Bike vs. Firetruck

[Gary]

This video was shown on the Today show:

http://www.today.com/video/gopro-video-motorcycle-crashes-head-on-into-fire-truck-470428227800

Kinda makes you pucker up a bit.

[LowRyter]

yeah.  the guy lived but it did f#ck him up.

[HDGoose]

Treating public roads as raceways instead of planning for other users?

[Sasquatch Jim]

 Why wasn't he on the shoulder of the road stopped as the law requires when approached by an emergency vehicle?
 Even if the fire engine didn't have its' emergency lights on or siren sounding,  there was plenty of room on the bikers' side of the road
 for them to pass safely.  This crash was 100 % the bikers' fault.

[Lannis]

Even at the price, a cheap lesson for him.   Still got all his limbs and guts.

I sometimes hook up (unintentionally) on a ride with people who ride like that.    When I finally catch up at the next stop, they're often smirking and making comments about "what took you so long?"   I'm FINALLY old enough so that it doesn't bother me.

Bet this dude won't be smirking at anyone.

Lannis

[oldbike54]

 I can't watch . AAAACCCCCKKKKK .

  Dusty

 Guess the Go Pro survived .

[Triple Jim]

I can't tell if he hit something like sand, or just panicked and hit the brake, straightening up and going wide.  Probably the latter.

[drlapo]

target fixation;  he could have, should have, missed that truck

[SteveAZ]

Big time target fixation. Can't say I could have "snapped out" fast enough though. It was just inside of that magical "oh sh#t...wait...look away" timeframe.

That was a pucker vid.

[Lannis]

That was a pucker vid.

Not so much for me.  A "Pucker Vid" would be from a Go Pro of someone at reasonable speed paying attention, and a deer jumps out.  THAT could happen to me.   

THIS isn't going to happen to me, just like I'm not going to die of AIDS.   I just choose not to engage in the behavior that causes it.

Lannis

[Wild Bill Guzzi]

Going too fast

[HardAspie]

Gad zookaroonies, that had to hurt. Sure looks less like a line he was obliged to keep than target fixation. Better to keep the speed down a bit.

[cloudbase]

target fixation;  he could have, should have, missed that truck

God forgive me for laughing at a serious situation like this, but your reply so reminds me of Dr. Seuss.

[Groover]

Strange bouncy front end... Could it have been a flat front tire? Made my stomach turn...

[not-fishing]

Happened here in California and I ride that type of road often but never above 70% or so.

Because of Deer, Bear, skunks, dogs, cows, