Threatening Perceptions

[gleno]

I've just finished re-reading a thread in this forum titled 'Watch those Mirrors'. If you haven't read it, do it now.

I was going to post this little story in that thread but;

1) I thought it might get lost, and

2) This thread should provoke some interesting discussion.

How many of you have had a driver pull out on you?

How many of you have had the opportunity to catch them at the next set of lights and give them a serve only to be given that pathetic line, "Oh sorry, (if you are lucky) but I just didn't see you" followed by the shrug of the shoulders, shake of the head or lame smile?

It's happened to all of us.

Motorcyclists know that these bastards mostly DO SEE US (even make eye contact) and pull out anyhow.

Try telling that to a cager and they look at you like you have lost the plot.

Well the fact is they DO SEE YOU.

A couple of decades ago, our state regulatory body, the New South Wales Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA), conducted an experiment in conjunction with the New South Wales State Police, here, in Sydney, Australia

The purpose was to try and explain why cagers do this to motorcyclists.

The method of the exercise was to have a motorcycle cop in civilian clothing, ride an unmarked bike and count how many drivers failed to give way at give sign posted intersections and side streets.

The test was repeated with the same cops driving an unmarked car and again with a marked patrol car.

Then it was repeated with a uniformed motorcycle cop on his police bike.

Results were

1) The incidence of failing to give way to on-coming vehicles if they were standard motor vehicles was VERY LOW.

2) The incidence of failing to give way to on-coming vehicles if they were marked police patrol vehicles was ZERO.

3) The incidence of failing to give way to on-coming motorcyclists if they were standard motorcycles was THE HIGHEST OF ALL GROUPS AND WAY HIGHER BY A LONG WAY THAN ANY OTHER TEST GROUP

and here's the clincher.

4) The incidence of failing to give way to a POLICE MOTORCYCLE was almost ZERO.

The researchers concluded that motorists failed to give way to other traffic that THEY DID NOT PERCEIVE TO BE A THREAT.

So, next time some arsehole tells you "Oh sorry, I didn't see you" you now know that they are lying.

What they are actually saying is "Oh sorry, I didn't see you as a threat to me"

Ever since hearing about that study I made a choice to always dress in leathers, wear an outlandish helmet and ride very big, very loud bikes so they will perceive me as a potential threat. I rarely have anyone fail to give way.

If they do fail to give way I'm ready for it and I generally, leave no doubt in their mind that a motorcyclist is a potential threat and on more than one occasion an actual threat.

Am I anti-social? No. It's self-defence.

The homicidal cager who thinks it's OK to splatter a motorcyclist across his rear bumper or side doors is anti-social.

 

[gunrunner]

Well written and very well put .
This has happened to me many times and they say sorry i didnt see you . this is because they usually look while they are pulling out - TOO LATE .
To this they get " Thats because you are spose to look before you fucken pull out" .
In the end their car is gonna get a dent plus a few stratches and no injuries so they dont really give a shit do they . :bang head:

 

[TURBOVMAX]

Here in the North East USA, motorcycles are just starting to be ridden regularly and along with that comes a lot of newbie riders and riders who just have no common sense anyway. Last week I was on my way to work and came up on a brand spanking new rider and bike. He was riding in front of me and there was a car on his arse. Noticed every time we came up on a stop sign or light he would center his bike to the vehicle in front of him and get up nice and close.

This thread is probably a good place to remind people that when you come up on a stopped vehicle, especially in traffic. Stay to the no oncoming traffic side and give plenty of distance to the vehicle in front of you. Most important keep an eye on your rear view mirror and keep your bike in gear. Bottom line...give yourself somewhere to go. Don't let one of those cell phone texting, coffee drinking, make up junkies... make a car sandwich out of you.

 

[gleno]

One Saturday morning, about a year ago, I was traveling in heavy suburban traffic down a three lane road with my teenage son riding pillion.

I consider any pillion rider a heavy personal responsibility and take extra care with everything. It's my habit to observe and be aware of traffic way in front and behind and I'm constantly flicking glances at the rear view mirrors.

Up ahead I notice a car is signaling a right hand turn into a side street (remember we ride on the LEFT hand side of the highway here) so I switch to the centre lane checking rear view mirrors, then rechecking. I notice a 'P' plated driver in a ute (pick-up) two cars in front of me and looking down at his dashboard while talking to his girl friend. Meanwhile traffic in front of him is stopping.

He hasn't seen the traffic slow down just to cover their exposure to a possible vehicle entering the traffic flow from the right hand lane. I figure he has to stop in hurry soon and I'm worried about the car behind me being aware of any of this and stopping in time so I move to the extreme left (exit) edge of my lane.

Next thing the the driver in the ute looks up, panics, brakes hard but just hits the rear end of the car in front of him. The car behind me stops in time. The car behind the car behind me does not and rear ends the car behind me.

When we stop my son says to me 'Did you know that accident was going to happen?'

I said, 'No, but I had a pretty good idea that it might happen.'

That pretty well sums up my attitude while riding.

When I ride my bike I drive everyones car.

 

[mr.maxx]

yep...been there done that!! i have even been with other drivers and had to holler out....WATCH OUT!!!

ya know having been a cycle rider for over 25 yrs now... i think i know what is going on.....

we bike riders, over the yrs have to develop special skills.

like learning to anticipate the actions of others at intercections...

i have had cars pull out in front of me many times...but i have avoided an accident because i had my eyes on the vehicle at all times and wasnt daydreaming or any such nonsense. so i knew when i had to take evasive action on my part.

as the years go by we learn more and more.....

people will contine to not see us.....and it does little good to be confrontational with them.

i know 4 a fact that being a motorcycle rider has made me a SAFER driver over the years. i think it actually sharpened my senses...

which is a good thing!! no matter what ur drivin...unk:

 

[Redbone]

When I was a lot younger I had a job driving a van (no windows) for work that forced me to use my mirrors. I was traveling down a freeway in the center lane and after passing a vehicle I put my signal on and started to move into the right most lane. I had music playing, AC on, and had only glanced at my mirrors while I was getting over into the rh lane. I'm about 90% into the lane when I hear this horn beeping over the music. I straighten the van up and try to figure where this noise was coming from. I finally see the bike in my rh mirror and he isn't happy! He whips back out into the center lane and pulls up next to me and flies the one finger salute, I roll down my window and yell that I'm sorry, my fault! He roars off and I don't see him again. I was a little shaken by this event and it has never left me how close I was to hitting somebody on a bike. As I have thought about it over years he probably was going way faster than I was and was trying to pass me on the right, I was doing just above the speed limit but was maybe a little slow getting back over.
To this day I am very anal about keeping my head on a swivel, whether in a car or Redbone. I check all mirrors, scan both sides of the road ahead and look for any possible problems constantly. I carried a CDL "B" with air brakes for about 10 years which I drove for 5 of them and used this method to keep out of trouble with cars that always try to pass on the right or drive in your blind spots.
Knock on wood, but I have never had a accident in the 34+ years I have been driving/ riding!

 

[kaboom]

I read an article in a motorcycle magazine years ago that came to the same conclusion.....

It makes perfect sense....are you gonna pay attention to the chihuahua or the german shepard.....

As for leather and helmets......looking larger than life and intimidating MAY help......a loud bike definately gets attention.....but not always the right kind....

$0.02 deposited

 

[RagingMain]

Here in Cali we are legally allowed to "Share Lanes", lane splitting in other words. The biggest threat I see day to day is when you are at the front of the line sitting at a light. Light turns green and since motorcycles typically accelerate faster than cars you run into the problem of cars pulling out in front because they are expecting cars and not bikes. To help alleviate this I pull as far to the left as I can. Still times that doesnt help, you get idiots that come all the way over for some stupid reason.

I follow 2 basic rules taught in Motorcycle Safety Course
ATGATT
All the gear all the time

SEE
Search
Evaluate
Execute

I have been known from time to time to kick the living shit out of a door. I always have boots on so living a big ass dent in someone door is pretty fun.

Then when you have them pull over they are all scared they hit you, you act all flustered, "Inspect" your bike, threaten to call the cops ask for insurance, the whole nine yards. This usually shakes them up pretty well.
Where you go from there is up to you. Has worked well for me in the past. Try it sometime, takes some time out of your day but leaves the cager with a renewed sense of responsible driving.

Cheers