Not sure I'd agree about the A3. Most of the 50 section in South London is so terribly surfaced that older vehicles wouldn't be safe at 70. Add in the ridiculously thin lanes and it's a recipe for disaster. One of the few 50mph zones I do agree with.
No argument there. I've probably seen ten times the number of people riding safely and reasonably than I have riding like asshats, but it's the asshats that stick in my memory! I'll never understand the "I didn't see you" properly. Unless they're in your blindspot and don't move the few times you check your shoulder before moving, it doesn't work. Sure, the younger riders tend to ride dark bikes and wear **** clothing that's equally dark (Because safety isn't cool.. But an Aprilia body kit on a 125cc is apparently cool..), but by and large the big bikes are bright colours, and a lot of riders at least colour match their protective kit.
The `didn't see you` comment - a friend is a motorbike cop ; she wears bright yellow everything on a bright yellow bike , was stopped at a junction blocking the road for another accident , blue lights on - a car ran into her and the driver said ` I didn't see you`. seriously.
Car drivers will often times not spot bikers because they are busy listening to music or talking on the phone. When riding a bike you pay more attention because you know that if you do not, chances of you ending up getting hurt or killed.... Just because the biker doesn't dress in some high visibility west, pants, helmets and gloves, does NOT, in any way, mean that you as a driver are exempt from the obligation of paying attention to what's going on around you. Let alone use his type of clothing as an excuse for not seeing him in case of an accident. I like to drive and I also like to ride bikes, and I know for a fact that all too many motorists don't pay attention, they are living in their own little bubbles, disconnected from the outside world. Car drivers have this nasty tendency to bitch about bike riders, perhaps they should start to pay more attention instead? Finally. It is pretty much unforgiving to ride a bike in traffic. Not so driving a car. In a car there's more room for mistakes.
Agree with that. I've never failed to notice a biker, it's about properly looking and not just glancing.
Friend few years back got into his car, closed the door was arranging his belongings on the passenger seat when he got showered in glass and emptied his bladder onto the seat due to the loud impact sound of a motorbike slamming into his drivers door. T-boned whilst in a parked car opposite a junction, parked legally in a bay. The biker after climbing off the roof then made out that my friend had been moving, despite the fact the engine wasn't running and the keys were on the passenger seat. Turned out the muppet was only licensed for a 125 or something and was test riding his mates 800cc thingy. So to some it all up, on average were all muppet's regardless of how many wheels are under us.
I can attest to that. My gf got me a pair of in-line skates for my birthday a number of years ago. Acting like a little kid, I wanted to try them out straight away, so decided I would skate to work. The car park of the flats I lived in at the time was on a slope, and I realised half way down that I didn't know how to stop (didn't have the brake at the back like the ones I had when I was a kid), and almost crashed into a stationary car. Had to fall over to avoid doing so. So I was a muppet with 8 wheels under me
Re-read my post from yesterday, hope it didn't come across all "i'm right because I was in an accident" Since the accident I've become more angry over lack of team work on the road, we're all just going somewhere, enjoy the ride and stay safe, at least don't risk your nice vehicle I miss riding a bike
I think you came across fine matey I found riding a bike first has always given me better awareness of the road ahead, probably more so than if I'd just gone to a car first. On a bike, you are told to look and be aware so much further up the road ahead than when driving and it's always stayed with me.
Better appreciation for road conditions too (or so I've been told). After two and a half years of driving I couldn't tell you how a car handles differently in the wet versus the dry (from experience alone), which I'm sure is probably also the case for a huge bunch of other new drivers nowadays. That said, I do drive quite conservatively; I wonder if those muppets who manage to write off their car a week after getting it end up as the better drivers in the long run. EDIT: By which I mean in a technical sense; there's no substitute for a proper attitude to road safety.
One of my mums students didn't. She managed to write off three cars in 12 months. Needless to say she wasn't driving last I heard, but she was terrifying. Mum used to, when I was unemployed, have me sit in the back during some of the more advanced drivers lessons (Apparently having a stranger sat in the back helped some of them get used to the idea of driving the examiner around on the day) and I went out with this girl for 45 minutes and Christ almighty. Never again will I set foot in a car she's driving.
