27 Close Calls Survived

Have you ever had a close call because another vehicle didn’t see you?

close-calls
Photo courtesy Motorcycle Mojo Magazine

Many riders have. While it’s not unusual to have an occasional close call, if you’re having them frequently, it’s time to review your skills and determine how you can ride more safely.

 

Here’s what happened and how they handled it.

 

27 close calls survived

 

  1. Darlene D. Yes a few times actually and they all involved drivers talking on cellphones.

 

  1. Pam B. Just last week on the 401 a car in the middle lane moved suddenly into my lane on the right without signaling. I was right beside him. There is no way he could not see me if he had looked. I had to accelerate and move to the extreme right to avoid being struck. Fortunately there was a bit of shoulder. And FYI for Dora, from one who knows, trust me injuries to the person are MUCH more painful than damage to the bike!

 

  1. Roni C. too many times… lessons learned from each time. Mostly have seen that too many drivers are busy multi tasking while in the car… heads up riding has saved my skin!

 

  1. Kevin G. Short while ago a driver ( going same direction as myself ) made a U-turn from curb lane in front of me in the second lane. I eased up and started braking as soon as I saw his front wheels turn towards my lane. Locked up my wheels and stopped a foot and a half from his door. As well, being passed by another vehicle IN MY LANE is getting really, really old !! Last one to do this was on a cell phone at the time.

 

  1. Chris T. Just the most recent one… They’re almost daily. Even with a Hi-Vis vest, the guy runs a red light on his right turn… Not sure he even slowed down, but straight across three lanes. Had I not seen him coming and got on the brakes, he’d have driven me into the two foot high median. I got on the horn and he waved like he was apologizing, yet when he got into the left turn lane 300m up the road, he was gabbing on a cell phone. It should be legal to carry a hammer or something…

 

  1. Chris T. On second thought, to be a motorist, one should have to spend a week on a bicycle or motorcycle to be aware of the hazards they cause as a mindless motorist in their cage.

 

  1. Tony M. Yes – I followed him home and phoned the police and explained what had happened and asked another biker (Didn’t know him ) who saw everything to accompany me. The police got there and found the guy had been drinking ( A lot) He was arrested and taken in. Justice

 

  1. Walter P. Too many times to explain here

 

  1. Across and Abroad. Yes, just about every time I ride…

 

  1. Jeff S. Years ago, riding 2 up in Hamilton, ON in the curb lane when a cage in the next lane decided my space was his. I was directly beside him (a HD Sportster with drag pipes, no less) and he pushed me up onto the sidewalk at 35mph.

 

  1. Jeff S. Yes. The guy turned at the first corner, about 30′ away. He stopped and looked at us on the sidewalk. I walked up to him in a very angry and loud voice, accusing him of trying to kill us , as I removed my helmet from my head and was about to use it as a hammer, he sped away.

 

  1. Karen B. I’ve had a few close calls, but one sticks out in my mind. A girl (talking on a cell phone) turned left right in front of me. I had to emergency stop, as did the car behind me. Fortunately for me, the car behind me that had to hit its brakes hard was driven by a county sherif. He rolled down his window and asked if I was okay. I said I was, and he flipped on his lights and went after the girl. Note to self – LEOs can get very angry when put in such a situation.

 

  1. Dora D. The driver was in front of us coming to a 4 way stop. She did not signal her intentions so we assumed she would proceed straight. She instead made motions to turn left. The person riding in front of me was certainly better prepared, experienced and sharp. He quickly passed her to avoid a collision. I proceeded to pass her to the right and as my luck would have it, she changed her mind and turned right instead. I did what everyone has done or spoken about not doing … locked my rear and took a spill. No one was hurt except for scratches on my bike which frankly … hurts more!!!

 

  1. Suhaymath N. Thankfully, nothing that sticks out in my memory. As far as I can recall, I have had several drivers in various situations try to change lanes while I was there. I always had room to switch lanes, back it off or even speed up. An afterthought: I did have one particularly special incident where I was changing lanes and a driver failed to notice my simultaneous turn-signal AND hand signal. In that case, I merely had room to speed up and had a moment after the fact to re-iterate my intent to change lane and shake my head disapprovingly!

 

  1. Ron M. Too many times in heavy traffic around Vancouver, I tend to drive defensively as if everyone in a cage is out to get me!!

 

  1. Juan W. It’s a common thing, unfortunately. Hence I always say we ride with 6 senses intact

 

  1. Tim M. Yes but it was a long time ago. I pay more attention now I don’t get into that predicament

 

  1. Charles W. B sure did once in Vegas and coming home north of Phoenix

 

  1. Tanya M. I was hit last summer…by another rider. He went wide coming out of a blind turn, was in my lane & I didn’t have time to avoid him. The important thing is, we all lived to ride again. I’m still recovering, but the important word is recovering!

 

  1. Earl A. Yes, it’s a common occurrence on the Waverly Road in Nova Scotia. Cars and trucks (not the big trucks) always cross the yellow line in turns coming in toward oncoming riders. Then there’s the ones who pull out of driveways …ugh!!

 

  1. Cliff P. Didn’t happen to me, but, a friend, in Dallas TX …she was riding in the passing lane and a guy came on to the highway and drove across to the left lane and nailed her … she went down and the bike flipped 3 or 4 times…luckily, she’d bailed as it went down and only sustained some road rash on her arm …even luckier, since, helmets aren’t mandatory in TX and she wasn’t wearing one or any leathers … the driver said he didn’t see her .. he also said he rode a bike as well and knew better …the good news is that she now wears a helmet and counts her blessings every day that it wasn’t worse than having to go buy a new bike!

 

  1. Kevin W. “I didn’t see him/her” is a copout. I have yet to be unable to see a motorcyclist. What they mean is “I saw him/her but it didn’t register that it was a moving vehicle.”

 

  1. Noel H. The last time was a person that jumped a red light when I had the left turn arrow. I could see he was nattering on his phone though so I was ready for him. I doubt he even knew he had done anything wrong. I’d be willing to bet he still doesn’t.

 

  1. Bruce P. T-boned at a major junction, car was flashed out by another. He seemed to think it was my fault. So I stood in the road blocking traffic until a policeman came to witness the scene.

 

  1. Joanne C. I was riding my first season and a car stopped dead in the middle of the road to talk to people in the yard. It was a twisty 2 lane road with a lake on one side and the ditch on the other. I jammed the brakes, laid a lot of rubber, straightened out and went between them and the on coming truck. Very lucky! Glad I had a safety course.

 

  1. Bruce A. A guy once ran a stop sign, I was coming out of second gear right of way, only thing to do is lay it down, I don’t remember much else except what beat cop told me happened once bike hit rear quarter panel of car, stood up I flew over trunk and landed rolling for about 40 feet…you could see street light thru top of full face helmet, yea close call, walked away with a few scratches and bruises.

 

  1. Tom M. Almost sideswiped on the 401. Driver didn’t see me until he’d pushed me into the next lane. By not panicking, I was able to “ride it out” and not put it down.

 

Have you had any close calls? How did you handle it?

 

 

About

Author, writer, and student Liz Jansen combines her artistic mediums to create stories that inspire readers to embark on their own journey of self-discovery.

2 Comments on “27 Close Calls Survived

  1. Crazy one for me was I was almost hit by a jogger while I was stopped! I was stopped at a light and in the right turn lane to make a turn. A jogger was in the crosswalk, but he was looking to his left at a truck that was going by. He was going to turn right on to the sidewalk, but decided to cut the corner and when he finally looked and saw me I think he crapped his pants! Missed me by a couple inches. As I always say, exercise is bad for your health!

    • LOL. Good story Danette – great example of how stuff/people can come at you from the most unexpected places. Glad you were both OK – and you have a story to tell about it!

      Thanks.

      Liz