June 4th, 2013, 12:28 PM | #1 |
Nooblet
Name: Akima
Location: England
Join Date: Jul 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Ninja 250R FI Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 5
MOTM - Oct '13
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Just had a close call during rush hour traffic in London.
Having only just read Mocha Man's crash thread yesterday about him hitting the back of a vehicle, and then thanking him for the reminder about being careful while doing shoulder checks... I almost suffered the same event myself!
On the way home from London this evening I almost smashed into the back of a stationary van. I looked forward; traffic is rolling; shoulder checked; looked back; van is completely stopped. I was going 20mph and less than 2 metres from hitting it. I had no time to brake so I counter steered as hard as I could. I swerved into the next lane (luckily there were no cars there). I clipped my hand wing-mirror, indicator and brake lever on the back of the van as I skimmed by it. Came out of it ok otherwise though. Scary. I'm going to have to spend some time thinking about what I did because that would have been a horrible crash if my lizard brain didn't kick in and cause me to turn hard out of that situation. Ride safe everyone! |
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June 4th, 2013, 12:31 PM | #2 |
not an actual panda
Name: dan
Location: philadelphia
Join Date: Aug 2012 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Ninja 250, 2009 CBR600RR (Sold) Posts: A lot.
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Super glad you made it out relatively unscathed. Any pics of the damage?
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June 4th, 2013, 12:39 PM | #3 |
Daily Ninjette rider
Name: Hernan
Location: Florida
Join Date: Mar 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Ninja 250 Posts: A lot.
MOTY - 2016, MOTM - Dec '12, Jan '14, Jan '15, May '16
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Great save Akima !!!
20 mph = 9 meters / second You could have been more than 11 meters (36 feet) behind the van when you started your shoulder check.
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Motofool .................................Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly "Mankind is composed of two sorts of men — those who love and create, and those who hate and destroy. Love is the bond between men, the way to teach and the center of the world." - José Martí |
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June 4th, 2013, 12:40 PM | #4 |
Blue Shell magnet
Name: Nolan
Location: Northwest Washington
Join Date: Aug 2011 Motorcycle(s): 1997 Ninja 250 Posts: 816
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I'm glad my crash was useful to someone! Haha
Glad to hear you made it out better than I did |
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June 4th, 2013, 12:44 PM | #5 |
Certified looney toon
Name: Teri
Location: 39°52'40.7"N 118°23'53.8"W (Northern NV)
Join Date: Jun 2012 Motorcycle(s): 2012 Ninja 250, 102k+ miles -- 2014 CB500X, 42k+ miles Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 16
MOTM Jul '13, Jul '14
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Yay for quick squirrel reactions!!
Any ides as to why the van just stopped cold?
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<-- Linky Hey Unregistered! The code [you] shows the username currently logged in. IBA # 56020 AMA # 521481 Fun Rides! ][ My Videos ][ My Gear Hold yourself to the same rules you expect others to follow. |
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June 4th, 2013, 12:52 PM | #6 |
wat
Name: wat
Location: tustin/long beach
Join Date: Sep 2009 Motorcycle(s): wat Posts: Too much.
Blog Entries: 5
MOTM - Oct '12, Feb '14
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speaking of close calls, i was splitting a semi truck and a van through a turn on the highway and a really strong gust of wind pushed me hard... almost put the wheels under the semi trucks rear end. gave myself i long and stern talking-to after that.
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June 4th, 2013, 12:55 PM | #7 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Mark
Location: Portland
Join Date: Sep 2010 Motorcycle(s): Cheap Italian Suit. Otherwise known as Dew Kitty Posts: A lot.
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Wow Akima. Glad you are ok. That could have been so much worse.
Thanks for posting this. I will now endeavor to keep my head checks more brief. I think I have spent too much time looking backwards in this situation, and I've just been lucky. Again, thanks for contributing! |
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June 4th, 2013, 12:57 PM | #8 |
dirty boy
Name: Joe
Location: Johnstown, PA
Join Date: Sep 2012 Motorcycle(s): I don't even know anymore?? Posts: A lot.
