close call and glad changed my rear PR4 last month,,,

[2007Z6ALL-LED]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UbRQXNnB-Q"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UbRQXNnB-Q[/ame]

This was in Century City (Los Angeles West/Beverly Hills area, yes I work there and I live in Cerritos, 70mile/day commute ,,that's why I ride motorcycle to work)

Phewss...saved by Michelin PR4 rear/PR3 front and some counter steering skill? or maybe I was lucky..

My bike was skidded about 3-4 feet I could feel the rear was dragged to the right and my handle control was automatically steered/turned to the right too and skidding 3-4 feet..the traffic speed was slow, it was around 25mph/35mph so if there were accident it wouldn't have been that bad.
I applied both brake, I heard, felt the rear brake was locked the front was squeezed strong enough not to lock so I could do the counter steering and skidded about 3-4 feet.

I remember that I didn't feel nervous at all during that time as I was trying to brake and control the bike not to hit the cager and not to fall by the braking, skidding and locking...the whole thing happened so fast although traffic was around 25-35mph local.

Thanks for giving me a second chance to go home safe! I will be more careful when filtering and lane splitting next time, this is the lesson for me though!

 

[nivag]

Nice save !!

What are you using to get the overlay on the video?

 

[iSteve]

You really can't blame the driver of the car for this. You need to use caution when approaching intersections especially when traffic in the other lanes are stopped. Also it's a good idea to use your directional when changing lanes.

 

[outasight20]

Glad you made it out without incident, but this whole thing could have been avoided by paying more attention, assuming less, and expecting more.

 

[dbldutch02]

In fairness to the OP, he doesn't suggest it was the cager's fault. Sure, wondering why the van was stopping to leave the junction free would have given the chance to act rather than react, but nice save nonetheless - always good to learn something without getting hurt

 

[eeyore]

In fairness to the OP, he doesn't suggest it was the cager's fault. Sure, wondering why the van was stopping to leave the junction free would have given the chance to act rather than react, but nice save nonetheless - always good to learn something without getting hurt

Couldnt agree more. I would of gave that van driver an earful for sure.

 

[dbldutch02]

Couldnt agree more. I would of gave that van driver an earful for sure.

That's not what I said, the van driver was quite correct to leave the junction free, the rider should have anticipated that he did so for a reason.

 

[eeyore]

That's not what I said, the van driver was quite correct to leave the junction free, the rider should have anticipated that he did so for a reason.

IMHO you are wrong about the van being right to stop there. He had no right to stop and let a car cross over 2 lanes of traffic. One of which being blind for both the rider and the driver of the car. Looks to me that this is not a lighted intersection nor was there a stop sign. That van was in the wrong for stopping just to let someone go. Thats how accidents are caused and the rider was very lucky to avoid serious injury.

 

[trepetti]

Any landing you can walk away from is a good landing. And sometimes an excellent lesson as well. Most accidents are preventable and usually offer us a peek at gaps in our style. Glad you are ok.

On another note, the video overlay is from Sony's PlayMemories software when used with a Sony GPS enabled camera. I know. I got one. [emoji1]

 

[FinalImpact]

Busy place there and for cycle to survive, you have to read the traffic. That whole event could have been avoided IMO.
Glad you're OK...

 

[Motogiro]

Glad you're safe. Anytime you're in that right lane (unless left hand country) you have more to contend with in regard to activity to and from side streets and cars leaving or stopping to park.

I agree the van did nothing wrong. The vehicles to the left (a car and van) were being courteous and allowing that car to pass. There was also a car stopped and waiting to make a left from from your direction. This is very common traffic behavior.

Being in the right lane and passing slow or stopped traffic to the left is going to increase your percentages if a mishap. You have a van that is stopping and blocking your view.

I've seen a test dummy(without a seat belt) video of 5 MPH impacts that put the dummy's head into the windshield cracking the windshield. An impact at the speed your going in the video could yield some very serious injuries.

Practice seeing the hole. You have an immediate hole (to your left) as that car cuts across your path. That hole is often, if not, more important than your braking. When you lock your rear you've lost one of your gyroscopes and the bike is now more unstable and less maneuverable.

I'm always more nervous in traffic! Be safe!

 

[Motogiro]

IMHO you are wrong about the van being right to stop there. He had no right to stop and let a car cross over 2 lanes of traffic. One of which being blind for both the rider and the driver of the car. Looks to me that this is not a lighted intersection nor was there a stop sign. That van was in the wrong for stopping just to let someone go. Thats how accidents are caused and the rider was very lucky to avoid serious injury.

There are 2 other vehicles already stopped to the left of the van and the car that is making the turn may have already started it's move, giving the van operator reason to stop.

Passing slower traffic(on the left) as you travel in the very right lane will put you in these scenarios.

 

[ChanceCoats123]

Glad you're safe. Anytime you're in that right lane (unless left hand country) you have more to contend with with in regard to activity to and from side streets and cars leaving or stopping to park.

I agree the van did nothing wrong. The vehicles to the left (a car and van) were being courteous and allowing that car to pass. There was also a car stopped and waiting to make a left from from your direction. This is very common traffic behavior.

Being in the right lane and passing slow or stopped traffic to the left is going to increase your percentages if a mishap. You have a van that is stopping and blocking your view.

I've seen a test dummy(without a seat belt) video of 5 MPH impacts that put the dummy's head into the windshield cracking the windshield. An impact at the speed your going in the video could yield some very serious injuries.

Practice seeing the hole. You have an immediate hole (to your left) as that car cuts across your path. That hole is often, if not, more important than your braking. When you lock your rear you've lost one of your gyroscopes and the bike is now more unstable and less maneuverable.

