most likely to get killed in my own neighborhood!

[Iahawk]

just need to vent about this...I went out for a nice after dinner motorcycle ride tonight. Beautiful weather in the low 70's, very light traffic. I rode for about 45 minutes and decided to come home. When I pulled off the main road into my neighborhood I wasn't quite ready to go home so I thought I'd take one last spin around the block.

1 block from my house, on a quiet 25 mph road I was ready to take a right turn. On the road I was turning onto was an oncoming car..a woman in a Mercedes who was distracted and talking to her passenger. She was turning left onto the road I was on. I noticed she was not looking at me and she was cutting the corner tight. Instead of her taking a 90 degree left turn she cut the angle and would have hit me head on had I not moved over to my right, almost to the curb.

In the moment I didn't hit my horn, just hit my brakes, hard. I gave her a What The F! flailing arm gesture. We were both stopped, almost face to face.(or front wheel to bumper?) She gave me the 'sorry' shoulder shrug.
.
It also made me realize that the 3 'near death' experiences (I exaggerate, slightly) I've had have all been from clueless people in my neighborhood at 25 mph. They are completely not paying attention and would have killed me had I not been riding defensively.

My motorcycle had the brights on plus my super bright driving lights. My helmet is white and my leather jacket is white, red and black...I was not invisible. It really made me angry but I guess doesn't surprise me. People pay zero attention to the world around them.

So be safe and watch out for the clueless, inattentive drivers in your own neighborhood!

[Neil955i]

You are so right Hawk. I’ve posted here before about UK research which states that most accidents happen within a mile of home! As the old Hill Street Blues Sergeant used to say, “Be careful out there”.


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[Kansas kymco]

That's the one thing I try to pass on to new riders about riding defensively, ride like everyone is out to get you. I don't know how many times people have pulled out in front of me or tried to change lanes with me already there. NEVER LET YOUR GUARD DOWN.

[Neil955i]

In the days when I used to be an Advanced Motorcycle training instructor I pressed home a similar mantra.  In my case I pointed out that the best defensive skill a rider could hone was a vivid imagination!  In any given scenario what's the worst thing that could happen / go wrong and then to ride with that in mind.  And your point is well made KK, a healthy dose of riding paranoia is no bad thing - some days they are all out to get you!

[Stig / Major Tom]

"No imagination ", man, how many times I've used that phrase when talking to my kids about drivers and especially - riders!

I read somewhere that riders have fewer accidents while DRIVING compared to non-riders.
Many of us anyway....still too many riders out there riding like they're on a closed track.

I ride while most of my world is still in bed - for more than a few reasons. Can't recall the last time I was out on my scooter in daytime traffic since I no longer commuted home from work.
It's not for everyone. ...
Stig

[Neil955i]

I do admire your grit & determination getting up at that hour to ride Tom!  The pull of the bed is too great for me, I can do it as a one-off, but every day?  Be too much like being back at work!

Still a good job you can do it, as where else would we get all those wonderful moody sunrise shots?

[Kansas kymco]

Your not the only one Neil. I treasure being able to sleep in now that I'm retired. I still wake up early but this time of year I get my work done before noon because of the heat.

[Neil955i]

A simple pleasure, but one which I too value!

[CROSSBOLT]

Hawk, you need to dump the neighborhood and move to the country! Around here, they straddle the line or the center even on blind hill crests plus cut every corner regardless of direction! Y'see, most of 'em learned to drive a tractor before a car or pickup and that's where large tractors fit, in the center! Har, har!

[Stig / Major Tom]

Sitting behind handlebars and motoring along through the countryside as the world awakens is great.
When I was a kid in Paris, I loved walking the streets at dawn. The same in San Francisco. ....the bakeries smell great and -- they give out free stuff!
Here it's cow poop, wood smoke and - crossing I-70, diesel. (which is kind of a warm smell)
Certain dewy roadside brush smells like Fritos !

Anyway,  glad you all stay in the sack.
Dislike tailgaters....you'd all be trying to get me to speed up😊
Stig

[Kansas kymco]

Sitting behind handlebars and motoring along through the countryside as the world awakens is great.
When I was a kid in Paris, I loved walking the streets at dawn. The same in San Francisco. ....the bakeries smell great and -- they give out free stuff!
Here it's cow poop, wood smoke and - crossing I-70, diesel. (which is kind of a warm smell)
Certain dewy roadside brush smells like Fritos !

Anyway,  glad you all stay in the sack.
Dislike tailgaters....you'd all be trying to get me to speed up😊
Stig

Stig I still wake up at 4:45. Now I can roll over and go back  to sleep if I choose. Before it wasn't an option.

[leomagnus]

You need to add the "Schwarzenegger" package on the side of the scooter to hold a sawed off shotgun...I sure a few rounds across the bow would wake them up....

[Stig / Major Tom]

Stig I still wake up at 4:45. Now I can roll over and go back  to sleep if I choose. Before it wasn't an option.

When I retired I had 1644 hrs of paid sick leave accrued - just knowing I could call off was good enough. I got up and went.
Early on, I worked one week with an old city employee - every morning he rolled down the window of his big truck and announced that he had his 30 in - and might just quit if anyone messed with him.
It was nice when I found myself in the same position years later.
They did.
And I did.

That said - I still dream I'm at work a couple times a week.
Stig

[Kansas kymco]

Stig odd you say that because I have dreamt I was at work in the middle of a crisis before.  It was great when I woke up and realized I didn't have to deal with it.  Very rare now to even think about work, although I do see people from work occasionally.

[Ernst]

Just a reminder for all riders.
I took the DMV approved Motorcycle course when I first got my license and one of the things they drill into our heads is always have an exit path at every moment and do not hesitate to commit.
 I learned that and always look for my exit path. It is a habit. It could save your life.
Ride long and Prosper!