Almost ate the big one just now

[Guest Toppers]

Coming out of a small town in Amish Country (Burton, OH if anyone knows the area) on a long winding road, that I'm usually howling down at 80+, a mom with a van full of kids pulled out in front of me. She didn't even look left. I was doing 55, the posted limit.

Full brakes, swerve, didn't even think, just did it. Was rather interesting that I was in a full panic but some part of my brain did all this for me flawlessly. Ended up in a driveway on the other side of the road trying to figure out if I was still alive or not.

THEN SHE DROVE AWAY

So I chased her down ready to beat someone with the adrenaline of this near wreck, and made her pull over, she played the "I didn't see you" thing. To that I said "You just saw me go off the road and nearly killed me why the hell did you drive away". I think I scared her into submission at the side of the road, she was terrified. What can you do at this point.

Be safe guys. I'm all about spirited riding, however, had I been doing 1 mph over 55 there, I may not be in this reality at the moment.

P.S. 5th gen brakes are awesome. Not a time to be celebrating this, but they did the job and them some.

[gll429]

i think your lucky..

maybe more lucky than me..

i just woke up with a hangover that has me HEARING things..and tossed out a chick that looked 14..thank god the ID that was tattooed on her butt , matched the drivers licence on the dog collar around her neck...she was 23

life is short.. dont crash your bike in to minivans and be careful when being invited to party with a group of "patch holders" after you fix a guys bike on the side of the road.

i am one of those guys who stops and helps people out , no matter what bike they ride.. i think next time i will pass on the party. :laughing6-hehe: :happy:

[leanit]

i think your lucky..

maybe more lucky than me..

i just woke up with a hangover that has me HEARING things..and tossed out a chick that looked 14..thank god the ID that was tattooed on her butt , matched the drivers licence on the dog collar around her neck...she was 23

life is short.. dont crash your bike in to minivans and be careful when being invited to party with a group of "patch holders" after you fix a guys bike on the side of the road.

i am one of those guys who stops and helps people out , no matter what bike they ride.. i think next time i will pass on the party. :laughing6-hehe: :happy:

Guy, you are usually funnier than dog snot but I have to ask WTF are you smoking. A guy shares a near death experience and you compare it to poking some strange that you aren't sure is of legal age. Come on...there are times to joke around but I didn't get that; at all. Ride safe, JD

[Solomoto]

Coming out of a small town in Amish Country (Burton, OH if anyone knows the area) on a long winding road, that I'm usually howling down at 80+, a mom with a van full of kids pulled out in front of me. She didn't even look left. I was doing 55, the posted limit.

Full brakes, swerve, didn't even think, just did it. Was rather interesting that I was in a full panic but some part of my brain did all this for me flawlessly. Ended up in a driveway on the other side of the road trying to figure out if I was still alive or not.

THEN SHE DROVE AWAY

So I chased her down ready to beat someone with the adrenaline of this near wreck, and made her pull over, she played the "I didn't see you" thing. To that I said "You just saw me go off the road and nearly killed me why the hell did you drive away". I think I scared her into submission at the side of the road, she was terrified. What can you do at this point..

It could very well be that she looked and truly didn't see you because you may not have been in view. It happens to me and to you when you're the one waiting in the drive way. The road was winding as you described, and doing the speed limit does not guarantee you are in the line of sight when said driver checks to her left. She could have looked left, saw that it was free and clear, then proceeded to turn right as anyone would. Then you come around the bend and you see the car after she has now pulled out and turned her attention to her right, but you interpret the situation as said driver never having looked left. I'm not saying this is exactly your scenario but this is common place, I've done it and probably so have you. Sometimes we catch a glimpse of the other vehicle in the corner of our eye and slam the brakes before getting too far out.

