Comments on: Top 10 Lanesplitting Wisdoms

By: Ross

Ross — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 09:36:46 +0000

Thanks Mark, hopefully this helps…

By: Ross

Ross — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 09:36:35 +0000

Very good point, a few times those folks don’t check at all, have nearly hit a couple of them just pulling into the lane randomly.

By: Esio

Esio — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 08:56:20 +0000

Excellent post Ross.
I wish all bikers were aware of the dangers of the ‘suicide lane’. Just one point, which is just common sense realy, be ware of bikers moving into the bikers lane just sfter an on ramp. If the traffic is standing still or moving very slowly, the biker weaving through to get into the ‘bikers lane’ could have trouble seeing another biker already in the bikers lane. Both bikers should be extra carefull in this situation.

By: Mark Backler

Mark Backler — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 08:18:59 +0000

Nice one Ross, a lot of thought went into it! Now if only we could get the same amount of thougt into other riders!!! Keep it up!

By: Ross

Ross — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 05:54:45 +0000

Thanks Elouise, happy to help! Its always good to find out these things for yourself, but always better to not have to find out first hand

By: Ross

Ross — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 05:53:45 +0000

Thanks Trompie, will take not of this and include it into the next post I do about this topic, this is a very important point!

By: Trompie

Trompie — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 04:49:50 +0000

Nice one!! Now go & post this on TB .
Only thing I would add as it’s very very imprtant – the speed at which you lane split. Should be no more than 10-15km/h faster than the traffic. Show some calcs about the speed you travelling in metres per second to demonstrate why & extrapolate that into stopping distance.

By: Elouise

Elouise — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:09:44 +0000

You have just confirmed some of the possible scenarios I have indeed identified while I’m on the road and made me aware of some that would have caught me with surprise as they can only be picked up through experience. It is also comforting to know what you are doing right.

Thank you so much for all your effort to put this together. It has certainly given me alot more knowledge with which I can protect myself better.

By: Ross

Ross — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:36:22 +0000

Awesome stuff and some great advice! Knowing your bike is very important and will help you deal with curveballs thrown at you. Overconfidence can get you into serious trouble, been there, done that, and its a very humbling experience knowing that you can come off in a heartbeat.

By: Thomas

Thomas — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 16:50:42 +0000

spiff write up dude

heres a few other things I think people should keep in mind:

At the moment (at least when last I was home in SA)… specifically on the highways, and more importantly on the gradual bends is to be ready for those charming gashes in the tar… if youre between cars – you already have severely limited options, and your margin of error is a fraction of what it would be otherwise… if you hit one of those, you need to be ready for how its going to throw the bike around – and be prepared to deal with the wobble that comes with it. My only real advice here is as Ross suggests, to get as much practice as you can.

Another thing that I find with lane splitting, specifically around trucks (also when passing them), which also applies to trailers and similar bulky vehicles, is to watch out for the wind sheer. Depending on the vehivle, and where you are in relation to them – the wind will either push your bike out, or suck you towards it. Theres also a massive difference in how badly this affects different bikes… with my R1, I pretty much dont feel it… but on the F650GS I had – it would throw me around quite a bit. Again, know your bike – and be ready to deal with the wobbly bits.

also – in relation to what Ross has said… the more you get used to lane splitting, the more comfortable you’ll be doing it… whilst thats a good thing.. its also a bad thing. You’ll get overconfident at some point – and thats where mistakes get made. you need to remain aware at all times not only of the car in front of you – but of the cars surrounding those. You can often avoid some seriously sticky situations just by being aware of more than your immediate surroundings. I generally try to switch between watching the objects close to me, and either looking over the cars in front of me, or through their back windows to watch the tail lights of the car ahead of it… seeing them brake gives you a head start in reacting. more than once I have seen a car ahead brake, only to have the car in front of me notice it at the last second and slam on brakes, swerve etc… had I not been watching ahead, I might have ended up clipped by the braking and swerving car.

Exit strategies are in my mind always a good idea on a bike, for any form of riding. Try keep your options open, and know where you can go if something unexpected were to happen. Pay attention to gaps in traffic, know if theres tar that extends from the lanes of traffic, if theres an emergency lane near where youre riding – try take note of roughly how wide it is. even be aware of the form of barrier against the fast lane of the highway. Personally I’d rather chance throwing my bike across a lane towards the emergency lane than hit the cable barriers they have on some highways… but on the other hand… I’d much rather try end up in some bushes on the other side of a hard barrier (leaving my bike on the traffic side of it) than end up under a truck. and always remember – you can sort out insurance, or buy another bike – you cant buy a second chance if you go wrong trying to save your bike!

anyway…
Those are a few of my opinions – hopefully they make sense