There are a few clear area's that I know, where you can get a car out of shape and have space to run off and not die. Any new vehicle I've driven I take the chance when the weather changes to find the limit of handling not traction. To get a feel of how the suspension reacts and settles, and how the power band effects stability whilst corning. Every time it snow's I hit these area's just to get a feel for winter driving, brain see's ice and snow but the right foot thinks "summer time" and the ABS just gets in the way like a moron. Wish I could pull the fuse tbh. Either way mentally preparing for the coming weeks of adverse weather really helps. The guys around this area are fun to watch (In a bad way), they jump in the car spend 10mins trying to get going, then fish tail down the road for 300 yards only to think it's serious dangerous conditions to drive so 15mph is the maximum speed they can do.
I live in the commuter belt, so while there's a reasonable collection of decent roads, there's generally too much traffic to really push the car. I think I might have a look around for some good cadidates as I'm sure they exist; there's a huge number of narrow lanes although barely any you'd be safe doing above 30-odd along. What makes a good driving road and how do you enjoy your car?
Day to day when I was commuting, I would sit back and cruise at 50-55mph, sure some people convince themselves that playing leap frog down the line gets them there faster, but we all know the truth. Then there are days where I would stay late, leave about 6pm, knowing my route would be empty for a B-road bombing run. I learn the back routes to and from places, and even if its an extra 5 miles the road is more fun. A good driving road is a good mixture of clear line of sight straight away's, and 2nd/3rd gear corners that are wide enough to ensure corning safety (not running out into oncoming). There are some great roads out here in North Cambs which can see 150mph straights with clear view of 2 miles, and great mixture of high and low speed corners. It's not the yorkshire dales, but it's ok.
Yea we've got some roads like that here there's one that leads from the town at the bottom of the mountain right to where my house is almost straight 30 mile long and is a no limit , but the one's I really like are the higher mountain roads most about 2 foot wider than the car and twist and turns up and down the mountain and a sheer drop great fun lot's of young drivers come a cropper on them and quite a few bikers as well
I was looking at a lengthy ban on the points system for speeding. My advice for dealing with this is for your friend to get a letter from his boss stating that he relies totally on your friend for the running of his business and is the only employee that he can fully trust with his business affairs. If xxx was to lose his licence I would have to sack him and that would be catastrophic for both parties etc etc blah blah. Then your friend needs to say that he knows he should be banned for this offence but if he does lose his licence it will affect his whole family (if he doesn't have any, make some up, they have no information of this kind so he wouldn't get caught out). Then ask the judge if he would consider giving a 2 week ban for the offence in light of the personal circumstances. This is what I did and it worked for me. 2 weeks off and I was back on the road. And after you've told him this, tell him to sloooooooow down A few years ago I watched a program about young drivers, speeding and the aftermath. It really opened my eyes. Although I was never a maniac in a car I did enjoy driving fast around the country lanes etc etc. But I realised that one mistake could lead to someones death and I would have to live with that for ever more. That was enough for me, these day I drive along like a granny. I do still speed, but only on the motorways at a steady 80mph if the going is good.
moose67 - nice advise in helping someone try to get off is (excuse me here) being a selfish *****!! We already know he was doing 86mph in a 50 zone and here OP says he's knows he's drove without insurance! This person doesn't deserve help, they need to be taught a lesson
Sorry if I am being a bit stupid here, but after reading that comment 20 times I can't quite decipher who you are calling the "selfish ********!" Not sure if you mean him or me.? My advice came because when I read about his predicament my mind went straight back to the time when I was in trouble. I spent weeks upon weeks worrying about it, thinking I was going to lose my job was a lot to bear. I did not read the part about the no inusrance, so was unaware of this. Had I thought about it some more I probably wouldn't have posted. Having said that, we are all young and stupid at some point. "He without sin cast the first stone" as the saying goes. The main thing from this is that the guy learns from it and sorts himself out. If he doesn't learn from this then he is a complete **** and deserves all they throw at him. Cheers
