It bothers me sometimes to read, when one of my fellow forum members will espouse his or her theory on safe riding. I say theory (singular), because said member usually has safe riding boiled down to one motto, rule, or practice.

Riding slightly faster than the speed of traffic, is often cited as a reliable tool. But how this intentional use, of traffic-flow-pattern instability is supposed to keep you alive, is beyond me. Pass ten cars every minute, and you just rode a mile through ten blind spots.

Another popular argument, is that "loud pipes save lives". Watch any number of videos on YouTube, and you'll note that the volume at which the bike rider enters the picture, isn't worth remembering. It's the volume we hear after he's already past, that gets our attention.

It will take a combination of efforts, to keep you safe in traffic. No single rule, is going to cover all the bases. At my place of work, we practice The Smith System... five simple commands that can be repeated in your head, several times a day. They are as appropriate to motorcyclists, as they are to commercial drivers. Add to these, the proper use of lights and safety gear, and you'll improve your chances on the road.

The Five Keys are:
1. Aim High in Steering - Avoid Collisions by seeing, evaluating, and acting upon all information available.
2. Get the Big Picture - Fewer mistakes are made when you have the complete traffic picture.
3. Keep Your Eyes Moving - Proper scanning techniques separate safe drivers from people who make costly errors.
4. Leave Yourself an Out - All that separates drivers from a collision is space. Use it to your advantage.
5. Make Sure They See You - Seek eye contact and use your warning devices at the same time.

It bothers me sometimes to read, when one of my fellow forum members will espouse his or her theory on safe riding. I say theory (singular), because said member usually has safe riding boiled down to one motto, rule, or practice.

Riding slightly faster than the speed of traffic, is often cited as a reliable tool. But how this intentional use, of traffic-flow-pattern instability is supposed to keep you alive, is beyond me. Pass ten cars every minute, and you just rode a mile through ten blind spots.

Another popular argument, is that "loud pipes save lives". Watch any number of videos on YouTube, and you'll note that the volume at which the bike rider enters the picture, isn't worth remembering. It's the volume we hear after he's already past, that gets our attention.

It will take a combination of efforts, to keep you safe in traffic. No single rule, is going to cover all the bases. At my place of work, we practice The Smith System... five simple commands that can be repeated in your head, several times a day. They are as appropriate to motorcyclists, as they are to commercial drivers. Add to these, the proper use of lights and safety gear, and you'll improve your chances on the road.

The Five Keys are:
1. Aim High in Steering - Avoid Collisions by seeing, evaluating, and acting upon all information available.
2. Get the Big Picture - Fewer mistakes are made when you have the complete traffic picture.
3. Keep Your Eyes Moving - Proper scanning techniques separate safe drivers from people who make costly errors.
4. Leave Yourself an Out - All that separates drivers from a collision is space. Use it to your advantage.
5. Make Sure They See You - Seek eye contact and use your warning devices at the same time.

Riding a click faster than traffic flow is safer than going along with the flow or slower than flow. Moving through attracts more acknowledgment from drivers and it keeps you from "blending in" or remaining in any blind spots for more than a moment. Sometimes, being "on the move" is the only way to keep your #4 possible do to the amount of traffic on the road with you.

Loud pipes are just loud. An endless pissing match there.

Making eye contact is nice but doesn't mean much, kinda like turn signals. Know what it means when a car has it's turn signal blinking? It means their turn signal works, nothing more. Know what it means when a driver makes eye contact with you? Means they made eye contact with you, nothing more. They still didn't see the car or truck they were scanning for. My very first motorcycle was killed by a driver that looked me straight in the eyes and then pulled out in front of me, totaled her subaru and my bike. I've had countless drivers look me in the eyes over the years and then pull out anyway because I wasn't the car or truck they were looking for. Some aren't looking for a motorcycle.

#'s 1-3 are good but they're all the same thing to me. Kinda like different paragraphs within the same chapter, so I guess I somewhat agree with your 5 steps :thumbup:



I think that most of the time when a fellow poster posts on one part of safe riding it's because that single aspect had just affected them and is now "on their mind" so they come here and share it. What bothers me most is when the poster is wrong and then others chime in with support for the cockamamie ideas (sp didn't underline cockamamie :eek: ).

This is all my .02, of course.

Making eye contact is nice but doesn't mean much, kinda like turn signals. Know what it means when a car has it's turn signal blinking? It means their turn signal works, nothing more. Know what it means when a driver makes eye contact with you? Means they made eye contact with you, nothing more. They still didn't see the car or truck they were scanning for. My very first motorcycle was killed by a driver that looked me straight in the eyes and then pulled out in front of me, totaled her subaru and my bike. I've had countless drivers look me in the eyes over the years and then pull out anyway because I wasn't the car or truck they were looking for. Some aren't looking for a motorcycle.

