I do allot of commuting on I-95, about 130 a day. I have seen allot, missed allot and been down twice. Over the years I have developed some ideas to help reduce my risk....
1.) placement on the road, I ride either the inside or outside lanes, never the center. This gives me the shoulder on either side if someone decides they need to be where I am physically located. I generally ride the outside line as well to give me a little cusion if somebody darts out into my lane (happens allot when your riding the carpool lane). If traffic is light I try to keep from having anyone beside me period.
2.) can you see through the vehicle in front of you?, I never hang behind trucks or any vehicle I cant see through, pretty simple if you cant see down the road the only thing indicating an issue to you is the brakelights of the brick in front of you.
3.) is they guy next to you admiring your bike? Feels cool doesnt it all that attention is great, well guess what if hes looking at you, your about to be creamed when he realizes the car in front of him has stopped and your the path of least resistance....if a guy is looking at you in traffic get the hell away from him (collar bone and ankle to prove this observation is correct).
4.) oh great the light just turned green I dont have to stop.....a fresh green light is very dangerous!, if it just turned green for you it just turned red for the others, if somone is running this is when they will cross into traffic...use caution especially in light traffic conditions.
5.) know your bike, I have a chopper, a triumph, a zl900 a cbr and now a busa...they all react differently to a panic stop. Remarkably though they all do the same thing the same way every time. Know your bike and know what it will do when when you grab it and grab it hard. Practice hard stops often.
6.) maintain your bike. As simple as it sounds a good cleaning each weekend may save your butt. Wash your bike, look for leaks ect. Then completely dry your bike, running your hands and eyes over things can alert you to issues you hadnt noticed. Amazing how many loose fasteners I have found over the years during a good dry down.
7.) ride like you have no brakes and everyone is out to get you....oh and have fun (-:
curious to see what techniques you guys have learned over the years
1.) placement on the road, I ride either the inside or outside lanes, never the center. This gives me the shoulder on either side if someone decides they need to be where I am physically located. I generally ride the outside line as well to give me a little cusion if somebody darts out into my lane (happens allot when your riding the carpool lane). If traffic is light I try to keep from having anyone beside me period.
2.) can you see through the vehicle in front of you?, I never hang behind trucks or any vehicle I cant see through, pretty simple if you cant see down the road the only thing indicating an issue to you is the brakelights of the brick in front of you.
3.) is they guy next to you admiring your bike? Feels cool doesnt it all that attention is great, well guess what if hes looking at you, your about to be creamed when he realizes the car in front of him has stopped and your the path of least resistance....if a guy is looking at you in traffic get the hell away from him (collar bone and ankle to prove this observation is correct).
4.) oh great the light just turned green I dont have to stop.....a fresh green light is very dangerous!, if it just turned green for you it just turned red for the others, if somone is running this is when they will cross into traffic...use caution especially in light traffic conditions.
5.) know your bike, I have a chopper, a triumph, a zl900 a cbr and now a busa...they all react differently to a panic stop. Remarkably though they all do the same thing the same way every time. Know your bike and know what it will do when when you grab it and grab it hard. Practice hard stops often.
6.) maintain your bike. As simple as it sounds a good cleaning each weekend may save your butt. Wash your bike, look for leaks ect. Then completely dry your bike, running your hands and eyes over things can alert you to issues you hadnt noticed. Amazing how many loose fasteners I have found over the years during a good dry down.
7.) ride like you have no brakes and everyone is out to get you....oh and have fun (-:
curious to see what techniques you guys have learned over the years
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