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FEINT
1st March 2005, 10:01
I am a newbie, so I thought I better post in this forum.

Anybody know the rules, tips & tricks to filtering? I started riding my CBR250RR to uni and back yesterday, and I found it quite hard to filter. Mainly because the gap between two cars on the motorway isn't very large. I also found that I cant actually ride in the same lane as a car, as they are sometimes on the RIGHT HAND SIDE of their lane.

On the way home, I was on the LEFT HAND SIDE of the right lane and that wasn't much easier. The cars seems too close to fit. However, a Yamaha R6 (I think) came by and was filtering, so I followed him. He swayed between the left and right lane, is that normal?

WHich way do I indicate and when?

When there is a traffic lights, are we allowed to ride down the middle of waiting traffic to the front of the line?

Any tips and tricks?

Thanks.

Posh Tourer :P
1st March 2005, 10:23
You are allowed to ride between lanes of STOPPED traffic. As soon as it starts moving, you must be in a lane. You must not go more than 10kmh faster than surrounding traffic. You should be on the right of a lane of traffic, not the left.

Those are the rules I remember....

As for gaps, filtering isnt an easy thing to do when traffic is moving. Dont do it unless you have lightning reflexes and a sixth sense, or you'll get hurt (you might anyway). I do it anyway and have been lucky, but I had to put that warning in there. You will find you get progressively more crazy in your filtering if you do it a lot (I have), so those supposedly un-usable gaps become like lanes unto themselves. Of course, sometimes the cars *are* actually too close to fit, so it is a good idea to try and hold off this for as long as possible, so you dont become one of those who filters "like a crazed weasel on P" before you have attendant reflexes and experience.

Tips? If there is a gap that a car *might possibly maybe just* want to move into, dont split past the car, go *in* the gap. That way you are already further away from them if they do move. If you split/filter, do it between two cars, not between a car and a gap, for the same reasons (yes I know you might get sandwiched, but thats the risk, and I think it is a lesser one).
Swaying between lanes is normal, you should indicate for three seconds before you change lanes (technically).
When you get to the front of a set of lights after splitting, go into a lane, otherwise you might get swarmed by bastards in black Jeep Cherokees who think their V8 petrol turbos are penis enlargers.....
If you see a cop, be nice. You cant tell if he's going to yell at you, or just let you go.

I notice that often Auckland drivers sit to the right of their lanes, maybe because they can't tell where the left corner of their car is and think the are middling it. Splitting to the left is bad and more illegal, but sometimes easier. Again, just dont do it in front of a cop. If you are splitting, go for a bigger gap rather than a legal one.

Did that help?

FROSTY
1st March 2005, 10:38
ride with your hands covering your brake and clutch lever.
As PT said It gets easier but basicly at your level of experience i'd say DONT DO IT
gET SOME MORE TIME RIDING BEFORE GETTING INTO FILTERING SERIOUSLY.
I filter every day 30km each way too and from work and it can be totally insane.
You need to be able to read what 10 cars in front and 2 cars to the side are doing so you can anticipate any moves they might make.
That said Theres a certain predictable movement in traffic
for example the far left lane on the NW motorway always flows 30km/h faster than the other traffic between waterview offramp and waterview onramp ditto from western springs to the newton offramp. By knowing that you can make sure youre in the best place to take advantage of these movements.
I tried 2 types of filtering one just taking advantage of stopped traffic and faster lane movement
then being insane splitting lanes like made and swinging from side to side of the road.
Funny thing was it made stuff all difference - about 3 minutes on a 30km ride.

jrandom
1st March 2005, 11:14
Crazed weasels on P, represent!

Um.

Like them other guys just said, don't push yourself to filter. If you do, look at the gaps, not the cars, and don't let the red mist come down. Do whatever you need to, move between lanes at will. It's impossible to keep it strictly legal. Don't bother trying.

Just don't do it past coppers unless there is no chance of them following you, and even then, remember that they might see your rego plate and ping you with a ticket in the mail later. Best option, sit in traffic when around them.

Your bike control needs to be totally subconscious and automatic. Do plenty of riding in relaxed situations, practice stopping as quickly as possible, and don't ever push the limits too hard all at one time.

I classify filtering by speed differential. Less than 30kph faster than the cars around you is slow and safe. Up to 50 or so is medium pace, and you need good reflexes. Above 60, anything up to 80 or thereabouts, is very fast filtering and you better have a sharp-handling bike, the reflexes of a champion table tennis player and a hefty dose of luck. Any differential above 80 is suicide and stupidity. I normally filter up to a 40 or so differential.

