Did i act correctly, or have i made a n00b mistake??

[_Iain_]

First off, the video:

https://i1148.photobucket.com/albums/o574/_Iain_/th_IMG_0991.jpg

Note the traffic light in the top right flick orange at 0.38.

I then roll off the throttle, realise im not going to stop from the indicated 45mph on wet tarmac at that distance, brake and head round the corner. Upon straightening up, i pin it to attempt to put as much distance between myself and anything that may or may not have jumped the lights...good thing i did!

Cager has at this point decided "I AM NOT HAVING AN L PLATE ON A BIKE INFRONT OF ME, I WANT TO GET HOME, I HAVE IMPORTANT THINGS TO DO" Jumps the light, heads flat out at me, and attempts to overtake in space shown below (google maps..)

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=pembury+hospital+tn4&hl=en&ll=51.145406,0.31193&spn=0.003015,0.020921&sll=34.307144,-79.189453&sspn=35.966835,85.693359&t=m&z=16&layer=c&cbll=51.145463,0.31299&panoid=DdShCKvhapO4dxIbrr2IBQ&cbp=11,242.92,,1,1.82

Or for those who cant be arsed to click....

https://i1148.photobucket.com/albums/o574/_Iain_/pembury.jpg

Pic shows from wrong side of the road...but at a guess i'd say i was about halfway between the traffic lights and the bollard/traffic island thing when he's overtaken like that.

Why the feck?! I know im not supposed to go through on an amber light unless its unsafe to stop, and had i cranked the brakes on hard i belive i'd have slid and skidded over the line and ended up stationary in the middle of the bloody crossroads. I wasnt breaking the speed limit, and tbh i dont think i took the corner too slow given the conditions, the bike and that i'd seen spats of diesel on the way up.

And if it was my fault, why, and how to prevent from happening again? - the important bit in all of this if im to be completely honest.

Looking at it again, i'll add that the iffy throttle control/camera wobble at the end after he's got back infront was me going to roll back on the throttle, then taking my hand off to make a rude gesture at him, then rolling back on
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Please be aware that the above post may be full of complete nonsense.
Riding: '07 KTM Duke II, Baotian BT49QT-20 Driving: '88 Volvo 340

[lihp]

Expect a green light to change to red, it shouldn't catch you out, as a green light will always change to red.

If you have approached and it has been on green, then you should be looking to go, and preparing to stop if needed. If you had been a bit more aware and forward planning, especially in the wet, you would have been able to stop for the lights

[Hokum]

I click the video and get the error video not found??

Anyway, If you ran the amber light as it was unsafe to stop that should be ok, not sure about the car as the vid doesn't work.

I had the opposite lastnight. I'm approaching the lights, they turn amber about 30-40 meters ahead (30 zone i'm doing indicated 35mph). I roll off the throttle, I check my mirrors, next car is a safe distance, and brake. I come to a swift but controlled stop at the line as the lights turn red.

I check my mirrors and see the car behind is right up my arse! He beeps me! I give the customary two fingers and point to the red lights... While turning to give the international sign of peace and understanding i hear a scraping noise... His number plate is actually touching mine!

I think, hmm get off bike and give him it through the window... no point I can't get the bike on the stand! So the lights change and I drive off.

I suspect your driver like mine was probably farting about with the radio or updating his facebook status on his fecking phone rather than driving...

Edit: sen the vid, sorry but I can't make a thing out other than your dials and a van over taking and you beeping.
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Sane: To know when you are doing something crazy.

[lihp]

Looked at your vid, for what use it is, bit shit lol!

But, the driver was a bit of a nobber, but you should have been expecting those lights to change, and already preparing to stop, didn't seem like you made much of an effort to stop either.

[blade023]

From recent experience, having a large red L on the back of your bike (slightly more so than on a car) is reason enough for drivers to lose what little road sense and courtesy they might have had, and engage in some outrageous and positively dangerous behavior. I can remember taking it fairly slow on some narrow twisties while being followed by a cager, who must have seen red and decided to overtake on a large blind bend. It pisses me off no end, but there's not much you can do about it aside from to expect it and try to plan ahead for it.

As for what you did, I'm no expert but I'd say it's usually safer to continue through an amber (which I've done a few times) rather than risking hard braking in the wet in potentialy slippery (rainbow coloured) conditions. I'd much rather have been in the situation you were in than washed out and sliding along the road.

But to be honest, I generally ride in a paranoid and fairly defensive manner. I don't usually try anything too risky withough some escape route.

Which reminds me of another situation where I tried an overtake while the oncoming lane was clear, but didn't quite have the power to get past the car before an oncoming car appeared. I throttled off while braking and tucked in behind again with plenty of room to spare but got a rude gesture from the oncoming.

Watch yourself out there, they're all out to get you. Seriously.
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Current: VFR800 2008 13.7k and rising rapidly!
Sorn: 2003 FZS1000 30k(ish) looking to sell.

[lihp]

Can somebody please explain? You should NOT need to be breaking hard for traffic lights, they can NOT catch you out, they follow a set sequence that doesn't change.

