Camchain and tensioner seen up close in a cutaway bike engine

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Dodging the Drivers

Blog Date - 24 January 2013

I am desperately trying to like snow, when it's fluffy and fresh it is rather nice. Now it's at that hard icy stage I'm bored of it already.  And I'm bored of using the car too.  What I have realised over the last week of driving is just how aggressive car drivers are.  Logically you'd think I'd notice this more on a bike, I'm more vulnerable and more likely to be pushed around surely?  Yes, but I think over the years I've absorbed aggressive driving into my riding style and adapted to cope so I don't notice quite so much.  Being in the car for a week and taking a new viewpoint I'm having my viewpoint refreshed.

I've been aware for some time that car drivers seem to use the wrong side of the road more.  Is it more or am I just noticing it more?  Through a right hand bend many drivers will "apex" the corner by placing their motor 6 to 12 inches across the white line.  On the bike coming in the opposite direction, a left hand bend for me, I'll be apexing on the left anyhow so I'm away from the cars.  In my car even if I am to the left on some narrow roads this causes palpitations as I expect to hear the shattering of wing mirrors, or worse.

If a car, bus or truck approaches myself and a car parked on their side, my offside, on the bike I can keep left and allow them into my lane.  We pass in relative safety and I just mutter some evil curse under my breath.  In the car I may have a clear right of way, my side of the road being unhindered, yet I find I'm slamming on as some HGV in a rush to be somewhere else "pops" out of his lane and I'm facing 30 tons of metal and cargo in my path.

I always assumed car drivers just didn't see me because I was on a bike.  "Sorry mate, didn't see you" and all that.  When some business exec cuts across my path I mutter another evil curse and carry on regardless, pondering what is so important that he needs to be doing 40 in a 30 zone?  So when the same thing happens in the car I'm all the more curious.  It's almost a given that you can't be seen on a bike, even with my bright yellow jacket and bright reflective stickers on the top box.  But how can a driver miss a car?  It's a small car...a KA...but it's a car for goodness sake.  Do they not see anything or am I just irrelevant, unimportant, in the way?

I guess even being in a car does not exclude you from the dangers of the road, particularly the other drivers.  Being on a bike does make you even more vulnerable to both not being seen and the consequences of a collision.  One thing a motorcycle does afford though is being small makes it easier to dodge the other drivers.  Now, according to the weather there may be some more snow, urgh, but it should get warm and wet this weekend, yay!  It must be winter, I'm celebrating the return of rain.

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