He could've avoided that crash...

[Notj7]

So we're always talking about what that biker could have done to avoid that crash with that lorry when watching crash videos etc.. but have any of you actually made a conscious decision to slow down, shift position or otherwise changed your actions which directly resulted in missing what would otherwise have been a crash?

For example, seeing a lorry up ahead waiting to turn, halving your speed, the lorry pulls out and you would definitely have hit him unless you had made a massively defensive decision to slow down. Have any of you made a conscious decision with no certainty that anything would have happened.
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Left the forum.

[Al]

It's much easier to watch a 1 minute internet clip multiple times of somebody crashing and pointing out what they could of done differently then it is in the real world, but that's internet experts for you.

It would be impossible to say for sure what I've avoided. I have slowed down when I've seen people edging out of junctions who I think haven't seen me or when I'm coming upto to a junction that is on a blind bend ect. To ride totally defensively would take the fun out of riding for me so I'm only going to do so much and let the rest come down to luck. Saying that I'm not a hooligan and am generally a pretty careful rider which is probably why I've survived as long as I have.
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Yamaha FZR400RR 3tj
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[Derivative]

Yes.
I've had to swerve around someone who was doing a U-turn immediately after a roundabout. Had I been going, say, 20mph instead of 10, I probably wouldn't have had the room to check if the ongoing lane was clear, I'd have frozen a bit.

Though there are plenty of times when I've slowed down or changed position because I think someone's about to pull out, too.

The thing is, as has been stated many times in these sort of threads - all 'accidents' are avoidable. Roger calls them 'incidents' because that's what they are. It's pretty simple really - ensure that no two vehicles occupy the same space at the same time. In practice, that's a little bit harder once you go above Red Flag Man speeds.

[Hetzer]

Yes. I pulled away from a set of lights under a big elevated motorway intersection and was presented seconds later with a taxi doing a u-turn right in front of me. I went hard left, barely missed the taxi, nearly went into a set of railings, then hard right and missed the back of a parked car by about one inch. The bars were shaking so hard I was nearly thrown off. My speed at the point of the first turn was at least 60mph (I was into fourth gear on a VFR400) and I did get both knees down. In a suit.

Needless to say I put the stand down (and held up three lanes of traffic), went back to the taxi and punched the crap out of it while screaming at the driver, who appeared to be around ninety years old. Unfortunately he couldn't understand me (Japanese) but he did bow and grovel it up a storm.

I proceeded on my way, then stopped for a fag and allowed myself time to stop shaking like a tiny wikkle leaf in a hurricane.
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"There's the horizon! Ride hard, ride fast and cut down all who stand in your way!"

[stinkwheel]

Absolutely. Matrix-time kicks in.

I remember someone pulling out in front of me from a stacker lane to do a right turn. I moved to go round the back of her when she noticed me and stopped right across the lane.

I started to brake heavily (as in rear wheel in the air) and steered even more across the road. Had to abort that because there was oncoming traffic in the stacker lane waiting to turn into the junction. Kept going across into the oncoming lane but there was approaching traffic there too.

Just about resigned myself to stuffing it into the hedge on the wrong side of the road when one of the guys in the filter lane saw what was going on and pulled forwards. Cranked the bike back over the way I'd come and landed up stopped on the verge facing the opposite direction to the woman who'd just pulled out.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
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[tbourner]

That clip you mention is one of few that I think you couldn't realistically avoid. 2 trucks both pulling out so you can't go to either side of the lane, and slowing down too much just suggests you're letting them pull in front of you (if they happen to have seen you).
I do think 99% of crashes could be avoided by the rider but then I've got 1% experience so make of that what you will .
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Trev, now a biker?
Looking for first big bike.

[Derivative]

In the truck one, honestly, I would have let one of them go. Just stopped in the lane and waved them on.

[mossi123uk]

im pretty sure everyone who rides a motorcycle does!

Everyday i go on my bike i see alot of idiot cagers not looking and pulling out without indicating

[DrDonnyBrago]

Yes, several times.


I.e. saw a flash of face colour in a wing mirror seconds before a parked car pulled out, I had slowed down and had the brake covered in response and when I needed to avoid it was going slow enough and was prepared enough to avoid it.

Pre-emptive use of my horn on a regular basis has probably saved people pulling out on me too. If I don't use my horn then a swerve back and forth across the road is supposed to make you easier to see, useful in those situations where someon waiting looks impatient.

Also - If I am overtaking a car that is gaining on the car in front, I will slow down or move over to another lane to allow him space to come out. This is both a courtesy and stops him driving through me if he doesn't look. If I am coming to a jucntion, I tend to assess the traffic around me to see if the bit of road I am in looks like a gap if I wasn't there (i.e. car behind far away or on my own etc) or if there is traffic on the other side of the road if the car needs to cross both lanes - if there is a gap, expect him to not see you in it and try to come out.

I do slow down and plan an escape route if it looks dodgy - those trucks would have had me slowing down, being faced by two vehicles that might violate my right of way is a good example of where I'd use the horn or road swerve.

[Rogerborg]

[map]

Sometime I do wonder about cause and effect.

As in a few times now I've been going along and thought that car is going to turn right across me or that car/lorry will pull out.

So I've backed off a little and change bike position on the road and what I thought would happen did happen. So did they pull out/turn because of what I did or in spite of what I did (and I had spidery senses?).



Just glad to be here and still riding. Hope I haven't jinxed myself now!
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[Derivative]

[Kris]

Definately done the Matrix-esque left-right jink a few times.

I remember fast filtering years back when some woman darted across into lane 3 leaving me no time to stop so I jinked left - right around her rear quarter (arf!) in one fluid, instinctive movement quite quickly. I must have looked like Ace biker at the time..


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[stinkwheel]

[Rogerborg]