Near Misses

[Alex]

Not a crash.

/moved to Riding Skills area

Less rear brake, more front brake. Especially in emergency-type quick stops.

[FrugalNinja250]

Yeah, it takes some practice to skid the rear tire without drama. I generally lock the rear a couple times a week and it's not a big deal at all, just get the rear straight and ease off the brake to regain traction.

[NDspd]

I used to have the rear lock up a bit when I first started riding. Now I've learned how to properly do it.

Glad you're ok man.

[Whiskey]

http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=83065

That the thread you were looking for?

You kept it up & know your braking better from it so no harm done

[Alex]

/merged

[CZroe]

I chirp my rear quite frequently because it helps me know its traction limit in various situations so I can put all the rest on the front. For some reason, it always drifts right no matter my rear wheel alignment.

[bluesinorbit]

I actually had a similar moment today and had to do some hard braking. It sucks when you realize you need to stop, but you are going just a little too fast. I haven't practiced emergency braking since taking the MSF course, and I must admit I wasn't confident about my braking. No locking or skidding, but I stopped barely a foot away from the intersection, blocking most of the crosswalk.

Besides braking techniques, you should consider your travel speed in traffic with lights. When I'm not zoned out, I slow down when approaching traffic light just in case the light turns yellow right before the point of no return. You want to be at the speed where the time it takes for the yellow light to go to red should be enough time for you to safely come to a full stop. Fortunately I have the advantage of lane-splitting here in California. I'm rarely among moving cars because I always start out at the front of the traffic and pick up enough speed initially to get away from all the cars. So when I'm approaching a light, I can vary my speed without upsetting the traffic around me, because there is none.

[MikeBudd]

Riding through the stanley park causeway (essentially a 3 lane road through a forest with lights to indicate lane allocation) at around 2 am, and see a completely blacked out SUV parked on the other side of the road aways up. Suddenly it turns it headlights on and starts barrelling straight towards me on the wrong side of the road straight up trying to kill me. I swerve across two lanes (just FYI their is one way coming at me two going my way and i'm in the middle lane) almost off the road and narrowly miss being killed in a head on collision.

[bluesinorbit]

Originally Posted by MikeBudd

Riding through the stanley park causeway (essentially a 3 lane road through a forest with lights to indicate lane allocation) at around 2 am, and see a completely blacked out SUV parked on the other side of the road aways up. Suddenly it turns it headlights on and starts barrelling straight towards me on the wrong side of the road straight up trying to kill me. I swerve across two lanes (just FYI their is one way coming at me two going my way and i'm in the middle lane) almost off the road and narrowly miss being killed in a head on collision.

That's nuts. Did you report the car?

[lc86]

I have 3 near misses from recent memory.

1. I was going down a road I hadn't really taken before and I see the next streetlight a ways before me while doing ~45mph. I notice crosstraffic not far in front of me and realize there is another stoplight hidden behind some trees that is red pretty much right in front of me. I perform an emergency stop and nearly lost it, my rear tires slid from side to side and I stopped just at the very edge of the crosswalk.

2. I was in the left lane of a 2 lane road, after passing an intersection I merge into the right lane, and the car behind me decided to merge into the right lane while in the intersection while speeding up almost hitting me. Unfortunately for me there were pedestrians crossing the road and a bus that was pulled to the side so in order not to get hit by the car I would have to stop next to the bus, not too big a deal. There was enough room for me next to the bus, but for some reason the stupid bus driver decided to try and merge back onto the road into me. To avoid getting hit by the bus I had to time a quick shot in between some pedestrians (I wasn't close to them, but I'm sure it probably scared them all the same) just to avoid getting crushed.

3. Setting: 3 lanes, the 2 left lanes turn left, the right lane goes straight. I am in the middle lane and it was pretty much bumper to bumper. A truck on the right of me tries merging into me, then swerves back right, then swerves all the way into the left most lane barely missing me. While leaning into my left turn this same truck tries to go straight instead of turning and almost hits me until he swerves back into his lane. After the turn I am stuck behind a semi so I merge over into the left most lane and this same truck slammed on their brakes to make a u-turn (he did this in front of me despite having a dedicated lane) causing me to have to brake hard. If I weren't already running late for school at this point I would have chased him down, although now that I think about it I think he was trying to go straight but was a complete idiot.

[akima]

Originally Posted by CZroe

I chirp my rear quite frequently because it helps me know its traction limit in various situations so I can put all the rest on the front. For some reason, it always drifts right no matter my rear wheel alignment.

The motorcycle's human is probably out of alignment then. To rebalance that component I recommend yoga.

[CZroe]

Originally Posted by akima

The motorcycle's human is probably out of alignment then. To rebalance that component I recommend yoga.

Or a chiropractor for my Scoliosis.

[akima]

Originally Posted by CZroe

Or a chiropractor for my Scoliosis.

I have that too I think it's why I often get knots in my back. If I ever get rich I'm getting a private on-call masseuse. Yoga does help though.

[TrueFaith]

I was coming home from work on my brand-new 1982 Yamaha 250 Exciter one morning, in one of the middle lanes of a 4-lane bridge crossing (2 middle lanes for straight ahead with turning lanes at either side.) At the apex of the bridge I was passing what I thought was a car turning right in the "right turn only" lane. Well this joker decides he needs to make a LEFT turn instead just as I'm coming past him. He came into my lane and I pretty much "skipped" over the left side of his car at speed. Took out his side view mirror and the impact pushed my right knee a full 3" into the gas tank. I hear glass shattering and tires squealing as I fly by the front bumper - STILL VERTICAL. I couldn't believe I didn't go down. No time to congratulate myself though.
Next I'm greeted with 2 steel light poles dead in front of me as I'm streaking towards the corner's sidewalk, having bounced off his car at an angle. No time to brake or avoid, I sailed between the poles with inches to spare on either end of my handlebars and came to a stop in front of the gas pumps of the corner gas station on the opposite side of the street from where I'd been hit. I shut off the engine, put down the kickstand and got off the bike to find the 3" knee-shaped divot in the gas tank and broken bits all over the right side of the bike. My right leg was still there and seemed to work fine and aside from a few bruises and scrapes I was okay. A couple of gas station employees just stood there staring at me in awe, like they'd just seen a planned stunt by Evel Knieval. By the time the cops arrived a half-dozen witnesses were lined up to help fry the driver's ass, who had also pulled over but was smart enough to remain in his car until the law showed up to ticket him.

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by TrueFaith

I was coming home from work on my brand-new 1982 Yamaha 250 Exciter one morning, i...

Not really a near miss, the bastard actually hit you. If it wasn't 1982, I would have to ask if his text message went through.

[jack_bm]

I had a near miss this Friday, was coming round a blind corner which could only fit 1 car through at a time because there was vans along the sides of it so i couldn't see if anything was coming... ( you can see where this is going) i looked to see if anything was coming as best as i could but wasnt satisfied so slowed down and what happened... i met a car half way through the bend whilst leaning, i emergency stopped not sure what your suppost to really do if your in mid corner and need to emergency stop but my back wheel locked up and swung right out like a 90 degree turn, i then released the back break and it got its traction and it swung back into the direction right direction and i just about got through the gap between the van and the car, was a really close call... i;d say if it had been videoed it would have looked like an amazing drift

[MikeBudd]

Originally Posted by bluesinorbit

That's nuts. Did you report the car?

No idea what car it was. De-baged and blacked out, besides a black SUV I dunno what it was. To nervous afterwords to report it, and the next day I just didn't even think about it.

Such a crazy moment!

[n4mwd]

Yesterday I almost got nailed by a dog (German Shepherd) trying to commit suicide. He wasn't trying to chase me, he was just jaywalking. I was doing about 60 and he starts running across the road. I hit the brakes, the horn and swerved. Missed him by about 6 inches. He heard the horn and looked up at me when I was literally inches from his head.

I'm thinking that if I had hit him that I would have gone down. Its probably not too far off from hitting a deer.

[Old Lemon]

I've only had one near miss since I've started riding.

There is a 2 lane road both lanes going the same way to get out of my schools campus. I exited though the main entrance and there is another exit a few hundred yards sown the road. As I was going down I saw that there was a line to get ou. I was the only one in the right lane so I switched lanes. But the car exiting decided he was gonna do a merge onto the road and go to the farthest lane over manuever. I see this and I'm reaching for the brakes but decided there was not enough time. So I rolled the throttle and from what I could tell he came within about a foot of me. I just looked back and shook my head

[subxero]

Was thinking this might be a fun spinoff thread, seemed to fit in this section.

So, idea is people give their depiction of their near fall (not necessarily in motion crash) and it helps others to avoid the situation be it by avoiding all together, or using technique that rider used to save the situation.

Ok i'll start i got two.

So i haven't gone down yet in anyway shape or form... yet, but i am still pretty new and had 2 close calls.

1) Probably most embarrassing for me. When i park my bike i park it in front of my truck in a back corner of the lot. It is a slight incline up to the curb. I pulled my bike between front of my truck and curb, was in a rush for some reason. Killed bike, turned key, locked bars, and started to set the bike on the stand....only i never put the stand down Kept waiting for the stand to take weight but never did, i ended up catching the bike but most likely only because i had the front of my truck to put my shoulder into and take my weight. Like i said the curb is kind of up hill so as i leaned bike over it is a lower position that direction. Live and learn.

2) On way to work one morning, was chilly and a little wet on the roads. Got to first light i had to stop at and was first in line. Put bike in neutral, kept right foot on brake and put left foot down. I proceeded to lean back a little to get comfortable. I didn't think much about it but i put my foot down directly on the large white paint strip that marks the stopping point for the light. As i leaned back my foot slipped on the slick paint and i lost balance for a second but managed to get my foot planted again. Lesson learned yet again

[Alex]

Not a crash. The ^@#&*^@&@ section is exclusively for crashes, not near-misses. It makes it more apparent the risks we face when every single thread in this area describes one of our peers putting a bike on the ground unexpectedly.

/moved to general

[Alex]

/merged

[Daks]

i had a true "near miss".

As in a lady made a right turn from the left lane and nearly missed me. :|
Still waiting for my deductible back on that one.


But as asked by the OP, my only real close call so far is a soccer mom lane changing with no blinker with me in the spot she was attempting to occupy. And maybe getting brake-checked by a hummer on the freeway. Left a good skid.

Safe following distances, motherf*ckas!

[Old Guy on a '08]

Had one last week. Young chick in a white honda talking on a cell... jumped from the right lane to the just missing me to get to the left turn lane coming to a light... She never even realized it...

[JELY1990]

I have a couple
1st one
-Riding in a parking lot there was a police cruiser behind me. I signal left to indicate I'm going to turn left into a parking spot. I head check, cop is still behind me so I begin turning left into space and head check again. The cop then proceeds to pass me on the left and I have to stand it up to avoid getting hit.
Afterwards she doubled back and apologized and said she didn't see my blinker. Strange idea to pass me like that...

2nd one
-Carbs needed cleaning/bike wasn't warm yet and I stalled in a low speed maneuver and I nearly dropped it.

[psych0hans]

If you're in India, you'll be having "near misses" almost every other day... Just the other day a I nearly had a head on with a car who was overtaking completely in my lane... I had to swerve left pretty quickly to get out of his way... Idiot driver...

[tokesquad1]

Had my first near miss about a month or so ago. I was making a left turn off of the main road into my neighborhood and for some unknown reason a mini van decided to turn left out at the same time. Needless to say I almost $**t myself! In the process I almost low-sided.

Ever since then, I've been a little nervous about riding. How do you guys get it back together after near misses?

[n4mwd]

When you ride, you need to be paranoid and never assume the other guy will do the right thing and respect your right of way. Always expect cagers to pull in front of you and constantly have a plan for when they do.

[psych0hans]

Originally Posted by n4mwd

When you ride, you need to be paranoid and never assume the other guy will do the right thing and respect your right of way. Always expect cagers to pull in front of you and constantly have a plan for when they do.

[csmith12]

Originally Posted by tokesquad1

Ever since then, I've been a little nervous about riding. How do you guys get it back together after near misses?

Review what happened, find direct cause(s), get second opinion, get educated on how to prevent it going forward. Most important, do something that will boost my confidence like accomplish a riding goal.

[tokesquad1]

Thanks for the advice guys. I'll definitely ride more "aware" from now on.

[Ichiro]

Originally Posted by n4mwd

I hate U-turns. I failed that part of the MSF course. They scare the crap out of me even when nobody is around. When I have to do one, I'm usually creeping with both feet dragging the ground.

Link to original page on YouTube.

This vdo shows a rider with unbelievable control of his machine. Notice his head and how he always looks to where he wants to go. His turns are beautiful and although we may never get close to his abilities, we can learn a lot by observing what he does and practice proper technique. Good luck

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by Ichiro

This vdo shows a rider with unbelievable control of his machine. Notice his head and how he always looks to where he wants to go. His turns are beautiful and although we may never get close to his abilities, we can learn a lot by observing what he does and practice proper technique. Good luck

The Japanese MSF course seems a bit tougher than ours.

[himynameisjoe]

Originally Posted by n4mwd

The Japanese MSF course seems a bit tougher than ours.

Just a little bit, aye? I want to sign up for that course!

[Rollo]

Far too many near misses in my year and a half of riding. I like to think of Arizona as "little California" for the obvious incompetence of drivers. Several cases of people getting in my lane with me, changing lanes/turning without signaling and the ever present texters.

But my most recent was a couple of days ago. A few days of rain was forecast for several sequential days and after getting over the shock of water falling from the sky, I decided that I had better go for a good ride while I could so I wouldn't pout too much about having to neglect my bike.

I turn out of my driveway, go around the block and a car full of teens blows through a stop sign. I emergency brake(correctly this time) and barely avoid slamming into the side of their car. The teenaged driver gives me a dirty look and has the audacity to wave me forward. Instead of giving him the gesture I wanted to, I shrug as if to say "Where am I supposed to go?" and he pulled ahead of me.

Twenty minutes later, I'm stopped at a red light waiting to turn right and stuck behind an SUV. Light turns green, the SUV creeps forward and I prepare to go. As soon as the SUV is past the crosswalk, I start to turn and hear an elongated honk just behind me(funny how those always sound panicked). I glanced to my left and see headlights. A driver ran the red light at speed(guessing around 50 or 60mph). I get on my rear brake and the truck baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarely missed me. I actually had to brace my right foot to keep from getting knocked over by the gust of wind which followed. At the next red light, a car eased around me and the driver asked if I was alright as they had been behind me and honked, which was nice of them.

For every five or six "controllable" near misses, there's always that one in which you just thank God or your deity of choice that it all worked out alright.

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by Rollo

Twenty minutes later, I'm stopped at a red light waiting to turn right and stuck behind an SUV. Light turns green, the SUV creeps forward and I prepare to go. As soon as the SUV is past the crosswalk, I start to turn and hear an elongated honk just behind me(funny how those always sound panicked). I glanced to my left and see headlights. A driver ran the red light at speed(guessing around 50 or 60mph). I get on my rear brake and the truck baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarely missed me.

SUV's, trucks and buses and such create blind spots. You need to use extra caution when riding around them. I was passing a stopped semi in a residential area not long ago and the guy opened his door up on me just as I was approaching the cab at 30 mph. Fortunately, I had taken the precaution to give him a wide berth and he missed me. The bottom of the door was neck level so if I had hit that at 30 mph, I would be either dead or a quadriplegic.

As far as stopping, you shouldn't be using the rear brakes that much. Use the front brakes and then add rear brake to give it a little more stopping power. Otherwise, you risk a rear skid which can be fatal in some instances.

[userjh160]

My latest near miss --
I am riding on a four lane road and approaching a 4 way intersection - I have an 18 wheeler coming up on my left side (I am around the cab/first tire), there is a regular truck in front of me and behind me (tailgating) - at the intersection there is a cager in the far right lane ready to go straight (now you know where all the players are). The truck in front of me has his blinkers on to turn right, I am slowing down - then out of the blue this idiot from the oncoming lane decided he could beat the 18-wheeler and turn in front of him - he did not see me because of the rig. I already spotted him not having too many options here, I did a wot, counter steered to the right barely missing the idiot only to realize that I may have over steered and was heading straight for the car that was at the intersection going straight, quickly adjusted my steering with only a couple of inches (if that) from ramming into their front end, feeling the idiot speed behind me. That image still raises the hair on the back of my neck. I should have been more alert and should have let the rig pass me so I wouldn't get boxed in. My other option could have been get hit from behind by the truck and pushed into the idiot.

[Whiskey]

Had one today heading for a T junction, cager in front in left turn lane (I'm heading right) decides at last minute to slam the car right, flicks the indicator as she moves, then saw me behind her & slams the brakes. I got it stopped about 6 inches from her bumper, cursing her in a very animated manner She takes the right onto a 1 way street & I follow her at a safe distance, she pulls along level with a S-Class Merc & does the exact same thing on the other side

Street view of 1st move here, she swung across where it says "lane"

Second one was by the curve sign

[Alex]

Glad you had quick reactions!

[HKr1]

I have one that really sticks in my head, can still picture it.

Coming back down old 94 just past the Tecate exit(SD). Passing some cars around 130mph(GPz900r), was heading back into my lane. Coming from the other direction, A green ford station wagon with wood grain paneling down the side, pulls into my direction of travel lane.
I pulled my left leg close into my bike, pulled my left arm in, turned my head, closed my eyes, and said "Your Dead"...........
Well, I didn't hit anything! Opened my eyes, all the cars were gone....
Pulled into Barrett Café, told my friends I had enough for the day, went on home.