Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

After reading the thread on the MCN article, I got to thinking, what moronic accidents or close calls have people had? And I mean those accidents where your on your bike and the first thought isn't OH S%^$!!! It's 'I cant believe s/he just did that?'


I've had one close call and one scrape, the first was moving down a dual carraigeway, I was in the right hand lane doing 30 in a 40, the left lane was jammed as there are 2 left turns ahead, where everyone takes the second left and blockes the first (this was why i was doing 30). At the first left you can turn onto the dual carrageway or cross both lanes to turn right. I was paying attention and saw the headlights reflect off the back of a car in front as a car in the left lane flashed on a car in the 1st left turning to pull out. That car driver didnt look right in my direction and accelerated forwards no indicators but postioning at the junction was to turn right, I could see there wasnt time for him to pull out so slammed on the breaks (im a reletively new rider and was proud that i didnt skid in any way and did everything ok). I managed to stop the bike 2 foot from the drivers door. The driver finally looked in my direction when i was stopping and about 1 and a half meters away and in seeing me, stopped himself. The differance being if i hadnt of been watching carefully I would of slammed into his door instead of over the boot.

The second, was one I didnt see coming. I was on a dual carraigeway at rush hour and both lanes stationary, coming up to a roundabout, as there was loads of room (enough for triumph rocket 3) I was filtering to the front. At the roundabout the 2 lanes split into 4 lanes. 1. left 2. straight on 3. straght on and right 4. right ony

As i needed to turn right, i filtered to and was in the middle of the 2nd and 3rd lane, as it was unsuitable to move onto the roundabout, i pulled up slight in front of the two lead cars ( one on my left and one on my right ). Now the one on my right was a marked learner car, so i looked into the car with my visor up, and did to short pips of my horn and smilled at the driver nodded my head, so she knew i was there.

A gap was appearing on the roundabout, the leaner accelerated forwards, so did i, but slower and indicated right, (my intention to pull in behind the learner before entering the rounabout, the indicator was for the car behind hers infornation)

Unfortunaly the car to my left had the same plan of pulling in behind the learner as it was in the wrong lane for turning right, as it accelerated next to me it turned into me, knocking me into the learner, then as soon as it did, the driver raced off straight on instead of right and cut up another car went round the next roundabout and back down to our roundabout and tuurned left, absically leaving the scene of the accident.

I managed after bouncing of his car onto the learner to somehow keep balance and pull over.

luckily a few cars behind a RAC driver saw the whole thing and took the guys Registration, but at the time i couldnt believe it. There was no damage to me or the bike, but the learner car got a nasty scratch.

Two months later I get a letter saying the police were not going to prosicute anyone and even though the driver to my left broke the law by not declaring the accident within 48hrs.

Over the phone the the police officer (a none biker said) and i quote" it was all your fault anyway as when you filtered and it was upto you to make sure the drivers knew you were there"

OK I filtered but
1 drivers are supposed to check mirrors and blind spot before pulling away so not ALL my fault and
2. I pipped my horn, what more did he expect from me, get off bike nock on car doors and say " im terribly sorry to disturb your afternoon drive but i would just like to bring to your attention that my motorcycle is stationary next to yours and i will be planning on pulling in behind the car to my right"

well ok its your turn next

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

the last o sh** feeling i had on the bike was around september time.

I was coming through a local village doin just under 30 & could see a silver4x4 waiting to pull out(thougt nothing of it)until about 20feet in front of me when he decides this would be a good time to pull out.

all of a sudden i had that o sh** i,m gonna hit im,everything in slow motion feeling.

i slammed the back break on,the back wheel then did the proverbial lock up and i ended up leaving around a 15ft skid mark on the road(oo-er).at the same time blasting my horn at him he proceeded to pull out ,with his nose in the air like he had,nt seen me.

to be honest withyou all i was f*****g fuming & if it had,nt been for the fact i was 5 mins from picking my lad up from school i would have followed him,pulled him over & given him a f*****g good kickin........the end:mad:

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

The only real big oh **** moment i have had was due to a stretchy bus.

It was pulled into a stop with the left indicator going, so i approached with caution and started to pass, i got about halfway then noted the COMPLETE IDIOT behind me flash the bus driver, the bus driver then flicked the right indicator on and out he pulls on full throttle with my elbow touching the flexi part. I gave it some beans and had to cut up a car in the right hand lane to avoid being seriously squashed.

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

The list really is too long.

Best/worst one was where I'm on a main road approaching a junction a notice a car waiting to pull out into my lane. Another car was waiting to go into the side road from the opposite direction. Car 1 looks at car 2 who flashes car 1. Car one then pulls out without looking and I hit hit front wheel side on at about 40. Wake up in hopstial with sore head!

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

Yesterday i overran into a field due to missing a bend :D

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

Errrr daily? Should I just do a report when i get to work/get home? :lol:

Usually involve people not using roundabouts properly. Jumping red lights. PEdestrians walking out without looking. Busses trying to squeeze you out. Taxi drivers doing U turns without indication or anything. People coming out of juncitons without looking etc.....

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

That is the usual one i see, cars flashing on other cars, all be it with good intentions of being curtious on the road, but the ones that flash dont look 1st and the ones being flashed at just trust the judgement of the other car, becasue yes they must be omniscient.

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

spose theres my site famous running me foot over and stayin on bike :D

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

PMSL! How???

Please tell me.

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

foot slipped off peg, hit the road on a right hander, under it went and back out :D

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

Had one in the car the other day ... pedestrian with (probably) a nice looking iPod/mp3 player as a Christmas pressie, too busy marvelling/infuriating at the "jog wheel" technology and was merrily approaching the nearest kerb on a left-hand bend without a care in the world (certainly without any thought for any traffic) - had she stepped out I think she'd have had a lot more time getting to grips with that iPod from her hospital bed ... with this in mind, I honked the horn just as I was turning into the road, and I think all she had to do was change her underwear when she got home ;-)

On the bike ... I've had a few, but seem to have far fewer since my NDIS course (proof indeed that sometimes it DOES sink in :D) ... My observations and anticipation is far better on the bike these days (famour last words before running into the back of a stationary tractor no doubt!).

Most of my "oh cr*p" moments these days are due to inattentive drivers on motorways/roundabouts. Best you can do is just expect them to do the unexpected and try and steer WELL CLEAR of them.

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

In 2001 I borrowed my eldest daughter's Honda VFR400 NC30 for a few days, with the intention of buying it off her. She'd just bought a CBR600FX and the NC was going cheap. All I wanted was an extended test ride before stumping up the cash, so I collected it in my works van and took it home.

Later that night I went out for a ride around the Derbyshire Dales, had a bag of chips in Matlock Bath before riding home towards Worksop, which is where I lived then. I'd decided I was going to buy it, it really was a lovely bike to ride. On the approach to a roundabout just outside Chesterfield I overtook a scruffy red Astravan and slowed to a stop in the right hand lane, looking right for a gap in the traffic before moving off. Next thing I know I'm hitting the large chevron sign on the roundabout itself back first after bouncing off a car roof. I remember seeing bits of NC30 flying around me as I went.

It turns out the guy in the Astravan, a plumber, was a bit of a bike racing fan, but not a rider. He'd seen the NC30 come past and thought it was a super rare VFR750R RC30, which was an easy mistake to make as this one was painted RC30 style and had a single seat on it, with Yoshi can. He was so intent on confirming what he'd seen, presumably so he could tell his biking mates, that he forgot all about braking as he approached me. The result was that he hit the back of the NC30 at approx 45mph without even touching the brakes.

Somehow I didn't break one bone, I was black and blue from bruising but the worst thing was my back was in so much pain from having the rods holding my lower spine in place bent. It took an operation to replace the rods and about 9 months of chiro/physio before I was able to ride without much pain.

He got banned for 6 months and IIRC a 300 quid fine. I got paid out 500 quid more than I was going to buy the bike for and paid my daughter straight away, but she still won't let me ride any of her bikes 'just in case'.

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

ah london...love it!:cheers:

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

on my first scoot i owned a pug speedfight 100, happened in hackney, came around a roundabout, bit fast, fully going for it thinking i was rossi, flicked off onto the exit and the road runs downhill, toward a zebra crossing, as i approached it there was a car, brake lights on obviously staionary, i went to brake, as i did the cars brake lights went off, 'ah' i thought its moving off, so i didnt brake the car didnt move...opps...i hit it at about 45-50mph shot forward, right knee went through the plastic leg sheilds, my balls hit the clocks...teh whole front exploded into bits really...how my head did'nt go through the back windscreen i dont know,i wasnt insured at teh time..doh!...i wrote it off pretty much, had to pay for teh cars damage and my bikes new front facelift...lesson learnt..BIG time...with black and blue plums!!

oh and my first big ' OH SH~T!' moment on my SV a.. 90oddmph tankslapper...i posted up on here after it hapened, scared the life outta me..shook me up in a big way!

