Scruit

Riverside was waaay better. Lower stress, which is what I aim for on the bike. I don't have to worry about being once of 5 vehicles all trying to get to the same ramp at the same time at 75mph.

Here's the police report. This all happened 20' behind me. http://dublin.oh.us/police/reports/files/aug2010/10-3622.pdf

I will also state that the Police blamed the entire wreck on a phantom car(s) that was either a red two-door or a black mercedes that blasted through a space between slowing cars. Can't comment on the phantom car, but I will say that every single car was within a carlength of the one in front of it slowing from 75-55ish, and traffic on the exit ramp was stopped. Every driver except the one at the front should have been ticketed for ACDA. It was several successive "scree-bang" sounds - they were all bunched up too close to deal with an unexepcted event, so when that unexpected event happened it was a complete shambles.

I personally don't understand how a car crossing between you and the car in front of you (from the lane on your right to the lane on your left) can cause you to rear-end the car in front of you, if you were keeping a safe distance... I suspect that rather than slowing down and creating more space, thar driver held his/her ground to "make a point" and fixated on the car passing in front of him/her - thus not seeing the traffic was stopped ahead.

It's stories like that which make me want to drive around with a GoPro always recording.

Even more fun was the inconspicuous Chevy Malibu that drove past slowly, then turned around and suddenly lit up like a christmas tree in sparkly blue.

The car parked behind me providing me some safety cover, two guys got out and helped me load up again. I asked if they were with the sheriff's office and they just said; "Nah, we're with the state, have a nice night."

Not only did I nearly hit my bag limit with sheetrock, but the Men In Black helped me clean up the mess.

Wish I knew what dept they were with so I can send a thankyou.

Took out a ton of bugs, nothing furry.

Took out a deer in my subaru - but didn't actually hit it with my car - the drywall on the roof rack broke free under heavy braking and nailed the deer.

Huh. I just got a keyfob-sized door opener for mine and attached it to the bike key. I have to stop the bike and reach down to press it, but that only takes a couple of seconds.

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1xkd/R-100654111/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

It's also an LED flashlight.

Run ok on choke but even after 10 mins will not idle without the choke. Can keep it running sorta if I twist the throttle a little but stalls out if I twist it any more. Stranded me today, had to get a tow.

Answer: The carb came loose from the air intake into the engine. I removed the tank, checked the diaphragm and vac tubes. All looked ok. Was going to check the float bowl so I went to loosen the connection between the carb and then engine and relised it was already loose. The carb lifted off the engine with no more force than picking a cup up off a table. I put it back together, clamped it down right and everything runs just fine now.

Dangit, day 2 and I'm already giving up.

Well, not giving up, so to speak, but giving up on 270. I live in Delaware and work in Dublin so I'm going trade efficiency for scenery and switch from 270 to riverside drive. It would take my 25min commute to a 40 min commute, and it will have it's own challenges... But I have more confidence that I can mitigate problems in front of me than problems behind me. Multi-lane 75mph may be safe for cages, but if I had been two cars further behind this morning then I'd have been creamed.

So, it's not like I'm chickning out, so much as I'm acknowledging that there are safer options.

no you dont. you are on a motorcycle. take advantage of that.

it may not be 100% legal, but its safer than getting rear ended and being dead.

You know, I've been trying to skip as much backup as possible in these situations - not becuase I'm trying to save time but just because it's too dangerous for me to be in stop and go traffic like that. I think I'm going to be skipping more and more.

The problem with that approach is that the closer you get to the turnoff the closer the cars get together - and that is exactly what caused this morning's accident. The extra maneuverability of the bike makes it very easy to get around slower traffic, but there's no place I need to go so urgently that I can't get there safely.

Agreed, but I try to watch every car behind me, no exceptions.

Understood. I had a close eye on the car behind me, but being stop-and-go I was focused more on keeping up and trying to stay stopped as little as possible.

Watch your mirrors, you probably should have seen that one coming.

The car behind me had already come to a stop, and so had the car behind it. Its was the guy 3 cars back who hit first. I don't think I can keep track of what's happening 3 cars behind me while maintaning a good watch everywhere else.

Now that my kid is in 1st grade and taking the school bus, I no longer have to drive him to/from daycare. So I'm commuting on my bike.

Day 2: Sitting in stationary traffic on the suicide merge just before the 270SB ramp to 161EB on the west side (right under the bridge) and I hear crashing behind me. No time to set off or anything, but I wasn't hit so that's lucky.

My question is: How the heck do I avoid getting tangled up in that kind of stuff on the bike? I have to sit in line with everyone else. It wasn't the usual multiple-rear-end where one car pushes the rest together, there where several distinct "Screee-crash" sounds, so the first hit was at the front.

Didn't help that the jackass bahind me seemed to make a competition out of seeing how close he could get his bumper to my rear tire as I was stopped. 5 or 6 times he came within a foot of me.

So anyway... Do you stop in the middle of the lane? I was stopped close to the left edge of the lane becuase lots of people like to tuck in a space at the last second, and I didn't want to appear like I was a "space". Being so close to the left side I could have accelerated forward alongside the car in front of me if needed. Also, if I park to the left of the car in front of me then if I'm hit from behind then I'm pushed forward *next to * the car in front of me, not *into* it.

Thoughts?

Someone needs to invent a proximity-based remote immobilizer. I keep the xmitter, the immobilizer is on the bike. You get more than 1/4 mile away from me (following in car) then the bike shuts off.

Huh' date=' guess the rider "just didn't see" the SUV, strange twist.[/quote']

What's good for the Goose is good for the Gander.

Here's the scoop...

Rider was at fault. 59yo male. He was riding a '97 Harley, facing northbound at the stop sign on South Old State Road, trying to make a left turn onto 36/37 to head west towards Delaware. He failed to yield to the eastbound traffic and rode right into the rear passenger door of a passing Honda Pilot SUV. His injuries were described as "Non-Incapacitating". There is no entry int he crash report for who transported him, which suggests his injuries were not enough to require an ambulance ride.

The price the bike is offered for sale is different than what it sells at I bought a car once and the dealer showed me a printout of the actual sales price of similarly equipped vehicles in a 3-state area that month - maybe you can ask the dealer if they have access to that prinout?

I'd hate to kickstart that mofo...

Just passed this in the cleanup stages. The front of the bike has damages that appear to match the damage to the passenger-side door of a large black SUV (Durango or similar). Appears that the bike was heading east on 36/37 and the durango turned left from westbound 36/37 to southbound South Old State road.

The bike is a cruiser with a black front fairing. The driver of the durango would have been looking into the sun and will probably claim that in their defense.

My thoughts go to the biker. Doesn't look too good though - it's a 55mph road and the bike appears to have come to a dead stop into the side of the SUV while still upright.

The American Red Cross doesn't let their nice American blood get muddied by British people.

Right at the end - nearly a race-marshall strike too. The guy running across the track in lo-vis clothing as the bike comes past him an hi-speed...

Yeah, and never seen rain either.

Not directly.

Recently washed?

So he advertised in a Columbus Craigslist, then went on business to Texas, took his bike to a shipping company there just so that it could be shipped back to columbus?

Yes, we all know it's a scam, but I wonder if these scammers know just how stupid their scams sound...

No way that's an Ohio plate.

Ask him for the VIN so you can carfax it.

You have the right to ask to see the radar because he locks the speed in. I've had a cop show me before and he walked it over to me. I don't know how he can ticket everyone though because he'd have to prove everyone was speeding.

You do NOT have the RIGHT to see the radar. The officer may show it to you as a courtesy, but that's at his discretion based upon many factors:

- Does he feel YOU are safe to be wandering around? (side of a freeway = no way)

- Does he feel HE s safe for you to be wandering around? (Acting belligerant = no way)

- Did he even lock the speed in?

- Does the gun allow the speed to be locked in?

- Did he take further readings while you were decelerating, so the latests speed reading was a legal speed?

- Are you going to use that as a new argument? ("You just left that speed on there form the last car you pulled over, didn't you?")

I've never asked for an officer to show me the reading. I was pulled for speed 4 times in a three year period right after I moved to the US. Two were ticketed, 2 were warnings. One officer offered for me to see the reading out of the blue, and the others didn't. I did accept that one officer's offer as I'm from a cop family and I wanted to see how the US speed gear compared to UK stuff. Otherwise, the numbers on the gun are an irrelevance to me. If it's on the ticket that's all I care about. I was more eager to end the police contact as soon as possible as it is a stressful thing for me. Been clean for 10 years, touch-wood.

I'm by no means an expert on probable cause, but Cops can't pull someone over because they "could be" breaking the law - they have to cite some sort of behavior that shows you're breaking the law, or at least sheds some reasonable suspicion (like weaving suggests a driver has been drinking).

Probable Cause is the standard for a search. Reasonable Suspicion is the standard for being pulled over. I believe it's reasonable to assume that the registered owner is the rider, especially if the gender matches. If the registered owner of the bike only has a learner's permit then it's further reasonable to suspect that a law is being broken if there is a passenger.

Reasonable Suspicion is a VERY low standard.