Have fun, and always err on the side of safety.

NC
1st March 2005, 11:26
Watch and be alert to traffic turning into other lanes..

And watch for other motorbikes filtering too, you don't wanna knock one of us off :)

vifferman
1st March 2005, 11:31
Funny thing was it made stuff all difference - about 3 minutes on a 30km ride.
That's a key point.
Yeah, it's 'fun' filtering, but it's also very dangerous. It would be wise to treat it as you do overtaking: ask yourself before you do it, "Do I really need to it?":spudwhat:
( or maybe even, "Do ya feel lucky, Punk? Well do ya?!?")

I used to filter quite frequently, but now I just leave a few minutes earlier, and don't bother, unless the traffic's espcially slow-moving or stopped, and starting to piss me off. The VFR gets hot in traffic very quickly, so that's been an extra reason lately to filter, usually on the way home.

FEINT
1st March 2005, 15:20
I am on the North Shore, so I ride down to the city in the morning and back in the afternoon. I started doing this yesterday. As you know yesterday was raining and traffic was worse than normal.

I find changing lanes on a bike easier than on a car. I also found that on the far right lane, it is better for me to sit on the left hand wheel track of the car in front of me.

If it is legal to split down 2 lanes of traffic when they are waiting for the lights, is it legal to drive down the left or right hand side and then move in front of cars at the lights?

If you are filtering and you are switching from lane to lane with your indicator going, and there are no gaps between the traffic for you to go back in to, do you just stay on the line and try to fit behind the cars?

It is ILLEGAL to ride on the far right hand side of the motorway right?

Thanks alot for your comments,

vifferman
1st March 2005, 15:34
If it is legal to split down 2 lanes of traffic when they are waiting for the lights, is it legal to drive down the left or right hand side and then move in front of cars at the lights?
Strictly speaking, it's not legal to split down 2 lanes of traffic when they are waiting for the lights, but it's unlikely you'll get ticketed for it. It's also "less illegal" (if there is such a thing) if you stay in the lane and pass to the left of the cars in the lane.


If you are filtering and you are switching from lane to lane with your indicator going, and there are no gaps between the traffic for you to go back in to, do you just stay on the line and try to fit behind the cars?
Yes.


It is ILLEGAL to ride on the far right hand side of the motorway right?
Yes.

slob
1st March 2005, 15:49
I've toned down my filtering heaps now - only do it if traffic's stopped or really slow (e.g. 10kmph). What used to be exciting is now a bit stressfull - guess I'm getting old now. I was overtaken by a another bike filtering really aggressively in peak hour traffic on the Southern motorway a few days ago near Greenlane. When I got to the lights at Nelson street in town he was there waiting i.e. it didn't make a difference at all to our arrival times!

Biff
1st March 2005, 17:57
My Rules when filtering/splitting:

Slowly - less than 40K's (very slowly when passing police cars).
Carefully.
Keeping my brakes covered.
Keeping my horn covered.
Being particularly careful when there are gaps in the traffic, as they tend to attract other cages, particularly the 'sudden lane change without indicating' sort.
Don't ever get tempted to speed up because another biker on a death wish speeds up behind you. Pull in where safe and let them pass.
Thank all vehicles that make an effort to get out of my way.
Rev furiously and make rude hand gestures at those that obviously attempt to block my way. But then I'm 6'3" built like a brick out house, a second Dan in Aikido and a black belt in Jujitsu, oh - and I ride have a fast bike if there's more than two of them.

outlawtorn
1st March 2005, 18:40
My Rules when filtering/splitting:

Slowly - less than 40K's (very slowly when passing police cars).
Carefully.
Keeping my brakes covered.
Keeping my horn covered.
Being particularly careful when there are gaps in the traffic, as they tend to attract other cages, particularly the 'sudden lane change without indicating' sort.
Don't ever get tempted to speed up because another biker on a death wish speeds up behind you. Pull in where safe and let them pass.
Thank all vehicles that make an effort to get out of my way.
Rev furiously and make rude hand gestures at those that obviously attempt to block my way. But then I'm 6'3" built like a brick out house, a second Dan in Aikido and a black belt in Jujitsu, oh - and I ride have a fast bike if there's more than two of them.

Exactly what Biff Baff said, filtering is dangerous, I know first hand as I have seen my arse because of a cage drivers blindness. Take it slow, take it easy, eventually you'll become more confident, but don't confuse confidence with being cocky.
oh and welcome to KiwiBiker :2thumbsup

FEINT
2nd March 2005, 07:29
thanks for your replies, looks like I might just take it slow.

maybe I will just ride in the bus lane, so I don't have to share the lane with any cars, just have to watch out for the buses!! :2thumbsup

jrandom
2nd March 2005, 08:41
maybe I will just ride in the bus lane, so I don't have to share the lane with any cars, just have to watch out for the buses!! :2thumbsup

As has been discussed here recently, you're not allowed to use bus lanes on the motorway. The 'main road' ones are fine, though.

Jeremy
2nd March 2005, 08:47
You wouldn't be the guy who asked me where SLT1 was the other day would you?

I might be just a bit conservative here but I'd say that if you have to ask for advice on how filter then it's probably not a good idea to even attempt. By the way if you have the ugly L on the back then really don't try it, as quite a few of the drivers will attempt to swerve into you on purpose (maybe they're bored or something). Just stick to your lane, it only takes an 50 mins to get from Manukau BP to Auckland Uni giving you 10 mins to change out of your gear and dump it into a locker, which is still a lot quicker than the 1 hour 30 mins the express bus took on tuesday (+20 min walk to bus stop).

slob
2nd March 2005, 08:53
Just saw a smashed up CBR250 on NW motorway just before Newton :confused: ... Hope that wasn't you Feint..

jrandom
2nd March 2005, 08:57
Just saw a smashed up CBR250 on NW motorway just before Newton :confused: ... Hope that wasn't you Feint..

Yes, I saw it too, and Dr Bob started a thread about it.

I guess we'll know in the fullness of time and all that.

The rider seemed fine.

vifferman
2nd March 2005, 09:04
.... and of course, there's days like today, when I'm late, grumpy, can't be farked sitting in traffic, so the cars are just bloody obstacles to negotiate, moving or not. So I just go for it.

Here's summat we haven't mentioned about filtering - size of gaps. It's good to have a bike where the mirrors are like cat's whiskers - about the same width as the bike, or slightly wider, and ahead of the handlebar ends, and preferably NOT the same height as most car mirrors. Failing that last point - loose enough to pivot easily when you whack car mirrors, or VERY strong so that they demolish car mirrors.
The VTR was an excellent lane-splitter: it was slim, the mirrors were great feelers, and it was loud enough that revving it beside cars that were in the way was intimidating. The VFR750 was OK - no indicators sticking out to whack things (unlike the VF500, which was slim, but had sticky-outy indicators that used to hit car bumpers), but the farking mirrors were the same height as car mirrors, and used to regularly collide with them, so I broke two.

I've followed a few guys on bikes who obviously (a) had no idea how wide their bikes were, and (b) were shit at low-speed manoeuvres (or rode through gaps too slowly, so that they wobbled too much). Coming up to a gap, I can usually tell if it's wide enough, although I got stuck once or twice on the VTR, and once my zorsts save me from getting my leg squished. Twice my Knox CE knee armour has saved my knees. Once my VFR's pillion peg customised the front bumper of a car who pulled out of an intersection, blocking my path, so I had to slalom alongside it, then around the front, where the intimate contact occurred. Three times I've had to revert to riding on the footpath when there were no gaps in the traffic, and once I had to ride in the gravel/grass at the side of the motorway for the same reason. Once I slightly carroooomed off the side of a car that was turning left, when I was filtering on the left of it. Thank goodness for ridiculously over-engineered s/steel cans....

jrandom
2nd March 2005, 09:27
.... and of course, there's days like today, when I'm late, grumpy, can't be farked sitting in traffic, so the cars are just bloody obstacles to negotiate, moving or not. So I just go for it.

And to think that you could have been winging your way through the fresh breezes, dappled tree-shade, cicada chirps and gentle waft of cow shit along SH22, coffee and muffins at the Ngaruawahia servo dangling enticingly before you as the rasp of the V4 hurled you around the traffic-free sweepers...

:doh:

FEINT
2nd March 2005, 09:52
You wouldn't be the guy who asked me where SLT1 was the other day would you?



that wasn't me. What is SLT1 ?


Just saw a smashed up CBR250 on NW motorway just before Newton ... Hope that wasn't you Feint

It wasn't me, I travel down from from the North Shore. :) Hope that guy is alright.

vifferman
2nd March 2005, 09:57
And to think that you could have been winging your way through the fresh breezes, dappled tree-shade, cicada chirps and gentle waft of cow shit along SH22, coffee and muffins at the Ngaruawahia servo dangling enticingly before you as the rasp of the V4 hurled you around the traffic-free sweepers...

:doh:

Fuck up.:finger:

I could still do that. I cleaned and polished the bike special like, so it'd be a shame to waste it....

jrandom
2nd March 2005, 10:20
I could still do that. I cleaned and polished the bike special like, so it'd be a shame to waste it....

Hang up your bloody desk phone or answer your mobile, then.

Jeremy
2nd March 2005, 10:40
that wasn't me. What is SLT1 ?



Stats lecture theater 1. Another guy who owned a CBR250RR asked me where it was after having to walk past the door with "SLT1" in big letters accross the top .

FEINT
2nd March 2005, 10:45
Stats lecture theater 1. Another guy who owned a CBR250RR asked me where it was after having to walk past the door with "SLT1" in big letters accross the top .

that wasn't me, i am at AUT and we don't have Stats lecture Theatres...... :banana: :banana: :banana: :niceone:

Darryboy
2nd March 2005, 11:09
Hey man,

Yeah just be extra careful especially if you haven't got your gear yet as I think you were saying you didn't have any when we met at Bugjuice's last week.

I didn't start lanesplitting moving traffic until I'd been riding for about a month, but that's just me. I'd guess alot of people would be more comfortable doing it with less bike time.

RevHed
2nd March 2005, 12:31
I have been filtering home from work (CBD to Ellerslie) on the Southern for 2 years now, without any problems. I only do it if the cars are moving < 20km/hr, because otherwise it really doesn't make a lot of difference.

Given the Southern's propensity to grid-lock at 5pm, it usually save me 45 mins by filtering this short distance.

Talking to a couple of biker-cops at Pukekohe one day, they said that filtering was legal if you were on the RIGHT hand side of a car, but still within that lane. Technically, this is overtaking in your lane. Being on the LEFT side of the car is lane-splitting, which is technically illegal.

Nevertheless, friendly cops will ignore you if you're not filtering dangerously. I have filtered right past cops on the Southern a few times now, without any trouble.

As said earlier, always go for the biggest gap, which inveriably is the far right lane, on the left hand side of a car (technically illegal, but hey, what can you do)! This is because cars tend to drive toward the right of their lane.

vifferman
2nd March 2005, 12:37
I didn't start lanesplitting moving traffic until I'd been riding for about a month, but that's just me. I'd guess alot of people would be more comfortable doing it with less bike time.
Given the amount of stuff to learn when starting off on a bike, and the skills required to filter safely, I think any newbie would be stupid to do it, especially in D'Auckland. I'd been riding for 25 years when I moved here, and nearly got squished by a bus on my first ride to work here, and that wasn't filtering so much as seeing a gap and going for it.

madboy
2nd March 2005, 13:00
Ditto what everyone says - to filter you must be well aware that you are taking a far greater risk than riding within your lane. But I'm a hypocrite and filter every day, with a speed differential between 10km/h and 30km/h, but sometimes completely suicidal (in my defence, there was a multi-aerialed Maxima with funny coloured lights on the dash attempting the same thing but with less success behind me).

Personally I drop back into the lane near areas where cars are prone to sudden lane changes, like near offramps, lights, expected queues... met my first Isuzu left front guard there :) Also be aware of the road surface on the part of the road you're positioned on. In drying conditions the car tyres, i.e. left and right of lane, dry the road, but areas like between lanes are usually slower to dry. Cats eyes/white lines?? Not fun if you've gotta be taking evasive action. And you WILL sooner or later.

flyin
2nd March 2005, 13:18
Yeah cats eyes and white lines are fun!! i practice smoothly slaloming between the groups of catseyes on th motorway wen theres no other traffic.
it makes a big diff when your filtering and you can sit just to either side of the center line and duck between the lumps, i wouldn't like to try taking evasive action while on a white line/catseye

-it also hurts ones arse riding along those bobble thingsy and the dude on his bike behind ya can see u dont know how to control/position ur bike!

bkr
2nd March 2005, 13:32
Just watch the 'Ghostrider' video to learn how to filter... this guy is amazing to watch (scary really) but remember he's dead now, so that says it all...

NC
2nd March 2005, 14:24
Just watch the 'Ghostrider' video to learn how to filter... this guy is amazing to watch (scary really) but remember he's dead now, so that says it all...
Is he dead? When, what etc