Three bikers on the A1(M) this afternoon were undertaking in fast-moving traffic to make progress.
It's a two lane road, and I don't think you can accuse the car drivers of hogging lane two because they were all gaining on slower moving traffic in lane one.
There was room to undertake in the sense no lane two drivers had to brake for the bikers.
I think one of them was teeing me up, but reaching the A66 junction which they all took, meant I wasn't undertaken.
They were taking a risk with their licences, I've heard of undertakes in similar circumstances charged as due care and attention.
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Living in the sticks too long. Bikes underake at speed between lanes 3/4 and 2/3 on any crowded south east motorawy. Always have done.,
Bikers never get done for it unless they are dangerously weaving,
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It happens here as well, I partaken, but I feel it's a risky thing - maybe too old and not so bold.
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Good drivers learn to cope and anticipate, good riders spot the good drivers,
Surprising number of cars round here widen any available gap to let a biker slip through, even at motorway speeds
Last edited by: Zero on Mon 24 Oct 11 at 19:34
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>> Surprising number of cars round here widen any available gap to let a biker slip through, >>even at motorway speeds
>>
I certainly try to make space for bikers.
Provided it is safe I seen no point in holding them up. It gets them out of my mirrors.
Most bikers lift their left hand a few inches to say thanks and that means we are all happy.
No hand signal and I am still happy as the biker may have his/her full attention ahead.
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Bikes are enviable in dense outer-London traffic. They can weave and undertake so much more easily than one can in a car. Most proper bikers never look dangerous doing it either. I am seldom taken by surprise by one.
Pizza kamikazes are another matter though. One went round the outside of me on a blind London left, quickly followed by a right, a place I know very well, last night. I hadn't seen him coming either. I know the place and if some people, even me in certain moods, had been coming the other way it could have got nasty.
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Driving into a tunnel in Munich the other day, noticed a biker on some huge machine to my offside. I'm always wary of bikers - lots of inexperienced middle aged organ donors out and about in the Alps on sunny days. Anyway, as we entered the tunnel I noticed him holding back, leaving a largish gap between him and the traffic in front. Then he opened the throttle and, with the engine screaming like a banshee, shot down the tunnel - whilst pulling a wheelie!
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>> whilst pulling a wheelie!
I love it when they do that, especially in dense traffic. Lifts the heart of any Toad.
There was this motley band of bikers from Harrow or somewherre that used to come through my old London manor sometimes. They were terrific, just the right side of outrageous. The one who did the 100-yard wheelies was black.
They had some eight-to-15 apprentices in my immediate neighbourhood on pushbikes. The stunt nippers. They went through busy Ladbroke Grove traffic and pedestrians like a bunch of whooping little knives through trembling urban butter.
Goodness how I miss them down here in the sticks.
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I used to do that tunnels on the VFR800 - banshee howl when that VTEC went on cam - not quite the same on a big thumping boxer twin..
I agree with Zero - one thing about being a biker you learn to read the "body language" of cars - separate the real drivers from the texting, coffee drinking, newspaper readers masses and you start eliminating the risk. I referred a couple of weeks ago about a BMW 320 driver I met on the A55 - switched on proper driver, he wouldn't have put himself in the position of having to be overtaken on the inside, same for an ST500 (female driving) clearly switched on when I encountered her on the way to the English borderlands, you spot them, analyze them and then deal with them as seen fit.
I really like good drivers - coming home from the theater the other night, I was followed by a Mondeo or Focus, slotting in and out of the sloths, he followed me overtake for overtake - I thrive on that.
Last edited by: R.P. on Mon 24 Oct 11 at 19:58
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>> I used to do that tunnels on the VFR800
Bike spotting is not one of my strong points, but it looked something like that. Wasn't a BMW anyway - even I could see that.
Anyway these are always good excuses to discuss fine machinery with my wife and extend the useful vocabulary of our 2 year old daughter. I don't miss an opportunity to point out the V12 Ferraris showing off in the tunnels (and there are a lot of tunnels in Munich these days).
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Is it illegal to undertake?
I don't just mean the highway code definition of 'two or more lanes of slow moving traffic'.
I was coming down a winding A road recently at an enjoyable pace. I could see a 'bike catching me. I got caught behind a queue of several cars and knew there was no point in attempting the overtake as we were approaching a series of villages with 30MPH limits and there wasn't any real overtaking opportunities between. Besides which, it would probably be seen as an aggressive move to gain one or two places in the queue. The 'bike made no attempt to pass me, despite me giving him a large gap in front. He stayed resolutely behind me through the villages. He finally overtook as we reached a short straight where I'd increased my gap to the car in front. He then turned his body left and gave me the cheeriest wave I could wish for. I'd have been more than happy with the lift of his little finger of his clutch hand.
