accident caught on helmet camera

[RJ2112]

I didn't bother watching this clip, until somebody mentioned cleavage. (I'm a pig, I admit it.) I've seen other carpool lane accidents, thought this was one that had floated around on other forums.

Now that I have, about the only thing that comes to mind is that the rider did not appear to brake prior to impact. Having used carpool lanes in the past, you have to be Hyper hyper hyper vigilant for bozos who suddenly dart in and out of the lane.

The only thing I can think of is that the offending car driver was not legally using the car pool lane, saw a cop and tried to swerve out of the lane before he/she/it got busted...... I really have to wonder if the woman with the low cut top was that driver, as she got to the scene first........

 

[Dennis in NH]

There was a lot of focus on certain areas that if it were me on the ground and my wife saw this video, it might not turn out good .

I hope the video helps a lawyer sue the crap out of the driver. But alas, the driver will get a ticket for being in the carpool lane -- probably some innocuous amount -- and that's the end of that -- sad.

Dennis

 

[discgolfdude]

As I'm a bus driver and take commuters from Vancouver, WA to Portland, OR daily on I-5. I see some really dump stuff by cars, trucks, bikes and even buses. Even if your eyes are scanning for dump people, you can't avoid them sometimes. Just 2 months ago I ended up rear ending a single occupant in the HOV lane, High Occupant vehicle lane, who came to a fast stop due to she was going to miss her exit and the traffic to her right was not moving. I did everything I could to miss her and to avoid getting rear ended my self and hurting any passengers. I still hit her, but damage was very minimal.

Now you can't really compare a 40ft, bus with bike. Even traveling in the HOV lane as a bus driver, I need to try to think far in advance what the cars ahead and around me are going to do, the same as if I was riding my bike. If I didn't have to get my passengers to their destination with in the time that is allowed, I wouldn't drive in that lane. I wouldn't want to ride my bike in that lane, it isn't safe at all. You really can't predict what the other people are going to do going 55 mph or more, and cars in front of you and behind and to the right of you. Cars jump into the lane when they think they can fit, and stop to jump out when they see a cop, or they are going to miss their exit.

My advice don't use the lane if you don't have to, and don't let people box you in, always leave an out, escape route. This video really opened my eyes more, and make me even more scared to drive in heavy traffic on my fz6, I've only been riding for 6 months or so, and this is my first bike.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

Some HOV or Car Pool lanes only allows you to merge in and out in certain areas, to prevent people like that from slamming on their brakes to take an exit.

I like how Southern Cal runs their HOV's. Defined by double solid yellow lines, once you're in it, you aren't allowed to go out until the next designated merge area. Run very smoothly untl you you come across the idiot who's moving too slow. Nothing you can do about it if that happens.

 

[discgolfdude]

Some HOV or Car Pool lanes only allows you to merge in and out in certain areas, to prevent people like that from slamming on their brakes to take an exit.

I like how Southern Cal runs their HOV's. Defined by double solid yellow lines, once you're in it, you aren't allowed to go out until the next designated merge area. Run very smoothly untl you you come across the idiot who's moving too slow. Nothing you can do about it if that happens.

Thats not the case in Portland, OR. They seem to allow people to come and go as they please, it only has a 10 inch white line that separates the lanes. I wish it was the way you described it. Would be much safer.

 

[razteo]

Thats not the case in Portland, OR. They seem to allow people to come and go as they please, it only has a 10 inch white line that separates the lanes. I wish it was the way you described it. Would be much safer.

This doesn't mean that the morons can't cut the double yellow line as they please more often that you'll think.
Could be even more dangerous as you won't expect that happening.

Riding the bike here in South California is like a game where you assume everybody else on the street is out there to kill you.

 

[DefyInertia]

What else could she have done differently?

She appears to almost be at a stop before hitting the car so she definitely hit the brakes. Can't tell from the video what was in the lane to her right and who knows why she was not in the left lane.

 

[Hutchmaster34]

What bugs me about this vid is that her head never moves! I mean come on as soon as you see a car hit the breaks that hard so randomly, you gotta be looking for exit route. I was taught to always have an exit no matter what, she obviously didn't have one. Horrible cager + unprepared rider + incredibly bad luck = Pain, lots of pain.

 

[dean owens]

I personally have no veiw on the right to bare arms thing and as a non US citizen i dont believe i have the right to judge either.

thank you.

BUT....

When i go to Orlando this November ..the thought i might accidently clip a drivers wing mirror with my familly in the car and heve a gun pulled on me is quite frankly terrifying.

not everyone around here totes a gun. law abiding citizens that do (which is a very small %) have permits and have taken the time to go through a class, learn the laws, and pass a shooting test. and those people wouldn't pull a gun because you messed up their car.

the only other group of people you have to worry about is criminals. and they will have guns no matter what country you're in and no matter what the laws are. laws don't matter to law breakers. and i would say based on the amount of accidents we have in the US (which is quite a lot)... and the amount of gun fights that ensue after said accidents (which i never hear about - and trust me, that'd be on the news)... means that you need to worry more about your family getting struck by lightening while in the US than clipping someone's car and getting a gun pulled on you.

btw, sometimes i'm embarrassed to be an american... but not all of us are drug pushers, tyrants or freeloaders asking others to pay our way and whining when things don't go our way. many of us are good law abiding citizens that care for each other no matter the color, religion or political affiliation.

 

[Chaosratt]

What bugs me about this vid is that her head never moves! I mean come on as soon as you see a car hit the breaks that hard so randomly, you gotta be looking for exit route. I was taught to always have an exit no matter what, she obviously didn't have one. Horrible cager + unprepared rider + incredibly bad luck = Pain, lots of pain.

Having been in a situation similar to that (never contacted anything, but I had to change my pants later) I would say eating the fender on the car to the right was the best exit strategy. Bouncing off the fender of the car to the right and then eating pavement on the other side beats a head-on like that, even at low speeds. Bike might even make it through intact (minus some major rash). Sometimes the there is no "exit" strategy to a crash, but the best outcome is for you to determine when, where, and how you crash.