I have been riding on the street for a long time, and the unthinkable has happened to me more than once. An automobile driver has deliberately swerved into my lane, or even tried to deliberately hit me while riding a motorcycle. You can follow this link to a recent video depicting such an event in Texas (that is a screen shot from the video above). You can skip to roughly 1:30 in the video to see the event and the aftermath.
We are interested in your experiences. If you can relate a similar story, tell us how and where it happened. Were you able to confront the driver? Why do you think some drivers seem to hate motorcyclists? Do you think the frequency of these types of events is increasing or decreasing? Respond in the comments section below.
See more of MD’s great photography:
“It’s not in some universal way “wrong.””
Of course it is, what are you on? Idiot riders like you (and the one who got clipped in the video) give good riders a bad name.
That piece of crap in the car deserves to be drawn and quartered for what he did, but if the biker hadn’t put himself into the position that could happen… It never would’ve. Whether you’re on a bike or in a car, driving like a jackass should hurt. And in this case, it did.
In a word, Yes.
and more than once, been riding 45 years and don’t intend on stopping anytime soon.
The cager is the minority nut ball, he is out numbered by the equally dangerous and far more prevalent distracted drivers who probably spend no less then a 3rd of their time on or across the yellow line. Clearly not the case here but you need to consider your impact on the car driver in a high speed over take it may save your life! You attempt to overtake two only one may have the benefit of seeing you in the rear view mirror your bike acclerates so fast at wot that the un initiated car driver will hear the shrill of your bike and be looking for where the hell its coming from and can trigger a lane change from a startled response.
BTW couldnt help noticing both bikers in the footage leading upto the incident and long before either of you encounter the cars you each spend considerable time on the crown and just at the double yellow. It was for a multitude of reasons a very poor decision to pass and a poorly executed one at that! Watch the video a learn!!!!
I take issue with the comments blaming the motorcyclist for what happened because he crossed the double yellow. Was it unlawful – sure, but does that give the car driver the right to take the law into his own hands and try to kill the motorcyclist? No! If the motorcyclist gets a ticket for doing it or runs headlong into an on-coming car, that is entirely his fault. But what the car driver did was inexcusable in every way, every time — not fault on the biker. And if he had connected, it would have been vehicular manslaughter or murder.
I believe that some people have a feeling of anonymity when they get behind the wheel of a car.
I say if the motorcyclist had not tried to pass illegally on a double yellow line, there wouldn’t be an incident….that being said the motorcyclist started things in motion. But the moron in the car made a much worse decision that could have killed someone…..But I still say without the law breaking poor judgment pass by the motorcyclist….no discussion/wreck..
Passing by crossing the double yellow without in any way endangering, or even inconveniencing, anyone else, may well be technically “illegal.” But that’s at best a debate between the rider, a cop and a judge and jury. It’s not in some universal way “wrong.” Attempting to kill people is. Kind of why God omitted the double yellow triviality when instructing Moses, but included the one about murder.
What the driver did, is no different from seeing a 20 year old starting his 21st celebration a minute early by having a sip of beer; then proceeding to shoot him. Would you excuse the shooter by saying “If the kid had only waited a minute, there would be no problem…”?
Of course, in our sorry ass dystopian age, fat chance the clowns that make up the “legal system” even have the ability to figure out anything so complimecated….
Over the 32 years and 250,000-ish miles I’ve ridden in 15 different states, I’ve had a couple cagers run me off the road, luckily without incident. Nothing so blatant as to try and HIT me, thankfully, but could have severely injured me nonetheless. I’ve had several others swerve at me in acts of aggression, simply because, as mentioned above, these self-absorbed “me first!” a$$holes think they own the road. I’ve tried to get around cagers who simply did everything they could to make it difficult to pass their slow stupid a$$e$, very dangerous in itself. Riding a sportbike, I’ve had a bunch of Hardley-Ableson douchebags swerve to the centerline at me when I went to pass their slow stupid a$$e$, which really puzzles me. Especially as many times as I’ve stopped to help them over the years when their POS has broken down. There are times when I pass on a double yellow here in the mountains in CO (and elsewhere), but I’m very safe and conservative when I do it, and never endanger anyone. I will NOT pass another rider or car in their lane unless they wave me by. Yes, the rider of the bike made a couple MINOR traffic infractions (passing on a DY, and license issues), but the car driver would have done that even if it WAS a passing zone. His own words in the longer video proves that. He thought this guy was someone he’d seen earlier and wanted revenge. This was a deliberate act, 2 felony counts, and NOTHING the rider did deserved this guy taking the law into his own hands and deliberately hitting them. He had no legal right or authority to act as he did. If you condone this in any form, or claim the rider “deserved it”, then you’d condone a guy swerving into the opposite lane to kill a jaywalker, and are completely f#cked in the head.
Why can’t the drivers just give you the finger? So much safer.
It has happened to me twice in the over 40 years I have been riding in Southern California. The first time was on the 605 Freeway when a refugee from Fast and Furious in a Toyota MR2 looked right at me and tried to punch me out of the fast lane and onto the shoulder of the freeway. I rode onto the shoulder and accelerated away, rode to the first emergency call box I could find and reported him and his license number to the Highway Patrol, probably to no avail as I never heard from them.
The second time was in the carpool lane of the 10 freeway in Los Angeles. I was riding a Suzuki 650 Burgman, splitting lanes (as I have done for all 40 years plus of my living in SoCal). When I went to pass a new Corvette the driver jerked the car violently to the right in an unmistakable attempt to push me into the traffic in the next lane. At freeway speeds a Burgman doesn’t accelerate like a motorcycle, I accelerated but the Corvette’s front wheel caught something on the scooter, kicking the rear end and making a very strange “lathe-like” sound (as a former road racer experience with “contact” probably doesn’t hurt in these situations…). I got around the Corvette and continued on to my destination in Westwood, where I discovered that the scooter could not be pushed backwards – the centerstand had been bent so badly that one of the legs had ground a groove in the rear tire. The centerstand lever had evidently caught on the inner diameter of the Corvette’s front wheel, no doubt inflicting considerable damage. In my experience most performance car drivers are very courteous to motorcyclists so I was surprised by the behavior of the Corvette driver. When I described the color scheme of the car to a friend he explained that it was a Hertz rental – evidently the driver had rented some macho along with the car, but along with the macho he no doubt got a nice bill for the damage to the wheel…
All-in-all, in my experience I would say that it’s very unusual to have anyone deliberately try to hit a motorcycle. The danger in an urban environment is virtually always from the inattentive, the just plain stupid, or in the modern world the cell phone and text message set.
BTW, I’m also a cyclist and if you think motorcycles are “dangerous,” you haven’t lived until you’ve spent some time on a road bike in California.
Thanks
Cars-4500+ lbs.
Motorcycle-500 lbs.
Do the math and decide if it is really worth it no mater if you are right or wrong.
wtf…??? they had a pillion…!!!
Nietzsche said something like beware of those in whom the urge to punish is strong.