This doesn't excuse the driver from just taking off after the fact if an incident occurred, but on the other hand you can't assume what the other driver has seen or in this case not seen. What can you do at this point? Don't automatically play the victim card, and use it to beat the other driver over the head. Accidents happen, there is a degree of risk and uncertainty that no one is immune from. If that risk and uncertainty is unacceptable, then the alternative is to live your life from the safety and comfort of your barcalounger. :laughing6-hehe:

[Knife]

i think your lucky..

maybe more lucky than me..

i just woke up with a hangover that has me HEARING things..and tossed out a chick that looked 14..thank god the ID that was tattooed on her butt , matched the drivers licence on the dog collar around her neck...she was 23

life is short.. dont crash your bike in to minivans and be careful when being invited to party with a group of "patch holders" after you fix a guys bike on the side of the road.

i am one of those guys who stops and helps people out , no matter what bike they ride.. i think next time i will pass on the party. :laughing6-hehe: :happy:

Guy, you are usually funnier than dog snot but I have to ask WTF are you smoking. A guy shares a near death experience and you compare it to poking some strange that you aren't sure is of legal age. Come on...there are times to joke around but I didn't get that; at all. Ride safe, JD

I enjoyed it. Bad on me, I guess. And glad you got lucky today, Toppers (luck, as in skillful riding)!

[creggur]

i think your lucky..

maybe more lucky than me..

i just woke up with a hangover that has me HEARING things..and tossed out a chick that looked 14..thank god the ID that was tattooed on her butt , matched the drivers licence on the dog collar around her neck...she was 23

life is short.. dont crash your bike in to minivans and be careful when being invited to party with a group of "patch holders" after you fix a guys bike on the side of the road.

i am one of those guys who stops and helps people out , no matter what bike they ride.. i think next time i will pass on the party. :laughing6-hehe: :happy:

Guy, you are usually funnier than dog snot but I have to ask WTF are you smoking. A guy shares a near death experience and you compare it to poking some strange that you aren't sure is of legal age. Come on...there are times to joke around but I didn't get that; at all. Ride safe, JD

I enjoyed it. Bad on me, I guess. And glad you got lucky today, Toppers (luck, as in skillful riding)!

Yeah, I thought it was funny too....

Glad you didn't go down... Sounds like you did everything right given the situation!

[gll429]

i think your lucky..

maybe more lucky than me..

i just woke up with a hangover that has me HEARING things..and tossed out a chick that looked 14..thank god the ID that was tattooed on her butt , matched the drivers licence on the dog collar around her neck...she was 23

life is short.. dont crash your bike in to minivans and be careful when being invited to party with a group of "patch holders" after you fix a guys bike on the side of the road.

i am one of those guys who stops and helps people out , no matter what bike they ride.. i think next time i will pass on the party. :happy: :excl:

Guy, you are usually funnier than dog snot but I have to ask WTF are you smoking. A guy shares a near death experience and you compare it to poking some strange that you aren't sure is of legal age. Come on...there are times to joke around but I didn't get that; at all. Ride safe, JD

thats just it.. i have NO IDEA what 2nd hand smoke was in the air.. just a lot of it!! i have no idea what i was drinking and no idea how i got home . just glad i am i did and one piece.. and for poking a stranger.. that can be a near death experience in more ways than one.. thank god she didnt have a " property of...." vest.. shheesh.

as near death.. i dont see the first post as that.. its close call he didnt crash the bike.. and it sounds like something that happens to me every other day on 495.

dont get me wrong.. i very happy he is ok. :laughing6-hehe:

[TimC]

Glad you avoided the crash. Your post is a good reminder to ride within our limits and to be vigilant ALL the time, even on roads that don't normally seem treacherous.

Hope the offending cager looks a little more carefully in the future.

[VFR Capt.Bob]

Be safe guys. I'm all about spirited riding, however, had I been doing 1 mph over 55 there, I may not be in this reality at the moment.

P.S. 5th gen brakes are awesome. Not a time to be celebrating this, but they did the job and them some.

Hello and welcome to motorcycling. This is exactly where you should celebrate the vfr's awesome brakes and your own proven skill at emergency accident avoidance. Something told you not to do 80mph and something in your brain caused you to react effectively. That something is you. Good job on controlling your temper with the lady. She DID SEE YOU. SHE DID NOT CARE. You just didn't seem important enough for her to change her intended path. Same thing that told you not to do 85 told her not to turn left in front of you. She ignored it you didn't. Motorcycling is not a rational activity. Our reality is better than theirs. :laughing6-hehe:

[gll429]

Be safe guys. I'm all about spirited riding, however, had I been doing 1 mph over 55 there, I may not be in this reality at the moment.

P.S. 5th gen brakes are awesome. Not a time to be celebrating this, but they did the job and them some.

Hello and welcome to motorcycling. This is exactly where you should celebrate the vfr's awesome brakes and your own proven skill at emergency accident avoidance. Something told you not to do 80mph and something in your brain caused you to react effectively. That something is you. Good job on controlling your temper with the lady. She DID SEE YOU. SHE DID NOT CARE. You just didn't seem important enough for her to change her intended path. Same thing that told you not to do 85 told her not to turn left in front of you. She ignored it you didn't. Motorcycling is not a rational activity. Our reality is better than theirs. :fing02:

on the flip side if you had been doing 80 you would have gotten to the point why before she did.. and it all would be moot point.

[huskysooner]

Guy, you are usually funnier than dog snot but I have to ask WTF are you smoking.

Apparently we have a new secret codephrase for crashing (or almost crashing in this case). No, I didn't lowside my VFR when I hit the patch of sand: I had a one-night stand with a biker-gang chick! Put me on the WTF side :fing02:. But amusing anyway.

To the OP: very glad you're OK! I'm not sure it's wise to chase down the perpetrator, as tempting as it is to teach her the lesson. If a motorcyclist for a reason unbeknownst to me (i.e., I have no idea I almost ran them over) tries to chase me down in my car, I'm sure as hell not pulling over. And if I do pull over and they're still there, it's time-to-repel boarders with whatever weapon is at the ready (car, pipe, Garand, or whatever else is around). But I absolutely do not blame you for doing what you did, though!

[VFR Capt.Bob]

Be safe guys. I'm all about spirited riding, however, had I been doing 1 mph over 55 there, I may not be in this reality at the moment.

P.S. 5th gen brakes are awesome. Not a time to be celebrating this, but they did the job and them some.

Hello and welcome to motorcycling. This is exactly where you should celebrate the vfr's awesome brakes and your own proven skill at emergency accident avoidance. Something told you not to do 80mph and something in your brain caused you to react effectively. That something is you. Good job on controlling your temper with the lady. She DID SEE YOU. SHE DID NOT CARE. You just didn't seem important enough for her to change her intended path. Same thing that told you not to do 85 told her not to turn left in front of you. She ignored it you didn't. Motorcycling is not a rational activity. Our reality is better than theirs. :fing02:

on the flip side if you had been doing 80 you would have gotten to the point why before she did.. and it all would be moot point.

I think you left out the word maybe. I remember wierd stuff sometimes. A novelty sign on my departed aunt and uncles wall when I was 12. It read "At 60mph you're driving, at 80mph you're aiming." Ride safe. Stay focused. Never ignore your gut feelings.

I'll just add to this. Choose your moments carefully.

[gll429]

Be safe guys. I'm all about spirited riding, however, had I been doing 1 mph over 55 there, I may not be in this reality at the moment.

P.S. 5th gen brakes are awesome. Not a time to be celebrating this, but they did the job and them some.

Hello and welcome to motorcycling. This is exactly where you should celebrate the vfr's awesome brakes and your own proven skill at emergency accident avoidance. Something told you not to do 80mph and something in your brain caused you to react effectively. That something is you. Good job on controlling your temper with the lady. She DID SEE YOU. SHE DID NOT CARE. You just didn't seem important enough for her to change her intended path. Same thing that told you not to do 85 told her not to turn left in front of you. She ignored it you didn't. Motorcycling is not a rational activity. Our reality is better than theirs. :fing02:

on the flip side if you had been doing 80 you would have gotten to the point why before she did.. and it all would be moot point.

I think you left out the word maybe. I remember wierd stuff sometimes. A novelty sign on my departed aunt and uncles wall when I was 12. It read "At 60mph you're driving, at 80mph you're aiming." Ride safe. Stay focused. Never ignore your gut feelings.

I'll just add to this. Choose your moments carefully.

sorry .. still buzzed.. or at least the buzzing is still in my head.,..

that should read.. if he had been driving at at 80 mph.. he would have passed the point of the incident before the minivan arrived ... so there would have been no bike /minivan interaction.

[Guest]

All good points and yeah, I got a kick out of the biker chick party story actually...good stuff. Solomoto you summed it perfectly up after thinking back on the situation, well said.

And no I'm not chilling in the recliner for the rest of my days, ready to go hit it again.

[Veefer Madness]

I've chased down 'boners' before and what I say is all based on response to my first question: "Do you realize what you just did back there?"

Sometimes people are saying sorry even before they've fully cranked the window down. To them I usually say either: Well I just wanted to make sure that you knew what you did back there or I describe how it looked to me when it occured.

All of us make mistakes, and some bigger than others, so I try to leave it at that....

If I meet up with some 'bird flipper' who's an argumentative prick, I stay on my bike, hand on the throttle and ready to if it's gonna get violent, but not before I can push as many of their hot buttons as possible.

If I'm REALLY PISSED, I'll copy down their plate number, type of vehicle etc. and thank them for pulling over so I am able to positively ID them in court!

Generally the OPP will at least pay a visit to the ass to find out whether it is punched, or bored!

Your response was based on instinct. I'm glad you're not hurt.

It is amazing how one can execute, while grabbing a huge mitt of stop, all the while thinking it's not really happening and that you don't want to trash your bike, and you're not gonna die within a few nanoseconds.

At least that's what I felt like before: Disbelief!

As far as the adrenalin goes, like any drug, things can get out of hand real quick when under the influence. What or how a person utilizes that potential, could have long term, possible negative conseqences.

Not preaching; just sayin', ahyeh?

Greg :fing02:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mA0nM8l8onE

[gll429]

ummm its almost 2 am here.. and SHE CAME BACK!!!! :fing02:

she has a huge bottle of Jagermeister said SHE drove my van last night..and thanked me for paying for her cab home..

and after seeing my artwork ..wants to know i want to go visit the art museums this week???

turns out she knows some sign ..which explains how we got started talking in the first place..

simply put guys.. i am 39.. she looks like jailbait..as for near death experiences i am going to try for one.. sooooo..if i am not on the board for a few days all of you my age will understand.

in the next 15 min i am going to take her for her first ride on a vfr...

as they say...

too much of a good thing ,can be a great thing!!

[Guest]

I have heard there are people out there with brains wired up in such a way as they can actually see a motorcycle and not register it in their heads that it is a moving vehicle (as they are so used to looking for a car), and they will pull right out in front of you.

I would think these people tend to have gotten lucky on the Darwin calendar as they still exist, but watch out for them. Will try to find some facts to back this claim up. According to my friend who has been riding motorcycles for 25 years, they will look you right in the eye and still pull out in front of you.

[gll429]

I have heard there are people out there with brains wired up in such a way as they can actually see a motorcycle and not register it in their heads that it is a moving vehicle (as they are so used to looking for a car), and they will pull right out in front of you.

I would think these people tend to have gotten lucky on the Darwin calendar as they still exist, but watch out for them. Will try to find some facts to back this claim up. According to my friend who has been riding motorcycles for 25 years, they will look you right in the eye and still pull out in front of you.

i have had a couple of those.. i actually SCREAMED at cop who came close to hitting while talking on the phone with a coffee in hands.... :fing02:

but none of those times came close to scaring the crap out out me as much as the thought of jail time after waking up next that chick :bliss:

[vfrjim2002]

I have heard there are people out there with brains wired up in such a way as they can actually see a motorcycle and not register it in their heads that it is a moving vehicle (as they are so used to looking for a car), and they will pull right out in front of you.

I would think these people tend to have gotten lucky on the Darwin calendar as they still exist, but watch out for them. Will try to find some facts to back this claim up. According to my friend who has been riding motorcycles for 25 years, they will look you right in the eye and still pull out in front of you.

i have had a couple of those.. i actually SCREAMED at cop who came close to hitting while talking on the phone with a coffee in hands.... :happy:

but none of those times came close to scaring the crap out out me as much as the thought of jail time after waking up next that chick :bliss:

Considering the young lady's lifestyle, here's hoping you didn't take away something more from the encounter than you brought. When something you're fond of turns black and falls off it may make dodging cars look good by comparison. :cool:

[Monk]

Toppers, 1st I'd like to say I'm glad your skills got you out of that, and you're OK. You know that by posting this, it's going to receive a lot of different comments, well wishes / and opions on what you did and how you acted. While on this subject I'd like to state an observation I've seen from all the different people I've met in the war, and how differently they deal with it. Some give the shoulder to lean on, some joke about death/near death, and many other things that would take a book to explain. Now days when I see/hear a respounce about something that seems out of the sociability excepted norm I know to take it as another way to deal.

Back to the near miss. What I don't know is how much time you had after 1st seeing the van at the time it pulled out, or before it pulled out. But I'd say that as soon as "I" see a cage to could pull out is the time to start slowing down to the point, "That by the time I'm getting to the intercept point my speed is slow enough that I can stop before contact." We can't just see them and think about the possiblity they might pull out we need to start doing something to make sure it doesn't happen.

In this case, say you saw her as you came around a turn, that would mean to me that I'd need to be going slow enough that I can bring the bike to a stop at any point within my viewing area. Going over a hill/ rolling though woods with thick undergrowth(deer), or little 5/10 sections of houses(kids/dogs). I just slow it down. On roads where there are intersections at the top of a hill, or in a turn there is a bigger chance that someone can be ready to cross my path.... and last but not least is the ever lasting people that like to use my half of the lane coming around a blind curve.

I try to practice these, but some times I'm not running my safety alert 100% all the time.... It's post like your's that help us all to re-think our habits........ Thanks for posting.....

[thereisnospoon]

She never looked, they never do. Too tied up in their own worlds behind their windows to pay attention to what's going on around them. We naturally try to make eye contact and if he didn't have eye contact then she never looked...

Glad you are OK man!

Coming out of a small town in Amish Country (Burton, OH if anyone knows the area) on a long winding road, that I'm usually howling down at 80+, a mom with a van full of kids pulled out in front of me. She didn't even look left. I was doing 55, the posted limit.

Full brakes, swerve, didn't even think, just did it. Was rather interesting that I was in a full panic but some part of my brain did all this for me flawlessly. Ended up in a driveway on the other side of the road trying to figure out if I was still alive or not.

THEN SHE DROVE AWAY

So I chased her down ready to beat someone with the adrenaline of this near wreck, and made her pull over, she played the "I didn't see you" thing. To that I said "You just saw me go off the road and nearly killed me why the hell did you drive away". I think I scared her into submission at the side of the road, she was terrified. What can you do at this point..

It could very well be that she looked and truly didn't see you because you may not have been in view. It happens to me and to you when you're the one waiting in the drive way. The road was winding as you described, and doing the speed limit does not guarantee you are in the line of sight when said driver checks to her left. She could have looked left, saw that it was free and clear, then proceeded to turn right as anyone would. Then you come around the bend and you see the car after she has now pulled out and turned her attention to her right, but you interpret the situation as said driver never having looked left. I'm not saying this is exactly your scenario but this is common place, I've done it and probably so have you. Sometimes we catch a glimpse of the other vehicle in the corner of our eye and slam the brakes before getting too far out.

This doesn't excuse the driver from just taking off after the fact if an incident occurred, but on the other hand you can't assume what the other driver has seen or in this case not seen. What can you do at this point? Don't automatically play the victim card, and use it to beat the other driver over the head. Accidents happen, there is a degree of risk and uncertainty that no one is immune from. If that risk and uncertainty is unacceptable, then the alternative is to live your life from the safety and comfort of your barcalounger. :happy:

[Monk]

As was just said watch their eyes..... I watch their front wheel, it will tell me what they're doing..... and it's easier to see at a distance, before getting close enough for eye contact(which is good as well)........

[Bent]

Coming out of a small town in Amish Country (Burton, OH if anyone knows the area) on a long winding road, that I'm usually howling down at 80+, a mom with a van full of kids pulled out in front of me. She didn't even look left. I was doing 55, the posted limit.

Full brakes, swerve, didn't even think, just did it. Was rather interesting that I was in a full panic but some part of my brain did all this for me flawlessly. Ended up in a driveway on the other side of the road trying to figure out if I was still alive or not.

THEN SHE DROVE AWAY

So I chased her down ready to beat someone with the adrenaline of this near wreck, and made her pull over, she played the "I didn't see you" thing. To that I said "You just saw me go off the road and nearly killed me why the hell did you drive away". I think I scared her into submission at the side of the road, she was terrified. What can you do at this point..

