|
|
Iron Butt
Posts: 763
Anderson, IN (48mi NE of downtown Indianapolis) | I was riding the interstate to work this morning. I was in the left lane in a string of cars. Slower trucks were in the right lane. I was maintaining a safe distance between me and the car in front of me. I was riding to the left side of the lane when I started moving to the right side (of the left lane) to avoid road kill. About the time I reached the center of the lane, I heard another bike which sounded really close. By the time I looked over my right shoulder, he was passing me...on the right side of MY lane.
I would never do what he did, but was wondering if that is acceptable practice in the motorcycle world. Around here, riding double in a lane is legal, but I only do it with a trusted buddy. I wouldn't even think about "sneaking" up on someone. It seemed kind of dangerous to me.
I know there are some folks on this forum with many more miles than me. I would like to hear your opinion of this matter. Is passing another motorcycle in the same lane acceptable? Should I move over to allow him room? Should I stand my ground and not let him around? What is the proper etiquette for both me and the other guy?
Thanks in advance for your comments. |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 1484
LaPorte,Tx. | I would never do what he did. I've had it done to me...just pisses me off. |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 2118
Pitt Meadows, BC Canada | Rules I have lived with - and taught to newbies:
- NEVER ride side-by-side (exception - VERY slow or stopped)
- lead bike should keep to left side of the lane (if you know there is bike(s) behind you
- keep to the opposite side from the bike in front of you i.e. staggered
- don't pass in the same lane (exception: lead bike KNOWS you want by)
- ride 'tight (but safe) distance from each other - tight enough to keep cagers from chaning lanes between you
- remember - TWO bikes are easier to see than ONE - more can be safer....
I'm young and still learning, and welcome changes and additions to my list ! |
|
| |
|
Tourer
Posts: 388
Salisbury, NC | I don't mind another bike passing me in my lane as long as I know he is there. Most of the time I motion them by me if they are going faster than I am. It is simple to make eye contact when approaching another bike before trying to pass.
If I come up on another bike, I try to move to the next lane to pass, if the next lane is not open, I stay behind the lead bike, unless waved around. ET |
|
| |
|
Iron Butt
Posts: 935
Rockford, IL | WOW....I gotta say that I personally would have been very pissed and rest assured that the other biker would have known how pissed I was.
I've been in a few situations where I have needed to pass or be passed in the same lane. You either wait for the "wave by" from the lead bike or you give the bike behind you the wave by. About the only exception I can think of is if the lead bike happens to be slowing down to turn and its obvious then perhaps the follow bike can ease by.
|
|
| |
|
Tourer
Posts: 329
scotts valley, California | Lane splitting is risky business involving passing on the right side with limited clearance. The rider doing the passing needs to be aware that vehicles, including motorcycles, have a habit of changing lanes without giving a signal, ie the clearance can change drastically at any moment. I only split lanes under 30mph figuring that if general traffic is moving at 30 or better, I can live with that.
In maritime law, the vessel being overtaken has right of way but is required to maintain coarse and speed. In your case, VVT, it sounds like the other rider may have been going a little too fast, but had you turned into him.......... The jury is still out. The key is defensive driving; be aware of traffic behind you as well as ahead and beside. Ride safe; have fun; live a long time. |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA | Opinions will abound. Virginia he made an illegial move (of course I'll be corrected, I'm sure) and is a danger to himself and others. I just hope you will not encounter that situation again. Keep it as a thought to check to the rear more just be sure what is behind you. I have found myself being tailgated unexpectantly when someone has moved from my right or left in my lane. Checking to the rear will keep you aware of your surroundings to avoid surprises or when needing to take evasive actions, like hard braking... |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 3006
San Antonio, TX | I never pass a rider in front of me unless I get waved forward.
Many times during the week I will ride in a small group (2 or 3) to lunch with people I ride with a of the time. We know each others riding habits and would never pass each other without communicating.
Ride Safe |
|
| |
|
Tourer
Posts: 523
seattle, wa | What a jerk! That was rude and dangerous. The proper etiqutte would have been for him to hang back until you moved over to the right lane to let him pass.
