Lane splitting the northwestern

[WarlockNZ]

When I get a car tring to block me at low speeds 30-45kph droping 2 or 3 grears and winding the throttle up as I go between the two cages seems to work wonders.

LOL .. I do the same thing, the looks on their faces are a mastercard moment.

But i feel your pain Fubar, i have incidents all the time on the northwestern, car drivers, by and large are a good bunch and will move out of the way, but the odd one is just a real prick.

I can recall one where an old bastard blocked me in and shouted, "your going to die if you keep doing that sonny", to which i replied " only if you continue to drive like an assehole sir" and then rode off.

The best advise is to "safely" leave them behind, don't stress about it, while your sitting at home having an afterwork drink, they will still be stuck in gridlock, sucking on the tail pipe of the car in front.

[FROSTY:Me]

Im reading the overwhelming arrogance displayed in this thread and shake my head in wonder.
In around 20 years of bike commuting I can count the close calls Ive had on ONE hand.
If YOU want to save YOUR life then pull your fucken head in and give em a wide berth--Its not rocket science.
Kick a door in--YEA FUCKWIT and Ill be the poor sod that comes along a minute later and gets swiped by the pissed off car driver
DONT YOU GUYS GET IT What goes around comes around.

[rwh]

If people kept left in their lane like they are supposed to it would be much easier.

There's no requirement to stay to the left within your lane - you only have to keep left on an unlaned road (and to the left of the centreline, obviously).

Unfortuantely the majority drive a long way to the right and quite a few seem to have trouble keeping within a lane at all.

Keeping to the right of the lane is the natural thing to do in a car, IMHO - when I'm driving, I want to have the best view forward I can, and I sit on the right hand side of my car, so the best way to see past the car in front is to move to the right of it. I'm not talking about looking forward for hazards, BTW - I try to keep enough following distance that that isn't necessary. I'm talking about sitting in traffic, and wondering what the holdup is, and trying to get a glimpse of it. It doesn't help in the slightest - there's almost always nothing to see - but it's still the natural thing to do. I'm guessing therefore that most drivers are not actually out to block motorcyclists.

The other thing I'd note is that while it seems to be legal to overtake on the right within the same lane, I've seen nothing to suggest that the person being passed has to give way - they are entitled to use the whole lane, so I hope everyone splitting is ready for them to swerve to the right (or left, for that matter) to avoid an obstacle that's just been revealed by the car in front of them.

Richard
(who almost never splits, except occasionally at the lights when the cars are stopped and therefore can't swerve)

[Pancakes]

.....Richard
(who almost never splits, except occasionally at the lights when the cars are stopped and therefore can't swerve)

Know splitters before you judge splitters.............




The law and being in the right or wrong doesn't matter, staying in one piece matters so steer clear of everyone and double it for the dickheads who serve for bikes, their motivation is less important than your life!

[dwnundabkr]

The old added story be prepared if you split (which i do) be prepared to stop,avoid or get hit i work on the fact that i am in their lane i need to be the one that needs to give way not the other way round and yes i have come across him just change lanes go round him most times though the western motorway is pretty good

[craigs288]

When I'm in my cage I keep an eye in the side mirrors and when I see bikes coming I move over and provide more room for the biker to continue where they choose to ride, regardless of whether they are on my right or left.

When I'm on the bike I assume that no one knows I'm there and ride accordingly. If people 'seem to be' swerving over to block me, I assume they haven't seen me, rather than doing it deliberately. I just keep riding where I was going to in the first place.

Never fails to amaze me how small a gap you can get a biggish bike through.

[90s]

TI'm talking about sitting in traffic, and wondering what the holdup is, and trying to get a glimpse of it.

The point of this being?

Seems a little like the idea cagers in solid traffic have that by changing lanes to get one car lenght ahead they are "in control" of their destiny, even though no-one is going anywhere anyway.

[_intense_]

I spoke with a roadknight onnce, we discussed the simple pleasures of riding and such.. his solution to cars he didnt like was to put a brick through the windscreen and ride off. reckoned he had one in each pannierbag.

[Defiant]

I lane split all the time but i pick my times......stopped traffic where i can see the light turn green and motorways that are congested to the point of stopping most drivers are cool with it...if i come across a cage that blocks me in i just assume he/she didnt see me....lets face it we ride bike so when we drive our cages we drive with awareness of bikes.......most drivers dont expect bike to be there.....kicken doors ansd abusing only m,akes them remember to do it on purpose next time.....dont give cage drivers an excuse to think we are idiots...

[90s]

This morning SH16 splitting: fun with the cops!

This morning (Tues Oct 16) about 7:30am I started splitting onto the SH16 from the Gt Nth Rd entry, but the traffic was up to 60 kph shortly and I filtered in. Just before the SH1 junction traffic really thinned and was doing an open 100kph, when a blue/white Gixxer came up 130kph approx and split through the cars. Rider was almost collected by a car moving from one of the East Port lanes to the SH1 lane as he was undertaking it within its lane and it had no idea he was there. Evading to the left, he then pulled around and over to overtake several more vehicles to get back into the town exit lanes, now doing 120 in the 80kph zone.

As I turned onto the Wellesley St exit I saw him getting pulled by the cops. I caught the light and by the time I turned he was standing jacket off by his bike. Looked like an accountant; late 20s?

Split when it saves time lads, but video-game driving upsets the cagers and will get you busted.

And if this was you, and you just got a warning or licence check only, you were lucky not to have been hit by that car. And even more important, freak-out the car driver who could have caused some other accident.

[Taz]

I came along the western motorway at about 430am on Sunday morning with 5 or 6 other Rusty Grand Challenge riders and didn't see him........ Wasn't lane splitting though, that might be why?

[Grantasaurus]

It is important to realise that the very worst you can do to such arseholes,is to act as if they don't even exist.

I second that, they're just looking for a reaction to let them know that they've pissed you off.

Don't bite.

[rwh]

The point of this being?

The next sentence was: "It doesn't help in the slightest - there's almost always nothing to see - but it's still the natural thing to do."

Idle curiosity, I guess. Other than the effect on lanesplitters, it makes no difference either way. And since the rest of the cars are doing it, it doesn't make any difference to lanesplitters either.

Richard

[MaxCannon]

Over the last couple of days I've had two people go out of there way to make room for me while splitting at traffic lights.

So it goes to show that some people are using their mirrors. Perhaps these were bikers who'd left the bike at home.

[delusionz]

Over the last couple of days I've had two people go out of there way to make room for me while splitting at traffic lights.

So it goes to show that some people are using their mirrors. Perhaps these were bikers who'd left the bike at home.

You definitely know what it's like if you drive both.

On a similar note, I'd probably urge most bike only people to take up driving, you really start to notice how close you come to being clipped in an instant in different motorcycle vs car situations which could help give you a bit of hindsight when you're the one on the bike. This is just something I've noticed myself.