I've found this to be extremely important to survival, especially if you ride in city traffic where a lot is going on, or even, on roads where drivers are not at all used to riders being there (leading to a potential 'pulling out in front of you' accidents). NEVER expect another driver to see you. Visibility is important, so be as visible as possible because it could help, but never rely on it. Ride like you're invisible because a lot of times, you are. And number 4 on the list comes in particularly handy - Always have an exit strategy.

99% of drivers don't ever want to hit a motorcycle, a lot of accidents with cars happen simply because car drivers didn't see you or weren't even looking for you in the first place. I can't tell you the countless number of times I've had car drivers actually look straight at me at a junction and still pull out in front :(

I've found this to be extremely important to survival, especially if you ride in city traffic where a lot is going on, or even, on roads where drivers are not at all used to riders being there (leading to a potential 'pulling out in front of you' accidents). NEVER expect another driver to see you. Visibility is important, so be as visible as possible because it could help, but never rely on it. Ride like you're invisible because a lot of times, you are. And number 4 on the list comes in particularly handy - Always have an exit strategy.

99% of drivers don't ever want to hit a motorcycle, a lot of accidents with cars happen simply because car drivers didn't see you or weren't even looking for you in the first place. I can't tell you the countless number of times I've had car drivers actually look straight at me at a junction and still pull out in front :(

It's nice to know Americans, don't have a monopoly on bad driving.

I just took the Smith System class for my company, pretty basic stuff but makes alot of sense and will keep you safe.

My average speed during my daily commute is probably close to 55 mph. By the time I am close enough to make eye contact with a cager it's, it's probably gonna too late.

As Kurt said, scanning is very important. When riding my bicycle, motorcycle, even driving the cage, I am very careful around parked cars. When I see a dome light come on--I expect a door. In diagonal parking situations, I alwsys brace for a panic stop when I see backup lights go on. Shopping Centres are a dangerous environment no matter what you do--they come at you from everywhere.

As stated above, #4 often isn't possible without finding those positions yourself. Personaly speaking, any time I've ever casually ridden with traffic, I end up getting surrounded. Additionally, because a motorcycle simply does not command as much subconscious respect as a full-sized vehicle, people tend to end up closer to you than if you were in a car. Finally, especially with a bike like ours where it might take 3 seconds to go from 75 to 80 in top gear, carrying a higher initial momentum leaves you MUCH more room to evade should it become necessary. Like if you need to merge on short notice or see a piece of debris in the road ahead, you now have the option of either slowing a bit to merge behind, OR keeping your pace for another second or two to merge ahead. Much more often than not, I've found going slightly faster than traffic when possible allows me to make my own safety cushions rather than hoping other drivers around me will adhere to those guidelines.

Before I started riding, I read just about every "XX tips for safely riding a motorcycle." A lot of them generally recommended against fading into the pack on the highway (I.E. keep moving to both stay visible and to keep outs available when you would otherwise likely end up trapped), with some of them specifically stating to go slightly faster than traffic. I remember the phrase "punted into the weeds" when referring to the potential consequences of letting cagers ride your butt or forcing them to pass you. As I pointed out above, even in my limited experience I have always felt much less threatened when I am staying moving to make my own space, than I have when looking up to see some 6000lb SUV a half-second behind me, a car 2 seconds in front of me, and another cage hoving to the side.

As far as the tips:
I agree that tips 1-3 are pretty much the same idea and are very general riding guidelines. (They also absolutely apply whether or not the rider embraces keeping a faster pace than traffic).

Tip #4 can often not be fulfilled without assertively moving within traffic to get into more ideal positions (which is much easier on these bikes when riding slightly faster...).

I have my doubts about #5. As I said, most of the time I am making adjustments to the threat long before eye-contact would even be possible (changing lighting patterns, lane position, sitting up tall, etc). Further, by the time eye contact has been made, you are way too close for it to have made any difference, especially when the threat is oncoming. Finally, I feel there are far too many potential threats to be staring into the eyes of one driver on the road. When I go through an intersection, I would much rather be scanning for the many potential dangers than gazing into the eyes of one.

In general, I feel those 5 tips are all merely mental tools, rather than guidelines to how one should actually ride on the road. While nothing is absolute, there are some plans and action techniques that do provide much more general safety (like recommending riding to one side, rather than in the center, of the lane).

