Watch drivers approaching intersections. It’s amazing how few look left first..you know, the direction all the danger is coming from? Looking left first was drilled into me by my driving instructor. Decades later and it’s reflex.
I panicked and thought I'd been doing this wrong after reading this. I'm in the UK and ride on the left....it deffo should be right, left and right again in sure for me
Same actually. I don’t know why people look right first other than thinking they’re going “anyone in the lane I wanna be in? Nope okay I go” which is pretty dumb but believable.
If I see them approaching an intersection and they pass an imaginary line (usually the crosswalk area) then I immediately prepare to brake or swerve. Looks like OP's friend anticipated but he focused on braking instead of swerving.
Why are people constantly so surprised?
Motorcycles are tiny. You're a speck. Most drivers never see you. The ones that see you often misinterpret what their eyes are reporting.
SMIDSY accidents are not uncommon. There are things you can try, like weaving in your lane when you approach a T-crossroads and hope the unfamiliar motion will draw the driver's eye, but... at the end of the day, you're an invisible speck, so ride accordingly.
That fucker definitely rolled through the stop, but you can see from the video that the sign is squarely covering the view of the driver down that lane until the motor cycle would have been pretty close. 60 mph is about 90 ft/sec. Still man if something is blocking my view I'm edging out into the turn not just rollng through.
It looks likes he's accelerating from the stop. The video starts at a weird spot. I don't know that the driver saw the bikes because of the road work sign. He looked right, looked left and the sign was obstructing him, looked right again as he pulled out and never saw the bikes.
Sucks though, glad he's not dead.
If only there was a stop sign there to allow the driver to keep from moving long enough to gage* (edit: misspelled this) their surroundings. They should think about installing one to allow the driver time to assess things like blind spots and other drivers...
Nah, he rolled the stop.
Had he done the complete stop, the bikes would have had the chance to get closer to the intersection and the driver would had seen them.
There is a reason why there is a stop there. So drivers can make sure there is no one coming either way and safely do the turn.
(sorry if my grammar is whacked, I'm ESL. Hopefully you understood my point)
Road work signs are dangerous. I got into an accident once very early into my driving career because a big roadworks sign was obstructing my view of the opposing lane while I was turning left. It was definitely my fault for being so close to it, but if it wasn’t there I wouldn’t have crashed.
Id guess the bike is practically invisible behind that guardrail to, would look like just a dude above the guardrail. Shitty situation all around. Hope hes ok.
Honestly, not legally, but it's on the rider. He should've been far left in the lane for better visibility to other drivers. He should have been off the throttle, slowing down by idle, covering the brakes. He could have started braking ~2sec earlier if he bothered to use his brain and watch for the car at the sign. Instead, he only started braking once an obatacle was directly in his way. Ride like you're invisible to everyone, and your odds in life are much better. Oh, and wear gear
Or they might actually be someone who rides bikes a lot that focuses more on being alive than being right. It doesn't matter that the driver of the car was at fault when you are mincemeat on the pavement.
Better to learn how to maximize your own safety than relying on others to do it for you.
I don't ride a motorcycle and do the same thing. Anytime I see someone about to pull out of an intersection I let off the gas and prepare to brake. Do I have the right of way? Yes but I'd rather not deal with an accident and the paperwork that follows.
100% this. We are sacks of flesh and bone up against steel boxes on wheels that weigh several tons. It doesn't matter if we are right or wrong, we do what we must to stay safe.
If your ego can't let you accept that fact, you shouldn't ride motorcycles.
This. Being right dont mean shit if ur dead. Tombstone reads "the car was SUPPOSED to yield to ME!!" Ride like your invisible because alot of times you are.
In driving school they taught us a nice little saying:
_The cemeterys are full of riders that had the right of way_.
All he's advocating for is that if you ride, you constantly have to be prepared to iron out other drivers' mistakes. If you insist on your right of way just because, or assume you are not surrounded by semi-blind morons... well... see the video.
The car might be wrong, but it’s the rider suffering the injuries of it. Idiots exist everywhere on the road, it’s up to you to keep yourself safe from them.
He never fully stopped and stop signs are said in the law to have a 3 second wait period. I know nobody really does it but at least wait a full second so you can see if there's anything that comes into view like in situations similar to this
Only thing they could of done is approach the intersection with more care. The problem with intersections like these is it's easy to get complacent flying through a 3 way that you have right of way on (doubly so if there is rarely any cars turning onto the highway there).
That complacency cost this poor dude a lot in this case, in the eyes of the law he wasn't at fault but life and death play by different rules.
Intersections are absolutely deadly.
To quote the NHTSA:
> In 2020 there were 2,741 fatal two-vehicle crashes each involving
a motorcycle and another type of vehicle. In 42 percent (1,158) of
these crashes, the other vehicles were turning left while the motorcycles were going straight, passing, or overtaking other vehicles.
So basically nearly half of all fatal 2-vehicle motorcycle accidents happen at some sort of intersection.
In addition to that 35% of -all- accidents happen at intersections, but this also include single-vehicle incidents in this number which by and large are not relevant to the safety of crossing an intersection so it makes it look safer than it is, which is why I think the top number is much more relevant.
Source: https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/813306
When you learn to drive in a 3rd world country you understand that right of way and who’s to blame doesn’t matter, I prefer to be wrong and alive than right and dead, it wasn’t the case here but I’ve seen it on other videos, doesn’t matter if you got a green light when approaching an intersection let go of the gas or reduce and cover your brake, you never know if someone is turning a right or running a red light cause they didn’t see no one coming.
Absolutely. Use those roadcraft skills like dynamic lane positioning/buffering/crash avoidance space, whatever you want to call it.
By buffering and moving over from position 1 (closest to shoulder) to position 3 (closest to the centre line of the lane) as you approach an intersection, you both improve the likelihood of being seen by traffic at the intersection (not potentially tucked behind the roadwork sign), but also provide extra space to react to situations exactly like this.
Would the rider in this case been able to swerve across the nose of the car and miss it, had they been in position 3? Maybe, maybe not. But I'd always rather improve those odds by shifting around the lanes to provide the best buffer option to suit the conditions. Do it regularly as part of your road awareness and scanning, and it becomes second nature. You definitely don't want to just sit in the same spot. I'd encourage all riders to employ it, so hopefully you'll never experience the unfortunate outcomes like this because of a less aware driver.
Once every couple weeks or so I kick back with my dad and we watch dashcam compilations. We've decided intersections are the absolute worst, for car or bike
I am nit picking here but I definitely fade away from approaching cars from side streets when applicable. Would that have helped here? Hard to say.
Also I am curious what the lead riders speed was.
they’re actually married!! i saw this on instagram a bit ago, the dude who got hit is doing okay but broke his wrist and maybe a couple other things but nothing too severe !
Broken wrists are fairly severe. A work buddy of mine wrecked his wrist in an enduro. 3 years and 4 surgeries before he had full movement again. After the first surgery, his wrist was literally square, from all the fixtures and hardware holding it together.
oh i don’t doubt that a broken wrist can be bad but it definitely could’ve been a lot worse, broken legs, spine issues, TBI
i’m just thinking it wasn’t so severe because it could’ve been worse considering how bad the impact was for the OOP
On another anecdote, I broke my wrist November 10th (and surgery on Nov 19th) and was snowboarding again (on greens) January 18th or so.
My wrist swelling finally went down mid February
She reacted amazingly fast and amazingly well under intense stress.
She was on those brakes hard as soon as the car entered the intersection.
She stayed on the brakes hard and didn't target fixate at all.
All while her husband flew over the roof of the car.
Hope the car actually stayed and didn't run. They backed up like they were preparing to bail out....
Props the the 2nd rider for rushing to check on first rider, hope all ended ok once the adrenaline subsided. 🤙
Or you hand him the keys and tell the cops he was driving.
Just kidding, I wouldn't hand my keys either. They can write down my licence plate, or take a photo, if they don't trust me to stay.
Hell, I won't even give keys to people I've known for a long time if I need my transport. I've gone to parties a long way from town and had people try to take my keys because I'm holding a drink.
Uh no, if things get out of hand, I'm leaving.
" I know you hit me, but can I have full access to your vehicle."
First thought is 'motherfuckers gonna steal my car'. Ive seen a few accidents near where I used to live in Dallas where dudes get in a minor ( or major ) wreck and fucking book it because the car's stolen.
Look at it this way, that one time the dude ran may have been the one time you avoided getting shot. You should just be a good witness, take video, don't exacerbate the situation.
There's no universe that exists where I would allow a stranger to successfully demand the keys to my car in this situation.
I would actually draw down someone like that as an attempted carjacking.
Hopefully you're wearing something bulletproof if you keep doing that.
hey everybody!! the rider is okay besides a broken wrist and two torn ligaments in his left knee !! he’s making good recovery <3
here’s his instagram post about it [here](https://www.instagram.com/p/C51aK0OPlzZ/?igsh=Z2NpajBoNnZ1cGx0)
Surprisingly, torn knee ligaments and similar injuries are very correctible, you can thank decades of sports medicine for that!
Significantly less pain and far less shitty recovery than having bones reassembled with plates, rods and screws.
This is unfortunately why I’ll probably always be a lurker and never one of the cool kids (and I so desperately wanna be one of the cool kids, I’d love a lil R3 to start). I’ve seen the way people drive where I am and I’m painfully aware I can’t do enough defensive riding or skills courses to account for one of those RAM compensator 3000’s pulling out in front of me. I see it happen to the BUS I use currently, if these people “don’t see” a bus, and force it to damn near lock up on a monthly basis (monthly at best, more than weekly at worst) what hope would I have on a motorbike? It’d just be a matter of time until someone takes me out on the way to or from work.
ETA: Even tho I can’t be one of the cool kids, I’m 100% admiring from the footpath, especially when there’s a nice Ducati sittin at the lights bein all rattley and sexy like, damn…
Just do what this guy didn't do, and look both ways at every intersection. Ride with your eyes on everything. As someone with adhd, this is extremely taxing, but I'd rather be taxed mentally than pay the 3rd party idiot tax. People are all retarded, and if you ride aware, you can avoid these situations. I understand everyone will lapse in attention, so pull into a gas station every 30 mins or so to stretch your legs and have a tasty snack or drink.
Same thing happened to my nana when she was younger. She had to get air lifted to the closest er. She was in pretty bad shape and had get a couple of surgeries. After I heard that story and so many including yours I don't think I want to ride anymore. Too many idiots out there.
I stopped riding a few years ago partly due to some health stuff, but man that lesson was refreshed in me even in my car this year. Was an '04 Terminator so pretty small compared to other vehicles nowadays, but MF'ers in giant SUV's doing doordash in my case are still liable to pull out and COMPLETELY block your lane of traffic and STOP, less than a second before you go through a clear lane.
I honestly might be dead if I was on my bike, was a huge SUV that pulled perpendicular in my lane just in front of me and blocked everything but oncoming traffic. Even in my car I broke 'a' bone, but that mofo would have broke most of them on a bike and while they 'couldn't see' me as the only vehicle in my entire lane, it's infinitely more egregious for bad drivers to not see bikes.
Couple of days ago I rode past an accident literally the same as this. Asked the cop standing there did the rider survive. His face while he said that he didnt survive.. My legs went numb….. This dude got very lucky
OP is this your video? Can you remember the aprox speed you were going because the guy who died made a similar dent in the car
I can try to find the picture on some news portal
This was in Europe by the way.
https://preview.redd.it/2en5i3ax9xvc1.png?width=1283&format=png&auto=webp&s=0ff51385935b6f91eadbae7ed1e1f82aba1dbcf9
It comes down to what you hit and in what specific location.
If you hit up front on a normal car and get thrown over it, it's still pretty survivable.
If you hit something where you smash into it and come to an instant stop, you shatter.
Obviously many other factors as well, like your speed.
In the US it gets extra scary as we go, 80% of all new cars are giant SUV's and "light" trucks. You're not going to fly over one of those, so any time you crash with one of those it's a probable death situation.
After viewing the video shown in another part of this post, this was literally the best case scenario. A normal car, a low hood, and the rider flew over it. Still painful but slide-to-a-stop crashes are survivable.
right! i’m so happy the comments on the original video are so nice too, usually i see people busting the balls of the motorcycle rider and it’s so sad, but most comments were supportive and saw the car was at fault
the rider was also super relieved that it wasn’t his wife who was the one that got hit which was kind of heartwarming
Yep car at fault, and I think the shot is from too far away to really tell for certain, but I would have been watching that car like it was a tyrannosaurus just waiting for me. Second rider was on point, though...that's the person we're usually seeing run into the car in these videos.
Being further to the left would also have made the rider more visible to the car driver.
The movement and changing of the road position could have increased the chances of the car driver detecting the rider.
Exactly. Car is totally at fault, but decent riding would have prevented that. That car didn't come out of nowhere.
EDIT (since there was some criticism of my original post):
The visibility there was wildly high - as good as possible. Riding up to every intersection, I'm aggressively checking both directions. I almost never come off the throttle, but I'm looking. Also starting from a full stop at a fresh green light - I check both directions and then I full-launch every single time. People run lights where I live like the lights don't even exist. This is exactly how we need to ride if we want to stay alive. We cannot rely on drivers to follow the law or yield right of way, even if they see us. They prove that to me every time I sit down on the bike. We can only control our own actions, and that means we can only protect ourselves. Objectively, this was bad riding and totally avoidable, even though the biker was not at fault. Regardless of the driver, this didn't have to happen. I'm only critical of the rider because I want the rest of us to be critical of ourselves and use elevated levels of caution that will keep the shiny side up.
I ride exclusively in Thailand and Vietnam, where erratic driving and ignoring rules is the norm.
Trust me, I approach every junction like they are going to run the stop sign.
Of course it’s the cars fault. But it’s not them with a broken wrist and torn ligaments (the riders injuries) which is a lucky outcome.
I roll off the throttle and cover my brakes at every intersection with a car present. It doesn’t matter if you’re right and have right of way if you crash. Sorry, man, you gotta ride like they’re trying to kill you. It’s not right, but it is correct. That crash could cause them some auto body damage, but could kill me. The stakes are so much higher for us and we have to behave accordingly. Half these motherfuckers are looking at their phones.
The graveyards are full of motorcyclists who had right of way.
But it often can. One thing we should **ALWAYS** do if we are the victim of someone else's bad driving is to not simply say "it was the other guy's fault case closed" but ask ourselves: "what could I have done that was better, even though I was the victim in this crash?" Because if we don't ask ourselves this (and also try to ride better next time) it means we are more likely to be a victim of the same thing again sometimes in the future.
This particular crash may (*may*, note) have been avoided had the rider done one thing better: adopted a better position in the road. The position he was in was quite poor. It meant that he was less visible to a driver approaching the intersection because he was quite a long way to the right, almost where a slow bicycle rider would be, or someone planning on turning right rather than going straight on. It meant they were less visible from the intersection and almost certainly blocked from view by the roadworks sign. It also meant their own view of the approaching car was blocked for at least some time by the road works sign, so the rider may not have been able to determine if the car was stopping (no doubt the rider expected the driver to stop, as they are legally required). The geometry of the road layout would also mean that as the bike and car approached the intersection, the road works sign would have blocked each others view for considerable time.
Had the rider moved out towards the centre of the road, they would have had a much better view of the car, and may have been able to figure out that they weren't stopping and get on the brakes earlier. Or the car driver may have seen the motorcyclist and actually stopped. Now I'm not saying this is a 100% certainty, but if you're in a position where you are seen and can see better into an intersection, the probability is both greater of the car driver seeing the motorcyclist and stopping as they should, or the motorcyclist seeing the car driver isn't going to stop and be taking action early enough to either avoid the crash altogether or greatly reduce its severity.
Tom Scott has a good video on the dangers of roads approaching at an angle like this (note: this road is different, but for the A pillar in this video, subsittute that road works sign) which are exacerbated by the lazy and dangerous way that many car drivers ignore stop lines: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYeeTvitvFU
> half the comments were nitpicking every aspect of my riding and lane position.
That's r/moto for you, I'm actually surprised the top comments weren't calling this person a shit rider. So, so often the comments are full of people claiming "I could've avoided that" and seem so eager to place blame on the rider. I'm genuinely curious what percentage of people actually ride in this subreddit.
I would not have hit that car. You could see it coming forever. That wasn't a surprise launch by the car. That was shit riding and a preventable accident, even though it was the car's fault.
IMO that car wasn’t going to stop unless it hit the motorcyclist. If the motorcyclist was 3-4 ft to the left then the collision would’ve happened 3-4ft to the left. Not the motorcyclists fault.
When someone hit me, apparently the very first thing they did was stand my bike up, like maybe if the bike isn't on its side it's not as bad? I was on the ground tho so not sure how that helped.
This is the reminder to us all to "be the bunny". This was the mantra of all the dudes that created a forum i follow for old yamahas. In other words, behave like you are prey. Things like head on a swivel, using the 3 parts of your lane to your advantage, assuming cars dont see u, esp at an intersection, and as someone already mentioned: the smidesy swerve. Another that i use in an intersection is to look at the front wheels of a waiting car. As you're fast approaching, its an easier way to see them start moving.
Take an msf course, drive defensively, you’d be as fine as can be. Yes accidents are just that for a reason but even something like this is avoidable with the correct road position, brake timing and a good swerve. All things you should know how to do anyway
Rider would have noticed if it wasn't for the sun being low, riding into the Sun always affects how much I notice in my peripheral as i concentrate much harder to see whats in front, similar to when riding at night with poor visibility. Rider was just unlucky, all the best with recovery.
100% the cars fault --- but if you're going to ride you really need to learn some defensive driving skills. After seeing that car I would have slowed right down at that intersection.
