need some help with filtering

[RooRoo]

ive been riding about 5 months now and i feel confident on the roads, except when its rush hour and theres loads of traffic on the ring roads (duel lanes either side of the road)

Most people would filter this, and I sometimes do, but where ive come so close to knocking wing mirrors off, i've just lost my nerve and have stopped doing it much at all,can i have any advice on avoiding wing mirrors, or what you guys do in the same situation... ive got a friend whos been riding a lot longer than me on a bigger bike, and he says 'just hit the wing mirrors, dont worry about it' but is that the right thing to do, or should I sit and wait in que, in fear or knocking them off?

[Bendy]

Personally, I don't filter when it's tight enough to be clobbering wing mirrors. I'm just not in that much of a hurry to get where I'm going.

There's no 'right', it's up to you and what you're comfortable with. Though as a car driver, someone smacking my mirror would piss me off a bit.

[NickD]

I find that once I'm used to a particular bike I pretty much know whether a gap is big enough. A gap down the middle of traffic looks much narrower than it actually is from your perspective and as you move through it's always wider than you thought. Also when looking at a gap from the back of the line you are looking at the wing mirrors on one plane, but as you approach problems only arise if the mirrors on adjacent cars are side by side. Just proceed with caution, and you will find that it's rarely as tight as it looks, if it is stop. You may occasionally clip a mirror (I've done 3 in 14 years), if it's safe and you're feeling nice, stop where it's safe, see if it's damaged (they usually aren't) and sort it out. But if the driver starts gobbing and honking, I just bugger off.
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I was only doing what it said on my licence officer....
Tear along the dotted line!

[The Tot]

I'd say wait in the queue... I've been victim to many a stare when i clip ones wing mirror when filtering on my NRG... I don't even do it now since my XR's not as nimble through the gaps.. what i do instead is sit in the queue and overtake the next opportunity, don't want to be a statistic of road rage... I depends on you confidence and judgement levels... If you believe that you can get away with it then, go filter through the gap, however, you may get the wrong type of car driver...
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The Tot 2019 Z1000SX - 2007 R1
Never argue with autism

[Zx6man]

Hitting a wing mirror and driving off is still classed as a hit and run. And your bar end hitting a porsches wing mirror is gonna cost a lot.....

[Claud 14.7 to 1]

Yeah i've hit a few mirrors. Do a search and you will find some good stuff.

Main thing is to go slowly and watch out all the time, for moving vehicles.

[headlamp]

Filtering requires 100% concentration and a fair degree of confidence. If either are not present then it is advisable not to do it!

I would suggest building up - where gaps are wide enough then go through, slowly - no faster than 10mph then the speed of the traffic to start with. Cover the brake with a finger or two in case you have to stop sharpish. For better control use the rear brake more, as you can usually manoeuvre better using this brake then the front brake. Eventually your confidence will build and you will be going for gaps that you had previously shied away from.

As far as wing mirrors are concerned, sometimes collisions are unavoidable as the car moves - usually not in a straight line you are likely to hit it. I sometimes bend back my wing mirrors so that I can get through gaps without upsetting a cager!

Good luck!
H
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Using a mobile phone while driving a car should be made a capital offence!

[bazza]

If in doubt, don't do it. You should usually be able to slot in with the traffic and watch for the right-sized gap opening up for you to make progress.

What really winds me up with motorway filtering is the arsehole cagers who see you coming up behind them and pull over to block lane 2A. If anyone deserves to lose a wing mirror, it's them.
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"That's it. You people have stood in my way long enough. I'm going to clown college."
'98 Ducati 750SS, '08 Suzuki GSX650F ©2004-2014, Bazza's Harmless Banter

[Rollins]

You should have a pretty accurate feel for the width of your bike, and recently, a lot of drivers have been moving out of the way, which always helps your confidence. Just make sure you give them a quick wave, or hand gesture (whatever that might comprise) and then be on your way.

If you know you're going to hit mirrors, there's no harm in stopping between the lanes. As long as some twat doesn't open his door on you or some scally scum opens a window and hocks a greenie at you (which are both unlikely to happen ).

Just out of interest, what bike do u ride Roo?

[RooRoo]

cg125

[Claud 14.7 to 1]

Dont take yout hand off the bars to wave or anything,
You need them to steer the bike, you dont want to crash when filtering.

[dibbster]

Be aware of junctions ahead which may cause car drivers to change lane unexpectedly. You need to anticipate what may happen before it does because if something does happen it is you who will be lying in the road!
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[iCraig]

Few tips for filtering:

Ride slowly, don't do stupid speeds whilst filtering.

If in doubt whether you'll be able to fit in a gap don't do it.

Look out for turned wheels on cars if on a dual carriageway, as this is an indication they may be about to switch lanes.

Also look out for junctions as cars my wish too turn and will not be looking for you.

[carvell]

As other people have said, go slow and don't do it unless you are 100% confident.

When I was following Goose down through London we were filtering and he'd beep his horn every now and then, just to let people know he was there, good tip. Flashing your main beam on and off is also a good way to get noticed.

If you see a car about to change lanes, do not pass them until you stare the driver directly in the eye and you can see they aren't going to move, if you don't make eye contact, wait for them to change.
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Yamaha TDM 850

[Rollins]

Blimey, if I was in the car when a biker starts flashing his lights & beeping the horn when filtering, I would get a bit annoyed really!!

I wouldn't do either of them, although I don't need to because my RS is very narrow in the first place. I just dip in & out, finding gaps between cars & slot back between if there isn't the room to get past down the middle. I learned that from a dude on an SP-1, following a mad bugger 'in' a Beemer C1.

[awj72]

[cagiva gezzer]

Speed is relative, so if the trafifc is doing 60mph, its safe to filter at 80mph.

My method probably wouldnt work with your cg, but if the traffic is tight i tend to stick in first or second gear and make a hell of a lot of noise. When car drivers hear me coming the assume I'm going fast so they move out of the way. Those who don't are treated to a nice little stopie as i pull up next to them and a atempt of a wheelie once i squeeze past.

However, I'm strange and will go out of my way to play in traffic..
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"because one stroke isnt enough and four strokes waste two"

[scott_hood_88]

can anyone give me advice i'm fine with filtering, but i find it hard to get into lane before the junction or roundabout, most drivers are understandably not to happy to let a bike in after they have been queuing for a lenthy amount of time, they seem to deliberately close the gap making it impossible to get into lane which usually ends up with me stopped for ages until someone eventually lets me in, or having to go in another direction (on roundabouts its ok you can just loop around them)

Any advise?

Scott

[Mantzy]

When I first got my bike I was nervous about filtering too. However, once I'd worked out that the bike was about as wide as I am then I found it a lot easier. It's all about confidence. Though it can go wrong sometimes. Spent 1½ hours trying to get back on the North Circular on my first trip because I filtered down a "right turn only" lane by accident.

Scott, cagers do get a little annoyed (jealousy is a nasty thing) but won't generally shut you out completely. If they do, i tend to stick it in 1st and pull the clutch and rev quite high. They tend to get the message. Also, it's quite important you get to the front of the queue so you can out-accelerate away from the junction and chose your lane at leisure. Well, thats what I do at least.
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Current Bikes: 2010 Triumph Sprint ST 1050
Previous Bikes: 2002 Sachs XTC, 1999 Kawasaki ZX6R, 2004 GSX-R 600 K4, 2006 Yamaha XT660X