My advice to immature riders is this – just because you get away with it once or twice or have a friend that does it all the time, doesn’t mean it’s OK – that goes for double yellow passes, high speed traffic filtering, hooliganism, etc. Have some patience and wait, your older self will thank you because eventually the odds are going to get you. We’re here because we love to ride, we love speed, and there are many inherent risks, but illegal maneuvers are like putting out a call to the sociopaths out there. 1 of 20 is a sociopath, and we share the roads with them. Sociopaths are egomaniacs, and if they can get away with it will do whatever they want without guilt. They are the internet trolls, the serial killers, the wife/husband/child beaters, and the people who will get irate and decide to chase you down on your motorcycle if they feel you’ve disrespected them. And they will run you down if they believe they can get away with it. Get right with yourselves, people – take it easy, enjoy the ride, find an abandoned road if you want to drive 100mph on the back wheel. Generally, if someone is slowing down or blocking the road, they trying to control you or other traffic – that’s warning enough to know who you’re dealing with. Stay clear. Turn off onto another road. If someone is tailgating you, move over, and slow down. Turn off onto another road, pull over at a gas station, whatever. Stay alive, your older self will thank you.
Simply pull over behind a ditch, gas pump or culvert – where you and your bike can NOT be struck by the car or truck. Get off the bike – do NOT remove your helmet, bike jacket and bike gloves. If the aggressor stops – tell him you are going to beat the hell out of him if he does not leave. If he then draws a weapon – draw your handgun and kill him. If he approaches for a fight without a weapon – beat the hell out of him – use your handgun as a club to beat him across the face and head if necessary. Get on your bike and leave. Say nothing and get a new helmet, jacket and pair of gloves (different colors) have bike gas tank painted. What bike?
I haven’t seen this link in this discussion – apparently this guy has a history of road rage and/or violence towards those he perceives as wronging him in some way:
http://m.yourglenrosetx.com/article/20151020/NEWS/151029972
Interesting. He was supposedly under supervision for 24 months after threatening the kids and no mention of his having to pay for the damages to the dad’s truck. Clearly this nutter had no business living among the public.
Joe,
Good (and scary) find. Reminds me of a search I did on a name involving a real estate deal, that saved me a lot of grief!
Makes me think seriously of going GoPro helmet cam, like the Russians do and so many bicycle riders around here now.
I think that just having the thing on my helmet running or not can make (some) passive/agressive drivers behave a bit better, give me a little more cushion. Not the sociopath in this incident, they go blind with rage.
This is an opportunity for an app that reads plates, mines the Cloud for the convicted sociopaths in rider’s proximity, no different from what the police are doing now with their dashcams and on board computers scanning/searching plates. Obviously the info is out there, knowing in a timely manner could help riders make better decisions.
I can’t take credit for finding it, but I thought I’d share. I was already highly dubious of this guys “I swerved because I got bitten by a bug” story (right, coincidentally just at the exact moment that he was being passed by this motorcycle?), but this completely cinched my belief. I hope they’ll be able to introduce this prior in court to establish a pattern of behaviour, as it’s clearly relevant.
Well, that is some pretty damning information to his case. Hopefully, they’ll really throw the book at him this time.
Bad behavior on the part of others does not give you the right to assume the role of judge, jury, and executioner. Hopefully that hayseed will spend some time behind bars. Regardless, I am sure the bikers already have a long line of youtube-watching lawyers waiting outside their door……the hayseed will find the inevitable civil suit to be very costly.
I am a bit surprised by some of the comments though. I have to ask, when is it ever acceptable to pass on a DY line? In my opinion, patience is a virtue and the world is not a race track.
I may be an exception, but in 40+ years of riding in a very crowded part of California, with tens of thousands of miles commuting (and lane splitting) on clogged freeways, plus the occasional 🙂 pass over double-yellow on a twisty backroad, I honestly can’t remember a case where someone seemed to intentionally try to take me out or even threaten me. Incompetent, oblivious, impeding my progress, even hostile … yes. But an intentional attack? Never.
Commuting on California backroads can involve a lot of passing in double-yellow zones. A quick moto can do this easily & safely, a slow corolla can’t. Many drivers don’t want anyone passing them in a double yellow. They consider it too dangerous for anyone to be doing it near them. A few will honk, fewer will try to block the pass by straddling center line; not actually trying to hit you. Cars, pickups, and semis have all done it over the years, but it is rare. On my motos & in my truck.
In the video, the car driver may simply have been trying to block the pass, but misjudged the moto’s rapid closing speed, swerved too late & accidentally hit the moto. I also consider the moto rider to be too close to the car he was passing. Had he been 1-2 feet further left, he would not have been hit.
Fearful or hurt ego with poor-driving skills instead of malice. Its always dangerous riding faster than traffic. I’m glad his injuries appear minor.
Catfish …
On the positive side some drivers actually move a little to provide space. In some countries this is actually the norm and these are the countries that typically are more used to passing cars and more intense traffic (smaller roads, higher traffic speeds).
Yes I have. One time in a northern Seattle suburb, a 20 something girl (driver) & her boyfriend tried pushing me off the road. Too bad the girl had a personalized plate that made her easy to find by the police. To their credit (police) took the instance to be as serious as it was. I got 2 or 3 calls from them telling me about their progress & that they finally found the person. I ride everyday & it does get interesting at times out there. Like others said, show the drivers some respect & you get respect back.
At least once a year somebody pulls a stunt like this on me or one of my riding group. The roads we ride in southeast Ohio are pretty much all double yellow all the time. I’ve even had a guy in a Chevy Trailblazer try to chase me down to the point that he was using both lanes in most corners, oncoming traffic be damned. If you are going to pass on the double yellow do not target fixate on the vehicle that swerves in front of you. There was still a lot of available open lane to the crashed rider in Texas. Most drivers don’t seem to be bothered by being passed but some do get emotional.
We have law enforcement and courts to decide guilt and punishment. Attempting to kill a person and their passenger over a traffic infraction, and even more for a very instantaneous and non-aggressive one, is a million miles from being justified.
Sean says: ” Even if the pass was mistimed and a car was approaching from the other direction both cars and the bike could all fit across the 2 lanes very easily.”
That scenario frightens the heck out of me. With an approach speed of at least 100-120 mph (three vehicles, two of them side by side, traveling 50-60 mph head on) I don’t like the chances of that going well. But that’s just me.
It’s not the ideal situation but the point is that even in a worse case scenario there’s space to avoid an accident.
Jmess..what strange comments?
I’ve read every post and I don’t see ANY posts that said the car driver was justified in doing what he did. I certainly didn’t say that and never implied it and I don’t think anyone else has either.
We all make choices and suffer consequences of those choices.. in this instance the biker, and the car driver both made bad choices and both are suffering consequences. The car driver was absolutely wrong, but the motorcyclist is not without some guilt in this incidence. If he was, he would not have gotten a ticket for an illegal pass. He absolutely did not deserve to be run off the road. Had he obeyed the law and stayed behind the driver we wouldn’t even be discussing this would we?
I find it as disturbing that people on a motorcycle forum condone and admit to breaking the law all the time just because they feel like they should have the right to do so because they ride a motorcycle, and it accelerates fast.
I want you to look at the picture at the top of the page closely. The two cars ahead of the offending car are both higher in line of sight than the offending car, and they aren’t very far ahead. They are going up a hill. Probably why there is a double yellow line in that spot. Someone could be coming over the hill at 60 mph (or more if they are on a motorcycle illegally passing someone coming the other direction) in the lane the two bikers are passing in. Enough room? Maybe, but the department of transportation obviously thinks it could be a dangerous situation. Hence the double yellow. I mean why take the chance? Isn’t it dangerous enough out there without taking unnecessary chances?
I don’t think it’s that you (or others) implied that the driver’s action was justified. What it is, I think, is that when discussing a situation where the reaction is so grossly out of proportion to the action, saying (essentially) “It wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t violated a traffic law” is easily taken to mean that you somehow view both parties as equally at fault. Just by bringing it up, you seem to equate things that shouldn’t be equated.
As far as motorcyclists violating traffic law…there are lots of places in this country where it’s considerably more dangerous to drive the speed limit than it is to exceed it by 20 mph. And there are places where if you don’t take advantage of common sense, situational awareness, and your bike’s accelerative potential to execute a quick, safe pass on double-yellow, you’ll be stuck behind somebody doing 30 in a 45 for the next 20 miles. In other words, it’s all about context.
Brian, I’m sorry but I never said nor implied that the two infractions were EQUAL. I’d place blame at 90% car driver and 10% motorcycle rider.
and the irrefutable fact of this situation is, if the motorcyclists had not attempted an illegal pass, this accident would not have happened (even if it was the crazy car drivers fault). If the motorcyclist had stayed in place as he was supposed to it wouldn’t have happened. Period.
I feel sorry for the guy and gal on the bike. They DID NOT DESERVE what happened to them, But legally, in the eyes of the law, they share part of the blame. Ask any LEO,lawyer or judge. Been through this when my wife was in hit by a pick-up driver while walking along the road. Because she was walking with traffic rather than against traffic she was assigned partial blame.
Sorry mickey. I apologize if I implied something you didn’t mean. I just don’t see how any guilt can lie with victim in this one. Based on the video one could claim he is making some poor decisions etc. But I don’t see any guilt on the side of the victim for the actual actions of the driver. Plus I am a little at odds with your chosen over motorcyclists that are honest about breaking traffic codes. I don’t mind it as long as it is controlled
I may be splitting hairs and you are probably more legally correct. I just have a taken take on it.
Thanks Fitbar, I understand. Let me come at this another way.
You (Fitbar) have been patiently waiting in a long line waiting to buy Christmas presents for your family. Some guy comes up and steps in front of you because he is in a hurry. You tell him to get to the back of the line and wait like everyone else. He tells you to F off. You become aggravated and punch him in the mouth. He instigated the incident but you were the aggressor and both deserve some of the blame for the incident.
Now lets go to the bike/car incident. Some guy is patiently driving along in traffic, when another tries to illegally get in front of him. This aggravates the driver and he swerves and hits the motorcyclist (I mean something set him off right? and as he got out of his car saying “he shouldn’t have tried passing in a no passing zone” this was obviously the impetus for his actions). The car driver was the aggressor, however the motorcyclist set the incident into motion when he tried to illegally pass, so both deserve some blame.
See where I am coming from now?
If the motorcyclist had attempted a pass in a LEGAL passing zone and the car driver swerved and hit him, then it would be 100% the car drivers fault, because the motorcyclist was doing nothing wrong in that attempt to pass that should have aggravated the car driver.
Oh give me a break.
+1
Note, it’s a bit ambiguous…comment reply placement was intentional, “give me a break” was aimed at Mickey’s rambling explanation, not Brian’s rebuttal (which I obviously concur with given my reply farther below).
That’s how I understood it. I think mickey’s comment is a little harsh as I can not see any justification for the drivers actions. I don’t even think the guy thinks of the motorcyclist as human, maybe he thinks they are giant bugs 🙂
Fitbar says:
October 22, 2015 at 2:59 pm
I think mickey’s comment is a little harsh as I can not see any justification for the drivers actions.
WHAT? Please go back and read the first line in my rambling comment again,and try and comprehend what it says… and in case anyone is confused about where I stand: there is absolutely NO justification for what the car driver did, NONE, it was wrong, wrong, horribly wrong. He should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. The guy is criminally insane.
Is that clear enough for you?
I ride sport-touring motorcycles. I always ride with proper gear, respect for the rest of the traffic, and I never split lanes (I do have my temptations). I generally find the traffic to be respectful to me. I sense that most people on the road are careful about not causing trouble to me. Of course, there are those who are oblivious, inattentive, and distracted. I make every effort to be vigilant, cautious, and defensive to avert unfortunate scenarios.
My simple philosophy of life is ‘what goes around, comes around’. I teach for living and I believe that the other side never lets you down if they know you care. I am not claiming to be a saint; I have done my share of wrong deeds on roads as well as other facets of life.
You have “saint” in your name lol
Using the driver’s logic if anyone is driving 1mph over the speed limit you could pull up next to them and shoot them in the head and say “speeding” “speeding” so stupid. Anyone who rides knows that its much easier to pass a car on these two lane roads on a motorcycle than in a car. On a bike you only need a couple feet to the left of the car to get around with the acceleration capabilities of a motorcycle it takes very little time and space to get around a car. Even if the pass was mistimed and a car was approaching from the other direction both cars and the bike could all fit across the 2 lanes very easily. The guy in this car has mental issues, he’s lucky I wasn’t the guy filming cuz he’d be in bad shape.
Fortunately those two will be ok. In over 40 years of heavy riding I’m certain I’ve still not seen a fraction of can go wrong. I’ve been down plenty (dirt and road), hit twice and also multiple times evaded being hit by cagers with burrs up their backsides.
Last week, while riding through Lockport, NY, a well dressed and otherwise kindly looking gentleman, had tried a couple times to directly run me off the road. As fate had it my reactions were right on that day and I was able to avoid contact. As the guy was going in the same direction I was I decided to follow him. Having been behind him for about 20 more miles I hadn’t noticed any of the tell-tale signs of impairment and ultimately assumed the guy was just a loose screw. I followed him into a little burg just short of my destination and realized that he was in fear when I saw he was heading toward the local police station… With whom I was more than pleased to speak with about the matter. Once in the station lot the guy got out of his car screaming that I was trying to kill him.
Not ever having learned the particulars, a long story short found an officer taking him away in cuffs and assuring me that the man would dealt with by the law. End of story.
Weird, but it just goes to show (as does the video), that there are screwballs everywhere and that we need to remain diligent in even the most seemingly peaceful riding circumstances.
Be safe my friends and quick healing to you folks in Texas!
There seems to be alot of intolerance for crossing a double line, which seems surprising on a motorcycle forum. We have all seen some motorcyclists make riding look dangerous while riding within traffic codes? I can’t comment about on this rider, but it looked like he could have given himself more margin for safety, but the driver seems a stereotypical product of his culture and probably not very smart. Although post collision no one looks super smart. Attitude to motorcyclists seem to vary throughout States in the US and from urban to rural areas as you would expect: I definitely think the older population (massive controversial generalisation) struggles more to tolerate motorcyclists (ok maybe alot of things) and other traffic/pedestrians in general. When I started riding I didn’t second take or look back at cars that drove poorly and forced me to make a dramatic avoidance move, just focused on what’s ahead. Now, I have a need to judge them and make sure they know they upset me: obviously getting old myself, but it isn’t helpful.
If you are not a frequent pedestrian, cyclist, motorcyclist, and driver it is harder to have appreciation and understand (and be safe around) the other on the road.
I have had more issues, some deliberate, with drivers while cycling than motorcycling, and in general feel more exposed when they misbehave.
I’ll do it from time to time to get around particularly slow or erratic vehicles, but I generally won’t pass on a double line just out of respect for other drivers. I know my bike is more than powerful enough to complete a pass safely in a very short linear distance, but that scares the heck out of drivers who aren’t familiar with a motorcycle’s capabilities. And others it just pisses off regardless.
While the rider in the video could have no doubt made some better decisions, the only thing that caused the accident is the guy that swerved into the motorcycle. Despite the double yellow, there was ample line-of-sight to execute that pass safely on a motorcycle.
Bicyclists by far get the least amount of respect around here from auto drivers. Countless times I’ve seen cars and trucks barely move over while passing them. Bicyclist are also the greatest asshats by far. Generally speaking, they have very little sense for self preservation and seem more interested in demanding their right-of-way rather than riding safely and courteously.
How we behave as a group has a lot to do with how we are treated as a group.
Another interesting thing is that the driver felt no concern for the injured people or remorse, only a childish sort of innocent obsession with being right. This would be in line with his inability to control his emotions and his willingness to injure another person with his car. Is that a Texan thing?
I know cultures and norms vary widely but that seems odd to me.
Not sure I want to kowtow to the lowest common denominator to make sure the motorcyclist community is treated fairly. I am not a hooligan on a bike (don’t have the skills), but I will pass on the double to get by a car before a set of twisty curves to enjoy them at them my speed. On the roads in this video I don’t think I would bother, looks like really boring roads.
“Is that a Texan thing?”
While not the norm, I find that reaction is not uncommon when someone has done something wrong. I don’t know the psychology behind it, people essentially trying to convince themselves that they were in the right so they don’t have to deal with the guilt of something heavy, maybe?. Typically, that kind of reaction only happens immediately after an incident from what I have experienced, and in most cases the offender is deeply concerned. It is not a Texan thing, but my subjective opinion is that you are more likely to get that kind of reaction from someone who has some heightened sense of pride and entitlement, which I think is more common in Texas than anywhere else I’ve lived.
re: “While not the norm”
Hi.
Happens ALL THE TIME. Usually at least one or more times per week someone specifically tries to squeeze me out during lane splitting.
Typical situation is: traffic is stopped in the #2 lane (second from left) and traffic is inching along at 5-10 mph in the #1 lane (far left lane, usually a carpool lane).
The space between the lanes is 8-10 feet wide, plenty of space to lanesplit.
I am passing a large vehicle in #1 lane, usually a bus or a cube truck, and a car in the #2 lane will begin pulling left to pinch off the space between the lanes.
I know they are doing it purposely because the large truck to their left blocks any possibility they can be trying to change lanes to the left and since they are the only vehicle in the #2 lane doing it, I know it is not because there is some obstruction in the #2 lane that they are trying to go around.
When I pull up behind them, I can see them looking in their mirrors laughing or sneering about how they cut-off the motorcycle.
Really?
Envious much?
Grow the F’ up! What a nitwit!
Lane splitting helps traffic flow even the nitwit cutting me off, but this nitwit thinks it is funny to cut someone off in traffic that is doing something safely and legally!
Lane splitting is also safer for motorcycle riders than being stuck in traffic.
I have had other isolated events of being purposely cutoff and even chased a couple of times over the years. It is not difficult to get away from them.
George, I ride to work in Southern California too, and have met with many people who do not know that lane sharing is allowed here.
I lived and rode there for 14 years and lane split every opportunity I got. Some clown even set up his washer nozzle to aim at the driver-side lane to wet you as you passed. Nothing a large ball-bearing wouldn’t solve when you see the car again… not that I ever did that…
Also, if someone tries to hit you with their car it’s consider assault with a deadly weapon, or a class 1 felony. I’m sure the stupids who try it don’t factor that into their day…
Never been attacked while at speed, but have had to deal with plenty of the ‘squeezers’ while lane splitting. I take a breath, calm down, then zip by when they’ve had their fun. There’s always a spot, and it’s not worth a crash trying to prove a point. It’s absolutely against the law for vehicles to squeeze out bikes that are splitting lanes, but pretty hard to enforce. Maybe the CHP should hop on some normal looking machines and see how traffic treats them.
Normal machines – that would be awesome. When I lived in CA it was Bay Area and I wasn’t having to deal with the Bay Bridge (which I understand people get a lot shittier on). I seldom had LS blocking issues that were intentional (usually people trying to get that one spot ahead type thing, which is why I wouldn’t split with traffic moving quickly enough to allow that, e.g. 15-20mph).
It happened often enough that I’d looove to see the people get a big ass ticket (as in attempted assault which it really is) though.
Anyone implying that a motorcyclist DESERVES this sort of aggression from a vehicle really needs to give their head a shake. Everyone I know has a one time or another ridden a motorcycle fast; especially when young—does that mean, some psychopath should swerve at them?? Some strange comments.
Roll back to 1992; I was on a CBR900RR AKA: fireblade I was riding on the No1 HWY near Golden B.C. which at the time was a treacherous winding mountainside road; I go to pass a guy because he is going really slow and he swerves into my lane (the cliff side) as I am almost beside him. At first I thought it was just a case of him not paying attention. I go to do it again and he swerves again!!! I knew at this point he was a nut-job. Finally I gear down and blow by him so quickly he could not even react in time, but in my rear-view I saw that he did swerve again. I was young and didn’t bother reporting it; I felt nothing would be done about it (it was only me and him on that stretch/no witnesses).
So, yeah, crazy things happen out there and I have other stories too, but that was the worst. Those that act like it can’t happen to them, I will tell you IT CAN…..unlikely, but it can. Ride aware!
Yes, in VA I had followed a tractor trailer for several miles on a county two lane road going over mountains. When I finally got to a passing zone, I passed him and I think I less than a foot of space in between my luggage and his front fender when I completed the pass. By the way, I was on the white line in the other lane.
I was once riding just south of Cresent City CA on highway 101. Used a passing lane to pass a slow car going up the hill out of town, and the guy moved over into the fast lane right as I was next to him with no one in front of him. Fortunately no one was in the oncoming lane where I was forced. Apparently even passing legally pisses some people off.
“Apparently even passing legally pisses some people off.” I’m sure it does, as mentioned below by TexinOhio. There seems to be a newer breed of distracted, self indulgent driver out there that sometimes I wonder if I should hang up my riding boots. I never used to worry, maybe it’s my advancing age, but there’s a real threat to us out there now that I don’t recall in such numbers before. I find I just don’t have the same spark of desire to go riding and it’s because of all the crazy stuff I see on the roads. Stop signs are mere suggestions and red traffic lights are to be driven through…yellow means GUN IT!!
Vrooom, totally true! Mickey (he was right in getting defensive, my post was directed at him) seems to think that obeying all the rules of the road will prevent this; no way—there are motorcycle-haters out there. I’ve honked at someone turning into my lane once, he looked at me and continued to turn into me; I was doing nothing wrong. I think it is important to follow road rules, but at the same time as many know, there are these people out there that seem to think a motorcycle is an annoyance; their neurons deteriorate as soon as a steering wheel is in front of them; that is what the video is really about….a small wrong does not justify a big one!
I have never experienced a car or turck trying to take me out. I have, though had to swereve onto the sholder several times when an oncoming car pulled out to pass. The most recent time, the driver was a young woman happily talking into her cell phone as she pulled around a slower vehicle (double yellow line area) and into my lane. I went to the shoulder. She never stopped talking on her phone, and smiled as she passed my. Contact would have been death.
On the other side of the ledger, I have had many instances of other drivers letting me into a lane, blocking other vehicles so I could merge, and other displays of courtesy.
No issues on people trying to take me out when I am on the motorcycle. BUT different story on my bicycle, riding this summer on a back road, a jeep coming in the opposite direction, crossed the middle lane and came right in front of me at about 40 mph. I still remember the look of the young guy smiling maliciously at me as he ran me off the road. No injuries but I was stunned as to why someone would do something evil like that…
I have had Two attempted runoffs in recent years. one was in Tennessee, there were three of us on motorcycles and a sports car, a pickup truck served into our lane forcing all of us onto the shoulder of the road, we continued on but the sports car made a u turn to pursue the truck. A second occurrence happened two years ago on Michigan M52, just south of Qwusso, my son and I were riding south when a small car pulled out of the oncoming lane , double yellow, passed several cars and ran us off the road. I looked at him as he passed and he never looked at me.I would have liked to have turned around but he would have been long gone
This is just an example of the “Me First” problem in this country. Everyone has to be the first at the stop light. Everyone has to be first off the line from the stop light. If you need to move into my lane you have to get behind me because I’m more important and busy (to myself) than you are.
I’m going to speed up and block you from getting into my lane ahead of me cause you’re wasting my time. If you somehow make it ahead and move in front of me I’m going to tailgate and honk my horn and probably shoot you the finger or maybe really show you a gun.
Society has become so much more self important as time has gone on. Some of us on two wheels are just as bad. Making stupid and dangerous moves that incite cagers to respond in kind. That’s not to say it legitimizes their reactions, but it becomes a tit-for-tat situation.
Everyone is so buried in the minutia of the day to day that we lose site of each other as people and see obstacles that impede our goals for the day.
It’s only going to get worse as time goes on, which means we need to try to be constantly aware of our surroundings.
As and aside, I’ve never had anyone try to take me out intentionally. Only close call I’ve ever had was back in 2005 on my way to the office. A lady was applying her makeup in her SUV and moved into my lane mot seeing me. I was able to touch her driver side window and it scared her to jerk her car back into her own lane.
I’ve been fortunate to not have had many issues on the road.
I’ve been riding a very long time and although I’ve had my moments I try not to make myself a douche out on the roads. Motorcycles are fun machines with unprecedented performance and affordability. Two ingredients that appeal to many, especially younger males with extra vitamin T in their systems. It’s long been so but I think we see even more hooliganism today than in the past. That just plain rubs the public the wrong way. I’m not excusing the actions of either of the two vehicles involved here but I believe since we as motorcyclists are in the minority it behooves us to play it safe and show that we have a place on the road and not to shove it in people’s faces. Perhaps a case in point is the very quick and large out lash against “drones”. It appears now that all will need to be registered, even down to the hobbyist level. The actions of the few can have a very large affect on the general population as a whole.
Agreed—there are some riders who make the rest of us look bad. I go out of my way to be courteous.
The driver of the car was booked on Monday this week on 2 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
🙂
I have never had a driver intentionally swerve into my lane, but it has happened inadvertently countless times due to driver inattention and lack of situational awareness.
However, in a strange encounter a few years ago, while driving my car I had a motorcyclist repeatedly pull out in front of me, into the opposing lane of a two-lane Texas farm road (think backroads highway, paved but with nonexistent shoulders), to block me from passing him although he was traveling 10 mph below the speed limit. There was a couple (man and woman) on motorcyles riding in front of him, and I think he was an old-timer playing mother hen to a couple of newbs (all on HDs) but why he would block me like that still puzzles me.
He was very unhappy with me when I did finally get around him. An intelligent motorcyclist understands that size matters.
those guys should have all pulled over to let you by. this should have been discussed before they set out.
I’ve never had anyone in a car intentionally target me. Quite a few decide to get in my lane with me–I’m watching and just scoot over. The drivers are usually very apologetic when they realize what they did. I give them an “is okay” circle with my hand. I’ve gotten so used to it that it doesn’t bother me. They can’t see us. I am a very careful and defensive rider.
I’ve been riding for thirteen years on the road now and have learned to stay away from red necks in lifted trucks, guys in 5.0 Mustangs, kids driving anything, people in dilapidated vehicles (some just don’t give a flip), anyone driving a mini van (a lot of those folks just ain’t right) those on phones, and anyone driving erratically or aggressively gets a wide berth.
People are crazy. Often a 3,000 lb vehicle just amplifies that.
As far as I know I have never been intentionally targeted in over 30 years of riding on the road. But I believe in the old adage “Treat someone how you would like to be treated”. I ride responsibly, not like a moron. Unfortunately today all to often you see bikes flying down the road on one wheel going by cars; passing on the shoulder at full highway speed; cutting between lanes at full speed and so on. The list of moronic motorcycle moves goes on and on. So I can certainly see where the intent comes from. Attempting or sucessfully hitting another human being with a vehicle out of frustration or anger in never right, it’s a clear form of road rage. But why give people a reason to put themselves in that state of mind in the first place? RIDE RESPONSIBLY 24/7/365!
What I would have liked to seen on the GoPro was as the *hole says “I don’t care” multiple times the rear end of a Glock comes into view and the biker says, “me either”, POP POP POP. What he did was attempted murder in my book.
Minimum it is assault with a deadly weapon.
The reality is we(motorcyclists) generate a good deal of ‘Road Rage’ in the 4 wheel(and more) community. The problem is no amount of money spent on a car will generate the enjoyment and freedom of the road than we get. It makes some extremely jealous. Some times they will take extreme risks just demonstrate they can do anything we can. For instance I’ve seldom been the last in a line of traffic going thru’ a traffic light turning red.
The ‘stuff’ I’ve seen in my rear view mirror sometimes seems so inane – unless of course there’s a motorcycle involved – ME.
And to think there’s concern that Bikes are invisible to many motorists – perhaps the opposite is true..
Grumps
All the “yes” answers here are reason to join the American Motorcylist Association. The AMA has long lobbied for increased penalties in cases like this one.
Just one hateful old man from texas…
Late 2001 or early 2002, on a two-lane highway out in the Kansas countryside. No traffic to speak of; no curves or hills. I’m riding along at about the speed limit, minding my own business. A pickup truck pulling a long fifth-wheel trailer comes up behind me quickly (probably +20 mph) and pulls out to pass. I hold my speed and lane position (if I recall, I was in the center of the lane) and don’t think too much of it…until all of a sudden, when the trailer is maybe halfway past the bike, the driver aggressively merges back into the right lane.
Fortunately I was alert, and my reflexes were fairly sharp. As I saw the trailer swinging back over, I braked hard and swerved to the far right edge of the lane. The trailer cleared me by maybe 8-10 feet…but if I hadn’t been paying attention, it would have sent me into the ditch at 60 mph and very possibly killed me.
I know for certain that it was done intentionally–partly because there was no oncoming traffic, but mainly because they “told me.” The truck passenger stuck his arm out the window and flipped me off after they went around. Had it not been for that, I might have at least considered the possibility that the driver forgot he was pulling a trailer.
Bear in mind, I didn’t know these guys, had no interaction with them prior to the incident, and was riding as responsibly as you can ride. These guys were just a couple of psychopaths. They may as well have taken a pot-shot at me with a rifle.
So I can testify to the fact that it happens, and isn’t always preceded by illegal or unsafe moves on the part of the rider–not that speeding or passing on a double yellow is justification for the kind of stunt the belligerent moron in this video pulled.
Yes. Successfully, broken collar bone, toe, bike. Hit and run, never caught.
1978 coming home to chowchilla from my job in Merced Ca. It was daylight and as I was going down the main drag a big semi in the other lane passed me and as he did so he looked right at me; smiled, and then came right over into my lane . I dove off the side of the road on my Harley and ended up in a field. I was so shook up by the look in the guy’s face I just sat there for awhile, then went home.
BaggerChris
BTW- guy has been arrested.
I’ll volunteer to behead him.
Road rage is out there and bikes are usually the loser. I had a guy swerve close enough to the car beside him to block me from lane splitting in California. I had to nail the brakes to avoid hitting him. About the jerk in Texas, I would call it premeditated attempted murder, if they can make it stick.
I moved from Sonoma County to Cache County, N. Utah, and I’d never move back. But there are a couple, and I stress a couple downsides even here. For one, you can not lane share in UT, not even on a bicycle. I kid you not.
So I kinda heard and knew about no lane share for bicycles, and was very conscious of the risk when I had a dream (cough, cough) about lane sharing my WR250R.
I’m riding my mountain bike on Center St, just W of 100 E, just N. of Tabernacle Square. One lane of traffic is stopped almost an entire block from Main St. back to 100 E. A guy is on his bicycle stopped immediately R of the last stopped vehicle in the line, a big black SUV. I ride up to the SUV, lane center or a bit left. I veer right of the SUV to ride up ahead to Main St between stopped traffic and parked cars on my right. I’m 6-3, over 200 lbs, and I’m clipping along, having picked my path, with no reason on earth to predict an emergency stop.
The guy on the stopped bicycle intentionally walks his bike up diagonally to cut me off with no where to go except into the car or over him.
I’m on a “Fat Bike” with 4″ tires and would have pancaked him for a very memorable experience. A semi-mental case Mormon teaching me to obey the law, me thinks.
Thank God for disc brakes.
Far as I’m concerned, anyone who rides a bicycle on public roads either has a death wish or has lost their driver’s/MC license. Decades ago I had to ride a bicycle on local streets and it’s DANGEROUS !!!
More truth than poetry in your statement, Randy. thirty years ago I decided to buy a mountain bike to ride around town and on some local forest preserve trails, mostly to stay in shape – but the first time I almost got squashed riding it on a heavily-trafficed, 40 mph road, it was the last time. On an MC, you can pretty much dictate who passes you, and you “own” a space in the lane. On a bicycle, EVERYONE passes you at some point or other, and there’s nothing you can do about it, and you’re “sharing” their space in the lane. The husband of one of our secretaries got squished on a pedal bike and ended up with brain damage (I think he was wearing a helmet, can’t remember). My own opinion is that bicycles are at least ten times more dangerous, per mile driven, than are motorcycles.
To the topic, no one ever tried to take me out on purpose (that I know of), but a whole lot of ’em tried to take me out on accident. The TX hillbilly who perpetrated this crime needs to go to jail until he’s 80, IMHO.
I ride about 5,000 miles a year on public roads on a bicycle. Some places are more dangerous than others and sometimes people even get killed on them but it’s not any more dangerous than a motorcycle, maybe even less so since so many motorcycle crashes are riders crashing alone.
We actually have a lot of bicycle fatalities here – 36 over the past five years including the greater metro area according to a radio show I was listening to recently – but Houston is probably the least bicycle-friendly city I’ve ever seen.
I generally agree. Street riding sucks, and I enjoy the trails infinitely more. Most of my street riding is very low traffic back roads.
I’ve had plenty of people floor thier vehicle to tailgate me after passing, even in a legal zone. Its a psycological issue. In a car, when someone is trying to merge, I see people speed up to block.
Regarding passing on a double yellow. I’ve been in many situations where there was plenty of sight line to pass on double yellow. Nearly as frequently, I have NOT passed on a dashed. I rely on my own judgement. If I cant see, I wait. If I can, I pass. I’ll not blindly trust the DOT thank you.
This guy obviously let emotion get to him. He blatantly says he doesnt care, sociopath! He doesn’t start making excuses until after he realizes what he has done, and the reality sinks in. Especially when he finds out it is on video!
Whether in a car or on a bike, let everyone ride or drive thier own drive. If someone wants to pass, let them and then you can both enjoy the road. Who wants to have someone tailgate them, or worry that they are holding someone up?
Hey Peter, so well put & in total agreement with your statement: “Regarding passing on a double yellow. I’ve been in many situations where there was plenty of sight line to pass on double yellow. Nearly as frequently, I have NOT passed on a dashed. I rely on my own judgment. If I cant see, I wait. If I can, I pass. I’ll not blindly trust the DOT thank you.”
Car driver was William Crum of Granbury, TX, and he has a $150K bond now. Not sure what they are going to charge him with (specifically.) But think about the ‘big’ picture: motorcyclist commits a misdemeanor traffic offense that is hurting no one and endangering no one. Car driver commits felony (attempted murder) to ‘stop’ the misdemeanor. Using his emotional logic, we can all start ramming people that are texting and driving and if they die, so be it. They were breaking the law! Crazy. (Oh yeah, please note that blue jeans and a simple shirt are NOT good protective gear! Might the motorcyclist have better used the money he spent for an Ohlins steering damper & aftermarket pipe to buy proper riding gear? Just a thought.)
Self cleaning oven . . . . . . . .
Yes the bikers did plenty wrong but it in no way gives permission for an idiot to crash and mame people. PERIOD!
I’ve had few problems on the motorcycle, but many many terrifying experiences when on a bicycle.
No kidding.
As long as there are people, there will be problems
No excuse for the cars maneuver but the bikes made several errors. Errors on the road can kill you especially on a bike. I ride a ZZR 1200 a very fast bike and sometimes I drive very fast but I specifically strive not to be seen as aggressive. In 150K miles on bikes I can honestly say I have never perceived that I have angered a driver or seen a move against me. That is part of my plan,
Never drive with or on emotion. Many do, and assume they might.
You should always assume that drivers of other vehicles don’t see you. And if they DO see you, assume they’re trying to kill you. Ride accordingly.
I’m amazed that on a number of motorcycle forums where this has appeared that some people seem to have trouble believing that this may have been deliberate (which it sure as hell looks like it is). I’ve heard too many stories and seen too many YouTube videos with irate nut-job drivers to not believe that was his intention (although I can’t prove it).