You should be preparing to stop in good time and therefore not need to perform an emergency stop for a traffic light

[goto10]

Move your camera so it can get some useful footage!!
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'12 NC700S & '12 CB600F Hornet [Stolen by some dickless twat] Suzuki GT500 shed

[ninja_butler]

I can't see anything in the video, I can't see the traffic light at all. All I see is your bike turn left and then a few seconds later a car overtakes you, the driver beeping the horn.

From what I can tell, you made an error by failing to stop at the lights when they turned red, but the driver was just being a self-righteous tw*t.

[blade023]

There are a few sets of lights round where I ride regularly, that when I'm riding at the limit and they start to change, I'll be just past them (about a metre or so) when they've gone red. I know I should stop, but if the road conditions make it more hazardous to stop quick enough then I'd rather go through at the tail end of amber. Though I rarely find myself in that situation as I've learnt most of the lights on my route.
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Current: VFR800 2008 13.7k and rising rapidly!
Sorn: 2003 FZS1000 30k(ish) looking to sell.

[P.addy]

Was you coming up the hill? I found when I was on the 125, car drivers got well annoyed Overtook like wangs up there.

Probably should move over to let knobs past, pass test and get a bike capable of spanking one and play with them

[lihp]

[_Iain_]

I ride that route multiple times a day, usually as i pull out of the loading bay (first left hander at the beginning of the video) if the lights go green between there and meeting them they seem to stay green till you get through em. Unless theres traffic to slow you down. Tbh, i'd not expected it to change! The only guess i can make is that they've fucked about with the timing as part of the roadworks around there. There's been a lot of it over the past few months, started off down colts hill causing absolute mayhem...but then thats starting to play a game of "who can i blame for this..."

Regarding the camera quality, playing around with making up a mount for the iFail. was basicly a clamp/bracket thing, bolted to an old belt round my chest. Have hopefully improved on this now, switched the flash off, and mounted it semi permenantly onto my backpack, right high on the shoulder in the hope of seeing something other than the clocks/screen. If all else fails i'll save up for a gopro, but im not admitting defeat yet.

Edit; paddy - was coming out of pembury hospital, headed left at the crossroads to go down the hill. Definately know what you mean about going up though!
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Please be aware that the above post may be full of complete nonsense.
Riding: '07 KTM Duke II, Baotian BT49QT-20 Driving: '88 Volvo 340

[blade023]

[Llama-Farmer]

Surely the lights are on amber long enough that if you're travelling at the speed limit when they go from green to amber, you either have time (and distance) to safely stop without braking hard, or have time to make it through the lights before they turn red.

[P.addy]

Nah towards Iain.

Well matey, 2 things...let me know when you are next going over there and I have a day off I'll show you how to annoy a car, 2up on a 125

Also, it may be a cornering thing, you slow a fair bit in corners, fair enough its wet and your tyres seem a bit square (id check pressures btw) but you should still be able to keep throttle open 1/2 way easy round most corners on the 125

Carry a paintball gun

[Rogerborg]

The video appears to be a recording of your speed and revs and sod all else. I can't tell what you're on about, other than that you may have approached a junction too fast to stop if necessary. If so, you're riding your luck.
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[lihp]

[blade023]

[_Iain_]

Checked tyre pressures, all hokey dokey.

They'd dropped about 1psi each, but that's not bad enough to realy fuck it up is it?

Looking at the front tyre i reckon thats got loads of life in it, and it's just that rear tyre thats mullered from that huge bout of faggot syndrome i had (irrational fear of 40+ mph for a few weeks..)

Dya think it's worthwhile changing it completely, or is it possible to sand it back into shape or something? I've been trying to chuck it into the corners a fair bit more following mayday, however it seems to lean fine fine fine WOAH and try to chuck itself right down
____________________
Please be aware that the above post may be full of complete nonsense.
Riding: '07 KTM Duke II, Baotian BT49QT-20 Driving: '88 Volvo 340

[P.addy]

Don't sand it... lol

Just lean a bit more. Use counter steering, you'll work the tyres back down, not by loads but enough to be round again. When you do courier stuff and put heavier stuff on the rear do you adjust suspension and tyres?

When I had pillions on my 125 the tyres went up about 4psi I think and suspension was hardened.

[lihp]

[_Iain_]

Suspensions set one click from the stiffest, tyres are supposed to be run at about 10psi higher rear, and same front.

Bike handled like shit that way, so ended up playing with it and finding 2psi above factory front and rear was about where it wanted to be for the better cornering. Think i'm going to knock the rear suspension down one click though, at the minuite it's just a bit too bouncy.

Idk, nice sunny weather i'll make a point of doing a few laps of that roundabout to try and wear em back in on both sides
____________________
Please be aware that the above post may be full of complete nonsense.
Riding: '07 KTM Duke II, Baotian BT49QT-20 Driving: '88 Volvo 340

[daemonoid]

[pendulum]

To be honest your video is so bad it is impossible to tell, it's basically not worth having as it's useless as evidence if you have an accident.

I caught a dickhead car driver today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-IWgaXVUkQ&feature=youtu.be - didn't handle it great myself, should probably have braked and let the twat in, but ffs.
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1998 CG125 (Sold) CB500 [+ Clio 172]
Usually_Wrong: I tend to fail more than pass. [Speaking about Theory Practice]
Usually_Wrong: im on unemployment at the moment

[WannaBeDude]

Muted due to swearing
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Jogging on, destination living.