In California it's not illegal to lane split. If you didn't know, lane splitting is riding in between lanes of traffic, usually when traffic is slow moving or at a standstill. Actually, there's recent legislation to make lane splitting legal in California (as I said before, it's just not illegal). With the new laws, there will be some rules to regulate this practice.
Have I ever done any lane splitting? Yes, but only a couple of times, as I don't live in California (I believe that it is allowed in other countries as well). For the most part, it seemed pretty unsafe to me.
The reason I'm writing about this is this study (http://www.tmleuven.be/project/motorcyclesandcommuting/20110921_Motorfietsen_eindrapport_Eng.pdf). A couple conclusions found here were that lane splitting actually helps traffic flow and is MORE safe than just sitting in traffic like all of the other vehicles. You are actually more visible when you are riding along side of a slow moving vehicle than when you are in front or behind them! Maybe lane splitting should be legalized everywhere.
"A story to me means a plot where there is some surprise. Because that's how life is - full of surprises." - Isaac Bashevis Singer
So, the roads are bare. My hopes have finally come true. However, I haven't taken my bike out yet. Why? A few reasons I'll discuss below.
First I want to say that this is not putting down anyone who has already been riding in my area. A few years ago I would have been doing the same.
First, my bike is only a year old and the roads are covered in corrosive salt that has been dumped on the roads for the last four months. I would rather not quicken the rust process on my nearly new motorcycle. If I was still riding one of my old bikes my attitude toward this would probably be different.
Second, along with the salt, there is copious amounts of sand that has also been dumped on the roads. Piles of sand on corners and at stop signs can lead to a wipe out rather quickly.
Third is the water runoff from all the melting snow. Now, being a rider who is all for riding in wet conditions, this can seem like a contradiction to my normal stance, but the water has the chance to be quite deep in this instance (I've ridden through six inch deep water running across a road in past springs).
Lastly, when the temperature rises like it has, the wildlife tends to start moving. Like us humans, animals like to get out and exercise (actually, they're trying to find food) when weather becomes pleasant. I've mentioned before that I'm currently traveling for work and during my travels I had to brake for multiple deer, turkeys, crows, and porcupines. Combine this with the aforementioned bad road conditions and you could be setting yourself up for a shitty day when an animal jumps in front of you unexpectedly.
My advice? Wait until we get a nice rain to wash most of the sand and salt from the roads. It's only going to be an extra week to wait and it might save you from an accident. Either way, ride safe everyone!
"Said woman take it slow, and it'll work itself out fine. All we need is just a little patience." - lyrics from Patience by Guns N' Roses
If you want to get enraged, take a look at this article and video (http://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/motorcycles/video-road-rage-fight-between-motorcyclist-and-car/ar-BBrrpAs). The video shows an altercation between a motorcyclist and a driver of a car. The guy in the car is either too ignorant to realize that swerving around a motorcycle like that could lead to SEVERE injury or death, or he actually wants to kill the motorcyclist.
I'm pretty sure the motorcyclist did something to provoke this guy, but it was taken to a whole new level of crazy. I'm sure this video will be used as evidence to prosecute the driver. Actually, he had to notice the GoPro on the rider's helmet, so he must be a moron to continue to attack him with his car.
My advice to anyone finding themselves in a similar situation is to flee to a safe spot as quickly as possible. It seemed like this rider was trying to do this at times, but never got away. I saw some pretty clear straight stretches of road that he could have accelerated away from the car. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's the way I saw it, especially since the rider was on a super sport. That bike should easily be able to get away from the car. But, riding at high speeds in a residential area carries it's own dangers as well. This is really a bad situation in all regards!
"I may be crazy, but it keeps me from going insane." - Waylon Jennings
I wasn't going to rant about the weather this week. Then I woke up this morning and my thermometer read 3 degrees Fahrenheit. 3 fucking degrees!!!!! Yes, this is April! This is about the farthest from motorcycle weather you can possibly get.
I know this post is nearly the same as the one last week, but I need to vent to keep my own sanity. Actually, I'm traveling for work, so I wouldn't be riding even if the weather was great. Since I'm not even home I shouldn't really complain, but I still do.
So, if you're having a motorcycle free April like me, keep your head up. Like I said in last week's post, riding weather is on it's way. There's no need to shop for houses in the south yet (I have done that in the past when we've had unusually long winters). On the bright side, we have a lot of extra time to get our bikes ready for riding.
"Nothing burns like the cold." - George R. R. Martin
Weeks ago I predicted that I'd be riding by the first week of April. Well, it's the last week of March and snow is in the forecast (a lot of snow). It appears that my prediction will not come true (believe it or not it's not the first time I've been wrong). This sucks!
I've literally been dreaming of riding for the past month and every time it seems that spring is really here, we get a snowstorm! I just traveled two hundred miles south for a short vacation and I ran into quite a few people on motorcycles, which only strengthened my remorse. The only thing that is keeping me from insanity is that I know that riding season is, at most, a month away.
So, if you're in the same situation as me, keep your head up. Remember these times when you're debating on riding when the weather may not be absolutely perfect in July or August. You'll find that you take greater advantage of free time during the riding season if you do this.
"When I'm wrong, I say I'm wrong." - Jake Houseman in Dirty Dancing
If you read this post from last summer, you'll know that I have some experience with drivers not noticing me on my motorcycle. That's the first thing that came to mind when I read this article. The basic premise of the article is that a driver's brain doesn't always interpret what their eyes are seeing correctly. If a motorcycle traveling at a high rate of speed goes from outside a driver's vision into their line of sight in a matter of seconds, the driver's brain may not be able process this new visual stimulus, possibly causing an accident.
In the case from my past blog post, I rode up to a group of slow moving cars and decided to pass them. The car in front of me pulled into the left lane, basically running me off the road when I pulled out. After reading the article linked above, I think that she may not have noticed me even if she looked in her rear view mirror prior to deciding to pass. The possibility that this driver's mind tricked her into passing even if she looked directly at me approaching is pretty scary.
So, what can we as riders do to protect ourselves against driver's literally not registering that we are there? I guess it's best to always assume that no one can see you. Always slow down near intersections and beep your horn or rev your engine when you may be in a driver's blind spot. In my daily commute, I always drive by a certain intersection that I get a eerie feeling about. I always tend to slow way down when I come up to it as I've had a few close calls with people nearly pulling out in front of me. Always be aware of your surroundings and stay safe!
"The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." - Roger "Verbal" Kint from The Usual Suspects
If you Google search "motorcycle news" you'll quickly learn that motorcycles definitely are not mainstream yet. This morning I did that search and found that 7 of the 10 links in the first page were about accidents and deaths on motorcycles. Basically, what this shows is that when it comes to motorcycles, the biggest aspect the media likes to show is their inherent danger.
The very few times motorcycles are in the world news are usually describing the latest outlaw motorcycle club violence. I guess as a whole, the mainstream media views motorcyclists as criminals or at least reckless individuals. This may not be entirely true, but the evidence sure points us in that direction.
I don't think motorcycling is more dangerous than a lot of other hobbies. I once met a women who said she was petrified of motorcycles, but loved riding horses. I just smiled and nodded, but I really was confused. How could operating a machine that you can control be more dangerous than trusting an animal that has the strength to trample you to death?!! Sigh...to each their own, I guess.
"The true man wants two things: danger and play. For that reason he wants woman, as the most dangerous plaything. - Friedrich Nietzsche