It has never happened to me. I almost never pass in a no passing zone and only when the car in front is going way below the speed limit. t
I can think off-hand of at least a half dozen times that larger vehicles have come close to colliding with my motorcycle when it looked to me like that was their intention. The event in the video is probably not rare, it just got taped and widely viewed.
Just because the guy passes on a double yellow, does not give the guy the right to slam into him. The cager is guilty of at least aggravated assault. The cager is out of his mind, despite the biker making a bad choice.
That’s right. Passing on the DY is viewed differently under the law in different states anyway, and I do not know what Texas’ law says. Regardless, traffic laws are enforced by police, not other motorists. Using your vehicle as a weapon is bound to make for a bad day.
Passing on the double yellow is not permitted in TX.
50 years on 2 wheels, had plenty of people pull out in front of me from a side street or turn in front of me (nailed one of them in 1969..yea, it hurt), have had some try and switch lanes on me unintentionally (you can tell because they jerk back into their lane and apologize for not seeing you after you give them the horn blast) have had people brake check me, but never had I had one intentionally try and take me out that I was passing in a legal passing zone.
I saw multiple infractions on that video, the motorcycles were speeding and passing in a double yellow, the white car pulled a illegal and dangerous block. Same laws are for everyone motorcyclists and non motorcyclists. we complain about inattentive drivers on cell phones and then speed and pass across double yellows and thru blind turns where it’s not legal, like those laws don’t apply to us. Plenty of blame to go around.
This past weekend while I was in my truck, a guy on a late model Ninja 636 passed me at about 100mph in a 65 zone on a major artery here. A car merged over into his lane to go around another vehicle giving him nowhere to go. He got to experience the joys of antilock brakes and fortunately avoided a collision, after which he angrily pulls up alongside the the car and punches the window a few times before cutting the driver off and speeding away while flipping her off. Even if that driver saw the motorcycle in her mirrors, there is no way she could have realized or expected how fast he was approaching. Under normal traffic conditions, she made a perfectly safe, signaled merge into the far left lane.
I pull into a gas station two exits down, and there is the guy on the Ninja filling up. I told him I saw he had a close call on the highway, and he just rants on in a barely intelligible string of expletives about the “stupid woman driver” and how he can’t wait to post his GoPro footage to show everyone how incompetent she is and how he “showed her what’s what” then cursed some more. We motorcyclist are our own worst enemies.
A lot of truth here.
Doaner-cycle, but there is nothing above the neck worth using.
Jeremy, these days, had that been me in your place, I would have called 911 right then and there and turned his ass in. I used 911 to turn in a drunk driver recently. They were happy to get the call. And you were a witness. You could have made his life very uncomfortable.
Best comment here besides the homocide one.
Drive like an a-hole and some other a-hole is going to react. Respect those around you and they tend to respect you as well. Plenty of close calls with folks not paying attention. Have yet to feel that one was actually trying to kill me, most are just clueless. I see some people slowing down because they see me coming from behind so I just slow down too and keep plenty of space between us. Wait to pass where it is legal and safe, everyone is happy, the peace is kept.
The car driver is evil but I hope both motorcyclists got a heavy fine for reckless driving and endangering the public as well. Take it to a track or drive far enough long enough to get to roads with a lot less traffic.
If I rode like you do I’d quit riding. See no fun in what you do. I’m far more aggressive than you and in over 50 years of being so have yet to get really hurt. If I do I know who to blame. To ride “legal and safe” is totally BORING to me. You sound like my paranoid wife.
So having fun is about riding like an a-hole and passing traffic in no passing zones eh? Rock on in a free world man. Silly me, I though it was about enjoying the ride, getting to some nice back roads and enjoying the turns. I doubt you could keep up when it got twisty but I’m sure you’d catch up in the straights. Although I’m impressed you still ride at your age pops.
Every time I meet a blow hard like you in person (usually very young) I always notice about an inch of chicken strip on each side of their tire. Absolute badazz. LOL.
Hey, Jorge, you ride a Harley? Sure sounds like it. You have that group ride mentality.
I have nearly quit riding because of riders like you. I don’t want to be associated to you in any way. The public streets aren’t your personal playground. I understand wanting to ride fast, I have raced in many venues, road racing, flat track, MX, enduros, cross country etc. On the street I am a safe, sane law abiding citizen. I will speed if the cars around me are going faster than the limit. At least up to 80 MPH. At that point I get out of that lane if possible. Obviously not because I am afraid of speed but rather my lack of faith in the other drivers in ability to handle those speeds.
You on the other hand are an accident waiting to happen. You piss off drivers and ruin any chnce of a positive image for bikers. If you want to go fast go to the track and get your rocks off there, NOT ON THE PUBLIC STREETS!
Why do you think some drivers seem to hate motorcyclists?
because of attitudes like this
To ride “legal and safe” is totally BORING to me.
There have always been and will always be irresponsible and selfish people who think what they want is more important than what society feels is reasonable and expected. For the hunters in society it’s poachers that make them look bad. For motorcyclists it’s those that speed, weave in and out at high speed, pass on double yellows, bust red lights, and run loud exhausts that make the rest of us look bad. Those riders have the same attitude as the driver in the video “I don’t care”, “I don’t care”.
Amen. “Ride Fast Take Chances” – CityBike motto
In case that sounds rash, here’s my response on Lanesplitter where this first came to my attention – many cagers on Jalopnik took to their keyboards to self-righteously declare the rider was equally in the wrong due to DY pass (like they – those old enough to actually drive at least – never, say, speed) –
“To all of you saying passing on the DY is automatically Bad – stop. Just stop.
a) You probably don’t ride. Believe me, there are plenty of places that are unsafe for a car to pass where it’s no problem for a bike (either due to the bike being able to do the pass or simply because of things like better sightlines due to lane positioning etc). So it comes down to The Law vs. common sense, being stuck behind a slow car in the twisties for 15 miles till the next actual passing zone, stuff like that. And guess what – it’s generally safer on a bike to go slightly faster than traffic (better control of the situation), so being stuck behind someone slow is really almost the last place you want to be.
b) There are PLENTY of times on a bike where breaking The Law is necessary, many of which involving getting away from the vicinity of douchebags in cars. E.g. cars looove to speed up when you pass (even though you are on a bike, which in most cases means not a chance of actually preventing the pass) – and then once you are in front they hang with you. Not the kind of people I like to hang around and have to continue to deal with, so usually a burst of serious speed gets them to give up and drop back. I’d hate to get a ticket at that moment as this happens all the time….
There is a serious lack of “live and let live” on the roads these days – enough such that I’d say it counts as a rather damning barometer of the lack of benevolence in our society….”
If a driver passes over the DY and is caught, they deserve a ticket, not to be forced into a high-speed crash.
Those who would partake in vigilante justice need to consider how dark a road they’re going down. What if the riders he hit were armed? Would they be out of line for getting off the ground and firing on a driver who they believe deliberately tried to kill them?
Sounds crazy, I know but when crazy becomes the rule, we can’t be surprised where it goes…
The rider that was wrecked got a ticket for the illegal pass, so he will be paying a fine.
Every time I ride somebody does something that could have killed me.
The last time,09-19-2014, they got me. They left me in the road and took off.
Fortunately it happened right in front of an ambulance. they scooped me up and took me away. X-Rays showed a fractured t-12 vertebra. The helmet did its job.
I advise everyone to wear a back protector in addition to your other gear.
I can only recall one instance of a driver doing something deliberate.
I was heading back to Madison on Highway 26 which was pretty much completely two-lane back in the early 90s on my Ninja 250R going maybe 62 mph in a 55 when I caught up to a white pickup truck going the speed limit. There was on coming traffic in the distance, so I down shifted a couple gears and moved over to pass. The guy in the truck floored it to stay next to me as if to “rub” me off into the incoming traffic. I had to slow down and fall back in line as I wasn’t really “on it”. I drifted back a bit to get my composure and swear into my helmet a bit. A few miles later I got a better run on the truck, was in 5th going 80-85 by the time we were even, and passed with ease even though he tried it again. I merged back at slowed to 62ish. The truck fell back as he must have resumed his 55 mph crawl.
From that point on I have always been ultra-aggressive when passing whether it was on my 250R, 6R, 10R…. Down shift, and full throttle until past the car, truck, semi.
Thankfully no one has swerved into me like in the video.
Yes, a few times. On several occasions, I’ve attempted to pass a car in a non-passing zone and had the car I’m attempting to pass come left of center to stop me. Ya – I know I was passing in a no-passing zone, but we all know a bike can get around a car quite quickly – I wasn’t putting anyone in danger. And when a passing zone did finally come along – still the car/truck came left of center to prevent me from passing.
Several years ago riding back from Unadilla on a very small back road I had some yahoos in a pickup truck full of 3/4″ stone cut me off as I went to pass. I was only traveling at about 30mph when I went to pass and they swerved to the left cutting me off. I got hard on the brakes as stones went flying out the back of their truck that didn’t have any tailgate on it. Every time I wash my bike I get a reminder of that incident and remember that some people are purely evil and have no respect for others.
Quite frankly, if the rider had not been so close to the double yellow he could have avoided the car coming over, IMHO. I’m surprised the car driver stopped.
I’ve had a lot of close calls and so far have avoided impacts. 1 time a few years ago in Oregon on a 2 lane highway a cattle trailer-truck came over the lane head on to us to scare us(2up), I guess. Luckily he pulled back in before we ran out of pavement.
Good point, did not think of that. But now that you mention it, back in the day when I used to write novels about my motorcycle riding (cough, cough), the rider would always go far to the left in the maneuver shown in the video. He was too close to the nut case in the cage.
I have nothing but sympathy for motorcycle accident victims, but he was speeding pretty good, plus crossing a solid double yellow. That’s a couple of pretty serious infractions right there. I know the guy in the cage also crossed the same line, and his maneuver largely contributed. I wonder the outcome of the insurance claims if any. Likely not much car damage. Amazing the cage driver stopped.
If the biker was farther left, as far as he could safely ride without risking the shoulder, the guy in the car could almost have not touched him without risking loosing control himself.
I know this sounds nuts, but if the biker could have turned off his head light and if he passed about 25mph faster, and been way over left, he would have been 100′ IFO the cage when the cage driver first saw him.
same ole crap O law enforcement…..NADA, NIX, NOTHING….until the police get off there butts and start writing tics for infractions then the public is the VICTIM!!!!!!
The guy was arrested and charged as far as I know.
Whoa, that is pretty extreme. I believe the guy intentionally swerved into the path of the motorcycle probably to “teach that young hooligan a lesson”, but I doubt he meant to hit the bike seeing as he pulled over and got out after the incident. That doesn’t lessen the severity of what happened, of course.
If that was intentional, that is a first for me. I’ve never seen an automobile driver do anything like that, but I have seen several bikes in a pack of cruisers swing out to try to disrupt or block a pass of their group. In fact I’ve probably seen that at least five or six times in my life.
Cagers occasionally attempt to block guys going by on the shoulder to filter past stopped or slow traffic. I’ve also seen auto drivers behave pretty aggressively towards a rider – following very closely, or cutting the motorcycle off – but the rider had done something idiotic every time I’ve witnessed that. Also, there is no discrimination – I’ve seen this behavior from motorists whether the target of their aggression is on a motorcycle or in another car.
Deliberately? No, but I was hit by a truck driver who had crossed the centerline on the Tail of the Dragon back in ’06. He couldn’t have negotiated the turn without taking up the entire road, but without an escort I had no way of knowing he was there until I was heeled over in the curve. Luckily I hit his tire on the rear axle instead of pancaking into his grille.
About 15 years ago I had to run from a guy. Once in the highway I jumped over a lane and hit the brakes. As he crossed my front he just kept going. Before that, on the surface streets I was lane splitting to get away from him. It all started when he cut me off, I went around in the left lane and shook my head. He yelled profanities at me and began to chase.
May 2007, westbound southern state parkway Long Island. Traffic was nearly stopped so I was lane splitting at about 10mph on my new CBR1000RR. A guy in his SUV deliberately cuts me off at an angle and stops so I can’t move. After he straightened up I went up to his window to give him a piece of mind, he rolled up the window and in a real d**k move raised his hand to his ear and motioned he couldn’t hear me. I thought for a second about smashing his side view mirror but had a great weekend ahead of me so just split. Guy had some real hatred for motorcyclists, wow
It’s happened to me countless times. Honk your horn at that cell-phone-focused driver coming into your lane, and they get pissed and swerve at you intentionally. It’s amazing.
That driver should be charged with attempted murder. It is not his job to “police” the roads for infractions. It’s the job of the actual police. And I am pretty sure their process is not to try to kill the motorcyclist.
Yes – I have had more than one car take a swipe at me for passing them – only I was able to evade or they weren’t quite as homicidal.
If I’m the GF’s lawyer, I’d be advising her to go after both douchebags.
I have had a LOT of close calls, and early days I did total a bike once (luckily walked away with nothing more than bruises and rashed up helmet/jacket, boots). Never seemed like any of them were intentional, certainly not as bad as this one was.
This is the reason some like to have a video “dash cam” running all the time, because you never know when it will strike. I don’t think the Drivers exuse of getting stung by a wasp will hold up in court with all of the “I don’t care” that he said over and over… On video.. doesn’t care about wiping out two riders, just his little bug bite… Douchebag! How about a date with a Louisville Slugger?
I heard the driver was charged with 2 counts of felony aggravated assault. As to stories, I’ve never been hit, (thank God) but I have been pushed into the shoulder on a couple of occasions. Both times I had enough time and space to be more angry than scared.
Homicide….sorry…:(
This must be treated like a double attempted homocide!!!!
Homocide?
Wrong forum, dude.
🙂
LOL!!!!
1) The guy driving the car should be arrested for attempted murder.
2) Let this be a lesson to those of you who think doing a double car pass with a double yellow line is a good idea.
Accident in the making! The biker in front (the one who got hit) notices the video guy coming up behind (who downshifts for a blast past, so he’s no better) so he guns it and overtakes the two cars when neither of the bikers should have done so. Whether or not the car driver deliberately swerved or not, the struck rider and his passenger were at further risk because of their lack of protective clothing, quite apart from stupidity!