On the note of the benefits of moving through traffic to keep better road position...
On the way home today, approaching a 5-lane intersection, a woman waiting in the opposing turn lane started to turn left in front of me. I was in the left lane, having just passed a group of cars that was now behind me. The cager started to turn as I was maybe 1 second away from the intersection. In the next two seconds, the following happened. She stopped, just with the edge of her bumper crossing into my lane. I started to lean the bike to the right to move toward the right side of my lane. A split second later, she started going again, but stopped with her car completely blocking my lane and part of the right lane. I was now maybe 50 feet away from her, and had to swerve all the way to the right side of the right lane to not go over her hood. Had I not passed that group of cars and allowed myself the whole road, the right lane would not have been available for this evasion. Had I been with traffic and the same thing happened, even if I was able to bring the bike to a very quick hault I would now be running the huge risk of getting creamed from behind and still becoming someone's hood ornament.

So, while riding faster than traffic is of course not a universal solution, in general for me it has played a significant role (especially on highways where quick acceleration on this bike is simply not possible) in allowing me to consistently pick the best positions for my own safety.

*edit*

Oh, looks like onetruevibe beat me to the point about the option for avoidance having likely already come and gone by the time eye contact is made.

In general, I feel those 5 tips are all merely mental tools, rather than guidelines to how one should actually ride on the road.

Correct, they are absolutely mental tools. And should be interpreted to match conditions. As I stated in my original post... It will take a combination of efforts, to keep you safe in traffic. No single rule, is going to cover all the bases.

Oh, I don't think any of us would argue otherwise :) .

taking mutiple classes on safety,riding techniques, and of course absorbing everything everyone has to say and they applying it all to your style, your situation and your current setup etc is the best. think of yourself as a chameleon who is constantly undergoing a change..while riding..to adapt,assualt(loose term),assess, and avoid/delay is a good "idea" of riding...

no one thing is perfectly correct..it's a constant game when you ride.

i personally treat it like a house raid, urban assualt situation(in a way) keep myself known,aware, the aggressor(not asshole!!) and always always adapting second guessing and knowing my way in and out.forwards and backwards.


situational awareness. lifesaver period.

situational awareness. lifesaver period.

Amen :thumbup:

:thumbup:

I think that all the suggestions posted on this thread have a lot of merit and should be given a great deal of thought. A lot also depends on what you ride. In traffic on the Ninja, I always endeavoured to run in the 8000RPM range--whether city or highway--8000RPM gives me the best response should something go amiss. A twist of the throttle gives an impressive burst of acelleration. On my new NT 700 V, I have still to find that "sweet spot" I only have 200+ miles on the bike and have not been able to test it on the Interstate or anywhere else for that matter. Right now it is much too cold to ride. I did go out the other day when it was 17F and returned home quickly because of icing inside the helmet. I think that I will concede winter. Back to the point--at least in my opinion riding about 5 to 7mph faster than traffic in your "sweet spot" allows you to evade a lot of problems. The left turn in front of you scenario is probably the situation where more motorcyclists come to grief than anywhere else. There is no hard and fast rule for that situation--divine intervention, maybe?

agreed..main point i was trying to make...

take all suggestions and such and use them accordingly and diligently.

I just drive like a paranoid schizophrenic and all the people in cars are secretly collaborating to murder me. It also helps to talk to yourself while riding just don't argue with yourself cause you'll never win.

One careless driving maneuver I have noticed more of since I got my bike is cars that start in the outside turn lane and change to the inside turn land in the middle of their turn without warning, and vice versa. and they NEVER check for motorcycles. I have already been almost run off the road twice because of this. You just have to assume you are sharing the road with a bunch of monkeys and never trust anyone else to be a responsible driver.

...Know what it means when a car has it's turn signal blinking...


AHHH Turn Signals. I just watched the Simpsons episode last night where Homer gets a part-time job as a Limo Driver. Chief Wiggim pulls him over and says, "Simpson, I pulled you over because your left tail light started blinking just before you made that left hand turn back there." :rolleyes:

It's nice to know Americans, don't have a monopoly on bad driving.

:lol:
Have you ever driven in Italy?? :rolleyes:

:lol:
Have you ever driven in Italy?? :rolleyes:

Yes. You need a loud horn. One of the positives that are frequently overlooked in motorcycles is their superior handling, acelleration, and braking. Emphasizing those virtues on a Ninja can only be good. That little 250 is a lot more bike than people realize. It also accounts for the fact that Ninja owners love them.

I just drive like a paranoid schizophrenic and all the people in cars are secretly collaborating to murder me.

Genius. I also include nature, and perhaps even God himself, in the conspiracy. Blind corner? Almost certainly hiding a fallen log or patch of sand. Forest thicket? Hell no, Bambi, you can't hide in there and hope to jump out in front of me!

Yes. You need a loud horn.

:nod: And nerves of steel