Motorcycle safety ad

[vavision]

My girlfriend was laughing at this because of the british accents... oh silly girlfriend

http://www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk/campaigns/motorcycles/media/howclose.mpg

[Lucky]

disturbing...

[Tiger]

 :o WOOOOOOOOOOOW !!!!!!!!? ?:o I would wish that EVERY North American television station would play this add'. WOOOOW? :o
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?Tiger.

[Mutt]

This ad would leave a lasting impression on non-riders.

I was watching some reality show one time (ER thing) and this same thing happened to a rider in California. He hit right in the passenger side door of a pickup. He wasn't wearing a helmet. By the time the rescue squad got there he was dead but what was amazing was the size and color of his head. His entire head had swollen to enormous size and it was all raisin purple. It looked like an alien head had replaced a human head.

That left an impression.

Mutt

[kiawrench]

 i watched it , i saved it , i sat down with both of my driving teens and a friend and made thenm watch it about 20 times,,,

    and it is on my work laptop,so can show it to guys at work, esp the two younger ones ,,,, that ad drives home a point, really hard.

   the US needs to step into this type of advertising like the rest of the world .Ads like these make the point a bit harshly, but it makes you  think, and thinking works better than "oh! i am sorry." when a single act can kill

[Tiger]

 :) I agree with you K.W. One of my buddies moms was a nurse in emegency,back in the U.K. and she told us about a guy who went head first off his bike into a street lamp. Same thing,massive head swelling,purple palour to the skin,she went into fairly graphic detail. I was 16 years old and had just started riding !!! Brings back the shivers.
I've done my 3 months stint in hospital after a road accident,10 months learning to walk again,2 1/2 years off work.NOT reccomended ?::).
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?Tiger

[Paul_Jungnitsch]

Jeez, that really made me jump. Look but not look, everyone does it, especially when tired or when doing a habitual route.

Was thinking of getting this: http://www.aerostich.com/catalog/US/Aerostich-DarienLight-Jacket-p-16377.html

I had a overjacket of the same bright yellow color when bicycling the last couple winters, and it was amazing how much better the cars saw me.

[Coil Coyle]

Paul,
? ? ? ? ? ?I keep thinking about the yellow Aerostich too...?

???? $700.00</=/> my life? ??? Should be easy decision but, goodness gracious, that's expensive!

Are they rain proof like they claim? Any body owned an Aerostich of any color?
???
coil

[Tiger]

 :) I like the idea of bright colours? 8) but there is a lack of body armour in that jacket? :o .

[Lucky]

A hit like that & i doubt any amount of body armor will let you walk away...
Anytime you can increase visibility, bright colors, flashing/additional lights & volume helps AVIOD the crash.  (i know, not everyone agrees about the pipes)

You know what the bottom line is? that crash is the RIDERS fault.
It is his resonisibility to S.I.P.D.E.
IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT IS YOU DON'T BELONG RIDEING ON THE STREET.

I NEVER want to hear about one of you guys having to be carried out....

--Lucky

[Paul_Jungnitsch]

As far as aerostich suits go, I've owned a black one-peice for the last ten years about. It's been an excellent purchase, and the cost wasn't much more then I'd spent on leathers and rainsuits previously. Very reassuring to be surrounded by body armour like that, and the waterproofness is excellent, no more stopping to dig out the rain suit.

Warm in town though and a bit clumsy to walk around in (think tailored/armoured skidoo suit).

Thinking the Darien light jacket in HiViz yellow w/o liner would be cooler and good to commute/run around town in. OTOH everyone says you get mistaken for a fireman or something when you walk into a store, but I sure like being seen in commuter traffic.

[Paul_Jungnitsch]

You know what the bottom line is? that crash is the RIDERS fault.

I know what you are saying but, if someone turns in front of you at the last minute like that, there's not a lot of options.

I had a lady do the same to me in Quebec. I could see her look at me, she pulled out anyway, then her brain kicked in, and she panicked and actually stopped, right across the intersection. I was pretty much screwed.

My Vision left a streak of black rubber all down that Gaspe highway, luckily it stopped in time, me watching her eyes get wider and wider.

[QBS]

When I approach an uncontrolled intersection where a car is waiting to enter, I always slow way down and approach at a speed that is so slow that no matter what the driver may do, I have viable avoidance options.  You never go flying through uncontrolled intersections where cars are waiting.  Control your own destiny.  Don't put it in a strangers hands.

[Coil Coyle]

Thinking the Darien light jacket in HiViz yellow w/o liner would be cooler and good to commute/run around town in. OTOH everyone says you get mistaken for a fireman or something when you walk into a store, but I sure like being seen in commuter traffic.

Paul,
        I have been asked about being a fireman several times in Dentist and Doctor offices with the  Yellow / Black Joe Rocket jacket. I use the oportunity to share the idea of motorcycle awareness with whomever asks.

[Coil Coyle]

When I approach an uncontrolled intersection where a car is waiting to enter, I always slow way down and approach at a speed that is so slow that no matter what the driver may do, I have viable avoidance options.? You never go flying through uncontrolled intersections where cars are waiting.? Control your own destiny.? Don't put it in a strangers hands.

QBS,
? ? ? ? I agree with your intersection strategy and use it for oncoming left turns too.
? ? ? ? I also flash my light Hi / Lo and weave a little, the first weave toward the vehicle that is a threat. I got the weave idea from someones post here,? ;)? then experience taught me the direction the first weave should be.
? ? ? ? I think the mind of the driver that is going to accidently kill you is busy calculating a balance between their personal schedule, which requires them to cross in front of your path, and your rights of way.? In this equation you are of little relative worth.? :-[ They often pull into your path.?
? ? ? ? :o? But when you weave toward them, there is an instant in which their animal instincts for survival assert themselves.? :o You might be out of control and heading at them! This brief flicker interupts their ego's need for haste with a concern for their immediate safety. They resolve this crisis by sitting still and watching carefully.
? ? ? ?Literally, it changes the other drivers channel!!!! ;)
? ? ? ?All of my commuting, rain,fog or shine, is by motorcycle on two lane country roads into 4 lane stop light suburbs. In the year since I read this strategy and started using it, I have not seen one front wheel creep forward on a side road or, on a left turn, steer even slightly more after I have steered at them.
? ? ? ?You can watch the driver as you travel safely by and see that they are carefully avoiding you by staying still.
? ? ? ?Before learning this strategy, I would often cross eyes with a driver, feel they had seen me, and then have them turn into my path or pull out anyway.? :o
? ? ? The weave changes their channel.
? ? ? Please,Do not believe me, try it until you prove to yourself that I am wrong
:-\
$.02
coil?

[Walt_M.]

The biggest problem with drivers is they are looking for threatening situations. An 18 wheeler at 1/4 of a mile may look like a threat while a 2 wheeler at 50 yards may not. If you have time to think about weaving toward an approaching car, you have time to control your own speed and position.
Remember, the only vehicle that you can control on the road is your own!

[Mutt]

When I think back on all my close calls over the last 24 years (been a few) I can truly say that almost everyone of them was either my fault or something that I could have avoided by taking proper precautions. Only one where I was hit from the rear by a drunk driver at a toll booth could I not have avoided or controlled.

On another note, the guy I bought my first motorcycle from was killed in a car wreck the very evening I bought the bike from him. Just a strange coincidence I know. The ironic thing is his wife wanted him to sell the bike because she was afraid he would get hurt or killed on it.

Mutt

[QBS]

Paul J. you wrote that you left a long streak of black rubber on the highway.  This may indicate that you were relying on the rear brake for your primary stopping power.  If so, please consider using the front brake as primary.  It will dramtically shorten your stopping distances.  Cheers.

[Kenny]

 Hi Coil,
     I have an Aerostich suit  and have used it for crossing Canada & back five different times. I am very impressed with this suite,I have never got wet & my last trip  out of 13 days I had one  day that was rain free.
   In 1999 I left home at 06:00 for a trip to the west coast on my R100rs I was on the road for two hours- it was foggy vis about 1/4 mile I slowed down as I was approaching an intersection.On my left side was a Coca cola truck stopped & waiting to make a left turn-as I passed the front of his truck a " K " car was turning left & we met ,I left the scene and flew through the air and landed on all fours on the other side of the intersection, I feel this is one situation were High Vis clothing would not have been helpful. I was at the time in full leathers & not seriously hurt but the bike was writen off .I have since rebuilt it & now will not pass through the inersection unless I can see all the variables. I too like to weave a bit if I see a car turning left towards me. Ride Safe Kenny     

[squid]

Ive had my rear wheel lock up under a hard braking situation, any hard on the front brake and she would have locked, but I think the reason the rear locked and left a stripe was cause of the weight transfer and well I didnt feel like hitting the deer that appeared out of nowhere,,,,another tip that i have learned about deer standing on the road at night,,,,in a car or on a bike,,,wait untill the last possible second before swerving to avoid it,,,,this is the theory,,,
you have no clue which way it is going to go,,,could be right could be left,,your headlights are magnets to them and alot of the time they will go the same way as the headlights if you swerve early,, if you see them and reduce your speed, and buy your time, you have a better chance of anticapating which way its gunna go, and as you get closer, chances are its going to go the oppsite way,,
A friend of mine is an O.P.P. officer way up north, and gave me that advice, he has seen too many people killed and gave me that advice,,,ive used it many times and its been more than effective.