Jump to content

When following the highway code is dangerous


workpeter
 Share

Recommended Posts

I would say that many drivers, are unable to judge another vehicles speed, when i come onto a motorway, by the time i reach the point where i can enter the nearside lane, i will be at the speed limit, then it's just a case of judging to either increase or decrease my speed depending on where the vehicles are, there have been many times when i have slowed to go behind a vehicle, then straight into the middle lane and floor it, but if the slip road has a long lead in, i would just floor it to get in front, but each situation is different, and all depends on your own driving ability and confidence or lack of, experience is the best teacher :cheers:

 

You're talking about your car here I presume , not Xena .

 

Correct :lol: , I doubt i would take her on the m'way, even if i do get my full licence, would be suicide on a 125 :shock:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would say that many drivers, are unable to judge another vehicles speed, when i come onto a motorway, by the time i reach the point where i can enter the nearside lane, i will be at the speed limit, then it's just a case of judging to either increase or decrease my speed depending on where the vehicles are, there have been many times when i have slowed to go behind a vehicle, then straight into the middle lane and floor it, but if the slip road has a long lead in, i would just floor it to get in front, but each situation is different, and all depends on your own driving ability and confidence or lack of, experience is the best teacher :cheers:

 

You're talking about your car here I presume , not Xena .

 

Correct :lol: , I doubt i would take her on the m'way, even if i do get my full licence, would be suicide on a 125 :shock:

 

When I had a 125 I found dropping one tooth on the front cog, lying flat on the tank and riding in the wake of a large truck worked on motorways.


The only snag was when the truck wasn't going to the same place as I wanted to arrive at. I had few night time adventures that way.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I see this thread and your last one, https://www.themotorbikeforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=70167


Do you see a pattern here?

 

I was waiting for someone to say this. Yes both incidents are somewhat linked. After that first incident i decided im just gonna stay in the left lane from now on. Im never in a rush anyways.

This is why i didnt move into second lane but at the same time i was experimenting with driving at a continous speed and not giving way to slip road.

I like to test things then adjust.


My take away from this is to always be curtious if safe to do so (i.e. slow down). But i still dont think i should change lanes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Im essentially developing a driving pattern for motorways and im making mental notes of pitfulls.


Another situation is a particular dual carriage way with 50mph limit but EVERYONE goes through at 70mph.


Ive actually found its safer to drive at 60mph and thus breaking the law than at 50mph because there has been multiple instances of people almost rear ending me when i do the speed limit.


Another example of breaking the rules to be safer...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Im essentially developing a driving pattern for motorways and im making mental notes of pitfulls.


Another situation is a particular dual carriage way with 50mph limit but EVERYONE goes through at 70mph.


Ive actually found its safer to drive at 60mph and thus breaking the law than at 50mph because there has been multiple instances of people almost rear ending me when i do the speed limit.


Another example of breaking the rules to be safer...

 

When i did my cbt, my instructor was adamant about " owning your lane", basically meaning to keep central as much as possible, on my second ride on my own bike, i had some twat up my arse, so i slowed down and held him back, always checking my mirrors to see what he was doing, then when he backed off, i resumed normal speed :lol: , i won't allow anyone to try and intimidate me, and if i did get a nudge i'll just leave it there :twisted:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have read about tooth count on the front and rear sprockets, does it make much of a difference ?, sorry for :offtopic: :thumb:

 

Everyone has there own view on this but my experience with smaller bikes is that they are often over geared. The engine doesn't have the torque to hold top gear at high speed.


Fitting a smaller front cog just one tooth less can transform performance. Not only increasing acceleration in all gears but enabling the engine to be at the right rpm to hold top gear better.


In theory the overall top speed is decreased of course, but in practice I found it enabled me to hold higher speeds. I was forever revving it in fifth, then into sixth, at which point is slowed down until I was back in fifth again. With the smaller cog it could hold sixth against the wind resistance and even climb modest gradients.


As factory my 125 rarely got over 60, with the smaller front cog it would cruise at 65 hitting the limiter at 68. Hence slipstreaming wagons made life more comfortable, if at times somewhat geographically challenging.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have read about tooth count on the front and rear sprockets, does it make much of a difference ?, sorry for :offtopic: :thumb:

 

Everyone has there own view on this but my experience with smaller bikes is that they are often over geared. The engine doesn't have the torque to hold top gear at high speed.


Fitting a smaller front cog just one tooth less can transform performance. Not only increasing acceleration in all gears but enabling the engine to be at the right rpm to hold top gear better.


In theory the overall top speed is decreased of course, but in practice I found it enabled me to hold higher speeds. I was forever revving it in fifth, then into sixth, at which point is slowed down until I was back in fifth again. With the smaller cog it could hold sixth against the wind resistance and even climb modest gradients.


As factory my 125 rarely got over 60, with the smaller front cog it would cruise at 65 hitting the limiter at 68. Hence slipstreaming wagons made life more comfortable, if at times somewhat geographically challenging.