He's obviously a newbie. Some people would kick the crap out of a guy for doing something that stupid.
I am under the assumption that you weren't holding up traffic. If you are in the left lane, you need to be passing other people then move back to the right after the pass. Not out there poking along holding up traffic.
Either way, that guy was an idiot, good thing you noticed him there or it could have had a bad ending. |
|
| |
|
Puddle Jumper
Posts: 18
| VisionTex - 2010-05-25 12:40 PM
I would never do what he did. I've had it done to me...just pisses me off. +1 |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 3773
Pittsburgh, PA | Lotzafun - 2010-05-25 1:46 PM
WOW....I gotta say that I personally would have been very pissed and rest assured that the other biker would have known how pissed I was.
I've been in a few situations where I have needed to pass or be passed in the same lane. You either wait for the "wave by" from the lead bike or you give the bike behind you the wave by. About the only exception I can think of is if the lead bike happens to be slowing down to turn and its obvious then perhaps the follow bike can ease by.
I'm with you on this one!!
|
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 1436
| Folks here have already covered this topic pretty well. If he passed on your right as you indicated in your post he was dead wrong and doing so illegally. I'm almost 100% sure passing on the right is a violation of the law on the interstate and in most states regardless of the roadway. Like many others I've had a bike or two over the years pass me within my lane. I tend to just think to myself "what an idiot" and ride on. No point in letting someone else mess up a good ride for you.
I did notice one thing you posted which I'd caution against doing; If in the left lane take a position to the center right rather than outer left. This provides you a cushion and place of escape if someone decides to come over on you. Much depends on your driving situation but I tend to move positions within my lane, not staying in one track for too long. Bottom line is if you can see the cars mirrors in front of you they know you are there, the movement just makes you a bit more noticeable.
I see lots of riders hug the left side of their lane so extreme they are almost hanging across into the next lane and again not the ideal. Tends to piss other motorists off and really doesn't provide any advantage to the rider. Extreme left is good if there is tight traffic and you are at risk for traffic coming the opposite direction cutting across your path because they didn't see you tucked behind a larger vehicle, but if you leave a little gap it reduces the necessity for the most part.
Regardless of practice you just need to remain alert. |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 3006
San Antonio, TX | I witnessed this happen one day while driving the cage on Loop 410 near the IH 10 Interchange on the North side of San Antonio.
I am in the right lane of three lanes west bound on 410 going with the flow. The flow is about five miles per hour faster then the speed limit. I see that there is a HD in the left lane about 300 yards ahead going with the flow of traffic. The roadway is busy but not packed.
In the mirror I see guy on a Crotch Rocket lane splitting and weaving in and out of all three lanes. He is going 10 to 25 mph over the speed limit. When he get closer (which did not take long) I noticed he has a passenger.
I kid you not, the passenger has on a helmet and and little else for protection. She was wearing a t-shirt, shorts and tennis shoes. The moron rider had on a helmet, t-shirt, jeans and tennis shoes. No gloves or other protection.
They blew by me in the center lane and because of traffic they moved over left lane about 40 feet behind the HD. They blew by the HD which shocked the rider. Then the HD rider got pissed. He dropped a gear and twisted and went after the SOB. I do not know what happened next because they left my site so quickly. That HD rider took off after that guy like it was his daughter on the back of the crotch rocket.
Thank goodness I did not see any wrecks was I proceeded down 410. I can only assume that they left the freeway for the city streets.
I have a feeling that the guy on the crotch rocket learned what not to do that day when passing another bike.
Ride Safe |
|
| |
|
Puddle Jumper
Posts: 19
Cheyenne, Wyoming | Passing Etiquette.
Riding double is different from state to state, Here in Wyoming we have had legal double riding in one lane for about 6 years. I was part of working the legislation through our house and senate.
In the research we did to support riding double there were some requirements. Riding two in a lane is legal, more than two is not. It is also not legal to overtake or pass a rider by splitting a lane. The only state I know of currently that allows "splitting lanes", which it what is happening and what happened to you, is California. Riding double is not legal in many states.