I'm always more nervous in traffic! Be safe!

I couldn't agree more. That was very well said, Cliff.

 

[FinalImpact]

*** SNIP ***
Being in the right lane and passing slow or stopped traffic to the left is going to increase your percentages if a mishap. You have a van that is stopping and blocking your view.


Practice seeing the hole. You have an immediate hole (to your left) as that car cuts across your path. That hole is often, if not, more important than your braking. When you lock your rear you've lost one of your gyroscopes and the bike is now more unstable and less maneuverable.

There's a highway just like that here; sometimes its PED crossing and other times its a cage. Either case, to often those folks on the right are blazing along oblivious to the parked vehicles on the left only to live out the stuff nightmares are made of and be scared to death ((AND SOMETIMES rearended)) as they panic and cause these mishaps. These are avoidable incidences.

In addition to the obvious, pay attention to WHO is in front of you and behind you. i.e. a teen with a fresh license, old folk, distracted drivers. These all play a factor in your daily commute and getting to your destination safely. Had that been a car AND they STOPPED, a rider must leave enough space or cushion for everyone to stop w/out being harmed.

 

[2007Z6ALL-LED]

All of you guys' input are great lessons! I enjoy reading them and learning from those.

Thanks so much for sharing your opinion, idea, and experience in this.

I will be more careful since the Los Angeles traffic locals, 105/405 as I always travel in bumper to bumper traffic..perhaps slower speed could have saved, avoided ..(usually I rode 25-28mph during that time traffic,,not sure why I got excited to ride it faster than I normally did..)

Thx,
jh

 

[VEGASRIDER]

This is a perfect training video on why you have to pay attention to the holes, gap or whatever you want to call it. Don't be upset about the drivers, be upset about yourself. Drivers think they are doing someone a favor by stopping and letting someone through, despite that there is another lane wide open in which traffic has the right of way. It's important to identify this as a rider, especially if you are riding in the right lane.

However, if it were me, I would have not run the yellow, and even if I did, I would have recognized the gap and would have already slowed down while covering my horn expecting the obvious. Therefore I would have never had to apply a quick stop. This is why riders need to rely more on their mental skills rather than the physical skills, because the OP didn't recognize the potential hazard in the gap which is a mental skill, the rider had to rely on his physical skills, which I credit for him not slamming on the front brakes. I think most riders in this situation would grab and slam on the front brakes and end up lowsiding and crashing on their own.

If the OP skidded the rear brakes, there is room for improvement as maximum braking is applying both brakes without skidding. Might want to find an open parking lot and practice. By the way, in the event your rear brake locks up, if your bike is still aligned with the front, release and reapply if you have time.

By the way, I would like to know more about the video setup, I love how it shows your speed, etc. Probably the most impressive video I've seen, thanks for posting and glad everything came out incident free.

 

[kenh]

First, I would like to thank the OP for posting the vid, it really has been a long Winter here in the Midwest. These are terrific opportunities for everybody to view and post their replies and comments. I am no different in this regard. Passing slowed or stopped vehicles always has inherent risks, however passing on the right with traffic stopped to your left obscures your presence to oncoming vehicles and in this case I believe that the Lincoln didn't see you because of the van. That said, you have a long commute and it really pays to know your route, meaning traffic patterns, light cycles and potentially trouble areas. Its not all bad though, you found your braking threshold and you kept your wits about you and what I've noticed is that any expletives that I may shout at an errant driver are really never heard by anyone with your helmet on. But it makes me feel better anyway....:spank:

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Down here, by law, your not supposed to stop in the middle of an intersection.

Even if the stopped driver/operator waves a car thru, its ultimatly the driver crossings responsibility. He needs to make sure the way is clear or its a simple "right of way violation". That car obviously didn't see the curb lane traffic and took his chances.

In your case, you had the right of way BUT that won't stop a wreck/you get hurt, etc. Glad you were able to stop and wasn't going any faster..

**Defensive driving is NOT required/mandated however anticipating the potential "violation right of way situation", slowing down prior, covering brakes, looking for a potential way out, etc, does indeed pay off..

With that said, I've worked easily dozens of wrecks, exact same situation, with cars AND bikes (one fatal) thru out my prior law enforcment carreer.

The situation can be easily avoided in most cases just slowing with traffic (even thou the lane is clear) and is just one part of riding like your invisable.

 

[crazydmc]

I don't get mad at the cars, it is up to me to stay alive
--I don't like the term "cagers" anyway... I drive cars too and motorcycles surprise me all the time.

Driving with High beams on in traffic... annoys the "cagers" and they will hit their brakes in front of you for it...

when approaching intersections where you see someone thinking of pulling in front of you... bump your throttle a couple times which "flashes" your headlights... you'd be surprised how well this works.

You can't stop a bike with the rear wheel... you slid right through what would have been the accident scene if that driver had stopped
--gotta use front brake.. rear brakes are for sitting at the light (oh no he didn't )

 

[FIZZER6]

Good save! Reaction time was good though I agree this could have been avoided.

As I watched the video I put myself on your bike and asked myself "Ok, what would I do if I was thrown into this riding situation?"

Right away as you moved to the far right lane and were easily doing 20 mph faster than traffic and then I saw brake lights ahead my first instinct was SLOW DOWN! I saw the stopped Van and the blind intersection was a huge RED WARNING to me. It's easy to slow down and speed up on a bike, use it to your advantage! For every 5 miles faster than traffic you are riding your chances of an accident at least double. Ride safe. :thumbup: