First time of filtering/fileling

Only if A)im following you and B)i can keep up with you.

You can follow me!....I won't leave you behind! lol.....might get lost though!

I'm not that good at filtering though - sometimes too confident which isn't always good!....then compared to some of the peeps I have followed to Soho in the past I'm probably a bit slow! doh

Ghostriders good for filtering tips

Originally Posted by Paws

Did my first attempt/go at filtering through the traffic this morning,scary stuff!

pop down to london, i'll show you filtering

if the A45 seems bad I would try london roads - i find them a lot more challenging because the shape & direction of the road changes - keeps you on your toes!

Just take it easy. Look far ahead and make sure you know where you can pull in incase oncoming vehicles or soemthing forces you to stop. I did a little bit of filtering yesterday (first time on SV) and just took it easy, pulling in a few times when there wasnt (what i deemed unsafe) room.

Matt

Matt has a point. No need taking unnecessary risks.

My basic rule about everything to do with the bike is that if I have to think about it, I don't do it.

Your safety margins will shrink with experience, everyone is overly cautious at first, and those that aren't, die pretty quickly

Originally Posted by alpinestarhero

Just take it easy. Look far ahead and make sure you know where you can pull in incase oncoming vehicles or soemthing forces you to stop. I did a little bit of filtering yesterday (first time on SV) and just took it easy, pulling in a few times when there wasnt (what i deemed unsafe) room.

Matt

Same here , didnt help that the weather was AWFUL! visabilty wasnt at all great so i was extra cautious, and like you-i pulled in when i wasnt sure about some gaps (probley could have made it but itd mean someone losing mirrors....and they wouldnt be mine )

Originally Posted by minifun

You can follow me!....I won't leave you behind! lol.....might get lost though!

I'm not that good at filtering though - sometimes too confident which isn't always good!....then compared to some of the peeps I have followed to Soho in the past I'm probably a bit slow! doh

hey hun-we can get tsm to show us/lead..

Originally Posted by Baph

Matt has a point. No need taking unnecessary risks.

My basic rule about everything to do with the bike is that if I have to think about it, I don't do it.

Your safety margins will shrink with experience, everyone is overly cautious at first, and those that aren't, die pretty quickly

Im full of super-saftey tips

Matt

[TSM]

Originally Posted by Paws

hey hun-we can get tsm to show us/lead..

err, is that safe

[northwind]

Originally Posted by Baph

My basic rule about everything to do with the bike is that if I have to think about it, I don't do it.

I'd almost agree with that. If you want to make really good progress in heavy traffic you need to be assessing gaps and risks really faster than you can consciously think about it- if you stop and think "That one's shrinking, will I fit", by the time you decide "Yes" it's gone. Hesitating then moving's one of the most dangerous things you can do when filtering, because you're always catching up with your surroundings. And thinking "Agh, should have been in there, I'll get the next one" is terribly dangerous- getting frustrated's probably worse than getting careless. I suppose it's a bit like overtaking on track, though I can't really relate to that too well as I very rarely get to do it

Better comparison would be martial arts/boxing/swordfighting- there's a higher level thought process (He's weak on the left, or he always signals a strike with a shoulder move, whatever- strategic) but the actual immediate responses are literally faster than you can consciously think.

But you can't get to the state where you can do the instant evaluation without a lot of experience, so it's a wee bit of a catch 22. I probably did some very stupid things when I was still figuring it out, the fact that I got away with it doesn't really mean much.