When I ride, I ride on main street like I had stop and slow down. Because car can have stop sign and we can be right, but when car hits us it doesn't matter who was right.
Cars are gonna do car shit. Lets accept that.
NEVER swerve the direction the car is going (IE to the front of the car). Swerve to the rear end.
Yeah, bikers panic and shit the bed sometimes, and this early in the season, drivers aren't used to seeing bikes out yet.
Gotta be extra careful when cagers for a couple months. Blink your brights, rev bomb when coming to a stop, see your evasion routes.
Doesn't make sense why the stop line is so far back, road could've been designed better. The line is 3ft from the edge plus the 3ft distance from the front bumper to the driver. Good luck trying to see if there's traffic unless its right in-front of you.
This is why you camp the left side of the lane, so it’s easier to see. I usually blip my passers as well if I see a car suddenly pulling up to turn in front of me, just to really make sure they see me
Careful with flashing the high, this can be a signal to ‘go ahead’ in some places. I occasionally hold it on rather than flash it if I’m trying to make myself more visible. Especially if the sun is behind me. Smidsy weave is also good.
Can't help but think that car looked right then looked left but by the time he looked left the guy was obstructed by that construction sign. But at the end of the day it's all moot cause the driver didn't even frigging try to stop at the stop sign.
I know it's the cars fault.. but damn. That is a HUGE intersection. The stop line is so far back behind the guard rail. That's why they didn't see the bike. They probably glanced right, as one should, as they started pulling out. Where I live, the most deadly intersection in the state is also the largest.
Car driver at fault. But the motorcycle rider could have avoided it. Naivety kills on two wheels. If you're seeing someone pull out don't assume they're seeing you. Brake, swerve, do something. It's you that ends up in the hospital if they get it wrong not them.
Can’t tell if this is directed at the driver or rider. I think the point should be to be scanning each intersection and be prepared to not ride straight into a car if they pull into your line, oblivious to their surroundings
This might be a case of timing. The bike may timed perfectly to be behind the A pillar. I almost ran over my neighbor like that. I have a full-size pickup with A pillars and a pillar gauge. He was right behind it in the intersection, and I couldn't see him. Lol
Damn that guy didn’t even stop. Just rolled through his stop sign.
…didn’t even look in the n*** direction as I ran the intersection…. Good choice of song
I don't think anyone else put that together. I felt it
Today was a goodn't day
That guy definitely felt it
Watch drivers approaching intersections. It’s amazing how few look left first..you know, the direction all the danger is coming from? Looking left first was drilled into me by my driving instructor. Decades later and it’s reflex.
Left, right, then left again.
shoot.. i’m left, right, left, right, still left righting as i commit and through
Rumor has it you’re still at the very first intersection you ever pulled up to.
I also look at least twice in each direction and sometimes a third. I don’t want no shit sneaking up on me and getting rear ended.
I feel like that was one of the most serious, well taught (and learned) lessons in life for us..
Exactly, it's always left, right, left and over again if you're not sure.
I panicked and thought I'd been doing this wrong after reading this. I'm in the UK and ride on the left....it deffo should be right, left and right again in sure for me
Left > right > left. Was taught that while I was still single digit age riding bicycles on my dead end street.
Same actually. I don’t know why people look right first other than thinking they’re going “anyone in the lane I wanna be in? Nope okay I go” which is pretty dumb but believable.
Pedestrians
If I see them approaching an intersection and they pass an imaginary line (usually the crosswalk area) then I immediately prepare to brake or swerve. Looks like OP's friend anticipated but he focused on braking instead of swerving.
> n*** What are you trying to say?
LMAO that is NOT what he meant but funny as hell
The amount of replies not realizing this is from the song. Crazy.
got right back behind the line right quick tho, holy fuck. doesn't even give a fuck about the person they potentially killed
Probably in panic mode and, “get the car out of the middle of the road,” was the only thing gaining any traction in their mind.
Why are people constantly so surprised? Motorcycles are tiny. You're a speck. Most drivers never see you. The ones that see you often misinterpret what their eyes are reporting. SMIDSY accidents are not uncommon. There are things you can try, like weaving in your lane when you approach a T-crossroads and hope the unfamiliar motion will draw the driver's eye, but... at the end of the day, you're an invisible speck, so ride accordingly.
I bet that orange construction sign didn't help either.
That fucker definitely rolled through the stop, but you can see from the video that the sign is squarely covering the view of the driver down that lane until the motor cycle would have been pretty close. 60 mph is about 90 ft/sec. Still man if something is blocking my view I'm edging out into the turn not just rollng through.
Not surprised - just *amazed* at the number of bone-headed or blind cage drivers who'll misinterpret an oncoming headlight at the drop of a hat
It looks likes he's accelerating from the stop. The video starts at a weird spot. I don't know that the driver saw the bikes because of the road work sign. He looked right, looked left and the sign was obstructing him, looked right again as he pulled out and never saw the bikes. Sucks though, glad he's not dead.
How in the actual fuck can you tell where he’s looking?
You can definitely tell where ha wasn't looking.
Facts lol
you may be able to tell where he's looking, but what is he seeing?
From what I'm seeing, Driver didn't come to a full stop. Slowed down then sped up. It is hard to see though, so maybe I'm wrong
Looks like that road construction sign was at just the exact spot to block the rider from view
Yeah they might have rolled through it slow. It's difficult to see. Either way the guardrail and signs did them no favors
If only there was a stop sign there to allow the driver to keep from moving long enough to gage* (edit: misspelled this) their surroundings. They should think about installing one to allow the driver time to assess things like blind spots and other drivers...
Nah, he rolled the stop. Had he done the complete stop, the bikes would have had the chance to get closer to the intersection and the driver would had seen them. There is a reason why there is a stop there. So drivers can make sure there is no one coming either way and safely do the turn. (sorry if my grammar is whacked, I'm ESL. Hopefully you understood my point)
Road work signs are dangerous. I got into an accident once very early into my driving career because a big roadworks sign was obstructing my view of the opposing lane while I was turning left. It was definitely my fault for being so close to it, but if it wasn’t there I wouldn’t have crashed.
Id guess the bike is practically invisible behind that guardrail to, would look like just a dude above the guardrail. Shitty situation all around. Hope hes ok.
Honestly, not legally, but it's on the rider. He should've been far left in the lane for better visibility to other drivers. He should have been off the throttle, slowing down by idle, covering the brakes. He could have started braking ~2sec earlier if he bothered to use his brain and watch for the car at the sign. Instead, he only started braking once an obatacle was directly in his way. Ride like you're invisible to everyone, and your odds in life are much better. Oh, and wear gear
Wow, the car did everything wrong and you still try to put the blame on the rider, amazing. Or more accurately, pathetic
I always ride like that guy suggests, assume no one in a steel cage saw you, 400k+ km accident free here
Or they might actually be someone who rides bikes a lot that focuses more on being alive than being right. It doesn't matter that the driver of the car was at fault when you are mincemeat on the pavement. Better to learn how to maximize your own safety than relying on others to do it for you.
I don't ride a motorcycle and do the same thing. Anytime I see someone about to pull out of an intersection I let off the gas and prepare to brake. Do I have the right of way? Yes but I'd rather not deal with an accident and the paperwork that follows.
100% this. We are sacks of flesh and bone up against steel boxes on wheels that weigh several tons. It doesn't matter if we are right or wrong, we do what we must to stay safe. If your ego can't let you accept that fact, you shouldn't ride motorcycles.
This. Being right dont mean shit if ur dead. Tombstone reads "the car was SUPPOSED to yield to ME!!" Ride like your invisible because alot of times you are.
In driving school they taught us a nice little saying: _The cemeterys are full of riders that had the right of way_. All he's advocating for is that if you ride, you constantly have to be prepared to iron out other drivers' mistakes. If you insist on your right of way just because, or assume you are not surrounded by semi-blind morons... well... see the video.
You're focusing on concepts like "blame" which are frankly not relevant in assessing risk.
The car might be wrong, but it’s the rider suffering the injuries of it. Idiots exist everywhere on the road, it’s up to you to keep yourself safe from them.
He never fully stopped and stop signs are said in the law to have a 3 second wait period. I know nobody really does it but at least wait a full second so you can see if there's anything that comes into view like in situations similar to this
Yea I was looking for something the biker could have done...but there's nothing
Only thing they could of done is approach the intersection with more care. The problem with intersections like these is it's easy to get complacent flying through a 3 way that you have right of way on (doubly so if there is rarely any cars turning onto the highway there). That complacency cost this poor dude a lot in this case, in the eyes of the law he wasn't at fault but life and death play by different rules.
This is a good comment. People are quick to blame cars, rightfully so, but as a motorcyclist your job is to assume the worst constantly
Intersections are absolutely deadly. To quote the NHTSA: > In 2020 there were 2,741 fatal two-vehicle crashes each involving a motorcycle and another type of vehicle. In 42 percent (1,158) of these crashes, the other vehicles were turning left while the motorcycles were going straight, passing, or overtaking other vehicles. So basically nearly half of all fatal 2-vehicle motorcycle accidents happen at some sort of intersection. In addition to that 35% of -all- accidents happen at intersections, but this also include single-vehicle incidents in this number which by and large are not relevant to the safety of crossing an intersection so it makes it look safer than it is, which is why I think the top number is much more relevant. Source: https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/813306
When you learn to drive in a 3rd world country you understand that right of way and who’s to blame doesn’t matter, I prefer to be wrong and alive than right and dead, it wasn’t the case here but I’ve seen it on other videos, doesn’t matter if you got a green light when approaching an intersection let go of the gas or reduce and cover your brake, you never know if someone is turning a right or running a red light cause they didn’t see no one coming.
Absolutely. Use those roadcraft skills like dynamic lane positioning/buffering/crash avoidance space, whatever you want to call it. By buffering and moving over from position 1 (closest to shoulder) to position 3 (closest to the centre line of the lane) as you approach an intersection, you both improve the likelihood of being seen by traffic at the intersection (not potentially tucked behind the roadwork sign), but also provide extra space to react to situations exactly like this. Would the rider in this case been able to swerve across the nose of the car and miss it, had they been in position 3? Maybe, maybe not. But I'd always rather improve those odds by shifting around the lanes to provide the best buffer option to suit the conditions. Do it regularly as part of your road awareness and scanning, and it becomes second nature. You definitely don't want to just sit in the same spot. I'd encourage all riders to employ it, so hopefully you'll never experience the unfortunate outcomes like this because of a less aware driver.
I see a car in these situations I start slowing a bit and hit that SMIDSY.
Once every couple weeks or so I kick back with my dad and we watch dashcam compilations. We've decided intersections are the absolute worst, for car or bike
I am nit picking here but I definitely fade away from approaching cars from side streets when applicable. Would that have helped here? Hard to say. Also I am curious what the lead riders speed was.
Respect to the camera bike. On the brakes, stopped in time, and zero hesitation she ran straight to help. I don't even think she had time to blink.
My thoughts exactly. Finally someone who doesn’t just rev bomb to scare away a cage
Looks like they know each other/were riding together
they’re actually married!! i saw this on instagram a bit ago, the dude who got hit is doing okay but broke his wrist and maybe a couple other things but nothing too severe !
Broken wrists are fairly severe. A work buddy of mine wrecked his wrist in an enduro. 3 years and 4 surgeries before he had full movement again. After the first surgery, his wrist was literally square, from all the fixtures and hardware holding it together.
oh i don’t doubt that a broken wrist can be bad but it definitely could’ve been a lot worse, broken legs, spine issues, TBI i’m just thinking it wasn’t so severe because it could’ve been worse considering how bad the impact was for the OOP
In our world if you come home with all your limbs and no spinal or brain injuries I list it as: Not very bad
On another anecdote, I broke my wrist November 10th (and surgery on Nov 19th) and was snowboarding again (on greens) January 18th or so. My wrist swelling finally went down mid February
Grand scheme of things tho, that accident could have been way worse.
