POLITE or NOT?

[Andy044]

Is there not something that states all new bike wear must have reflective strips built into it?

 

[davey-dimples]

. See also the ****ers in German estate cars with a hi-vis over the passenger seat or on the parcel shelf. C**ts the lot of them.
]

I never thought of this before...

 

[Apis]

Is there not something that states all new bike wear must have reflective strips built into it?

Was talked about but don't think it became law yet. There's a law in Framce about it though....last time I bought a new helmet it came with two reflective stickers that you can add front and back if bought in France.

 

[Dynam0humm]

riding in that video is shocking.

This seems to be the standard response to BVG vids from most people who don't ride a bike (apologies in advance if you do). The fact is that if you study it closely and see how often the helmet mounted camera moves the guy is probably more observant of the traffic around him than 90% of the riders in the country, me included. I guess commuting into London every day hones the skills somewhat.

I never thought of this before...

Many years ago when traffic branch were using unmarked Mitsubishi Galant VR4's I pulled into the Maxol station near Abbeycentre and there was a VR4 estate sitting there with a barry'd up Corsa in front. The Corsa driver was standing next to the VR4 having a chat/bollocking but as I filled up my car I noticed that the driver of the VR4 was on his own with a hi-vis over the passenger seat, then I noticed the white shirt he was wearing was just that with no black lapels on the shoulders with numbers on. I went in and paid for my petrol and came out just in time to see the VR4 bouncing off the limiter as he pulled away with the siren on and his mate in the Corsa waving back.

I have no idea what possesses some people to take police impersonation to this level, but I'm sure it could be cured with a rusty screwdriver in the face

 

[CharlySkunkWeed]

This seems to be the standard response to BVG vids from most people who don't ride a bike (apologies in advance if you do). The fact is that if you study it closely and see how often the helmet mounted camera moves the guy is probably more observant of the traffic around him than 90% of the riders in the country, me included.

Its not how observant he is that matters though. I drive a big van and sometimes its hard keeping an eye on everyone else on the road. Say i need to swap lanes for instance , check my mirrors etc and theres just slow moving cars behind me . Then there he is bombing up the inside , squeezing through gaps , weaving through traffic thats slow moving at twice the speed of everything else. If i then make my move when (as far as i can tell)it's clear but he gets wiped out I'm sure I'd get the blame. If i drove my van like that I'd loose my license, why should another road user be any different. The reason we don't (and aren't allowed to) drive like that is because it's dangerous, so why when bikers are so vulnerable do they do it (and are allowed to). I just don't understand it.

 

[pablo]

agreed, its the same on a bicycle you can take all these chances and filter though little gaps etc but it just takes one car to do something stupid and its splat.

that guys second video is a lot better where he talks about how he rides but the first one seems a lot worse.

 

[Apis]

Its not how observant he is that matters though. I drive a big van and sometimes its hard keeping an eye on everyone else on the road. Say i need to swap lanes for instance , check my mirrors etc and theres just slow moving cars behind me . Then there he is bombing up the inside , squeezing through gaps , weaving through traffic thats slow moving at twice the speed of everything else. If i then make my move when (as far as i can tell)it's clear but he gets wiped out I'm sure I'd get the blame. If i drove my van like that I'd loose my license, why should another road user be any different. The reason we don't (and aren't allowed to) drive like that is because it's dangerous, so why when bikers are so vulnerable do they do it (and are allowed to). I just don't understand it.

Using indicators on the van for a few seconds before the move helps the bike predict what the van is intending to do.

 

[NotKG]

BVG is a well respected blogger for bike showrooms and events, he's been shipped round the world for his opinion to go online.
can't see them giving him a £25k++ panigale for to thrash about for a few weeks to do a 10 minute blog, if they thought he was dangerous.
London, is a much different style of rider altogether, and that on NI roads would be interesting, i think there would be a lot of cars blowing horns and sending videos to idiotdriversuk. when there was nothing actually done wrong.

 

[Dynam0humm]

that guys second video is a lot better where he talks about how he rides but the first one seems a lot worse.

I've just watched the first one again and I'm still not seeing anything wrong. Maybe he's a bit too eager to get to the front of the queue whereas I'd be more inclined to just wait in traffic but not once did i see him taking unnecessary risks. Every car, van or bus he passed was either stationary or had another car in the next lane preventing them from making the type of last minute direction changes as described by @CharlySkunkWeed above and even when he did pass his speed differential was maybe only 10mph faster than the traffic he was passing...

 

[Dynam0humm]

London, is a much different style of rider altogether, and that on NI roads would be interesting, i think there would be a lot of cars blowing horns and sending videos to idiotdriversuk. when there was nothing actually done wrong.

