Some incidents to upset an otherwise lovely morning
Comments
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extrusion 1 - dhope 00 -
Kieran_Burns wrote:You should indicate. Sorry, but you just should.
+1
Nobody should have to 'infer' your intentions! Sorry. Just doesnt cut it. He obviously shouldnt be so close or stopped at the wrong side of the road or perhaps many other things but u cant use the 'he was more wrong than me' defense when a quick signal was all that was needed to keep u 'rigjht'FCN 7: Dawes Galaxy Ultra 2012 - sofa-like comfort to eat up the miles
Reserve: 2010 Boardman CX Pro0 -
In fairness, there's no way to know whether indicating would have made any difference. Quite often I find that sticking my arm out sideways is interpeted in the same way as an amber traffic light.
But at least had there been an arm signal, there would not be any questions as to fault.0 -
It would be good to see the road layout.extrusion wrote:First I'm approaching a junction, on country lane that leads onto a fast A road, to turn right. I check behind, move to the middle of the lane and start veering slightly over to the right to get the correct road position.
I see a shadow and hear an engine very close behind me, look left, nothing, then right and there's the nose of a car right next to me leg! So I ease right a bit more just to say, "Look, I'm here, and i'm bloody owning this bit of road right!" He then continues to put his car next to me and edge forward until we stop at the junction. His car is now 80% in the wrong lane.
Maybe more observation behind would have helped.
The car should not have been overtaking while aproaching a junction.
Maybe staying near the crown of the road on the straight bits would help [quiet road, right]. So you can see and be seen sooner. And you're more in the way if a Tesla sneaks up behind you.
I'm in the obsessive signalling camp. The OH asks me why I signal on bike or car when there's nothing around.extrusion wrote:It was an empty road when I moved into position (bendy country lane), I can't indicate forever, need to be braking and getting the right gears as well surely?
But yes, it's not practical - or safe - to indicate all the time. I thought the highway code used to talk about that.
If your're going down a steep hill, and plan to turn right across oncoming traffic, the "indicate always" folk are going to keep their right arm stuck out while holding the front brake ?
Turning right on a busy urban roundabout. Signal all the time ? While turning, and at risk of cut-ups by motor vehicles or other cyclists ? Diesel ?Rolf F wrote:Sometimes it's best to keep your intentions to yourself.......
Having my whole arm sticling out horizontally for 5-10 seconds doesnt't seem to deter taxi drivers & WVMs from overtaking on blind bends or blind summits when I'm indicating right. Which gets interesting wnen they realise that there's oncoming traffic, or another cyclist in front, already across their path, turning.First Aspect wrote:In fairness, there's no way to know whether indicating would have made any difference. Quite often I find that sticking my arm out sideways is interpeted in the same way as an amber traffic light.
But at least had there been an arm signal, there would not be any questions as to fault.
And it doesn't seem to deter cyclists from trying to undertake when I'm indicating left. Do they think I forgot to put my arm down or what ?0 -
I'm a bit surprised people haven't said more about shoulder-checking in this thread.
I don't believe you should always indicate on a bike. Arguably, you should in a car but then its just a case of dipping a finger, you don't even need to take one hand off the wheel. On a bike you are always significantly reducing your control when you indicate. You should only do this if the benefit of indicating outweighs the loss of control.
So I use shoulder checking and road positioning as my main forms of indication and only stick an arm out if it is important to do so. And in some situations (fast moving traffic on a wet roundabout anyone?) I will certainly not indicate.
In the OPs situation, I think an early shoulder check followed by a decisive move to the RHS of the lane would have left no ambiguity. Nearly all drivers respond sensibly to a shoulder check - "that bloody cyclist is going to do 'something' I'd better ease off". I suspect that as well as the obvious (the driver was a knob) he got slightly sucked in by the OPs gradual drift to the right. Shoulder check - have I got time to move? Yes. Move quickly. Would have left him little opportunity to have got himself in a silly position.0 -
jedster wrote:I use shoulder checking and road positioning as my main forms of indication and only stick an arm out if it is important to do so. And in some situations (fast moving traffic on a wet roundabout anyone?) I will certainly not indicate.
+ 1.
From extrusion's description I'm not sure indicating would have made a difference. To end up positioning a car in the opposite carriageway at a junction and then start preaching about hand signals is a bit rich. Would he have done the same if the vehicle in front was another car?Boardman CX Team0 -
First Aspect wrote:Quite often I find that sticking my arm out sideways is interpeted in the same way as an amber traffic light.
This happens to me an awful lot! Its hella scary when there's oncoming traffic too, when I'm indicating to turn right. I've even had a muppet undertake me on the turn itself.0 -
IMO obvious and frequent shoulder checking coupled with gradually adjusting road position is indicating.Bianchi Nirone C2C FCN40
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But in the OPs case there clearly wasn't any shoulder checking, or the car wouldn't have got to where it did.Flyingbogey wrote:IMO obvious and frequent shoulder checking coupled with gradually adjusting road position is indicating.
And whilst I'd interpret what you describe as a rider about to turn right, I wouldn't expect all drivers to.0
