Its not the death thing that worries me as much as the maimed, crippled, drooling in a wheelchair for the next 30 years, thing.....situational awareness.... just yesterday a guy was coming out of a side street and there was a van blocking his view of traffic (me). I saw this and said "this guy cant see me" so slowed to a crawl. He didn't pull out. But if I kept going full speed I bet he would have. The other thing everybody that rides probably knows already, but, stare at the front wheels of a car at an intersection. Its the easiest way to detect him moving.... Ride safe
Absolutely and, yes, the front wheel tip is probably the most useful safety thing that I learned from riding.
A few others, in no particular order. Maybe we can get a running thread on this...
- Painted lines, etc. on the road are slick AF.
- Helmets, of course, and full coverage, but adding an Air Vest can save your life and allow you to walk away from some situations you might not otherwise. I don't care what anyone thinks. Mine's already been tested.
- Marker lights help. I also recently added the Brake Free to my helmet.
- ATGATT. Went to leather, even in summer (perforated) after going down a while back. Gauntlet length gloves
-I'm glad to have the sun in my eyes rather than theirs
-Blow by truckers. I've been near them twice during blowouts and steel and rubber shrapnel goes everywhere
-Watch right turns in tight twisties (with limited vision) and hang more to the center than wide left as you're "supposed to do." That good ole boy in his truck will be cutting the lane coming your way.
-Keep your cool. They're all bigger than us.
-"Wag" the bike when you see someone ahead who's considering pulling out or making a left turn in front of you. It helps them see you.
- Or, variation, I often veer just slightly toward a car ahead that's waiting to make a left turn, then steer back to the center of the lane. i think it gets people's attention when something is moving AND directed at them. You know how this feels. This hopefully gets them out of their autopilot zombie mode.
-When I see a car from the left or right approaching an intersection ahead of me (where they are supposed to stop), I speed up to get past that intersection before they can even get there - even if they were not to stop.
- more..........
