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Dealing with tar repair lines/tar snakes/seams in the road?

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mackula
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Joined: 02 Sep 2018
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PostPosted: 22:35 - 02 Sep 2018    Post subject: Dealing with tar repair lines/tar snakes/seams in the road? Reply with quote

Hey all, I've got a a few questions about the proper way to deal with tar repair lines or seams in the road.

1. I've ridden a few 125s over the past few weeks (CBF125, CB125F, YBR125, SR125) and they've all felt similarly skittish going over these lines at 40-60 mph, as if the back end wants to misbehave. I did some training on a 650 and it felt completely normal and planted over the same lines. Would better tyres make a 125 feel more stable over these lines or is it the lighter weight and smaller contact patch that makes them skittish compared to the 650?

2. Sometimes there's one repair line or what looks like a concave 'seam' in the tarmac in the middle of a lane continuing on for quite a long distance. What's the ideal lane positioning if you want to avoid it? E.g. if you're on a dual carriageway or motorway do you ride to the left or the right of it or does it depend on if you're in the left/middle/right lane?

3. What are "tar snakes" called over here? Seems like it's mostly an American term.

Thanks!

https://i.imgur.com/h6RMDSO.jpg
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Kentol750
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PostPosted: 22:58 - 02 Sep 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

Normally known as 'overbanding' and just stay off it. Left or right, whichever is the most pertinent to the road you're on.
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Last edited by Kentol750 on 23:52 - 02 Sep 2018; edited 1 time in total
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thx1138
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PostPosted: 22:59 - 02 Sep 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

for a while our council was using "non slip overbanding" dunno if they still do, mayor bigged up his biker credentials a few times back when he first got elected, but apart form posing with their now sold/disposed of Vectrex scooter, he doesn't seem really interested
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Teflon-Mike
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PostPosted: 23:16 - 02 Sep 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's called over-banding.
No, tyres wont make much if any difference; all you may do is shift the compromise overall, and probably not for the better.
They are a pain on big-bikes too; any riding banding better isn't down to the tyres, but the weight that's what 'should' beg them tyres.
Actually... if anything, narrower tyres would probably help... do push-bikes have such issues?

How to handle them?

Keep off! Banding tends to be tar, that isn't gritted like tar-mac, they lack grip and can be notoriouse in the wet.

When you have to cross them? try and cross as 'square' to them as you can; make a deliberate turn accross them, if you need to, make the path accross the band as short as you can, rather than pelonging how long you are riding down the track, tyre robbed of grip and trying to fall off the camber.

But most important RELAX... keep your eyes open, watch where you going, dont pussy foot, hoping they will go away or wondering how best to tackle them, just do it... and keep loose grip on bars and LET the bike do its thing, dont fight every little twitch or reacting to ever little change, just go with the flow and let the bike sort itself out... it will probably do so with a LOT less drama than if you try and do 'something', which is more likely to make matters worse.
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BusterGonads
Trackday Trickster



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PostPosted: 15:31 - 03 Sep 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

i HATE them. There are tonnes of them on the fast B roads around here like the B6138 Military Road. I'm winging along on my CG125 at 55 maybe 60 and suddenly the bike is all over the shop. Like Teff says (same with loose gravel which is also all over these roads after heavy rain) let the bike do its thing rather than over reacting. I just sit on the thing and let happen what will. Of course if I can, I avoid both of these hazards, but you can't always do so, especially on the B6138 because they appear to have dug trenches down the carriageway and then filled them back in for hundreds of yards at a time.
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stinkwheel
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PostPosted: 16:02 - 03 Sep 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

The way to avoid them is not to look at them.

Honestly, and it's harder than you think. The human brain makes you steer towards the thing you are looking at so look at the several feet of clean road you want to ride on, not the couple of inches you don't. .

I found visualising a line in front of the bike I want to ride along can help with training to do this.
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mackula
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PostPosted: 16:31 - 04 Sep 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for all the helpful responses. I already try to keep things loose and occasionally flap my arms like a chicken to make sure I'm not gripping the bars too tight.
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trevor saxe-coburg-gotha
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PostPosted: 19:28 - 04 Sep 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

Remember when Alpha binned it crossing one on his 600? It was wet, mind you. Didn't really ever post much after that iirc.
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talkToTheHat
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PostPosted: 08:06 - 04 Nov 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

Is the video of that still about?
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trevor saxe-coburg-gotha
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PostPosted: 20:40 - 04 Nov 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

Probably - the real question is how to find the damn thing.
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talkToTheHat
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PostPosted: 23:14 - 04 Nov 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

By visiting the below link, video unavailabe but there's a gif.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=299640
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Sister Sledge
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PostPosted: 08:16 - 05 Nov 2018    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kin ell there was no chance with that one. I've always had at least some control over those things.

Speaking of which (going back decades) was there not a campaign to have said lines made to a particular smaller size?
Is there not a maximum width they're allowed to be?
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Riejufixing
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PostPosted: 01:31 - 12 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Travis Bickle wrote:
talkToTheHat wrote:
By visiting the below link, video unavailabe but there's a gif.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=299640


Ok, as a new rider that has actually scared me...

Don't feed it beans on slippy surfaces.
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Ste
Not Work Safe



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PostPosted: 01:51 - 12 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

There are many scarier thing on BCF for you to see. Razz
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Panthera
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PostPosted: 22:48 - 13 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Travis Bickle wrote:
talkToTheHat wrote:
By visiting the below link, video unavailabe but there's a gif.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=299640


Ok, as a new rider that has actually scared me...



As a fellow newbie, I don't mind telling you that my heart dropped into my stomach watching that too. Shocked Sick The fact that there was seemingly nothing threatening, and yet it took him down so suddenly. And it doesn't help that I've already come off my bike from a stupid mistake, and I'm still trying to get myself back on track.

Still! I do see one potential redemption. I watched that gif several times, trying to find a cause, and it does seem like he just happened to accelerate right at the moment he hit that tar streak. Might be just more than the tyre could handle.

I'll admit, it's still pretty scary that something as stupid as a wee line of tar can bring a bike down, especially at around 50mph. But it does help to know that there was still an element of rider control at play, so it's probably not something that could "just happen" any time.
For instance, I saw a comment from someone who said they always switch lane before they hit the throttle, which is something I intend to keep in mind.
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thx1138
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PostPosted: 01:55 - 14 Jan 2019    Post subject: Reply with quote

Travis Bickle wrote:
talkToTheHat wrote:
By visiting the below link, video unavailabe but there's a gif.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=299640


Ok, as a new rider that has actually scared me...


I did something like that on an MZ once, and ended up in a hedge on the wrong side of the road.
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