Pat. He may have been a she!
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If you use your mirrors and windows for their intended purpose, bikes are rarely a problem. I make room for them when I can. Why not? Some of them even seem to appreciate it.
Anyway, hittng one would make a nasty mess of the paintwork I expect and I dislike washing the car more than once a week.
:-)
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Cobblers - I've just had my bike boots heeled today ! :-)
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Try putting your feet on the pegs? Most boys of your age have dumped the stabilisers.
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Well they are 10 years old with around 40k on them !
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>> Try putting your feet on the pegs? Most boys of your age have dumped the
>> stabilisers.
>>
That's one thing I can't stand.... foot dragger's!
My feet are normally on the pegs as the bike moves off, and touch the floor as I stop.
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Aren't you supposed to take your feet off the ground when on a bike? Only asking...
:-)
Edit - Seems even "not so great minds"....
:-)
Last edited by: Humph D'Bout on Mon 24 Oct 11 at 21:19
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blame the Scottish education, just that minute behind.
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Had to go outside with a torch to have another look at my new shed. I'm sure that counts as an excuse? It has a built in kennel, a verandah and everything you know.
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Your poor dog lives outside in a mock Tudor multipurpose garden shed ?
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Nah, it's just a day thing. Nothing mock about this baby. Getting some yacht varnish for it tomorrow. No mean spirited mock creosote for this...I might move in.
Whoops sorry Iffy. Drifted off there.
:-)
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As I said talking cobblers - I was chatting to the cobblerette and pointing out the work that needed to be done - the left hand heel was significantly more worn down than the right ( LH being the "landing" foot so to speak) - Triumph branded boots bought for 1/2 price in a sale in 2001 - sort of boots you can walk around in all day (and I have) without causing the strange gait that a lot of bikers have to adopt...
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>> gait that a lot of bikers have to adopt...
The funky gibbon? Yeah helped by leathers that are too tight round the crutch and a strange hump on the back
One of the reasons I have never stepped back on a bike, is the carp you have to wear. Biking really was fun with boots, jeans and a denim jacket.
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>> One of the reasons I have never stepped back on a bike, is the carp
>> you have to wear. Biking really was fun with boots, jeans and a denim jacket.
>>
I always wore a leather jacket and I later added leather trousers to the mix. Took 6 months for the ruddy skin to finish growing back across my kneecaps properly it did.
Nothing worse than having to unstick your trousers from your knees every time you stand up.....
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>> I always wore a leather jacket and I later added leather trousers to the mix.
>> Took 6 months for the ruddy skin to finish growing back across my kneecaps properly
>> it did.
>> Nothing worse than having to unstick your trousers from your knees every time you stand
>> up.....
Been there, done that. The trick is to learn how to roll and tumble, and not slide.
Oh, and don't try to stand up too quickly, I did that and tumbled another 15 feet because I hadn't stopped.
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>> Oh, and don't try to stand up too quickly, I did that and tumbled another
>> 15 feet because I hadn't stopped.
>>
I've done that when skiing. Probably doesn't hurt as much. :-)
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More likely to be the leather romper suit making you walk funny...
Edit - Sheeesh !
Last edited by: Humph D'Bout on Mon 24 Oct 11 at 21:35
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I've done miles of ' filtering ' in this country.......I think it's illegal abroad. The great majority of drivers seem to expect bikes to appear when in big queues and most give a little more gap if they can.
The faster get-away of the bike means you can use the gap in front of a car which isn't so quick on the getaway.
Only a month ago I did a filter of about 2 miles on the Shrewsbury by-pass......I reckon I saved about 30 minutes in the morning rush hour. Almost all the traffic turned left at the end of the by-pass to get into town but I was released, alone, onto the A49 for a fast trip north.....Classic FM in me headphones !
What better way to enjoy the road .
Ted
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I used tonhate filtering on the RT - the fairing made itnfeel very large especially when the panniers were attached - the GS with its extra wide bars is another matter - that thing is so perfectly balanced it's like a giant 125 in town
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White fairing, white panniers, white back-box and helmet.
Who needs blues and twos?
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Could one of you bike riders answer this one please? When in traffic is constant use of the clutch very tiring on your hand? If so, another reason for keeping on the move as much as possible.
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Never given it much thought - the BM will trickle through traffic at a very low speed - my first one had an "enduro" first gear ratio - allowing minimal use of the clutch - although stopping in traffic does entail disengaging the clutch of course..