I think this is the crux of it; In London or any of the major cities in the UK it is expected that m/cycles will always be filtering. Even when you are in a car doing 60mph on the M25 there'll be bikes splitting lanes at 70 and nobody will bat an eyelid. Over here in what is just a rural outpost by comparison there's no need to filter until you get to within 2 or 3 miles of any of the major towns or cities and so the general population are shocked and surprised when you even try it.

My case in point is when travelling the 55 miles from home (N/abbey) up to the NW200 each year. All these bikers come over from the mainland and ride as they normally would, filtering and overtaking at every opportunity and any cars heading up to north coast quickly get used to it and let them get on their way. It always shocks me how local drivers suddenly become more aware of me on the bike, moving out of the way even when I have no intention of passing etc, yet a few days later and its back to every man for himself, cars clocking you in their mirrors and pulling out into the middle of the lane to stop you from filtering and w**kers beeping their horns and waving fists as you overtake them when they are stuck behind a Renault Scenic doing 40 in a 60.

 

[CharlySkunkWeed]

I'm not saying he's doing anything wrong , legally , my problem is why is it legal for bikes and not for motorists? If i have a wee car and started squeezing through gaps in traffic or weaving in and out to gain space I'd loose my license from "dangerous" driving , so it's classed as dangerous (or careless at least) . But the most vulnerable road users (bikes of either kind) can do it because suddenly it not dangerous anymore ? I would have thought bikers would have MORE restrictions on their movement for their own saftey , but instead they seem to do risky manoeuvres because "it's not illegal"

 

[PhilM]

I don't think there is any cars small enough to do what a bike is capable of doing through traffic

It's not the same thing, there is not room and we aren't allowed in bus lanes

I've never had a problem with a m/bike running through traffic they alway seem to get clear and cause other road users no real issues.

Cyclists is a different issue cause they really need to move through traffic similar to M/bikes to make half decent time but in many instances then hold up traffic the have just came past. catch 22

Phil

 

[NotKG]

but thats the point, they're not risky if done right, just because there is 1% that have something going on in their head, or on the phone in their car, or nagging going on, that someone screws up and hits a bike, or the bike mis reads the senario, i blew the horn at a fella the other day in a white amg merc in finaghy, tiny little beep to say to him i see him on the phone, and to GTF of it,,,, he started ranting and howling out the window at me that i was some road warrior and then got down and kept weaving in front of me brakechecking me, down to the roundabout at shaws bridge and then he pulled out in front of a truck that had to slam the brakes on because he was too busy ranting in his mirror at me. all on camera, i should have saved it, he was proper pulling the wheel out of the car and testing out the seat springs,, but i don't use my cam for ****ers, it's purely for accident cover.
the guy needed some serious medication for his issues. a wee toot could have just save him a fine and points, or got him flattened, or he could have knocked down a child at the school he passed.

-

 

[PhilM]

but thats the point, they're not risky if done right, just because there is 1% that have something going on in their head, or on the phone in their car, or nagging going on, that someone screws up and hits a bike, or the bike mis reads the senario, i blew the horn at a fella the other day in a white amg merc in finaghy, tiny little beep to say to him i see him on the phone, and to GTF of it,,,, he started ranting and howling out the window at me that i was some road warrior and then got down and kept weaving in front of me brakechecking me, down to the roundabout at shaws bridge and then he pulled out in front of a truck that had to slam the brakes on because he was too busy ranting in his mirror at me. all on camera, i should have saved it, he was proper pulling the wheel out of the car and testing out the seat springs,, but i don't use my cam for ****ers, it's purely for accident cover.
the guy needed some serious medication for his issues. a wee toot could have just save him a fine and points, or got him flattened, or he could have knocked down a child at the school he passed.

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In fact it just sent him into a rage

Hard to know the right thing to do.

Phil

 

[NotKG]

In fact it just sent him into a rage

Hard to know the right thing to do.

Phil

hard to know,, is true. better blowing it in a van behind them, than on the bike as i slide towards the side of them.
i'b hit a wee beep at thousands and gave then "the look" and they usually put down the phone and look the other way, i think he's the 2nd ever to react with a rage.
he's one of the 1% we've to watch for. ;-)
i do think it's mostly men too, they're macho "i'm a better driver than you are a rider" kicks in, and they go all Pete-Tong.
women just carry on doing their lippy ;-)

 

[Apis]

I don't know how you'd be bothered with any of this stuff. The average car driver is never going to care what you think about their driving anyway. Plus they feel threatened by someone in a helmet.
You have the acceleration and agility just to slip on past with as little fuss as possible, forget about it and get on with your day. Id be far more stressed sitting behind them in a car.

 

[fabiostar]

bikes can get through traffic but iv seen people get really upset. i do it most days but safely in around Belfast. a week or two ago i seen a guy in car watching me at walking pace come up through the jam, he actually moved over when the traffic moved a few feet forward to stop me going any further? then when i did manage to get level he wound the window down and started giving it large about being illegal.... lol.... he got the answer. excuse me but you stay dry and in traffic jams and get wet and get home early so go **** yourself and read the highway code....

and yes i got home before him lol

 

[Apis]

In somewhere like Paris car drivers are more pissed off with you if you DONT filter through on a bike.
And it makes sense....why would a driver want all the bikes and scooters staying in the queues making them longer.

It's like a young teenager on a cheapo pushbike I saw today, crossing through 4 lanes of traffic, manoeuvring between cars, balancing, observing, stopping and all at a decent speed with no bother to anyone. Wife says to me...look at that eegit. But I thought he was far safer, less of a nuisance and more useful on a pushbike than most of those Lycra guys with the sunglasses and carbon this and that.
But that's another rant I suppose.

 

[fabiostar]

because we have more mongs on are roads thats why they get pissed of at a bike infront of them.

 

[big cyril]

M/cycles don't hold the traffic up, don't see why people should get upset at them making progress in traffic.
Like anything though there is a safe way to go about it, pushing the limits in filtering won't gain much time, depending on everyone else doing exactly as expected is foolhardy as eventually something unexpected will happen and the rider has no safety margin.

 

[azzymo]

You aren't stuck in traffic, you ARE traffic.

I don't really get all the hate for motorcyclists and cyclists. If they were all in cars the traffic would be worse. We've a culture on our roads of not letting anyone else go ahead or get there before us therefore a lot of people are out to just get to their destination in the quickest time with no regard for anyone else they'll meet on the way.

Anyway, back to the 'Polite'. I think a bit of courtesy for all other road users goes along way!

 

[fabiostar]

That pretty much sums it up azzymo

 

[CharlySkunkWeed]

I've never had a problem with motorcyclists getting to the front , it's how they go about it. I understand that they aren't doing anything wrong or illegal. I just don't know how it isn't illegal ! They are the most vulnerable road user yet there is less restrictions on their movement than everyone else.
Am i completely wrong in this ? I don't have a vendetta against bikers , i genuinely believe that they should have the most rules to follow as they are most at risk ! Maybe it's from me doing risk assessments in work but the idea is to reduce risk by avoiding the task altogether.

 

[Gareth]

I've never had a problem with motorcyclists getting to the front , it's how they go about it. I understand that they aren't doing anything wrong or illegal. I just don't know how it isn't illegal ! They are the most vulnerable road user yet there is less restrictions on their movement than everyone else.
Am i completely wrong in this ? I don't have a vendetta against bikers , i genuinely believe that they should have the most rules to follow as they are most at risk ! Maybe it's from me doing risk assessments in work but the idea is to reduce risk by avoiding the task altogether.

Fair enough, but I'm gonna guess you don't or haven't ridden bikes for any sort of sustained period on the roads. What you see as a small pot-hole, a biker sees it as a possible accident. Risk assessment on that doesn't put the biker (engined or not) at fault, but the road services. It'd turn into a never ending circle of who is to blame.

As for legalities, filtering is 100% legal. I've commuted on loads of different types of bikes, and not one single bike deals with traffic/heat well. For me, filtering lets me skip to the front at traffic lights, get some fresh air about the bike and when the lights turn green, it lets me get some 'clean' air in through the radiator. Same applies on motorways, carriagways and side streets. Filtering only becomes a risk when other road users fail to pay attention to their surroundings. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I think every car license given to a new driver should have some sort bike part to the test. If I remember correctly, there was a study done that proved that bike riders are more 'aware' of their surrounding when driving a car than non bike riders are.

 

[CharlySkunkWeed]

Never ridden a motorbike , because i think it's too dangerous with the way people drive today. But as i said , i know the manoeuvres are legal , i just wonder how that is ! If i did ride a bike i personally wouldn't do some of the things they are "allowed" to do as i see it as an un-necessary risk.
It's all very well saying drivers should be more aware , but then why not say bikers should be even more aware as they at more risk.
I've had numerous "run ins" with bikers , most of because they were carrying out manoeuvres that left me not even knowing they were there , or not knowing where they were going. No matter how "aware" i am , if i cant see you or know which side you are passing me on there's noting i can do.
Basically it's the passing on the left and going through gaps that get me , and traveling so close behind the van that i cant see them. Other than that i have no problems.