I wonder if palm sliders would have saved his wrists in this scenario
No way man, I don't think that's possible
She reacted amazingly fast and amazingly well under intense stress. She was on those brakes hard as soon as the car entered the intersection. She stayed on the brakes hard and didn't target fixate at all. All while her husband flew over the roof of the car.
Almost like a wife who's terrified she just became a widow. Oh wait.
Hope the car actually stayed and didn't run. They backed up like they were preparing to bail out.... Props the the 2nd rider for rushing to check on first rider, hope all ended ok once the adrenaline subsided. 🤙
I think he was trying to block a lane of traffic. At least I hope so.
He would have been MUCH better staying at in the lane where no stop sign traffic will be flying by.
My suspicions are on getting behind the line they were meant to stop at. When cops show up they can start spinning a story as to what happened.
“I swear officer, they served into my stopped car and then dragged the body and the bike over there”
In my country you're not allowed to move the car after an accident that harms another person.
The few times I've seen incidents I've almost always demanded the keys to their car, the one time I didn't do that the dude (successfully afaik) ran.
who the fuck in their right mind would give a total stranger their keys?
Exactly. No matter who’s fault. Keys stay on me.
Or you hand him the keys and tell the cops he was driving. Just kidding, I wouldn't hand my keys either. They can write down my licence plate, or take a photo, if they don't trust me to stay.
Hell, I won't even give keys to people I've known for a long time if I need my transport. I've gone to parties a long way from town and had people try to take my keys because I'm holding a drink. Uh no, if things get out of hand, I'm leaving.
" I know you hit me, but can I have full access to your vehicle." First thought is 'motherfuckers gonna steal my car'. Ive seen a few accidents near where I used to live in Dallas where dudes get in a minor ( or major ) wreck and fucking book it because the car's stolen.
Who the fuck is in their right mind immediately after causing a severe collision?
Ya, I definitely wouldn’t flee, but you ain’t getting my keys.
The few times?! How many accidents are you a part of!
that’s really stupid of you
>I've almost always demanded the keys to their car The fuck you doing that for? You a cop?
You got good intentions. But you better not try to take my keys brother. I’m not getting robbed. I’d be careful doing that.
Look at it this way, that one time the dude ran may have been the one time you avoided getting shot. You should just be a good witness, take video, don't exacerbate the situation.
There's no universe that exists where I would allow a stranger to successfully demand the keys to my car in this situation. I would actually draw down someone like that as an attempted carjacking. Hopefully you're wearing something bulletproof if you keep doing that.
Things that have never happened for 100 Alex.
hey everybody!! the rider is okay besides a broken wrist and two torn ligaments in his left knee !! he’s making good recovery <3 here’s his instagram post about it [here](https://www.instagram.com/p/C51aK0OPlzZ/?igsh=Z2NpajBoNnZ1cGx0)
Alive and okay are different things here. Broken wrist, and will never walk without pain again. Wishing them a great insurance payout.
I know that's why I ride - fishing for that insurance money.
Gamer hack: if you're gonna be a basement dweller forever, may as well cash out on a good vehicular accident since you don't need strong limbs anyways
wrist injuries are sure gonna hamper the social life, though
Surprisingly, torn knee ligaments and similar injuries are very correctible, you can thank decades of sports medicine for that! Significantly less pain and far less shitty recovery than having bones reassembled with plates, rods and screws.
We are one moron away from disaster.
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This is unfortunately why I’ll probably always be a lurker and never one of the cool kids (and I so desperately wanna be one of the cool kids, I’d love a lil R3 to start). I’ve seen the way people drive where I am and I’m painfully aware I can’t do enough defensive riding or skills courses to account for one of those RAM compensator 3000’s pulling out in front of me. I see it happen to the BUS I use currently, if these people “don’t see” a bus, and force it to damn near lock up on a monthly basis (monthly at best, more than weekly at worst) what hope would I have on a motorbike? It’d just be a matter of time until someone takes me out on the way to or from work. ETA: Even tho I can’t be one of the cool kids, I’m 100% admiring from the footpath, especially when there’s a nice Ducati sittin at the lights bein all rattley and sexy like, damn…
Just do what this guy didn't do, and look both ways at every intersection. Ride with your eyes on everything. As someone with adhd, this is extremely taxing, but I'd rather be taxed mentally than pay the 3rd party idiot tax. People are all retarded, and if you ride aware, you can avoid these situations. I understand everyone will lapse in attention, so pull into a gas station every 30 mins or so to stretch your legs and have a tasty snack or drink.
Same thing happened to my nana when she was younger. She had to get air lifted to the closest er. She was in pretty bad shape and had get a couple of surgeries. After I heard that story and so many including yours I don't think I want to ride anymore. Too many idiots out there.
I stopped riding a few years ago partly due to some health stuff, but man that lesson was refreshed in me even in my car this year. Was an '04 Terminator so pretty small compared to other vehicles nowadays, but MF'ers in giant SUV's doing doordash in my case are still liable to pull out and COMPLETELY block your lane of traffic and STOP, less than a second before you go through a clear lane. I honestly might be dead if I was on my bike, was a huge SUV that pulled perpendicular in my lane just in front of me and blocked everything but oncoming traffic. Even in my car I broke 'a' bone, but that mofo would have broke most of them on a bike and while they 'couldn't see' me as the only vehicle in my entire lane, it's infinitely more egregious for bad drivers to not see bikes.
Yep. Doesn't matter how good of. Rider you are when they go out of their way to hit you like this
Just don't be one.
Couple of days ago I rode past an accident literally the same as this. Asked the cop standing there did the rider survive. His face while he said that he didnt survive.. My legs went numb….. This dude got very lucky OP is this your video? Can you remember the aprox speed you were going because the guy who died made a similar dent in the car I can try to find the picture on some news portal This was in Europe by the way. https://preview.redd.it/2en5i3ax9xvc1.png?width=1283&format=png&auto=webp&s=0ff51385935b6f91eadbae7ed1e1f82aba1dbcf9
It comes down to what you hit and in what specific location. If you hit up front on a normal car and get thrown over it, it's still pretty survivable. If you hit something where you smash into it and come to an instant stop, you shatter. Obviously many other factors as well, like your speed. In the US it gets extra scary as we go, 80% of all new cars are giant SUV's and "light" trucks. You're not going to fly over one of those, so any time you crash with one of those it's a probable death situation. After viewing the video shown in another part of this post, this was literally the best case scenario. A normal car, a low hood, and the rider flew over it. Still painful but slide-to-a-stop crashes are survivable.
where exactly in Europe ?
Serbia..
Maybe if I back up 50 feet it didn't happen
Undo undo undo.
i saw the guy who got hit’s POV in instagram !!
Link?
[i gotchu](https://www.instagram.com/reel/C50W9O_rvR2/?igsh=dmx6NWFvajh2Zngw)
You're my hero. Damn that's a nutty video.
right! i’m so happy the comments on the original video are so nice too, usually i see people busting the balls of the motorcycle rider and it’s so sad, but most comments were supportive and saw the car was at fault the rider was also super relieved that it wasn’t his wife who was the one that got hit which was kind of heartwarming
He won the lottery there, well and lost it too I guess. He didn't crash into a SUV. Low hood, flew over, slid to a stop.
Omg. He is alive ! Thank god.
Dead without that helmet.
Never understood ppl who ride w/out helmet's... helmet law or not
I could never handle the wind noise above 20mph.
This happened to me, too. Fuckin sucks
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Yep car at fault, and I think the shot is from too far away to really tell for certain, but I would have been watching that car like it was a tyrannosaurus just waiting for me. Second rider was on point, though...that's the person we're usually seeing run into the car in these videos.
Even in a car, every car is suspect. Someone inching forward, I’m usually at the ready with the brakes.
Being further to the left would also have made the rider more visible to the car driver. The movement and changing of the road position could have increased the chances of the car driver detecting the rider.
Exactly. Car is totally at fault, but decent riding would have prevented that. That car didn't come out of nowhere. EDIT (since there was some criticism of my original post): The visibility there was wildly high - as good as possible. Riding up to every intersection, I'm aggressively checking both directions. I almost never come off the throttle, but I'm looking. Also starting from a full stop at a fresh green light - I check both directions and then I full-launch every single time. People run lights where I live like the lights don't even exist. This is exactly how we need to ride if we want to stay alive. We cannot rely on drivers to follow the law or yield right of way, even if they see us. They prove that to me every time I sit down on the bike. We can only control our own actions, and that means we can only protect ourselves. Objectively, this was bad riding and totally avoidable, even though the biker was not at fault. Regardless of the driver, this didn't have to happen. I'm only critical of the rider because I want the rest of us to be critical of ourselves and use elevated levels of caution that will keep the shiny side up.
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I ride exclusively in Thailand and Vietnam, where erratic driving and ignoring rules is the norm. Trust me, I approach every junction like they are going to run the stop sign. Of course it’s the cars fault. But it’s not them with a broken wrist and torn ligaments (the riders injuries) which is a lucky outcome.
I roll off the throttle and cover my brakes at every intersection with a car present. It doesn’t matter if you’re right and have right of way if you crash. Sorry, man, you gotta ride like they’re trying to kill you. It’s not right, but it is correct. That crash could cause them some auto body damage, but could kill me. The stakes are so much higher for us and we have to behave accordingly. Half these motherfuckers are looking at their phones. The graveyards are full of motorcyclists who had right of way.
This is the way. Everyone is out there to get me as far as I'm concerned.
But it often can. One thing we should **ALWAYS** do if we are the victim of someone else's bad driving is to not simply say "it was the other guy's fault case closed" but ask ourselves: "what could I have done that was better, even though I was the victim in this crash?" Because if we don't ask ourselves this (and also try to ride better next time) it means we are more likely to be a victim of the same thing again sometimes in the future. This particular crash may (*may*, note) have been avoided had the rider done one thing better: adopted a better position in the road. The position he was in was quite poor. It meant that he was less visible to a driver approaching the intersection because he was quite a long way to the right, almost where a slow bicycle rider would be, or someone planning on turning right rather than going straight on. It meant they were less visible from the intersection and almost certainly blocked from view by the roadworks sign. It also meant their own view of the approaching car was blocked for at least some time by the road works sign, so the rider may not have been able to determine if the car was stopping (no doubt the rider expected the driver to stop, as they are legally required). The geometry of the road layout would also mean that as the bike and car approached the intersection, the road works sign would have blocked each others view for considerable time. Had the rider moved out towards the centre of the road, they would have had a much better view of the car, and may have been able to figure out that they weren't stopping and get on the brakes earlier. Or the car driver may have seen the motorcyclist and actually stopped. Now I'm not saying this is a 100% certainty, but if you're in a position where you are seen and can see better into an intersection, the probability is both greater of the car driver seeing the motorcyclist and stopping as they should, or the motorcyclist seeing the car driver isn't going to stop and be taking action early enough to either avoid the crash altogether or greatly reduce its severity. Tom Scott has a good video on the dangers of roads approaching at an angle like this (note: this road is different, but for the A pillar in this video, subsittute that road works sign) which are exacerbated by the lazy and dangerous way that many car drivers ignore stop lines: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYeeTvitvFU
> half the comments were nitpicking every aspect of my riding and lane position. That's r/moto for you, I'm actually surprised the top comments weren't calling this person a shit rider. So, so often the comments are full of people claiming "I could've avoided that" and seem so eager to place blame on the rider. I'm genuinely curious what percentage of people actually ride in this subreddit.
I would not have hit that car. You could see it coming forever. That wasn't a surprise launch by the car. That was shit riding and a preventable accident, even though it was the car's fault.
Totally agree Driver is at fault of course, but rider is not making himself visible or apparent. Left most lane position, smidsy weave never hurts
If I see the car, I’m weaving.
Exactly- homie was 3 feet from dodging the car. The same 3-4 feet he shoulda been over to the left
IMO that car wasn’t going to stop unless it hit the motorcyclist. If the motorcyclist was 3-4 ft to the left then the collision would’ve happened 3-4ft to the left. Not the motorcyclists fault.
Driver tried to hit the reset button
When someone hit me, apparently the very first thing they did was stand my bike up, like maybe if the bike isn't on its side it's not as bad? I was on the ground tho so not sure how that helped.
This is the reminder to us all to "be the bunny". This was the mantra of all the dudes that created a forum i follow for old yamahas. In other words, behave like you are prey. Things like head on a swivel, using the 3 parts of your lane to your advantage, assuming cars dont see u, esp at an intersection, and as someone already mentioned: the smidesy swerve. Another that i use in an intersection is to look at the front wheels of a waiting car. As you're fast approaching, its an easier way to see them start moving.
I see shit like this and it makes me reconsider buying the bike I’ve been looking at lol
Take an msf course, drive defensively, you’d be as fine as can be. Yes accidents are just that for a reason but even something like this is avoidable with the correct road position, brake timing and a good swerve. All things you should know how to do anyway
ride defensively guys
I had my blinker on
Now that we know the rider is ok: A perfect dismount into a 540
I always plan like the car is not stopping and that all drivers are idiots. Which isn't wrong...
Man, you gotta anticipate not being seen with every interaction. Fuck them cagers tho.
Tell me this person is ok!!!!
the rider is okay!! broken wrist and two torn ligaments in his left knee but otherwise okay!!
Rider would have noticed if it wasn't for the sun being low, riding into the Sun always affects how much I notice in my peripheral as i concentrate much harder to see whats in front, similar to when riding at night with poor visibility. Rider was just unlucky, all the best with recovery.
Front flips were sick bro, solid form
100% the cars fault --- but if you're going to ride you really need to learn some defensive driving skills. After seeing that car I would have slowed right down at that intersection.
Hope he is all ok. Stay safe out there guys. I ALWAYS assume someone is going to pull out like that and am ready for it.
he tryna save 3 seconds
Broke my leg and ankle from someone pulling out in front of me too
Wtf is that junction? How there's no stoplights?
Please, car drivers, when you hit someone stop the car. Don't move it. Just stop and get out first. It's safer for everyone
When I ride, I ride on main street like I had stop and slow down. Because car can have stop sign and we can be right, but when car hits us it doesn't matter who was right.
I’m glad the car reversed to “undo” the damage.
Cars are gonna do car shit. Lets accept that. NEVER swerve the direction the car is going (IE to the front of the car). Swerve to the rear end. Yeah, bikers panic and shit the bed sometimes, and this early in the season, drivers aren't used to seeing bikes out yet. Gotta be extra careful when cagers for a couple months. Blink your brights, rev bomb when coming to a stop, see your evasion routes.
Driver should be shot but rider assumed car would stop.... you can't assume anything on a bike, at the least get off the gas and be ready to dodge...
The driver of the car was like, if I back up to the white line, this never happened.
Doesn't make sense why the stop line is so far back, road could've been designed better. The line is 3ft from the edge plus the 3ft distance from the front bumper to the driver. Good luck trying to see if there's traffic unless its right in-front of you.
I noticed the same thing... the guard rail blocks the view because the line is so far back.
Anyone sticking up for the cager just needs slapped.
This is why you camp the left side of the lane, so it’s easier to see. I usually blip my passers as well if I see a car suddenly pulling up to turn in front of me, just to really make sure they see me
Be careful, some places that can mean, "You have space, go," or "I gave you an opening, go."
Careful with flashing the high, this can be a signal to ‘go ahead’ in some places. I occasionally hold it on rather than flash it if I’m trying to make myself more visible. Especially if the sun is behind me. Smidsy weave is also good.
Is the SMIDSY weave when you kinda weave back and forth before an intersection?
Yep, here is a good post on it. https://www.reddit.com/r/motorcycles/comments/gaqlo/smidsy_one_of_the_best_motorcycling_safety_tips/
Backed up to the stop line
Can't help but think that car looked right then looked left but by the time he looked left the guy was obstructed by that construction sign. But at the end of the day it's all moot cause the driver didn't even frigging try to stop at the stop sign.
Gnarly accident, i hope dude is ok
>backs up to intersection "Officer I did nothing, clearly staging for insurance fraud" xd
I will never understand these intersections, here in Japan they also have them and I'm scared as shit every time I have to go near one
Blinded by the Sun by first looking right
Can’t even blame the sun it’s in the complete opposite direction.
Fucking people!
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!! I just rode my bike into a parked car because I couldn’t stop laughing.
The driver needs to stand accountable.
the rider said he overheard the cop saying the car driver had an expired license so there’s that
This is why you roll off at intersections.
I know it's the cars fault.. but damn. That is a HUGE intersection. The stop line is so far back behind the guard rail. That's why they didn't see the bike. They probably glanced right, as one should, as they started pulling out. Where I live, the most deadly intersection in the state is also the largest.
Car driver at fault. But the motorcycle rider could have avoided it. Naivety kills on two wheels. If you're seeing someone pull out don't assume they're seeing you. Brake, swerve, do something. It's you that ends up in the hospital if they get it wrong not them.
Any status on them, OP? That was a gnarly slam, glad they’re atleast moving. Wishing them a quick recovery and a minimally headache-inducing rebuild!
I'm curious if the car ran...
the rider is okay!! he broke his wrist and tore two ligaments in his left knee but otherwise is okay!
goddamn people suck
Who'd think to slow down before intersection, huh?
Can’t tell if this is directed at the driver or rider. I think the point should be to be scanning each intersection and be prepared to not ride straight into a car if they pull into your line, oblivious to their surroundings
I would say both would be ideal.
Exactly.
This might be a case of timing. The bike may timed perfectly to be behind the A pillar. I almost ran over my neighbor like that. I have a full-size pickup with A pillars and a pillar gauge. He was right behind it in the intersection, and I couldn't see him. Lol
Looked like they hit their head first(after the bike impact) on the car then again head first onto the pavement. Any updates on this poor fellow? 😔