What do you do.

[Jackrat]

Seeing as how being pulled out on an cut off by cars seems to be so popular with us biker types,What do you do when it happens.
I always look for a way out,Iv'e practiced hard an violent counter steering in car parks and on the road for years in an effort to make it a natural responce in these situations.So far so good apart from the one driver that spotted me a the last moment and stoped dead in the middle of the road,Thus cutting off my way around the back of her car.I used to hit the brakes first,but now the brakes don,t get a look in until all else has failed.It took a long time to stop grabing a hand full of brake rather than trying to go around.I even went as far as adjusting my rear brake so it can,t lock up no matter what(Drum brake).I am about to put twin disc's on as the front seems to do my stoping for me when I REALLY need it.
Well I never said I was a good rider so I feel quite comfortable asking all you folks that are good ,Do any of you have a plan or do you practice for the inevitable.

[bungbung]

I've sometimes picked an area on the road just in front of me and practised swerving around it (quiet road, different speeds). Works quite well with car sized patches where th road has be resealed.

[Big Dog]

I plan escape routes all the way, before a particular hazard has been identified.

I like to drop two gears and roar whether braking or driving around them it gives them the shits when the Big Dog starts barking

[Big Dog]

Practice? I get all the practice I need just going to and from work!!!

[White trash]

What do I do? I'm not a good rider so I'll stay out of it.

Real road riding scares me

[Hitcher]

I practice my countersteering on the Ngaio Gorge Road, avoiding the myriad of personnel access hatches (not allowed to say "manhole" anymore), fire hydrants and other lids that litter the road line (and racing line too) on this fine stretch of asphalt. A couple of these are right on the apexes and are good practice for tightening or lengthening my line, depending on my mood!

I'll let you know in a couple of days whether the new Metzlers make any difference compared to the Battlaxes!

[vifferman]

Ehhh... I keep a very good eye open, for a start. If that fails, I crash into them, or the road.

No seriously - I've run over two cars and one pedestrian since starting to commute in D'Auckland. What have I learned? Well, commuting all the time, you get good at reading what car drivers are going to do by watching their position on the road, their head/shoulder movements, etc. That's usually good, but I got caught out with one car that changed lanes suddenly without indicating, because I forgot ALL AUCKLAND DRIVERS ARE POTENTIALLY HOMICIDAL MANIACS and didn't allow for it. My violent braking / counter-steering dumped my newly-repaired bike on the road. Why was my bike newly-repaired? I ran over a pedestrian because the silly girl walked across the road when it said "DON"T CROSS: THIS MEANS YOU, YOU SILLY BITCH!". Fair enough, but then she decided to change her mind when I was carefully avoiding her, and stepped straight in front of me. So I ran her over. Had no choice. She won't make that mistake again. And neither will I.

Where was I? Oh yeah... Then I assumed a driver who pulled over when I slowed down behind him had seen me. Nope. He was just an eedjit doing a U-Turn, because that was his habit: pull out from the side of the road, pull into the curb, crack a U-turn, smash any bikes that happened to come along the road. Bastidge. I won't make that mistake again. Hopefully Mr Stupid also learned his lesson. If not, I know where he lives, *and* the Audi he bought to replace the damaged one.

Wait! There's a pattern here. Most of the cars I've had trouble with recently have been those GERMAN ones - BMW, Audi, that sort of thing. Maybe the girl was German too. It's a conspiracy, I tell you!

So, students:
Keep your eyes open
Assume all car drivers are eedjits (coz most of 'em are)
Assume everyone is out to get you
Make sure that car drivers have actually seen you at intersections (make eye contact with them)
Never assume
Don't take advice from people with a history of crashing
Keep taking the tablets.

[jrandom]

I used to hit the brakes first

And then you started riding an XS?

[wkid_one]

I just hit it and crash

[SPman]

(not allowed to say "manhole" anymore),

Fuck off! - you must work for the gummint !

(make eye contact with them)

All the better for them to see where to hit you! :sneaky2:

[pete376403]

So, students:
Keep your eyes open
Assume all car drivers are eedjits (coz most of 'em are)
Assume everyone is out to get you
Make sure that car drivers have actually seen you at intersections (make eye contact with them)
Never assume
Don't take advice from people with a history of crashing
Keep taking the tablets.

You missed "beware of drivers wearing a hat"

(the worst possible combination would be a carload of old geezers, all wearing bowling club whites including hats. The car would have to be a Volvo)

[Big Dog]

Don't take advice from people with a history of crashing

So what you want him to ignore your advice?

[Jackrat]

And then you started riding an XS?

Hey I rode a twenty five year old HD before the SX.
Mate the XS ain't nothing flash for sure but next to that HD it's flash as Bro'.
That HD had me so paranoid any thing else is good now.
Now I'm geting the twin Disc's I might see if she will do a stoppie,That should be interesting.

[White trash]

Hey I rode a twenty five year old HD before the SX.
Mate the XS ain't nothing flash for sure but next to that HD it's flash as Bro'.
That HD had me so paranoid any thing else is good now.
Now I'm geting the twin Disc's I might see if she will do a stoppie,That should be interesting.

Very bloody interesting! Can I buy a ticket?

[Motu]

I gotta admit after nearly 35 years of riding - it's bloody hard not to freeze up and target steer....um...sometimes such stupid reactions have saved my life.Each suituation is different,and that's how I take them - you need the experiance in many possible senarios,but the trouble is often these events are something you never thought was possible,and now it's happening!

I always have wide bars and prefer a dirt bike set up - dirt bikes change direction real quick,that's what they were designed for...I want to be able to make my bike do what I want to do,not what it thinks should happen.