Mad cagers out in full force yesterday

Tzardine

Jackson Alive Cemetery wrote: »

First incident you should have been further back, asking for trouble even if car is at fault.

Second incident is pure madness, obviously car is completely at fault but why didn't you brake when you saw them moving in or hit the gas and get yourself out of the situation.

As someone else mentioned first reaction is the horn, when it should be getting out of the situation. that's not good IMO.

I was well able to avoid her. She was moving into the lane slowly. I had plenty of time and space to get out of her way if I needed to.

stewygriffin

Sorry but the OP has a poor biking attitude and has poor road positioning skills and sense.
He doesnt seem to take any notice,no matter how many people here tell him that he has a responsibility aswell,and has poor riding and road positioning skills,especially coming up to junctions.:(
A lesson or 2 with an IBT instructor would open up his eyes and mind alot.

BKtje

I have to agree with the prevailing sentiment, you weren't expecting their stupidity in the first one though the second one i have no idea wtf the car was doing. I always say to myself, there's no point being in the right if I'm dead.

As an aside, I don't think I've ever used the horn on my bike (at least on purpose, hit it by accident sometimes and generally scare the **** out of myself), either I've avoided the situation by reading their stupidity in advance or I'm actively getting out of the way. I'm tempted to use it afterwards of course but most people already know that they are an idiot without me having to tell them.

Pugzilla

OP, you should have let the second car crash into you. You had a go pro recording so you would have been a 100% safe.

twowheelsonly

Tzardine wrote: »

As there is no right turn at that junction I dont think I would need to worry about any blame coming my way.

I do take your points and appreciate the advice though.

I wouldn't bet on it. If I was behind you I would have thought that you were going to turn right as well judging by your road positioning and the fact that you had your indicator on until 2 and a half seconds before the incident. It's quite possible that the driver in front thought the same if they had glanced and seen you there with your indicator on.

BTW, I don't know that junction but at a guess I'd say they're not the first person to swing right there !!!!

Rackstar

Keep putting yourself in positions where mad cagers can jeopardise your life. You're shooting some great stuff.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Rackstar wrote: »

Keep putting yourself in positions where mad cagers can jeopardise your life. You're shooting some great stuff.

OUCH :P

Tzardine

Rackstar wrote: »

Keep putting yourself in positions where mad cagers can jeopardise your life. You're shooting some great stuff.

Will do. Thanks for the advice.

Would you like to join my mailing list.

Max Headroom

Self preservation is what its all about....

no BS but ,took a spin up to cotters yesterday for a free feed :P..and on the way up a young one came onto the m50 at tallaght (i think)but instead of staying in her lane ,she cut across the median strip and nearly into the side of a fcuking skip lorry....be careful out there...

arybvtcw0eolkf

Max Headroom wrote: »

Self preservation is what its all about....

no BS but ,took a spin up to cotters yesterday for a free feed :P..and on the way up a young one came onto the m50 at tallaght (i think)but instead of staying in her lane ,she cut across the median strip and nearly into the side of a fcuking skip lorry....be careful out there...

She probably needed to take a dump

Hotblack Desiato

BKtje wrote: »

you weren't expecting their stupidity in the first one

Entirely predictable though, and a lot of drivers think not indicating means no-one will notice their illegal turn :rolleyes:

though the second one i have no idea wtf the car was doing.

Just doing the normal Irish driver thing, keep as far to the right as possible at all times, never mind about driving on the left, the British imposed that on us :pac:

As an aside, I don't think I've ever used the horn on my bike

Not good. There are a lot of occasions where the horn is a very useful warning of your presence before the other driver does something stupid, honking after they've started is less useful as even if they hear you they might hit you before they react.

Max Headroom wrote: »

no BS but ,took a spin up to cotters yesterday for a free feed :P..and on the way up a young one came onto the m50 at tallaght (i think)but instead of staying in her lane ,she cut across the median strip and nearly into the side of a fcuking skip lorry....be careful out there...

Good trick that, especially as the median strip has either a concrete or steel barrier in it

CJhaughey

Remember the rule, cars and trucks have the right of weight.

Max Headroom

[QUOTE=Hotblack




Good trick that, especially as the median strip has either a concrete or steel barrier in it [/QUOTE]



Not so in this case...;)

BKtje

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

Not good. There are a lot of occasions where the horn is a very useful warning of your presence before the other driver does something stupid, honking after they've started is less useful as even if they hear you they might hit you before they react.

I get what you're saying but in order for the horn to be useful as a warning, you'd need to use it almost constantly before attempting a manoeuvre. I prefer to not put myself in a situation where it's needed in the first place by waiting till i'm sure to be seen or just not doing anything risky . All that said, drivers here (and on the continent in general) are much more used to seeing and checking for two wheels as the number of motorbikes and scooters are extremely high.

Hotblack Desiato

Max Headroom wrote: »

Not so in this case...;)

That's not a median strip aka central reservation.

BKtje wrote: »

I get what you're saying but in order for the horn to be useful as a warning, you'd need to use it almost constantly before attempting a manoeuvre. I prefer to not put myself in a situation where it's needed in the first place by waiting till i'm sure to be seen or just not doing anything risky.

OK, car stopped at a minor road and you are on the major road, the driver is starting to creep forward while looking the other way, don't you think you should warn them of your presence before they actually pull out? You can't stop at every junction and wait to be seen...

All that said, drivers here (and on the continent in general) are much more used to seeing and checking for two wheels as the number of motorbikes and scooters are extremely high.

Yeah, no doubt that said, there's approx. 1 million riders in the UK but I don't think their drivers are better in general around bikes than here.

BKtje

I'm not saying that i'd never use the horn under any circumstances but just i find in most cases awareness or evasion are better tools.

If i spot a car creeping forward it's generally under two possible scenarios. The first is that I'm far enough away that they'll see me in time and stop or finish their manoeuvre. If the latter I'll be ready for it and have already slowed down enough or be ready to break if needed. The other option is that I am so close that I need to react instantly in which case I'm not going to waste time hitting the horn but rather be trying to get out of danger by whichever method I feel in that instant to be most successful.

I generally find that people here notice a bike as often as a car. Where people are less likely to notice a bike is on motorways where a bike is easier to be in a blind spot than a car which is why I take the utmost care to not drive in blind spots and to be in and out as quickly as possible.

I'm not saying my way is better or worse but it's what I've found works for me. Five years, all seasons, on a bike now and very very few incidents. The ones that may have been dangerous turned into non events by my driving methods. When I hear people speak of near misses on a constant basis I sometimes wonder if they're extremely unlucky or bring it on themselves by their driving habits.

At the end of the day if doesn't matter how you got there, just that you did safely.

Cuddlesworth

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

Not good. There are a lot of occasions where the horn is a very useful warning of your presence before the other driver does something stupid, honking after they've started is less useful as even if they hear you they might hit you before they react.

Pretty much, she could have easily swerved into him out of fright.

There was a thread on the motors forum from CINO where he showed a video of a oncoming car on the wrong side of the road belting towards him overtaking. The whole situation was messed up but what struck me the most, was for a good second he did nothing but sit on the horn. The car is on the wrong side of the road, at speed. Wtf was the horn going to do?

In this case, loads of things could have happened but the best and immediate option should have been to break or accelerate. He can lay on the horn after starts the process of getting out of the situation.

sportloto86

If car drivers are cagers would motorbike drivers be framers?
Just a thought.
Anyway, I think that OP was expecting more support here but you lot giving him hard time.
But I have to agree with Jeremy Clarkson and his cycling awareness ad that righteousness does not guarantee safety.

zubair

You can't give out about drivers not seeing you if you're not wearing hi viz.

Mesrine65

zubair wrote: »

You can't give out about drivers not seeing you if you're not wearing hi viz.

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/bike-blog/2013/jan/10/cycling-high-visibility-safe-fluorescent

http://hfs.sagepub.com/content/54/1/14

GBX

zubair wrote: »

You can't give out about drivers not seeing you if you're not wearing hi viz.

If somebody doesn't want to see you they won't. Wearing high viz is all the rage now .. It won't guarantee a driver seeing you on a bike.

Pugzilla

Still, it only has to work once for it be worth it.

The only reason you wouldn't wear one is for vanity.

BlackWizard

Pugzilla wrote: »

Still, it only has to work once for it be worth it.

The only reason you wouldn't wear one is for vanity.

By your logic then all cars should have hi-vis paint :pac:

Pugzilla

If all the cars were hi viz then bikers would be better off with all black gear.

prunudo

If they aint looking, they ain't looking, no matter how much hiviz and flashing lights you have.

https://youtu.be/ZO8D9mVdtj8

Albeit he was obstructed by the lorry for a bit.

Pugzilla

jvan wrote: »

If they aint looking, they ain't looking, no matter how much hiviz and flashing lights you have.

https://youtu.be/ZO8D9mVdtj8

Albeit he was obstructed by the lorry for a bit.

Still better than wearing the all black gear which is the norm.

A Hi viz vest costs f all and takes 5 seconds to put on.

prunudo

Pugzilla wrote: »

Still better than wearing the all black gear which is the norm.

A Hi viz vest costs f all and takes 5 seconds to put on.

I have one, wear it occasional. But it be foolish to think that all people automatically see me better because I wear one. I ride a white bike(with constant headlight), with nearly all white helmet and mainly black leathers, there is plenty of contrast there to be visible. Besides if you're stuck in behind the fairings/screen I doubt the hi-viz will be that obvious anyway.

blade1

To be honest, I wouldn't even consider them close ones.
Just your usual stuff that you need to expect.

I had a woman almost T-Boned me one day.
She pulled out and when she saw me she froze and stopped in the middle of the road.
I thought i was gone straight in through the drivers side window.
I could see the look of horror on her face and could tell she also thought i was coming in the window.
F*ck knows how i didn't and not sure what i did but threw the bike sideways or something and just skimming the car, sending the bike into a tank slapper.
This threw my legs into the air and they came back down on one side.
So i am hanging off the bike and trying to hold onto the handlebars as it tank slaps along the road.

I honestly just think it wasn't my time to go.
That was the first of two times i nearly got T-Boned.

Gavin

Pugzilla wrote: »

Still better than wearing the all black gear which is the norm.

A Hi viz vest costs f all and takes 5 seconds to put on.

If you look at the articles cited above you'll see that's not necessarily the case, and you allude to it in your previous post as well. It seems that contrast is the best solution, not colour/brightness. So a black jacket on a bright background may be more effective that a yellow high viz on a bright background.

Nothing particularly conclusive, but it's not black and white, and the intuitive answer is not always the correct one.

Stephenc66

jvan wrote: »

I have one, wear it occasional. But it be foolish to think that all people automatically see me better because I wear one. I ride a white bike(with constant headlight), with nearly all white helmet and mainly black leathers, there is plenty of contrast there to be visible. Besides if you're stuck in behind the fairings/screen I doubt the hi-viz will be that obvious anyway.

For me as a car driver I find this offers the best added visibility to a bike, especially when it's coming from behind in traffic.