MOTM - Apr '14
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This scenario is always tough, doing a blind spot/shoulder check is very important but taking your eyes off of the moving traffic in front of you is always a hazard.
The only solution i have ever come up with is to just let your spidie sense tell you if it is a good idea to take your eyes off of the traffic in front of you... then listen to it and if you don't think it is a good idea then just have patience and wait for a better opportunity to switch lanes when a shoulder check is safe to execute. The only two car accidents i have ever caused where in this exact same scenario. Trying to be a safe driver and check my blind spot and then what do you know stop dead traffic for seemingly no reason. |
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June 4th, 2013, 01:07 PM | #9 |
Nooblet
Name: Akima
Location: England
Join Date: Jul 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Ninja 250R FI Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 5
MOTM - Oct '13
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Thanks for the kind words everyone.
I don't have any pics of the damage right now. It was 3 lanes in one direction of really hectic stop and go traffic. The speed limit was 50mph. The van stopping was totally normal. I couldn't see past it in the position I was in so I had no idea it was going to stop at that specific moment. It's really challenging riding in rush hour London traffic. I was lane splitting quite a bit. The incident was totally my fault. Hope I didn't damage that back of the guys van I'm sure he has my number plate details though so he could track me down if I did do damage. |
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June 4th, 2013, 01:09 PM | #10 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Jason
Location: Norfolk, VA
Join Date: Dec 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2012 EX250, 2014 EX300 Posts: A lot.
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glad to hear your ok.
what was your lane positioning when doing the lane check?
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June 4th, 2013, 01:26 PM | #12 |
Nooblet
Name: Akima
Location: England
Join Date: Jul 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Ninja 250R FI Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 5
MOTM - Oct '13
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I forgot to mention again that ATGATT is awesome! I'm pretty sure my hand would have been more than just slightly bruised if it wasn't for the gloves and I even have a feeling that I wacked my leg/shin/foot on the van too, but my protective trousers and boots took the impact. Not to mention that had I actually collided with the back of the Van, without my helmet I could have died.
Gear is awesome! It saves our stupid human asses! I think I've "just been lucky" until now too. It happened so fast when I looked back. I guess all these conversations about riding and all my practice paid off in a way. I must have programmed my subconscious to steer hard away from that because there is no way I did anything conscious during that brief OH-F*** moment! |
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June 4th, 2013, 01:42 PM | #13 | |
Daily Ninjette rider
Name: Hernan
Location: Florida
Join Date: Mar 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Ninja 250 Posts: A lot.
MOTY - 2016, MOTM - Dec '12, Jan '14, Jan '15, May '16
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Quote:
Also, the car ahead may not stop and still big debris, open manholes, big potholes or spills of fluids can suddenly appear from underneath the car while we are doing the shoulder check. We don't need to keep looking until we rationalize the situation in our blind spot; a quick glance will suffice and the mental process will follow. I just remembered that the exact same situation happened to me during my first year of street riding and that for long time I couldn't understand how I escaped that one.
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Motofool .................................Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly "Mankind is composed of two sorts of men — those who love and create, and those who hate and destroy. Love is the bond between men, the way to teach and the center of the world." - José Martí |
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June 4th, 2013, 02:01 PM | #14 | |
Certified looney toon
Name: Teri
Location: 39°52'40.7"N 118°23'53.8"W (Northern NV)
Join Date: Jun 2012 Motorcycle(s): 2012 Ninja 250, 102k+ miles -- 2014 CB500X, 42k+ miles Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 16
MOTM Jul '13, Jul '14
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Quote:
I've watched a few tv shows that feature going downtown London. I think those convinced me that if I ever do make it to England, I'm walking unless I'm going up north somewhere. Glad you are ok and you just got scuffed rather than splattered. I would imagine a bit more following distance might have helped too, but then some dingdong in a Mini might have tried slipping between you and the van. Stay safe little squirrel.
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June 4th, 2013, 02:02 PM | #15 | |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Jason
Location: Norfolk, VA
Join Date: Dec 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2012 EX250, 2014 EX300 Posts: A lot.
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Quote:
most of my lucky escapes have been due to proper lane positioning.
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June 4th, 2013, 02:09 PM | #17 |
Ninja chick
Name: Allyson
Location: Athens, GA
Join Date: Jun 2009 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 4
MOTM - Dec '13, Feb '15
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So glad your mad skills took over and you got yourself out of that situation Akima!
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Sometimes it's the journey that teaches you a lot about your destination. ~Drake Check out my Appalachian Trail journal, 2015! Postwhores are COOL! ~Allyson |
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June 4th, 2013, 02:22 PM | #18 | |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Mark
Location: Portland
Join Date: Sep 2010 Motorcycle(s): Cheap Italian Suit. Otherwise known as Dew Kitty Posts: A lot.
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Quote:
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1 out of 1 members found this post helpful. |
June 4th, 2013, 02:33 PM | #19 |
Ninja chick
Name: Allyson
Location: Athens, GA
Join Date: Jun 2009 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 4
MOTM - Dec '13, Feb '15
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Oh yeah! And sorry things got a little "squirrely" on ya today.
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Sometimes it's the journey that teaches you a lot about your destination. ~Drake Check out my Appalachian Trail journal, 2015! Postwhores are COOL! ~Allyson |
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June 4th, 2013, 03:23 PM | #20 |
Doh!
Name: Matt
Location: Locating GPS...
Join Date: Nov 2012 Motorcycle(s): 2012 Ninja 250r Posts: 286
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Close calls have become a habit for this hobbit... esp since most of the ones I end up in involves vehicles without working tail lights. Quite often the only way to know that the vehicle ahead of you has indeed stopped is to crash into it.
+1 to Motofool Here is my list of precautions that might help basically and then some... 1: Never stay fixed dead center of the vehicle ahead of you, weave about from time to time but remember to stay within your lane. 2: Before you change lanes the first thing you should do is to look beyond the car in front of you and confirm that there are no potentially hazardous gremlins or leprechauns that might callously jump into your lane causing the possibly unwary cager ahead of you to involuntarily brake check you Then check your side mirrors and then n ONLY then! Look behind you before you change. 3: Familiarize yourself with the motorcycle safe zones while on the road. These are not impregnable bomb shelter type safe zones, just the statistically safer places to be as in a preventive measure to reduce the risk of injury in case of an accident. It varies from country to country based on road laws, speed limits and morons. I think someone already covered that part somewhere here on this forum. 4: Slow the f*** down at intersections, plan ahead and move to the slower corner of the road opposite to the turn in. The further away you are from the turn in, the more time you have to react and being at the corner reduces the chances of being run over from behind. Its one of those safe zone thingys, but worth mentioning since most of the accidents I've seen are the result of t-bones. 5: Stay noticeable and avoid lingering in the cager's blind spot. The easy way to do this is to look at the cager's rear view mirror. If you can see his/her eyes in it then you are in the right spot.
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Last futzed with by aeroblade; June 4th, 2013 at 09:51 PM. |
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June 5th, 2013, 01:35 PM | #21 |
Nooblet
Name: Akima
Location: England
Join Date: Jul 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Ninja 250R FI Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 5
MOTM - Oct '13
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I discovered today that I also must have hit my shoulder. I dropped by the Drs and she said it will be fine though. I think you're right @Motofool, @NevadaWolf and @lgk. The trick is lane position, a good stopping distance (2 second rule) and only making a quick glance. I'm going to also buy myself a new helmet which gives me more peripheral vision so I can look while still keeping what's in my path in sight. I like the look of the Nexus XR1R Carbon. |
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June 6th, 2013, 12:44 PM | #22 |
Not dead yet!
Name: Rob
Location: Marlborough MA
Join Date: Apr 2010 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Ninja 250R Posts: 315
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Glad you are okay! Sometimes shoulder checks scare me, but so does shoulder checking and finding out you would have smashed into a car if you changed lanes. o.o
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June 6th, 2013, 02:47 PM | #23 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Pete
Location: UK
Join Date: Aug 2012 Motorcycle(s): '11 250R SE (FI), '14 Daytona 675, '14 Sprint 1050 GT SE Posts: 121
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Sorry to hear the news Akima, hope the shoulder and hand are feeling better soon.
I liked the sound of the Nexus XR1R Carbon (I'm a sucker for carbon fibre) but I was a bit alarmed by the first Google image search returning a version in leather! http://www.scootercrazy.com/acatalog...e_Helmets.html Ride safe. Cheers, Pete |
1 out of 1 members found this post helpful. |
June 7th, 2013, 12:06 PM | #24 | |
Nooblet
Name: Akima
Location: England
Join Date: Jul 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Ninja 250R FI Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 5
MOTM - Oct '13
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Quote:
Leather! XR1R Gimp edition They have a really nice website. I quite like this colour scheme: Annoyingly I can't find anywhere nearby that stock it. I might have to plan a trip to London. I don't want to buy it without first trying it on. If you're still near by we should go for a ride sometime soon! You can check out how obnoxiously loud my new Area P exhaust is! |
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June 7th, 2013, 01:12 PM | #25 |
Ninja chick
Name: Allyson
Location: Athens, GA
Join Date: Jun 2009 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 4
MOTM - Dec '13, Feb '15
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That's one hot lid!
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Sometimes it's the journey that teaches you a lot about your destination. ~Drake Check out my Appalachian Trail journal, 2015! Postwhores are COOL! ~Allyson |
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June 7th, 2013, 02:02 PM | #26 | |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Jason
Location: Norfolk, VA
Join Date: Dec 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2012 EX250, 2014 EX300 Posts: A lot.
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Quote:
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Ethioknight Memorial Fund- Sticker sale http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=111700 |
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June 7th, 2013, 03:11 PM | #27 |
Jigglin' your Jiglets
Name: Sean
Location: San Jose, Ca
Join Date: Jun 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2009 K1300S, 2013 Ninja 300, 2011 Ninja 250R, Faster than Unregistered's ninjette Posts: Too much.
Blog Entries: 1
MOTM - Apr '13
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Oi where's your British gopro?
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June 7th, 2013, 03:12 PM | #28 |
Nooblet
Name: Akima
Location: England
Join Date: Jul 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Ninja 250R FI Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 5
MOTM - Oct '13
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You should check them out Ally! According to the reviews they're pretty good. Very light weight at a reasonable price and the additional peripheral vision is what drew me to them. They're supposed to have a good aerodynamic design which gives low wind buffeting and they've passed all the well known helmet safety standards.
Basically I've sucked up all the Nexx propaganda. kinky. |
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June 7th, 2013, 03:30 PM | #29 |
Ninja chick
Name: Allyson
Location: Athens, GA
Join Date: Jun 2009 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 4
MOTM - Dec '13, Feb '15
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I am Scorpion loyal. Until I can afford an Arai.
But Scorpion's designs suck for women. They're all ugly as hell.
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Sometimes it's the journey that teaches you a lot about your destination. ~Drake Check out my Appalachian Trail journal, 2015! Postwhores are COOL! ~Allyson |
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August 1st, 2013, 06:29 AM | #30 |
Nooblet
Name: Akima
Location: England
Join Date: Jul 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Ninja 250R FI Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 5
MOTM - Oct '13
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Link to original page on YouTube. |
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August 1st, 2013, 07:06 AM | #31 |
ninjette.org dude
Name: 1 guess :-)
Location: SF Bay Area
Join Date: Jun 2008 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 (white, the fastest color!), '13 R1200RT, '14 CRF250L, '12 TT-R125LE Posts: Too much.
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Ugly and a bit silly, IMO. The car he hit was slowing a bit, but not abruptly and not unexpectedly, as every car was coming up to traffic at the time. Rider needs to work on their situational awareness.
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August 1st, 2013, 07:12 AM | #32 | |
Nooblet
Name: Akima
Location: England
Join Date: Jul 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2011 Ninja 250R FI Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 5
MOTM - Oct '13
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Quote:
I've since bought myself a new helmet which doesn't restrict my peripheral vision at all. It's so nice riding with it. I think it should help me too. |
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