Defensive Riding

[WMarshy]

This video has been generating a lot of comments on my facebook page and most people are saying the motorcycle is at fault. Although I believe the car is at fault I dont think the rider was being defensive. If he had, I believe this could have been avoided. Anyone that's taken the motorcycle safety class please chime in on proper passing technique.

A few issues I see are, the guy didnt anticipate the red car wanting the pass the car in front. He pulled out to pass but didnt move to the far left of the lane. He also hesitated once he pulled out instead of accelerating. I think he hesitated because he did not have a clear view of the road ahead. Your thoughts on this, whos to blame?

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=058_1375945139

[Bigfoot]

As much as I would like to, I can't really put that one on the driver of the car. The main problem is he pulled out and hesitated right in the driver's "blind spot".

[jetmechmarty]

I'm not an authority, but if I assume anyone were to be cited, it would be the driver of the car. There is little comfort in that if you're the injured motorcyclist. There was a lot of traffic. Making a pass there requires plenty of speed. It does not pay to be impatient. If the car in front is tailgating the slower car, his passing maneuver should be anticipated.

[JeffH]

We know the reality is that it is ALWAYS the motorcycles fault no matter what.

I agree the biker was not driving defensively. Looks like the car didn't signal the either or give advance warning but by that time the bike unable to see any turn signal anyways . Improper technique from both Bike & Car. I'd either ticket them both or just no ticket at all since both at fault and share the blame. Sure both bike and car operators were startled and were surprised the "other idiot" wasn't looking. Both to blame equally.

Jeff

[trbig]

The car is in the wrong. To legally pass, you have to check that the lane isn't already occupied. They didn't. That being said... being right doesn't make that guy's road rash or bike any better.

Every time I pass, I expect this to happen, and often it does. I pass all the way to the left in the oncoming lane, and when they pull out on me like this guy did, I've completed the pass over on the shoulder, shaking my head and looking them in the eye as I go past. It usually shakes them up a bit, and I bet next time, they'll look.

What's surprising is the red car stopped.

[IanDMacDonald]

I'd say both are to blame. Passing is a dangerous driving maneuver in itself. You have to usually go above the speed limit to do so, which usually adds another punishable factor. The fact that he was trying to pass more than a single vehicle was dangerous in itself. Being on a bike, he may have had a clear view of the road. I think his "hesitation" to pass may have actually been him trying to get in the drivers mirror (or what he thought) before passing. When I pass, I WOT right by. I never-ever stay in the oncoming lane or perpendicular car more than I have to.

[GLoweVA]

What I saw was, at the start of the video, he passed the first car VERY close to the center line and very near to the car too.
That shows me that the rider is not very careful with his driving style.

Also, as soon as the red car started to move left to pass, the rider should have been braking and steering more to the left to make sure he didn't get swiped like he did.

He should have anticipated that the red car wanted to pass too, does the rider think he's the only one that wants to go fast and that nobody in the cars want to go fast too?

When I ride (almost always with heavy traffic) I try to assume (figure out) what all those crazy cagers might want to do. I watch them for hints like:
Slowing down and looking around (like they're lost or may want to turn)
Following real close and looking for possible routes to pass the slow car in front of them
Weaving around (either distracted or drunk/tired/texting, etc)
I watch the rear too, crazies going really fast may be coming up to pass you beacuse you're going too slow.

[trbig]

Even the first car he passes, I don't think he went even all the way left of the centerline. Watching the video, and maybe it's just me EXPECTING people I pass to do that, it seems to me that he had all kinds of time to veer left out of the way.

Tough lesson learned, but I bet next time, the car checks their blind spot, and the motorcyclist will move further left on passes.

[DGXSER]

SO maybe I am just that old now that we were taught that before passing, make sure the road is clear, SIGNAL YOUR LANE CHANGE, USE YORU HORN to alert the driver ahead of your maneuver, and THEN move into the lane to pass. Only move back to your original lane when you can see BOTH headlights of the vehicle you passed in your rear view mirror. Now for bikes, the mirror changes, but, I did not see any indication of turn signal, I did not hear any horn use. So again, the biker made some first time bone head mistakes in his operation, as well as operating in what I would consider a reckless manner in the first place. Reality is he just barely got back fully into his lane after the first pass, he was close to being road kill on that one. Based upon his speed of passing the first car, its not like traffic was THAT much slower than he was trying to go for the way he was pushing to pass like that, let alone passing two cars at a time.

Now of course, the car driver did none of the safe passing technique either, no turn signal no horn. Hard to say if he looked in the mirror, as the bike was in the blind spot. But yes, he should have turned to look over his shoulder to check the lane before moving out as well.

And of course, the biker should NEVER have paused like that. It almost looked like he was setting himself up for this to happen, like he meant for it to happen.

Legally though, it would be a tough call. But the car was probably wrong. In the end though, who was at fault means very little when your wife and kids are watching your casket lower into the concrete box. So as I always say, assume every car is purposely trying to kill you. anything they can do to cause your death they will, until they don't.

[FJ111200]

There's no right or wrong for either of them.
But the guy on the bike could have stayed on if he'd pulled further to the left when the car pulled left, there's always plenty of room.
Being an ex despatch rider and living to tell the tale, i'd would cog down a gear, go further left and cane the sh!te out of the bike.
The guy on the bike probably panicked and so lost it.
Yeah tough lesson, i've learned the hard way, but there is a way.

[jjz28]

In the law, the "blind spot" don't mean anything. The driver of the car was clearly at fault. Theres no if and or buts about that one. I believe the motorcycle should have passed faster and he should have been able to get out of that anyway. I guess he saw the car coming over, the camera did. I would have to be in that spot myself and see what happens.

[MPittma100]

Who?

Driver of the car is at fault. Unfortunately, in any accident, the results are the same. Both drivers have to do without a car/bike while being repaired. Both drivers have to go through the same trouble dealing with the insurance and body shops and getting a rental car, and, and ,and.

The "good" thing in this accident was that the rider seemed to be wearing proper protective clothing and did not appear to be injured badly, if at all.

Car driver (as is somewhat normal) probably didn't even know that the bike was behind him/her to start with, much less look in the lane before pulling out. And herein is the verification that these "people" do not see invisible motorcycles.

On the other hand, the rider should have or could have given a signal of some sort that he was coming before passing. He would likely still be upright had he done that.

MP

[latexeses]

I've known bike riders who thought that everything happens in the width of their bike. You want to pass? You only have to clear the side of car you are passing. Any further away is a waste of time.

The only thing that first pass needed was a moments distraction from the cage driver, a little swerve and the resultant accident would have happened in the "width of the bike" and in front of three cars.

The driver of the red car was following the car in front closely enough to guess that he wanted to pass. He was coming to a curve in the road and the biker was a fair distance behind. When the driver of the car was able to see the road was clear ahead the bike had pulled up and was passing. Well before the corner by the way.

To me the guy on the bike was mostly at fault.

[jetmechmarty]

If I had been riding with that fellow upon my own bike, as soon as he started passing cars in all that traffic, he'd have been going on his own. I wouldn't be playing that game. I like to pass slow cars too. He appeared to be reckless.

[James England]

I think the motorcyclist was unwise in his decision to overtake two cars at the same time, one of which looked very much like he wanted to overtake (close up against the car in front), on a section of road without a clear view ahead, whilst in the blind spot of the car mirror. To me, it looks like an accident waiting to happen. His first overtake wasn't safe anyway. His riding style looks dangerous to me.

I saw a bike the other day. He went through a crossroads, with the right of way, at the speed limit of 60 mph. Cars were approaching the crossroads from both left and right..they did not have right of way. But the bike did not slow down, or behave in any way as if he expected one of the cars to just pull out in front of him..which one duly did. I saw it coming from 500 yards away but he seemed oblivious to the possibility. Yep, he had legal right of way and would have been in the right if he'd crashed into the car but its small consolation with a wrecked bike or worse.

All us bikers know that car drivers who are non bikers do daft things. We have small road presence from the front. Nobody is psychotic enough to do as in the video on purpose. The biker should have expected it. People pull out in front of bikes because they don't see them, or can't judge their speed. We all know this, so, regardless of the legal rights and wrongs, its up to us bikers to be alert, anticipate hazards and generally be the 'bigger' road users. The guy bouncing down the road at the end of the video does not fall into that category. He's lucky to be alive.

My verdict? Equal fault accident.