowdy", I mean legal off-the-shelf sports mufflers, not those retarded and obnoxious shotgun pipes that some Hardley drivers use. Goddamn it I hate those things.

nstg8a · 25-08-2011, 10:39 PM

ive noticed it too, going from the old dt200 which was whisper quiet, to the gt650 which while its not loud, it does have an awesome very vocal burble on the over run.

kpcart · 28-08-2011, 06:55 AM

it amazes how many motorists drive on the inside of the marked bike and emergency lanes. i dont get why they do it, i think they are just stupid. so many of them do it but, that it gives me an impression that that is the culture of aussie drivers - they just do not care. it happens every single day i go to work. and after work i often go for a 10km bike road, but keep way to the left even in marked zones, because i know the typical aussie driver will want me off the road and might even try to clip me.

FreddyDUZ747 · 28-08-2011, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kpcart

it amazes how many motorists drive on the inside of the marked bike and emergency lanes. i dont get why they do it, i think they are just stupid. so many of them do it but, that it gives me an impression that that is the culture of aussie drivers - they just do not care. it happens every single day i go to work. and after work i often go for a 10km bike road, but keep way to the left even in marked zones, because i know the typical aussie driver will want me off the road and might even try to clip me.

Why are you such a negative person,if people read half your posts they may wont to clip you

Everyday I see bike riders 2-3 wide in the bike/car lane just so they can chat to one another,I couldnt care less tbh.This is becoming almost a trend,especially on weekends.

hawker · 29-08-2011, 12:50 AM

The problem with this topic, as with many, it has two sides of the coin. On one side, some are just oblivious to motorbikes. One day I had a woman look straight at me, and then just pull out. She got the shock of her life when I pushed the horn in and came up beside her with my finger in her window. Thankfully, it was a wide road and had no on-coming traffic, or I would have met her back-end.

The other problem is, idiots on bikes. When I'm driving, I see dangerous riding from motorbikes everyday, and it makes me very annoyed, although I don't think it gives cars the right to act like idiots, I can see why they would get frustrated.

Not just confined to motorbike riders. People in small cars, like a Barina etc love to tailgate and cut people off. It's insane.

Although I think it's important that motorbike awareness should play a big part on driver training, I think it's also important that bike riders should be careful. If you lane change quickly, speed up, slow down, cut in front of people, it's very hard for cars to keep track of you. I've lost count the amount of times I've seen a motorbike behind me, and then they've slipped into my blind spot and sat there. Thankfully I know that they're still there (they didn't just disappear), but people who don't know bikes, just assume they didn't see them go past etc. That's when accidents happen.

I think all kids should ride bikes - watch how fast parents start paying more attention!

I, personally was on the rough end of a car that didn't watch out for bikes. Cost me a broken leg and 6 days on life support... Not fun at all... I bet that guy watches out for bikes now though!

Zero_PSI · 29-08-2011, 03:11 AM

My girlfriends Dad is a hardcore cyclist. Some of the idiocy he cops just makes me wanna go out and start swinging.

The worst so far has to be the abuse from a P plater with his bogan mates in the car abusing him then swerving towards him. This guy is a 6ft 3" athlete so it would've been great to see him catch up to these guys. But, being as tough as they are after endangering a fathers life they ran away.

pottery beige · 29-08-2011, 08:57 AM

carry couple of old sparkplugs in your pocket..... for the idiots.....

OzJavelin · 29-08-2011, 01:22 PM

Had a friend tell me yesterday that she and and husband were sitting on their bikes at a red-light when a car hit them from behind .. didn't see the red light and swerved to miss the cars lined up in the other lane .. only to hit the less-well-protected motorcyclists. Punched my friends 127km (i.e. brand new) CB400 into her husbands bike and they both went down hard. But they both are walking around and OK thanks to good gear .. and no thanks to the driver.

Conversely I was sitting with motorbike friends yesterday (I was riding my '78 Suzuki GS750) and watched an American V-twin try to impress us with in a 50km/h zone by doing about 80km/h with lots of noise and fanfare .. only to have someone pull out infront of him. While the car pulled out I suspect that it's because they thought the traffic was doing 50km/h and didn't expect to have a bike in their boot so suddenly ..

LTDHO · 29-08-2011, 02:04 PM

It's both ways.
Drivers don't look out for riders.
Riders don't make themselves seen by drivers.

There are bad in both.
As a result, riders will end up in hospital or morgue!

DanielXR8 · 29-08-2011, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesR

ill care about motorcyclists when they stop doing stupid **** like driving between cars and weaving through traffic. they scare the **** out of me.
yes, i know not all do, but not all drivers are bad either.

Two wrongs do not make a right. If you can't bring yourself to care about your driving and how it impacts on others, then maybe its time to start thinking about if driving is for you.

vanman_75 · 29-08-2011, 03:27 PM

We have had a few threads like this , and the way half of the responses read is , that you are in fact the problem on our roads . And I have said before I cycle / motorbike/ car / 4x4...and the way I see it is just very bad attitudes to other road users in general.I work on the size rule if its bigger then I stay out of there way / be more considerate to .I suggest some of you rethink the way you drive next time your out there and start being a little more forgiving as not everyone is or even can be perfect...me included .