Go to the front at a stoplight?

[vyctr]

Hi guys, I'm new at riding and i was wondering if it was safer at a stoplight to stay where i am in line or go between the cars to the front of the line?

[SilverRider]

I always pull up between traffic. You don't want to be the one a car doesn't see until you are part of the bumper in front of you. I always go to the front if traffic is stopped. Just coast up, don't rev your engine like an idiot pissing off everyone as you cut in line.:D

[racinteach]

yup move carefully to the froont and be safe or at least a car up ...so you don't become a hood ornament ..be safe ride aware

[Kyoseki]

ike SilverRider said, it's infinitely safer to pull between stationary cars than it is to sit at the back and hope that the car pulling up behind you is paying attention.

You can't be rear ended if you're protected by a couple of 2 ton road blocks.

Just make sure you have enough time to get to the front before the light turns green.

[Nighttrain]

I try to pull to the front of the line. However, don't try to get the "holeshot" when the light turns green. We all know that people run red lights. It may be safer to use a car to help shield you through the intersection.

If you cannot make it to the front, make sure that you have an escape route.

Either way, when you are stopped at the light, you should keep the bike in first gear with both hands on the handlebars. Keep your eyes on the side mirrors so that you can see whether a car is actually stopping or not.

Like someone said earlier, some cars won't see you until its too late.

[vyctr]

by "holeshot" you mean the guy that zooms in front of the first car? But more or less you're going to have to cut the first guy off right?

Thanks for all help btw

[pAint]

I go to the front and get infront of the first car. Most of the time im on the crosswalk...illegal..i know... but im an ass...

[SilverRider]

Originally posted by vyctr
by "holeshot" you mean the guy that zooms in front of the first car? But more or less you're going to have to cut the first guy off right?

Thanks for all help btw
Most cars will wait for you to pull off first as they are nervous about hitting you. Who wants to piss of a guy/girl in leather with carbon knuckled gloves?

[pAint]

Originally posted by SilverRider
Most cars will wait for you to pull off first as they are nervous about hitting you. Who wants to piss of a guy/girl in leather with carbon knuckled gloves?

ME :D

[Kyoseki]

Originally posted by vyctr
by "holeshot" you mean the guy that zooms in front of the first car? But more or less you're going to have to cut the first guy off right?

Thanks for all help btw
He just means taking off from the lights as though you're at a race.

When pulling away your acceleration will give you easily a couple of car lengths on cages without having to try a flat out race start (unless you have some dick in a corvette next to you).

You should be paying attention to cross traffic as well as their lights, confirm that it's stopping when it should be, then accelerate firmly into the intersection when it's clear - you don't want to hold up traffic or risk getting bumped by a wing mirror as the cars around you pull away.

Never, EVER, time it so that you hit the front of the queue just as the light turns green and just blindly shoot into the intersection, you need to be able to make sure that cross traffic has stopped before you pull out.

As you get better at splitting you can do this without having to focus on not hitting the cars either side of you - if you're not sure whether you can make the gap DON'T TRY.

If we keep hitting wing mirrors trying to split to the front all it'll do is get lane sharing made illegal, done properly it's legal and safe, just make sure you don't hold up traffic when doing it or you'll be pissing people off.

[in the nude]

every chance i get, i split to cut the front of the line. this is because i don't want to get rear ended, and mostly cause i plan to exploit the advantages of having a motorcycle EVERY chance i get.

And before i "holeshot" into the intersection i make sure the coast is clear. using the cars as the shield doesn't seem much safer cause that shield will hit you caused by the impact or your shield will swerve into you to avoid the accident. i think the MSF class covered a similar scenario... and waiting for the lead cars to "test" the intersection for you doesn't just wastes precious seconds i need to get from point A to B. it's like crossing the street. You don't have to walk across everytime. you can sprint across. as long as you look both ways and do it safely.

[99x]

Originally posted by SilverRider
Most cars will wait for you to pull off first as they are nervous about hitting you. Who wants to piss of a guy/girl in leather with carbon knuckled gloves?

Wasn't it you who was telling the story about getting followed into a parking lot by like 4 cars once? :p

[SilverRider]

Originally posted by 99x
Wasn't it you who was telling the story about getting followed into a parking lot by like 4 cars once? :p
That was me. And I used them carbon knuckles. Twice I have had to check the hardness of my carbon knuckles against the head of a knuckle head. That is a whole different story though. Therapy has helped me tremendously. The facial tick is almost gone.

[Jrod]

i put 4 dimples in the hood of a camry on the 405 when the kid driving wasn't paying attention and his bumper was about 1 inch from my ankle

[Anthony_77]

As a rule of thumb I tend not to go to the front of the light. City cops can have a dim view on this. They have a choice of many different violations to write you up for. That being said, I am guilty of going to the front at times... As long as you don't rev your engine like SilverRider mentioned, and be safe about it like RacingTeach said, you should be alright. Also watch for the people who get pissed off about it. Just yesterday I had a truck spin his tires TRYING to keep up with me to make a point... Im sure you all know how successful he was... :D Just use your best judgement and be careful when you do decide to skip to the front.

[Setter32]

....I split as far up......as I can go.....

....but if you're uncomfortable about doing that.........at least split to the front of the car immediately ahead of you......

.....this will still some what.....protect you from a rear end incident....







:D

[dietcrack]

Originally posted by Anthony_77
As a rule of thumb I tend not to go to the front of the light. City cops can have a dim view on this. They have a choice of many different violations to write you up for.

And those would be? I've never seen or heard of someone getting ticketed for that, and the moto cops even do it themselves. Hell, the CHP are on record saying that lanesplitting is permissible.

And for the record, my DR650 is the greatest lanesplitting tool ever.

[SteveT]

Originally posted by dietcrack
And those would be? I've never seen or heard of someone getting ticketed for that, and the moto cops even do it themselves. Hell, the CHP are on record saying that lanesplitting is permissible.

And for the record, my DR650 is the greatest lanesplitting tool ever.

I've been pulled over for "splitting lanes too quickly" on a friday night at 1:30am (see below)....when they found out I wasn't drunk they decided to change their mind about how reckless I was and ended up telling me I rode fine and had a good attitude about motorcycling...my reply? "well, I'm not gonna say thanks but, see you guys later."

[Burke]

I always go to the front at lights and I always take the "hole shot" but I am constantl scanning the intersection for "light runners" I like to get out in front of traffic and sit in the little pocket out front away from everyone else.

[Anthony_77]

The CHP are pretty much tolerant about lane splitting... I split lanes all the time on the freeway when traffic is backed up. I was referring to city cops. They could cite you for unsafe lane change, unsafe passing, reckless driving...

CA Vehicle Code Section 21750.
The driver of a vehicle overtaking another vehicle proceeding in the same direction shall pass to the left at a SAFE DISTANCE without interfering with the safe operation of the
overtaken vehicle

CA Vehicle Code Section 21755.
The driver of a motor vehicle may overtake and pass another
vehicle upon the right only under conditions permitting such movement IN SAFETY. In no event shall such movement be made by driving off the paved or MAIN-TRAVELED PORTION of the roadway.

There are 2 examples. If you are seen by a police officer it really depends on the kind of day the officer is having or their general attitude. I admit I do it at times... But generally I don't.

[jeff762]

Originally posted by pAint
I go to the front and get infront of the first car. Most of the time im on the crosswalk...illegal..i know... but im an ass...


your not an ass, just an emo!

[Burn619]

Someone on another board posted a law/vehicle code that said you could only lane-share on the freeway. Many people on the board backed him up on this one too. Has anyone heard this?

[Kyoseki]

Complete horseshit, you can split traffic pretty much anywhere there's enough space to do it safely.

There are a few exceptions, freeway onramps for example, but essentially if you can pass the car without riding on the white line or doing it too quickly, most cops don't have a problem with it.

Passing on the Right
21754.

The driver of a motor vehicle may overtake and pass to the right of another vehicle only under the following conditions:

(a) When the vehicle overtaken is making or about to make a left turn.

(b) Upon a highway within a business or residence district with unobstructed pavement of sufficient width for two or more lines of moving vehicles in the direction of travel.

(c) Upon any highway outside of a business or residence district with unobstructed pavement of sufficient width and clearly marked for two or more lines of moving traffic in the direction of travel.

(d) Upon a one-way street.

(e) Upon a highway divided into two roadways where traffic is restricted to one direction upon each of such roadways.

The provisions of this section shall not relieve the driver of a slow moving vehicle from the duty to drive as closely as practicable to the right hand edge of the roadway

"Highway" means road, it doesn't mean freeway.

[Anthony_77]

:lol: I would like to see you try and argue legal semantics with a cop if he/she happens to have a stick up their ass and wishes to enforce the law to the letter. You can only pass on the right if its "safe". The friendly neighborhood officer is the judge of what actions are "safe". Chances are arguing would most likely make some of our mods suddenly questionable... Tickets happen to be a great source of revenue for cities.

[nuwde]

i pull up to the crosswalk and never holeshoot. in fact, i wait and look both ways (learned that part from kindergarten!).

[Willdahthril]

the day I bought my bike I got rear ended at a stoplight because I wasn't "ready" to try going between cars yet. The very next light I felt much more ready. That being said, on my way home from work today I was riding between cars to the limit line at a red light when a passenger in a pickup truck jumped out of the car to get something out of the bed. She didn't even realize I was there Until she was out of the truck facing me. Scared the crap outta both of us. Luckily I was going a safe speed and able to stop. a second later or so though i'd have ran her over almost instantly as she jumped out of the car. My point is that just because it saves you from being rear ended doesn't mean people don't jump out of their cars every once in a while

[gitarjunky]

Originally posted by Anthony_77
There are 2 examples. If you are seen by a police officer it really depends on the kind of day the officer is having or their general attitude. I admit I do it at times... But generally I don't.

Dude, you can split lanes pretty much whenever you can get by, as long as you're doing it safely. I've been riding up to a red light before, lane splitting, and a cop car moved over for me so that I could get by easier. I gave him the thumbs up and kept going, to the very front. Quit worrying about the technicalities (especially since there is not definitive law saying whether lane splitting is definitely illegal or not) of it and just ride safe.

[zorak]

on the way home today i split between traffic all the way to the front of the intersection, front wheel over the pedestrian lane but rear wheel behind it. then i hear someone in the cargo truck to my left yell "blah-blah-wheelie!" i ignored the jackass and was watching cross-traffic when said jackass decided to pull forward all the way over the pedestrian lane and effectively block my view of traffic to my left. i then hear someone yell "wheelie" again. annoyed, i look over my shoulder and see the driver, excited like a little girl about to meet one of the disney princesses, yell "do a wheelie!" i shake my head and turn my attention to the light ahead as it turned green.

since i had no view of traffic to my left i waited a couple of seconds. sure enough, a car comes flying running the light. as soon as it clears i count to three and roll forward. sure enough, an mta bus comes flying through the intersection. i stopped immediately, rolled forward to peek around the jackass who blocked my line of sight, then continued on.

granted it wasn't the truck to my left who ran the red light but i am more pissed at that fucker than the bus driver for putting me in a position where i could have been an mta bus hood ornament.

if i had actual skillz, i would have flipped off both bus and truck drivers as i wheelied through the intersection... with both hands off the bars! :D

[TheForce02]

I have often wondered how many people in the general public have been surprised when I move over for a bike lane splitting. One of the reasons that I make the extra effort to do this while I am working is that I want the general public to recognize the fact that it is permissible and I hope that they might learn from my example.

In case some of you haven't figured it out yet, I am your resident Chippy :squid: :p

[dro]

I almost got trucked today by a crazy trick in a cage while I was in the front.
She apparently had it out for motorcyclists, since for no reason she decided to burn rubber past me missing me by an inch basically...
Always be careful and aware out there peoples....some cages are insane.

that being said I almost always do it, like burke I like being away from cars in a pocket of as empty road as possible.

<b>I have often wondered how many people in the general public have been surprised when I move over for a bike lane splitting....</b>

same here, hoping that other cars in the lane will follow suit...hardly happens tho...;)

[leaftye]

Originally posted by Kyoseki
(unless you have some dick in a corvette next to you).

I'm a dick in a Corvette but I usually don't bother to race because 1) I knew my car isn't a match for most bikes, and 2) I'd probably fishtail into the mofo if I got ahead and have to buy a new fender...or at least scrape bits-o-biker off my car....f'dat ya know?

I also move over for lane splitters. It could be an act of kindness, but I more than make up for it by braking, cutting off and chasing down tailgaters....I love having nearly 400 hp and accepting that I'm a dick in a Corvette.

[RoninApache]

Originally posted by leaftye
I'm a dick in a Corvette but I usually don't bother to race because 1) I knew my car isn't a match for most bikes, and 2) I'd probably fishtail into the mofo if I got ahead and have to buy a new fender...or at least scrape bits-o-biker off my car....f'dat ya know?

I also move over for lane splitters. It could be an act of kindness, but I more than make up for it by braking, cutting off and chasing down tailgaters....I love having nearly 400 hp and accepting that I'm a dick in a Corvette.


Funny. Not sure if any of you listen to Jim Rome and his rants about "corvette guy". Pretty funny

[Payne72]

Originally posted by zorak
on the way home today i split between traffic all the way to the front of the intersection, front wheel over the pedestrian lane but rear wheel behind it. then i hear someone in the cargo truck to my left yell "blah-blah-wheelie!" i ignored the jackass and was watching cross-traffic when said jackass decided to pull forward all the way over the pedestrian lane and effectively block my view of traffic to my left. i then hear someone yell "wheelie" again. annoyed, i look over my shoulder and see the driver, excited like a little girl about to meet one of the disney princesses, yell "do a wheelie!" i shake my head and turn my attention to the light ahead as it turned green.

since i had no view of traffic to my left i waited a couple of seconds. sure enough, a car comes flying running the light. as soon as it clears i count to three and roll forward. sure enough, an mta bus comes flying through the intersection. i stopped immediately, rolled forward to peek around the jackass who blocked my line of sight, then continued on.

granted it wasn't the truck to my left who ran the red light but i am more pissed at that fucker than the bus driver for putting me in a position where i could have been an mta bus hood ornament.

if i had actual skillz, i would have flipped off both bus and truck drivers as i wheelied through the intersection... with both hands off the bars! :D

With all the red lighters, it sounds like you were riding in Tijuana. :eek:

You were smart enough not to get hurt. Sounds like you've got the SKILLZ to survive.

[zorak]

Originally posted by Payne72
With all the red lighters, it sounds like you were riding in Tijuana. :eek:

close. monrovia.

i keed! :D

[stringzz]

Originally posted by dro
I almost got trucked today by a crazy trick in a cage while I was in the front.

what a biatch.

I hate when I move to the front and some guy in a car starts inching forward as to show his displeasure in me cutting to the front of the line. That's when I love to blow away from the line, assuming it is safe and clear. Most lights in OC have left turn signals go first, which prevents having to worry about the red light runners.

[247Blackout]

[i] Just coast up, don't rev your engine like an idiot pissing off everyone as you cut in line.:D [/B]

I thought you're suppose to rev your engine so that in case someone doesn't see you, they'll hear you. (I mean of course don't rev it to the point where you're annoying, but just enough to be a little bit more heard? Or does this only apply to moving along the freeway to prevent someone from changing lanes on you?

I personally try not to lane split, but when I'm late for class and stuck way back in the retarded turn lane, I try to make it up there so I don't have to wait another 5 minutes before the light turns green.

[920m]

Originally posted by Anthony_77
As a rule of thumb I tend not to go to the front of the light. City cops can have a dim view on this.

Honestly I do not see a difference between splitting lanes on the freeway and doing it in the city as you approach a red light...just do it in a safe manner.

[dasesq]

Of course

[Logans06SV]

Im not sure about you guys but when I lane split at a traffic light I make sure I rev my engine, I want people to know im there and make sure they see me. When Im in my Cage I usually have my music to loud to here a bike just come though with out revving there bike.

I have had my few incounters with people trying to race me, I either let them win or I just them the wholeshot and then I come by on one wheel, and that usually takes care of that

[ikasama]

Originally posted by Logans06SV
Im not sure about you guys but when I lane split at a traffic light I make sure I rev my engine, I want people to know im there and make sure they see me. When Im in my Cage I usually have my music to loud to here a bike just come though with out revving there bike.


+1

... but, sometimes I am trying to be a dick and interupt their phone call.

[leaftye]

Going off topic, but....surely there's a way to make a cell phone jammer for bikes. It's illegal, but what if some alterations to the alternator caused signals to come off it in the 900 (others?) mhz range???

[NukleoN]

I split everywhere I can....but I try not to push through gaps I'm not sure about...especially at lights. If you ding a mirror at a red light..yer in for some tense moments...course I don't like dinging mirrors anywhere. I'd be rather annoyed if I was in a car and some rider dinged my mirror.

But yeah...splitting is part of the benefit of riding...especially commuting on a bike.