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>> Could one of you bike riders answer this one please? When in traffic is constant
>> use of the clutch very tiring on your hand? If so, another reason for keeping
>> on the move as much as possible.
>>
Depends on the bike.
Sportsbikes can push your weight onto the wrists, you can easily spot the riders, they have a left forearm like Popeye.
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>> Sportsbikes can push your weight onto the wrists, you can easily spot the riders, they
>> have a left forearm like Popeye.
>>
That's because they can't count to 99......... ;-)
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Told you there was "diversity' (in the old fashioned sense of the word)
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Nah, it's because they ride instead of pose:)
Pat
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>> White fairing, white panniers, white back-box and helmet.
>>
>> Who needs blues and twos?
>>
I once had a colleague who rode a bike like that. He was pulled and questioned about impersonating a police officer when spotted on cctv riding (legally) into a town way out of his usual area.
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Motorcycling is hugely diverse, like any hobby, the ones I know regard the Mock Coppers as a certain "type" best avoided. They tend to have a style of riding and talking down to people - difficult to impart a sneer on here !
Last edited by: R.P. on Tue 25 Oct 11 at 09:27
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>> Motorcycling is hugely diverse, like any hobby, the ones I know regard the Mock Coppers
>> as a certain "type" best avoided. They tend to have a style of riding and
>> talking down to people - difficult to impart a sneer on here !
>>
That would sum up the guy I was thinking of. :-)
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I knew a bloke who drove a late-model Ford Escort as a minicab. It was tidy, newish and he wore a suit to get the plum jobs. As it was also white and sported an orange stripe down the side, it bore a passing resemblance to a "jam sandwich", an effect enhanced by having a big bloke in a suit behind the wheel.
He used to laugh like a drain to see people "ram on" whenever he pulled out behind them at night....
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My white VW Jetta sometime had that effect when it had the ski rack fitted and I was catching up on someone. :-)
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In my sojourn as a motorcycle courier in the 80's I would certainly use filtering . I did on occasion even to ride on pavements (slowly with feet down) and through alleyways not designed for traffic when the route was solid with cars .The occasional trip the wrong side of a keep left bollard was not unknown when it was obvious nothing was coming in the opposite direction....the trick was to be alert at all times.
In London rush hour traffic generally I was overtaking on the outside of slow moving or stopped traffic to reach the head of the queue at traffic lights keeping a sharp eye to the left for the traffic emerging from side streets on the left. I did once get knocked off by a Merc suddenly deciding to do a U turn in front of me on the Mall when traffic was jammed, luckily without serious injury and I managed to avoid one plonker who decided to open his door and empty his ashtray while sitting in stationary traffic........
As the majority of my work was in London ,the trick was not to have a big wide panniered bike but a narrow 250cc with top box. I had an MZ which was basic, comfortable , cheap and easy to repair but fast enough to make progress round town and on the motorway.
I remember one evening heading back from Slough to Reigate through an 18 mile traffic jam on the M25 and just thanking my lucky stars I was on a bike.
I do not condone that sort of riding but I was not the only one...
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...In my sojourn as a motorcycle courier in the 80's...
Was that to fund the pilot's the licence?
I worked for a company which used couriers a lot.
They rarely had time to stop for a chat, but those that did often had an interesting story to tell as to why they were doing the job.
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>> I really like good drivers - coming home from the theater the other night, I was followed by a Mondeo or
>> Focus, slotting in and out of the sloths, he followed me overtake for overtake - I thrive on that.
I've been both the leader and the follower in situations like that. On a fast sweeping road the leading car can, by their road positioning, indicate the continuing lack of oncoming traffic to allow the following press-on motorists to pass an extra vehicle or three, where forward visibility alone doesn't permit. Three of us used to regularly "make progress" from one end of the A600 to the other at a steady 20mph faster than all the other traffic, those were the days ;)
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A few of us ended up in a field doing that. The leading 'bike decided he was going a little too fast for a bend and opted for the open gate to a field - we all followed!
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I used to go to races with a group of colleagues - I hated being "tail end charlie" as this ended up as very quick ride.....
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I read somewhere filtering may become illegal in this country as part of harmonising our traffic laws with the rest of Europe.
Yet another reason to get out.
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You're right on the filtering thing iffy.
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...You're right on the filtering thing iffy..
I can't see a good reason to ban it.
But if we must consider doing so, that consideration should be done in Westminster, not Brussels.
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There is a campaign ongoing - see a motorway near you soon.
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...see a motorway near you soon...
Wot?
Is my stately progress along one of the Queen's highways to be interrupted?
Ban the lot of 'em, I say.
Good thing that EU, they could teach us a thing or two.
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Irresponsible riding? - Zero