 

Interesting, mine hasn't been completely run in yet, about 60 miles on the clock, but i have had it to 60 mph, with plenty of throttle left, but until it's run in , i can't really see the top end performance, but the lower end is pretty quick for a heavy bike, but i do need to get the rev's up, also there is no rev counter, which makes it impossible, or the very least difficult to judge rpm's, plus there is not much in the way of general info about it, which doesn't help with research, the jjoy's of biking :lol: :cheers:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Im essentially developing a driving pattern for motorways and im making mental notes of pitfulls.


Another situation is a particular dual carriage way with 50mph limit but EVERYONE goes through at 70mph.


Ive actually found its safer to drive at 60mph and thus breaking the law than at 50mph because there has been multiple instances of people almost rear ending me when i do the speed limit.


Another example of breaking the rules to be safer...

 

When i did my cbt, my instructor was adamant about " owning your lane", basically meaning to keep central as much as possible, on my second ride on my own bike, i had some twat up my arse, so i slowed down and held him back, always checking my mirrors to see what he was doing, then when he backed off, i resumed normal speed :lol: , i won't allow anyone to try and intimidate me, and if i did get a nudge i'll just leave it there :twisted:

 

To be honest this isnt smart. Brake checking someone can cause serious incident or even a gradual slowdown can cause them to get frustrated. Last thing you want is an emotional driver behind you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Im essentially developing a driving pattern for motorways and im making mental notes of pitfulls.


Another situation is a particular dual carriage way with 50mph limit but EVERYONE goes through at 70mph.


Ive actually found its safer to drive at 60mph and thus breaking the law than at 50mph because there has been multiple instances of people almost rear ending me when i do the speed limit.


Another example of breaking the rules to be safer...

 

When i did my cbt, my instructor was adamant about " owning your lane", basically meaning to keep central as much as possible, on my second ride on my own bike, i had some twat up my arse, so i slowed down and held him back, always checking my mirrors to see what he was doing, then when he backed off, i resumed normal speed :lol: , i won't allow anyone to try and intimidate me, and if i did get a nudge i'll just leave it there :twisted:

 

To be honest this isnt smart. Brake checking someone can cause serious incident or even a gradual slowdown can cause them to get frustrated. Last thing you want is an emotional driver behind you.

 

Probably not, but most drivers when they see L plates, usually assume a wet behind the ears teenager, they would soon find out otherwise :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites



I was waiting for someone to say this. Yes both incidents are somewhat linked. After that first incident i decided im just gonna stay in the left lane from now on. Im never in a rush anyways.

This is why i didnt move into second lane but at the same time i was experimenting with driving at a continous speed and not giving way to slip road.

I like to test things then adjust.


My take away from this is to always be curtious if safe to do so (i.e. slow down). But i still dont think i should change lanes.



I would say move yourself out of the danger zone, i.e. where the slip road joins the carriageway.Move into lane 2.

Do not expect the joining traffic to do the right thing, they might speed up,slow down or continue at the same speed and expect you to give way.


Put yourself in control, plan each approach to a junction.What if a vehicle comes down the slip road, what am I going to do.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Im getting the sense moving into second lane in advance is the way to go

 

I think it's a matter of experience and discernment. In busy traffic where you can see vehicles merging moving over early makes sense. In light traffic with plenty of space around you then you retain the ability to make space by speeding up or slowing down.


It's all about anticipation, something I was taught when I learnt to ride a dinosaur but modern driving schools seem to ignore


Just plan ahead according to traffic flow so you're not finding yourself needing to change lanes quickly.


The other thing to watch out for on motorways is areas where lorries wear deep grooves into the surface of the inner lane. Sometimes it is safer to avoid crossing those if you can. You can't see them at night very well so be wary on motorways you don't know in the dark. It varies from bike to bike how much you're affected by the grooves. One of mine used to be very twitchy over them so I tended to take it easy and cruise in the left lane between the grooves until I got to a better surface.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I tend to plan well ahead, especially when the motorway is busy, if I know a slip road is approaching I pull into the middle lane well in advance, gives me a bit of room to play with and prevents me being bottlenecked between the middle lane and slip road should something happen

Link to comment
Share on other sites

people entering the motorway should adjust there speed,hence why its called a slip road,they slip into an available gap,i drive 100s of miles a day,everyday,my top speed is 56mph,you would be amazed at how may drivers can not join a motorway without causing me to slow down,or if i can move into lane 2 how many drivers then proceed to stay at the same speed as i am doing,leaving me no alternative but to slow down and try to get back into lane 1 which than causes drivers behind me to slow down.if you race down a slip round and i can not slow down or move out of your lane in time then your

seriously injured or dead,a 44 ton truck takes some stopping at 56 mph,if they are in front of me as they are about to enter the motorway then i will always reduce my speed a little then flash them to let them join the motorway,if they are doing same speed as me and by the side of my truck then you are in the wrong and should slow down to get on behind me or if possible get up enough speed up to get in front without cutting me up or me smashing into the back

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Welcome to The Motorbike Forum.

    Sign in or register an account to join in.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Terms of Use Privacy Policy Guidelines We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.

Please Sign In or Sign Up