Street Rider's Guide. David L. Hough
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Название: Street Rider's Guide
Автор: David L. Hough
Издательство: Ingram
Жанр: Сделай Сам
isbn: 9781620081723
isbn:
Most of the drivers are politely allowing alternate vehicles to merge, and you plan to do the same. But you’re now alongside four trucks, and one of the trucks ahead is already starting to wedge into the left lane. You ease into the left-wheel track to give yourself more space.
Suddenly, you realize the van next to you is moving over. You beep your horn, but the trucker just keeps coming, and you are forced over onto the narrow shoulder to avoid a collision. You accelerate up beside the cab, beeping your horn and waving a fist, and the driver finally sees you, but there is nothing he or she can do now, other than to allow you to merge in front of him or her.
Accept the fact that bikes are small and difficult to see in traffic, and even harder to see in a trucker’s mirrors. Riding at the left side of your lane alongside a truck puts you in the trucker’s blind spot. The trucker really couldn’t see you there. You should never “park” in the blind spot of another vehicle, especially not a truck. Consider moving up alongside the cab. Beep your horn and give the driver a “thumbs up” to announce your presence in a friendly manner. Or, drop back to make room for the truck and flash your headlight to signal the driver you are clear of the truck’s back end. The trucker will probably show appreciation by flashing the taillights as a “thank you.”
Bucking Bumps
You can handle a little bump, right?
You’ve cleared away enough home projects to be able to get away for a weekend ride. The weather is perfect, the bike is running great, and you’re looking forward to a two-day trip to clear your head. You’ve ridden this same highway many times, and you know its tricks and turns, so you can relax and enjoy the ride.
A few miles out of town, you’re surprised to see dust ahead on the paved highway. You’re wondering if there has been an accident. But then you see some construction signs. You slow down to about 40 mph, and when you see a Bump sign you place more of your weight on the footpegs to absorb the probable impact.
But, just as you reach the “bump,” you realize it’s a trench that has been cut across the road at an angle rather than straight across the lane. To make matters worse, the trench has been filled with deep loose gravel that is now lower than the edge of the pavement. You try to get your front tire bounced up over the far edge, but instead it plows along in the gravel, and the bike crashes on its side. It’s not a serious crash, but you’re embarrassed because you thought you could handle a little “bump.”
A Bump sign indicates a difference in level between two surfaces, even if the bump is at an angle crossing the lane. When you see construction signs, put your brain on full alert and try to figure out the nature of the situation. Until you know what’s happening, it would be wise to slow down. When you realized the hard edge was at an angle, you should have steered farther away from the edge and then swerved back toward it at a greater angle, preferably 45 degrees or more.
Bumper Bikes
Getting rear-ended can ruin your day.
Traffic has been heavy today on the freeway, and you’re glad to finally be on a surface street headed for home, alongside your riding buddy. You’re overheated, fatigued, and frustrated at traffic, and you’re looking forward to a hot bath and a cold beer.
You’d prefer to have more space ahead and behind, but other drivers seem to want to tailgate. And, if you drop back far enough for comfort, someone swerves over in front of you. So, you just do the best you can and hope no one does anything stupid. You do cover the brake lever, move over toward the left side of the lane, and make sure you squeeze hard enough to activate your brake light. You realize you’re not going to get home on time, and you steal a glance at the clock to see how late you’re going to be.
When you look up again, you see the brake lights of the car ahead. You quickly squeeze on the front brake to bring the bike to a stop. But the driver behind you doesn’t seem to comprehend what’s happening and slams into the back of your buddy’s bike, pushing it ahead into the stopped car. Neither of you are injured, but now you’ll have to stick around to deal with the accident and maybe help transport the damaged bike.
Even if you’re almost home, don’t let your guard down. Moving over to the left side of the lane was smart and covering the brake lever was good, but squandering attention on your late arrival distracted you from the situation. In heavy traffic, you must look several vehicles ahead to monitor traffic and brake early when you know you’re going to have to stop, to better warn the driver behind you.
Camber Clashes
Off-camber left-handers require special attention.
You’ve finally found the time to ride some of those twisty roads you’ve only read about. The road called the “Dragon” through Deal’s Gap in North Carolina has been high on your list, and finally you get the chance to ride it. You’re enjoying the twists and turns, but you’re constantly amazed at how quickly the pavement changes direction and shape. You have to work hard just keeping the bike within your lane. It’s a fun ride, and you gradually increase your pace as you gain confidence.
Just when you thought you had the “Dragon” tamed, you carve into a left-hander and run out of leanover clearance. Your sidestand slides along in a trail of sparks, levering the bike up until the rear tire loses traction. The rear end slides out, and the bike drops into a muddy ditch. You’re not seriously injured, thanks to armor in your riding gear. But there is much broken plastic that will need serious repairs before you can continue the trip.
Almost all twisty roads have one or more dangerous corners. If you’re not intimately familiar with a road, it’s best to ride very conservatively and follow smart cornering lines. Be aware that left-handers are often more dangerous than right-handers, due to the camber of the pavement.
Entering this corner, you should have observed the right edge of the pavement disappearing; a strong clue it slants off steeply toward the ditch. You should have immediately braked to reduce speed and lean angle, and shifted your weight to the left. Your cornering lines have a direct bearing on whether you crash or continue. Entering this left-hander more from the right would have pointed the bike toward the level pavement near the center of the road.
Countersteering
Steering the handlebars makes it lean.
You just got into motorcycling a couple of months ago. Now that you have a motorcycle license, you’re eager to get out and ride, although it’s still pretty scary. Sometimes the bike seems to have a mind of its own.
You feel a lot safer on slower state highways than on the freeways. You drop down into a valley and realize there’s a very narrow concrete bridge ahead. Luckily, there’s not a big truck coming, but it still looks awfully narrow. You can’t keep your eyes off that steel guardrail where it wraps around the concrete. You press your right knee against the tank to urge the bike to lean more toward the left, but it doesn’t budge. It just keeps heading toward the guardrail. Finally, you panic and jam on the rear brake to get the bike slowed, just before it bangs into the rusty steel. Your leg is scraped between the bike and the СКАЧАТЬ