The MSF recommends keeping a minimum of a two (2) seconded spacing when riding in the same path and doubling that when conditions are less than perfect, and NOT to ride double.
I agree with you that even having competed for many years I still do not appreciate having a rider split lane pass me in the same lane. When racing we had much more control of the situation and conditions, not to mention we all were required to wear every piece of safety gear and have the condition of the bike, rider, and safety gear inspected before every competition. During racing it was not uncommon to at speed to have contact with bikes and riders, and that was generally not happing happily. I generally knew and had some level of experience with the racers I ran with because we all had to move up through various classes, so there was some reasonable assumption of skills placed into practice.
I think it is smart and reasonable to especially on higher speed roads to ride staggered and keep an eye on each other and road hazards. I do have friends I have ridden with and know and trust that I will share a lane. If someone just takes up the twin position I keep a wary eye and if I feel uncomfortable I fall back and take up a staggered pattern.
To be blunt there are many riders I will not share a road with much less a lane usually because of their skill, poor riding habits or probability of their making many bar stops. I prefer to not ride in large groups just because it limits space and often the time and ability to respond to hazards.
The problem is there are many riders that have never even considered if they feel confident or comfortable doing the things they do on a bike, much less how other riders feel about their sharing a road. This is when it time to take a break pull over and let them keep of "trucking".
|
|
| |
|
Cruiser
Posts: 204
guelph ontario | For three lane hwys -left lane-ride on right side, center-ride on right side -right lane ride on right side. If there are two bikes only. the proper riding position, according to our government riding rules is for one bike to follow the other. Also , there should be enough room between bikes to allow for sudden swerving and to allow cars to pass. Nothing worse than having a bunch of bikes rides so close togehter that the cars have no room to pass. We usually waive cars past that want to go faster but we allow them to pass one bike at a time instead of having to haul ass to pass either two or more bikes. Worst offenders I find are croch rockets who pass in same lane-they go so fast that by the time you see them in mirror and look ahead that they are on you and are passing. |
|
| |
|
Cruiser
Posts: 204
guelph ontario | sorry-middle lane is ride on left side. |
|
| |
|
Cruiser
Posts: 247
| i had a car do this to me last week not sure how he missed me. i was slowing dowm for a turn at about 20 he was doing about 40. there was a car in the left lane so he had to be in mine to pass me. i had the same reaction to him i would have had to the guy who passed you. that is if i could have caught him i would have let him know but i had too much to do to bother with him. one gratification was that the car drivers who saw it were all shaking their heads in disgust at him. he was wrong. he could have been dead wrong. rules are the same for cars and bikes who don;t now each other. wait until the opportunity presents and get it done....key word wait. |
|
| |
|
Iron Butt
Posts: 763
Anderson, IN (48mi NE of downtown Indianapolis) | Thanks for all the responses. Sounds like many of you have seen or experienced similar situations. There is one peculiar thing. It seems that some of you assumed it was a crotch rocket. I did not mention the type of bike because I like them all, sport, cruiser, trike, dual sport, etc. I wave to them all because we all share something in common. I don't single out certain groups as being different than any others. However, it was a crotch rocket that passed me in what I thought to be a dangerous manner. I see a lot of crotch rockets performing less than brilliant maneuvers on roadways. I certainly have an appreciation of the power and handling characteristics of those bikes. I enjoy watching the stunt shows on TV and live downtown. But, why do they have to bring it the streets? I have raced for 24 years and love to see if I can go faster than the other guy. But, I never take the racing instinct away from the track. It's just way too dangerous around cars, trucks, and other bikes. Besides, most people on the road don't care how fast I can go. I hate to stereotype the crotch rocket riders, but it seems more of them put themselves and others at risk than any other group. Again, I have nothing against those bikes or riders. In fact, I would like to have one and probably will someday (not giving up my Vision for one, though).
Anyway, I just thought it was interesting that some of you hinted about crotch rockets before you knew that it actually was one.
Thanks again for your responses.
Edited by victoryvisiontour 2010-05-25 8:07 PM
|
|
| |
What is proper passing etiquette?