It could very well be that she looked and truly didn't see you because you may not have been in view. It happens to me and to you when you're the one waiting in the drive way. The road was winding as you described, and doing the speed limit does not guarantee you are in the line of sight when said driver checks to her left. She could have looked left, saw that it was free and clear, then proceeded to turn right as anyone would. Then you come around the bend and you see the car after she has now pulled out and turned her attention to her right, but you interpret the situation as said driver never having looked left. I'm not saying this is exactly your scenario but this is common place, I've done it and probably so have you. Sometimes we catch a glimpse of the other vehicle in the corner of our eye and slam the brakes before getting too far out.

This doesn't excuse the driver from just taking off after the fact if an incident occurred, but on the other hand you can't assume what the other driver has seen or in this case not seen. What can you do at this point? Don't automatically play the victim card, and use it to beat the other driver over the head. Accidents happen, there is a degree of risk and uncertainty that no one is immune from. If that risk and uncertainty is unacceptable, then the alternative is to live your life from the safety and comfort of your barcalounger. :bliss:

I respectfully and completely disagree with this analysis. IF there was a stop sign or yield sign (Toppers didn't say), this was a clear failure to yield the right of way case. When at a stop sign or yield sign, the driver is expected, by law, to see oncoming traffic and yield the right of way. Had the rider hit the van, in my state, she would have been ticketed with failure to yield and her liability would be limited by her insurance coverage and much of her net worth if the rider sued and won in court. Had the rider hit the van and she left the scene, she would be considered a felon here.

In industry at least, and I believe most everywhere, there is no such thing as an "accident". Industrial and vehicular injuries and deaths are caused by either an unsafe condition, an unsafe act, or both. Remove the unsafe condition and/or unsafe act, and there is no "incident". From what the poster said, the woman came very close to committing vehicular homicide, vehicular manslaughter, or criminally negligent manslaughter depending on which semantics and definitions the state uses.

Toppers was justified in being very upset IMHO. The best thing to do is clean out yur panties and chill out...easier said than done. In the city where I live, if the po po's are called out on a road rage incident, one or both of the drivers is arrested just like many places do in domestic dispute cases. Drive and ride defensively. Glad you could post up about it Toppers..... :happy:

[Guest]

I think Toppers handled everything okay. Obviously you did the right things on the bike to avoid the crash. And I personally don't have a problem chasing someone down. You might or might not get the response you want, or deserve, but maybe just maybe that driver will spend a fraction of a second longer looking for motorcycles when they make turns in the future. One can hope.

I've chased down a couple people who pulled out right in front of me or changed lanes without looking, and I'm usually pretty pissed. If they're apologetic and I believe them, I let 'em go with some harsh language and then I jump back on my bike. People make mistakes, and I recognize that. But if I get attitude from them, I have no problem getting into a head-butting contest. My helmet versus your skull. Guess what wins? Although—and I know this—what I'm doing is really, really stupid.

I know I'm doing the stupid thing by confronting some people. And as someone already posted: cops really don't care if the cager cut you off or pulled out in front of you. If you get into an altercation, you're probably the one going to jail. It's not worth it, but that adrenaline rush after a near-miss just drops your IQ.

I'm glad you're okay, Toppers.

[gll429]

I have heard there are people out there with brains wired up in such a way as they can actually see a motorcycle and not register it in their heads that it is a moving vehicle (as they are so used to looking for a car), and they will pull right out in front of you.

I would think these people tend to have gotten lucky on the Darwin calendar as they still exist, but watch out for them. Will try to find some facts to back this claim up. According to my friend who has been riding motorcycles for 25 years, they will look you right in the eye and still pull out in front of you.

i have had a couple of those.. i actually SCREAMED at cop who came close to hitting while talking on the phone with a coffee in hands.... :comp13:

but none of those times came close to scaring the crap out out me as much as the thought of jail time after waking up next that chick :fing02:

Considering the young lady's lifestyle, here's hoping you didn't take away something more from the encounter than you brought. When something you're fond of turns black and falls off it may make dodging cars look good by comparison. :cool:

believe it or not.. its not her kinda thing!! it was a last minute invite by her roomie in college..and her roomies clothes too.(or lack of them)..

turns out she is studying to be a sign-language interpreter. :bliss: and will be coming back to the area in Oct for advanced classes :bliss:

i never knew i was such a nice flirty drunk... :blink:

maybe i should do that more often :goofy: