Biker down. Yep I just got bowled...

[MSTRS:Me]

OK, these are the facts as relayed by phreak:

1. The car driver pulled out from a side road in front of phreak and turned left meaning he had to take evasive action.

2. The car driver then made a U turn despite there being a motorcycle behind him. NO.

Car TURNED right into a Kindergarten driveway on the right.

We don't know whether s/he drifted right in the lane first or not. Passing on the left is usually a no-no, and if a vehicle drifts right in it's lane, that is OFTEN a sign they are about to duck left into a side street or driveway.

[onearmedbandit]

i know in this PC world of KB it's considered unacceptable to dare criticise car drivers, (yet OK to call them cagers) but that is what I would describe as appalling driving.

It's perfectly fine to slag off car drivers on KB. And if you want to do that while lying in hospital, or looking at a wrecked bike, or just sitting on your arse on the side of the road, then go for it. And if it makes you feel better, then I'm not going to stop you. But I'd rather be looking at what I could have done to have avoided ending up in hospital, or looking at a wrecked bike, or sitting on my arse on the side of the road.

But even more so, I'd rather be riding away from the 'situation' thankful that due to my actions it wasn't an 'accident'.

[shrub]

It's perfectly fine to slag off car drivers on KB. And if you want to do that while lying in hospital, or looking at a wrecked bike, or just sitting on your arse on the side of the road, then go for it. And if it makes you feel better, then I'm not going to stop you. But I'd rather be looking at what I could have done to have avoided ending up in hospital, or looking at a wrecked bike, or sitting on my arse on the side of the road.

But even more so, I'd rather be riding away from the 'situation' thankful that due to my actions it wasn't an 'accident'.

Hmm.. I'm not sure it is OK to slag off car drivers. Every time anyone does it the PC brigade climb into them boots and all.

But in this situation Phreak was perfectly within his rights to go around the car pulling out in front of him, and if the road had been wet or someone was up his arse it may well have been the best decision. The car driver was putting another road user in danger by pulling out when they did and then turning with someone directly behind them. That may be OK to a lot of people, but I think it sucks.

I feel the same way when people tailgate me or cut me off etc when I'm in my car. New Zealand drivers are not good, and just because Phreak could have (and with the benefit of hindsight SHOULD have) hit the brakes, it does not excuse that kind of driving.

[Katman]

What is not in question is that the car driver displayed appalling decisions that resulted in a fellow motorcyclist having a crash.

Really?

What if there was, in fact, plenty of room to have made the left hand turn in front of Phreak and the right hand turn was signaled as soon as the left turn was completed?

I mean, we only have the word of an aggrieved motorcyclist who could well be simply looking for someone else to blame for his mistake.

[shrub]

Really?

What if there was, in fact, plenty of room to have made the left hand turn in front of Phreak and the right hand turn was signaled as soon as the left turn was completed?

I mean, we only have the word of an aggrieved motorcyclist who could well be simply looking for someone else to blame for his mistake.

Sorry, i forgot, you were there and saw the whole thing. I take it all back, the car driver did nothing wrong - they never do.

[onearmedbandit]

The car driver was putting another road user in danger by pulling out when they did and then turning with someone directly behind them. That may be OK to a lot of people, but I think it sucks.

You're right, it does suck. No one is disputing that. Now what are you going to do to change it?

I feel the same way when people tailgate me or cut me off etc when I'm in my car. New Zealand drivers are not good, and just because Phreak could have (and with the benefit of hindsight SHOULD have) hit the brakes, it does not excuse that kind of driving.

Once again, and I'm not being an arsehole about this, what are you going to do to change this? How are you going to ensure every driver on the road acts in the proper manner at all times?

Or would it be easier to modify your own behaviour?

[That looks like fun]

Really?

What if there was, in fact, plenty of room to have made the left hand turn in front of Phreak and the right hand turn was signaled as soon as the left turn was completed?

I mean, we only have the word of an aggrieved motorcyclist who could well be simply looking for someone else to blame for his mistake.

Go one admit it Secretly your enjoying this aren't you
Message good + delivery bad = nobody listens
but it is good fun in the mean time

[Katman]

Go one admit it Secretly your enjoying this aren't you
Message good + delivery bad = nobody listens
but it is good fun in the mean time

I prefer to call it 'providing a sense of balance'.

[GOONR]

Really?

What if there was, in fact, plenty of room to have made the left hand turn in front of Phreak and the right hand turn was signaled as soon as the left turn was completed?

I mean, we only have the word of an aggrieved motorcyclist who could well be simply looking for someone else to blame for his mistake.

Maybe there was enough room for the car driver to make the left turn but if the car driver had done that then indicated (edit: right) for 3 seconds he would have been well past the kindergarten (unless he came to a complete stop straight after left turn) so no way was it was indicated for long enough (if at all).

I'm not "taking sides", just know the area.

[jasonu]

So, freshly back from a day in A&E, 5 or so hours lying on a stretcher with my neck in a brace, not allowed to move at all (even though I walked in there on my own two feet...) - made for a feckin' fun day...

The prognosis? 3 x-rays later, doctor tells me my spine is all good, nothing untoward detected, and my stiff neck is just a couple of pulled muscles. :-)

So, resting up for a couple of days, then back to work and looking into stripping the bike down for a full rebuild. Been wanting to powdercoat the frame anyways! Figure I'm not gonna be doing much riding this summer, bit scared off it actually, but think I can use the time to build the bike back up even better and shiny-er!

In a better mood about it all now, still gonna pinch the pocket a little bit but hey, least I'm not still in hospital with a broken neck!

Again, thanks to everyone for their kind words, might see you back out there again one day.

Sorry for your luck mate. How much did your hospital visit cost? Nothing most likely. I had a minor get off in a mates back yard resulting in a $1200 10 mile meat wagon ride and a $4500 3hr 3 x ray hospital visit. Prez Obanana says that will come to an end soon...

[pc220]

Well fuck me this thread has got a bit long winded. Poor bugger gets cleaned out by a car and half the mob are putting him at fault.
To be honest, based on the account from the OP I would have also gone around the car.And I bet 99% of you lot would have too.
Anyone can be a perfect rider when posting on an annonamous forum. But the outside world will soon sort the 'katmans'.

[MSTRS:Me]

... Prez Obanana says that will come to an end soon...

Enlightened man that he is. Unlike the fucken turkeys here...

[shrub]

You're right, it does suck. No one is disputing that. Now what are you going to do to change it?

Once again, and I'm not being an arsehole about this, what are you going to do to change this? How are you going to ensure every driver on the road acts in the proper manner at all times?

Or would it be easier to modify your own behaviour?

What am I going to do about it?

I won't be changing my behaviour, instead I'll do what I have been doing for bloody near 30 years. When I get on my bike I:

1. Don't expect car drivers to use their mirrors at all, let alone when I'm behind them.
2. Don't expect car drivers to indicate, or if they do indicate they'll do it as they start turning
3. Don't expect car drivers to see me
4. Expect car drivers to be putting more mental energy into passengers, stereos, eating pies and staring into space than into driving
5. Expect car drivers to drive as close behind me as possible
6. Expect car drivers to go through an amber light, even if the amber light is red.
7. Etc etc etc....

Which means I do shit like try and ride where they aren't, move around on the road so I'm more visible, look both ways before I take off on a green light etc etc etc.

What I don't do is think "most/all bike crashes are the fault of the rider and because I'm an experienced rider I'm OK". I don't think that because I'm wearing my leathers to ride down to the pub and have done a couple of track days, i'm OK. I may be, but being Rossi counts for nothing when the retard in front of me slams on his brakes in the wet because he dropped his pie, or swerves into my lane because little tarquin has just gouged little Siobhan's eye out, or suddenly make a right turn just as I overtake them.

I'm alive because I recognise there are a hell of a lot of complete cretins out there, and they drive irrationally, unpredictably and dangerously. And some of them are on bikes. I also don't go on group rides with people I don't know because some people on bikes are morons.

And instead of telling young guys like Phreak that he's an idiot for making the wrong choice, I'll tell him that there are a lot of car drivers out there that are fuckwits, and if one of them does something stupid like pull out in front of you don't think that's the last stupid thing they're going to be doing.

[ynot slow]

End of the day he is alive,bike can be fixed.Was it an avoidable prang,who knows we weren't witness to it.

And I'll reiterate the fact that avoiding may have been an option with hindsight,I know it would be a hard thing to think,turn right into oncoming traffic when faced with that option,much easier to try to stop or head to the left,but left can mean cyclists,pedestrians or any other hazzard.

[Phreak]

Okay, so... what have I learnt from my accident last sunday?

1. Never NEVER trust any car and what it seems to be doing on the road.
2. Always keep well back from anything in front of you.
3. If someone pulls out in front of you, you are still safer to back off even more.
4. Bruises heal, and bikes are fixable. Thank God.

oh, and...

5. Not everyone's view on KB is worth the price of the internet they use to post their view.