"riding like you're invisible" - what does it mean to you?

[cv_rider]

We frequently hear people say they ride as if they were invisible to cagers. I'd like to hear specifically what people have in mind for that. I've only been riding eight months, I have a few little strategies that are only partially developed, and I'm sure there is some excellent expert advice in this forum.

I feel the most dangerous places to ride is the city, with people making turns into your lane. If I'm coming up to someone waiting to cross my lane, I usually slow down, move to the other side of the lane, and beep the horn a few times. There's always the scary moment where you know that if the car made its move RIGHT NOW there would be nothing you could do despite your best efforts.

 

[Andyjo]

I sort of like riding in the city... the scariest place for me is outside of the city on the highway... people are stupid, insane, and i have a bigger fear of being knocked off at highway speed than slowish.
Although, good city story, My girlfriend and i were riding into Boston last week, on turning onto commonwealth... and the car in front of us stops in an intersection. So i stopped behind him... and then i see the reverse lights, and he started coming back!
So i laid on the horn and started backpedaling like crazy, he managed to stop with a good 2 ft from my front wheel... good times.
But back to the topic, i ride like I'm invisible means to me, that no one sees you, so always have somewhere to go.. i guess...

 

[Red Wazp]

In many auto vs motorcycle accidents the driver said they did not see the motorcycle. That's because they are looking for another car and the brain just does not register seeing the bike.
Black clothes and helmet (guilty of both) are also harder for the cage driver to see. At least in the US your headlight and turn signals are always on for safety. Some bikers ride with there bright headlight on in the daytime to be seen better. Proven not a good idea as it is harder for drivers to judge your speed as you approach them.
I like to alert other drivers when I need their attention with a quick flash of the high beam.
No disrespect Andyjo, but I'll take high speed highway riding anytime over riding in any city, especially Las Vegas - those people are nuts!

 

[Scorphonic]

One simple answer to the original question is "defensive driving". As we all know, when we're on our bike everyone else is out to kill us and they dont have any idea how to drive...at least that way you'll keep youself safe.

O and one thing I've picked up on (a little bit unrelated to the current thread) but its on my mind...why is it people say "there are two kinds of biker, one that has been down and one that is going down" ??? Its absolutely rediculous...i've known many many bikers who ride and have never fallen off (30 years and counting!)...

Anyways...point being, if you know your machine and know your limitations and understand that you are the only person on the road that knows how to drive there is absolutely no reason why you'll get into trouble. "travel at the speed you can see to be clear and that you can stop on time!" Forward observations and all that jazz!!

@CV rider: When I'm on the motorway (your highway, or freeway....??) and there is a bus or larger vehicle on my right (in the overtaking lane) I will NOT undertake them. If I want to get around them and not put myself in the position where I'd undertake them I would slow down, move behind them in the overtake lane and give them a flash (with the headlight of course!! ) to move in to the driving lane...so I can legally and safely pass him. Also if I'm in the overtake lane passing a bus i'll generally overtake with alot more power past a vehicle like this to get past them ASAP. If overtaking a vehicle like this is going to happen near to an ON ramp onto the motorway i'll wait until we pass the junction....its happened before where vehicles entering the motorway will be well above the required speed upon entering and will try their very best to get in front of a high vehicle like a bus and cut into the overtake lane...so put youself in a safe position where you cant be creamed out of it!

Just remember on thing...your better off slowing down in most situations then speeding up. At junctions (even if they may look clear) cover your brakes or just be conscious that you may need to release the throttle and brake and change position on the road fast. Always position yourself on the road as far as you can safely be from any junction opening.

There are just so many books you can read on this...if you keep your speed at check at least then you'd have time to react and slow down fast enough to be safe.

 

[bledubd]

We frequently hear people say they ride as if they were invisible to cagers. I'd like to hear specifically what people have in mind for that. I've only been riding eight months, I have a few little strategies that are only partially developed, and I'm sure there is some excellent expert advice in this forum.

I feel the most dangerous places to ride is the city, with people making turns into your lane. If I'm coming up to someone waiting to cross my lane, I usually slow down, move to the other side of the lane, and beep the horn a few times. There's always the scary moment where you know that if the car made its move RIGHT NOW there would be nothing you could do despite your best efforts.

I like city riding because it keeps me on my toes and gives me the adrenaline rush.

coming back to your question, it means that I am in a vulnerable position, everytime I am on the road I ride to be seen by the cagers because the moment they don't see you they might move into your zone. When I went for a bike safe (basically where u r tot how to ride to stay alive) weekend in london, the police fella who took us for a ride told us that we should use our flexibility to change position so that the cagers can see us. This is a life skill.

so I would advise you to ride to be visible to the nutters.

 

[keira]

When I ride, I do many of thoe things. I flash my "passing light" (high beam flasher) on the highway when making a pass, always stay to the outside of the lane further from traffic when on a multilane road, and move around inside the lane. I rarely have problems with people cutting me off anymore. Good tip: when approaching an intersection with a car waiting to go, watch their tires. You'll register movement there before you register movement in the whole car.

 

[FZ1inNH]

It means, to me, that no one can see me... period! I need to think about the possible actions of every cage around me and have an escape route pre-planned. This means looking ahead of all traffic to see who is going to pull out of a side road, driveway or intersection. Who's beside you and can they see you?

I also overtake with authority because I don't want to be in a blind spot at all. I never ride behind any trucks carrying items or cages with stuff tied to the roof.

A large percentage of motorcycle accidents involving someone pulling out in front of them is related to the judgement of speed. It is hard to judge how fast a bike approaches. The majority of these type of accidents has the cyclist going well over the posted limit thus placing himself in greater danger. The person pulling out into a 45 mph zone with a bike in the distance "assumes" the bike is doing 45 to 50 mph. The bike is coming at 65 - 70. Recipe for disaster. By the time the car is half way out the bike has closed the distance and hasn't the room to stop. My point here is, don't be that guy! Save the speed for the track and act responsible on the bike. It's your life you're saving.

 

[Oranje]

Never let your guard down.

I was in a quiet industrial area, with a very wide street (could have been a 4 lane street with a center island) last Thursday. A BMW station wagon decided to enter a parking lot to the right very slowly as I approached. When I was passing the 17 year old on the cell phone driving her moms car going to her dads company to 'interview' for a job wearing jeans and a t-shirt, she decided to enter the parking lot to the left instead (across the street) and I had no time to react...only to try to keep my balance afterward...this was especially crucial because she kept going and didn't seem to want to stop for anything, even after impact.

Now I'm without a bike thanks to coolant and brake fluid leaking.

 

[idanny]

In many auto vs motorcycle accidents the driver said they did not see the motorcycle. That's because they are looking for another car and the brain just does not register seeing the bike.
Black clothes and helmet (guilty of both) are also harder for the cage driver to see. At least in the US your headlight and turn signals are always on for safety. Some bikers ride with there bright headlight on in the daytime to be seen better. Proven not a good idea as it is harder for drivers to judge your speed as you approach them.
I like to alert other drivers when I need their attention with a quick flash of the high beam.
No disrespect Andyjo, but I'll take high speed highway riding anytime over riding in any city, especially Las Vegas - those people are nuts!

yes sir, when I am riding around it seems like 50% of the people around me are drunk.

 

[Oranje]

dude, you're from vegas...they probably are.

 

[christod1]

For me it means that cagers cant see me. So it doesn.t matter if I have the right of way or anything like that. I ride "on the defence". Always be ready to slow down, stop or swurve if needed. And never ever assume that they are going to stop. Because sometimes, they don't.

 

[HavBlue]

Many good points here. The one thing I like doing and this holds true even with riding in a group is making sure I can see that other riders face or cagers face in their own mirror. The reason for this is simple, if I can see them, they can see me and if I can't then it's game over because they can't see me at all.

Another thing I avoid like the plague is the right side of a vehicle. Here we find blind spots that are difficult for the cager to overcome. I have had more than a few riders sit right in that blind spot while I am caging it and to me, they don't begin to know how dangerous this is or they wouldn't be there in the first place.

To me, riding a bike is both defensive and offensive as there are scenarios where both may apply. When in doubt, gas it and get the heck out of there.....

 

[chuckfz6ryder]

A large percentage of motorcycle accidents involving someone pulling out in front of them is related to the judgement of speed. It is hard to judge how fast a bike approaches. The majority of these type of accidents has the cyclist going well over the posted limit thus placing himself in greater danger. The person pulling out into a 45 mph zone with a bike in the distance "assumes" the bike is doing 45 to 50 mph. The bike is coming at 65 - 70. Recipe for disaster. By the time the car is half way out the bike has closed the distance and hasn't the room to stop. My point here is, don't be that guy! Save the speed for the track and act responsible on the bike. It's your life you're saving.

I agree, we need to ride carefully on the roads, if you want to race, find a track.
I've been riding on the streets since 1985, no problems yet other than dropping my bike in traffic when I stalled turning left (back in 1985).

I ride like I'm invisible, to me that means I'm the only one who isn't trying to kill me. When I make eye contact with a cager, I still don't believe they saw me. I don't trust a cager with a blinker on either. Once I feel that a car is stopped at an intersection or parking lot/driveway, and I feel it's safe to pass the car, I look at the tire/wheel and make sure it's not turning at all. and I never feel comfortasble at stop until a cage is completely stopped behind me.

 

[HavBlue]

A large percentage of motorcycle accidents involving someone pulling out in front of them is related to the judgment of speed. It is hard to judge how fast a bike approaches. The majority of these type of accidents has the cyclist going well over the posted limit thus placing himself in greater danger. The person pulling out into a 45 mph zone with a bike in the distance "assumes" the bike is doing 45 to 50 mph. The bike is coming at 65 - 70. Recipe for disaster. By the time the car is half way out the bike has closed the distance and hasn't the room to stop. My point here is, don't be that guy! Save the speed for the track and act responsible on the bike. It's your life you're saving.

I agree with this is in that the visual cue observed by human sight judges speed relative to the size of an object. An example of this would be waiting at a stop while an 18 wheeler is on approach. It's easy to determine the approach speed of the rig due to its size changing as it approaches. Now, we all know the rig isn't actually changing in size but what our eyes perceive is all together different in that the rig, from a visual cue, is clearly gaining in size. A bike on the other hand is different in that it is difficult to see at a relative distance and it doesn't really get bigger in terms of the visual cue as it approaches. This makes it extremely difficult for the average person to get a lock on just how fast the bike is approaching posted speed or not. Heck, it's even difficult for those officers trained to estimate speed if that bike is on a direct approach. The way I figure, it's always best to assume they can't see you nor can they know how fast you are going if they do. This attitude keeps me a lot safer....

 

[Doorag]

the police fella who took us for a ride told us that we should use our flexibility to change position so that the cagers can see us.

Can you expand on that?

 

[HavBlue]

Can you expand on that?

With a cage it is easy to pick up relative speed and notice the vehicle simply because of its size however, a bike is so small it is often overlooked. It has been suggested that when approaching areas of concern like an intersection that the rider move around in the lane thus assisting the cagers visual cues.

 

[Doorag]

Cool, I didn't know that. I'll be taking the Bike Safe course pretty soon. Sounds like it will be good.

 

[craig007]

My strategy is to stay out of the way. I use a 3-4+ second following distance and do what if's all the time. When someone cuts into my lane, I have usually already anticipated it, so there is no drama. I know I'm supposed to be invisable, but I still wear high visability jackets.

 

[rbesr]

A lot of good points have been brought up. I rely on defensive driving and paying attention to the detaols of what's going on around me. Added to the list of what's already been said, I have headlight modulators on all three bikes as well as Back-Off units on the brakelights. Additional lighting also helps quite a bit.

 

[armystrong]

Many good points in this thread. Just like Craig007...99% of the time I wear a high visibility vest (even in the day time). I cant count the number of times that a cager waiting to turn left has looked at me...looked away...and then looked back because they picked up the bright yellow of my vest. It's like they saw something and had to glance back for another look....that's a good thing.
Yes it covers my cool looking leather jacket...but its worth the investment and safety of being less invisible.

I also slow down a bit before entering an intersection or when cars are waiting to pull out or turn left. Stay safe out there!