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

just after christmas, travelling up the A38, 2 lane dual caridgeway, inside lane was empty, there were 2 cars ahead of me in the outside lane, sometimes in this situation I would make progression up the inside lane close to the hard shoulder, but I could see that the car in front of me was putting a bit of pressure on the car in front of him to move over, after about 1/2 a mile, the front car put the left indicator on and pulled over into the inside lane, the car in front of me accelerated and overtook, I followed at the same pase, at this point there was a car in the inside lane, one in the outsdie lane & me following the car in the outside lane, normal, the road was clear ahead of the two cars as far as we all could see, as the car in front of me passed the inside car, the inside car pulled back out into the outside lane with no indication and no car infront of them to overtake, where was I? rear passenger door, drivers side. I had no where to go, I was telling myself not to panic brake! luckily didn't get target fixation on either the barrier in the middle of the road or the drivers door as both were as close to me as each other. I had my left leg up to the tank level as she was that close I thought she may hit my leg and I was over the rumble strip! If she had used her mirrors, all she would of seen was a the front end of my sv diving on the brakes and a helmet full of :smt103. I slowed down and swung across the boot of the car, with what felt like my helmet pumping with blood, my heart beat was soo fast. I regained composier, there was still no trafic in the inside lane, I did undertake her whilst keeping a close eye on her. she didn't glance, quiver, shake or even seem to know I was ever there. I didn't have anything left in me to do anything, I just wanted to be out of there, pulled off at next roundabout, had a fag, reflected on the sea of idiots we ride through every day.

It wasn't her fault, I should have known she was possibly a t**t and therefore prepaired for that situation. I live many don't.

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

learn to lean mate,learn to lean;)

p.s hope your ok.

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

Another one today, coming back from the dyno place, open road, NSL, a car's doing 40, so I went to overtake, before I moved out I decided "no, can't be bothered, too windy, bike's running lean ... I'll just chill at 40"

A few seconds later, off he goes on a road to the right without slowing down at all, a guy nearly at the junction nearly lost his wing cos he cut the corner.

Nearly!

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

Ohh i have dont worry about that, i hit a patch of either mud, slippy wet stuff or ice, and slide as i hit the brakes so boot down we'll run this one off into that field entry :D

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

Umm please correct me if I'm wrong on this.....

We are allowed to filter it is know as a high risk manover, my understanding in accidents terms is that it would go 50/50 most of the time, this is what happened to me....

I was filtering down the A5 heading towards Kilburn (M1 direction) so there I was riding down the road. Then this ****** is a BMW (always is isn't it) jhust turned right without indicationg I stopped my bike safely emergency stop!!

I was so ****ed off, so I can chased the guy, and vented my anger, then carried on riding.

How could have I prevented this, simple if I knew about rasing vision and reasing the road further ahead like I do now, then I would have been more ready for this to happen and would rejoined the main traffic line. Though the car driver is still an ASS:smt013 They didn't even look.

I talked about this with the traffic guys, they said it would have been 50/50...,,if the moran in the car had hit me.

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

see Davis vs. Schrogin

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

I almost rode under a bus once, while joining a dual carriageway from a small sliproad- I did a shoulder check and saw him, but somehow I totally misjudged the distance and speed, I still don't know how since I'd done the same thing thousands of times. Sped up, just about to pull out, last quick mirror check and IT'S ENTIRELY FULL OF THE FRONT OF A BUS :smt103 Perhaps 2 foot from my elbow. He was speeding, but that's not really relevant... Not enough space in the sliproad to stop but I was able to get out in front of the bus- he braked which made it comfortable, I think it would have worked even if he hadn't though. He wasn't happy, I followed him to the next stop apologised, and gave him a big thanks for braking, but I thought he was going to get out and deck me- think he thought I did it on purpose. Properly terrible mistake, that one.

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

At least you had the Kahunas and the decency to follow and apologies. That really big of you.:notworthy::winner:

Re: Moronic Accidents or close calls
 

Was riding down to Waterford a few summers ago, about 11 pm, was on the main drag coming up to a junction when a Metro with one headlight on turned right across my path.

Dont know what made me hesitate as I approached but by scrubbing off some speed (probably was down to 20mph as I approached) probably saved me from going into the passenger side of it, was a definite "broon trooser" moment

Incidentally, the village I was going through was called Knocktopher :smt045, honestly !