Watch out for cars that pullout between stopped traffic

[akima]

Crash 1...

Link to original page on YouTube.

Crash 2 (Sadly Ninja 300's do not provide immunity)...

Link to original page on YouTube.

Re crash 2:
* singing suggests he wasn't paying full attention
* headphones suggest he may have been distracted by music or radio
* he didn't notice the gap between traffic
* he didn't notice the white car slow down
* he didn't notice the car stopped in the driveway that eventually pulled out and hit him
* he was slow to get on the brakes suggesting he wasn't ready to perform an emergency stop.
* his braking didn't seem very effective suggesting he isn't well practised at emergency stops

Avoidable crash.

[RacinNinja]

In the second one, you couldn't even see the car until it was too late. The white Caddy had a brake light out so impossible to tell if a turn signal was on or not.

The first one, you could just barely see the roof of the BMW in the camera moving past traffic. Given that the camera is mounted on the side of the helmet, it stands to reason an attentive rider could have seen it also.

Sucks all around. Not sure I would have seen either had I been in their shoes.

[JohnnyBravo]

Hooray for parts bikes

[akima]

Originally Posted by RacinNinja

In the second one, you couldn't even see the car until it was too late. The white Caddy had a brake light out so impossible to tell if a turn signal was on or not.

Meh. I could see the black car clearly. at 29 seconds he should've seen it. At 31 seconds it's sat there clear as day, potentially waiting to pull out. At 32 seconds I can see the black car move and can clearly see the white car coming to a complete stop, lights on and weight of the car shifted forward onto the front suspension.

At 29 seconds his reaction should've started. He should've covered his brakes, adjusted his speed and expected it to pull out.

I find it even easier to spot potential incidents when I'm riding than when I'm watching videos of riding. There's a lot more information and I feel a lot more connected to what's happening around me when I'm riding.

[nickjpass]

Did the guy's head fall off in the first one

[Snake]

Surprise surprise.

[Triple Jim]

Both of those riders had a "nothing's going to go wrong" attitude when they needed a "everyone's trying to kill me" attitude.

[JohnnyBravo]

Video 1 = idiot could have not hit the SUV
Video 2 = la la la crash

[Ducati999]

Originally Posted by Triple Jim

Both of those riders had a "nothing's going to go wrong" attitude when they needed a "everyone's trying to kill me" attitude.

^^^^Agree^^^

[jkv45]

Both of those happen all the time, so you better be ready.

Look ahead for signs like a break in stopped traffic and be prepared anytime you are being "masked" by traffic moving your direction.

Had a similar situation riding home yesterday from work. 2 lanes each direction, I'm in the left lane. 2 cars turning right from the right lane. Car on the street on the right waiting to go my direction pulls out and into my (left) lane. Couldn't see me or even a car for that matter. Could have safely pulled into the right lane, but needed to turn left up ahead so just went for it.

Anytime I'm masked by a vehicle I'm expecting the worst. To me, that's one of the most dangerous situations out there because you can't see a threat until it's almost in your face. When I see that being a possibility I will always roll off the gas and prepare to grab a handful of brake, or look for a good "out" that doesn't require a complete stop.

[Panda]

I feel like video 1 should be labeled "Rider hits BMW because he doesn't realize his bike can turn."

In NYC it's less about cars and more about pedestrians jaywalking that pop out in between cars.

[alex.s]

video 1 was due to too much rear brake and not enough front brake.

[InvisiBill]

Originally Posted by Panda

I feel like video 1 should be labeled "Rider hits BMW because he doesn't realize his bike can turn."

Agreed. It was like, "I can't slow down enough, so I guess I'll just run into it instead of going around it."

Originally Posted by akima

Meh. I could see the black car clearly. at 29 seconds he should've seen it. At 31 seconds it's sat there clear as day, potentially waiting to pull out. At 32 seconds I can see the black car move and can clearly see the white car coming to a complete stop, lights on and weight of the car shifted forward onto the front suspension.

At 29 seconds his reaction should've started. He should've covered his brakes, adjusted his speed and expected it to pull out.

I find it even easier to spot potential incidents when I'm riding than when I'm watching videos of riding. There's a lot more information and I feel a lot more connected to what's happening around me when I'm riding.

But the car's not black.

I think this one is a bit trickier. The retaining wall and the spacing of the Caddy block the view of the car for a lot of the approach. It seems to start pulling out right as the Caddy is directly between it and the camera. Not sure if it's just the video, but it looks like the Caddy might have both the right and center brake lights out, making it harder to tell exactly what it's doing. The SUV in the oncoming turn lane complicates things too.

In the comments, he stated that the Caddy was turning. Maybe the camera just didn't catch the right taillight because it was blinking (have I mentioned that I hate the way GM doesn't use blinkers separate from the taillights?). Since the Caddy was turning and the bike was essentially directly behind it from the car's point of view, I guess he thought he could make it. The SUV waiting to turn left should've had right of way over the car though, so he still shouldn't have gone.

I agree that the rider seemed distracted and slow to react. If he knew the Caddy was turning there, he should've at least considered the idea of the car pulling out and been more prepared. If he had a hard time seeing the car, he should've known that it would have a hard time seeing him. Due to circumstances, I think I view it as a little more of an unpredictable action than you do. While you should be prepared for people to do dumb things and not see you, I personally am not going to assume every car on a side street will pull out in front of two other cars.


This is also a reminder to keep your lane position in mind in relation to being masked by other vehicles. Sometimes just shifting around in your lane will make it easier for other cars to see you when other traffic is blocking the view.

[akima]

Originally Posted by InvisiBill

While you should be prepared for people to do dumb things and not see you, I personally am not going to assume every car on a side street will pull out in front of two other cars.

That rider wrecked badly and before the wreck there was a ton of information available to him about his environment that he wasn't paying attention to. Whether the brake lights were out on the white car or not, the fact the car was braking was obvious. The information he had was slight & subtle, but I don't even consider it to be the most slight and subtle info that we (as street riders) should be look for and responding to. Every tiny change of direction or speed of the vehicles around you tells you something about the driver or the drivers intent. Even the lane position does. It hints at whether they are drunk, drugged, low-skill, in a rush, skittish etc.

For instance: if I see someone tight up against the drivers-side of the lane they're driving in there are 2 immediate thoughts I have: are they in a rush and positioning themselves for an overtake? (therefore don't overtake them). Are they a new or low-skill driver that doesn't have good special awareness and therefore is hugging that side of the road to ensure that the other side of their car isn't smashing into anything. (therefore exercise additional caution around them)

Originally Posted by InvisiBill

This is also a reminder to keep your lane position in mind in relation to being masked by other vehicles. Sometimes just shifting around in your lane will make it easier for other cars to see you when other traffic is blocking the view.

Yeah, good point.