Safe Speed Forums

I ride a motorcycle a total of 50 miles a day to and from work all year round. I only missed about 10 days over the last year because of snow or the threat of it.

However, it is now that time of year when those who only ride during the warmer, drier months, start get their bike out of the garage, wash the dust off, and get back on the road.

This week alone I have seen more bike accidents than I have since Christmas, and witnessed behaviour that makes me almost ashamed to ride a bike. I see this same pattern year in year out.

Today for example, on the A13, filtering through traffic, approaching a speed camera, a guy on an immaculate Yamaha R1 (1000cc, 20 valve, making around 160bhp), slowed for the speed camera and then once past the white lines, knocked it down a gear, lifting the front wheel and accelerating to about 60-70mph on one wheel through the middle of the traffic!!

This was the most outrageous of the things I saw, but the standard of numerous other riders I have witnessed this week has once again appalled me.

How the hell can anyone think they can get on a motorcycle after not riding it for six months and still be as sharp as they were last time they rode it?.

I know that even if I take a couple of weeks off work for a holiday, that it takes me a couple of days to get back to feeling at my best again.

This of course is all circumstantial evidence, but I am interested if there is any documented evidence in the KSI figures that there is a sudden increase in motorcycle KSIs in March/April/May?

If there is, then what if anything can be done to help prevent this?

Just my random thoughts of the day.

Regards,

Russ

I do not think their is, other than sensible policing of the mindless idiot's.

Unfortunatly we are pretty much down to speed cameras, which simply do not pick detect or prevent it.

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Steve

Getting the bike out this week end for the first time since Christmas. I have done some winter riding in the warmer parts of the US this year so I am not out of practice but it still takes a couple of hours to get in the groove.

The biggest mistake it to try and keep up another rider straight away. Especialy if they like the twisty bits.

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Speed camera policy Kills

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I caught just the tail end of a new THINK TV commercial a couple of days ago; it appeared to be aimed at the 'born again biker'.
Anyone else see and/or confirm this?

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Advert says: "You don't get warnings like these in the real world" (or similar). I always want to scream at the screen - YES YOU DO!

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Paul Smith
Our scrap speed cameras petition got over 28,000 sigs
The Safe Speed campaign demands a return to intelligent road safety

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Wow.. there are a few gems hidden away in there!



Doesn't this exactly support the "Safespeed" philosophy??

Russ

If I remember the sample group were MAG members - who in my experience are regular daily bikers.

The example Russ talks about is probably one of the 'leisure bikers' who wouldn't see "safe speed" in terms of hazard perception / risk assessment for the circumstances, but just wants to show off as much as possible on the few occasions they actually take the bike out. (an R1 or R6 is often the clue)

As an anecdote on Saturday (sunny & warm) a guy on mint Ducati with just helmet, jacket & jeans overtook me and then another car in front just as they were both passing a junction on the right hand side

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Bill

All great journeys begin with a single step

And I bet you a whole jam tart (thats pretty serious mind you) that the majority of KSI's on motorcycles at this time of year are single vehicle and occur on a bend. Normally caused by panic braking due to over estimating the correct speed. Panic braking - bike stands up and hedge is the next thing you see.

I ride all year round, and I am also amazed by the antics of those who have just dusted their bike off after a winter lay up.

Ride all year round, and your vehicle control and hazard perception will be far better anyway.

Lightweight summer riders

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"Are you sh**ing me?"
"John Spartan, you are fined one credit for a violation of the verbal morality statute."

I thought that, but then I thought again and realised that this is perhaps exactly what the advert is supposed to make you say. Look at it that way it does actually get the message across.

Damn sight better than the usual "slow down / obey the speed limit" stuff anyway...

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CSCP Latin for beginners...
Ticketo ergo sum : I scam therefore I am!

I have been driving for 17 years without accident of conviction including 10 years as a commercial driver “vans and light goods” but only started riding in January of this year in an attempt to get the fuck off public transport and reduce my journey times.

Well I worked I did a DAC and passed on the 15 of March and have been happily commuting into London since January on my 125cc bike and now my “new shiny thing” the cbf600 with abs.

And I can’t believe the number of complete idiots I have seen come out in the last week or so. Hell I am new to ridding but holy crap I have seen some really bad riding from so called “experienced” riders on big bikes let alone the idiots that think taking a scooter that will barely do 30mph and trying to pass between two Lories going 25mph around a corner side by side is a good idea for a long life.

But still after reading that report I find it quite scary that baring rider error on corners I am most likely to be the victim to a ROWV made by vehicle through no fault of my own.

And worse than that there is very little evidence that even if I was a mobile charismas tree any one would even see me.

So with all that in mind I will continue to ride as if no one has seen me and every one is out to kill me and just hope my high visibility vest lights reflectors will get noticed by some people at least.

Still speed cameras will save me

NOT

Just a quick follow up..

In the time since I made this post, I have seen the same several times more, and on every occasion he has been driving in exactly the same manner. The last time I saw him, earlier this week, he was again approaching the same speed camera, but this time he wheelied at about 80mph before the camera, and then slammed on the anchors trying to leave it as late as possible before braking. Of course this ended up with a huge fishtail slide..

So what does this tell us?

He always rides like a complete prat.
He treats speed cameras as something to be toyed with.
The threat of being seen and caught by traffic police is so low as not to influence his behaviour.

I'd give him a life expectancy of less than six months.. No matter how good you are, you just can't keep taking those kind of risks and getting away with them!

Russ..

I'd like to throw in an opposing view-point here, based on personal experience, just to play devil's advocate.

I've been riding bikes for 20 years now starting on my little 50cc moped when I was 16 and currently riding a recent issue 1000cc sports-bike. I ride all year round virtually every day to about 15Kmiles p/a (around 5 times the average annual mileage for a bike like mine) - I don't have a car licence.

I've found it increasingly difficult to adjust to coming out of winter. The months of cold, slime and salt have an effect on my perceptions of the machine's capabilities which I'm increasingly coming to believe is a cumulative one.

I don't trust my tyres to grip, despite the fact that I know that they are incredibly sticky, because months of winter riding has made me paranoid about grip levels. I don't feel I can fully utilise the power of my brakes since I've been conditioned to feel the front end letting go on winter roads with moderate pressure from one finger on the lever. I have serious difficulty these days trusting the ability of my equipment because I spend so much time riding in conditions where the gap between the machine's potential performance and the necessities of keeping it shiny-side-up is so large.

I don't know if it's true, but I wouldn't bet against Mr. Fair-Weather-Only being able to brake or steer his way out of trouble more effectively than myself.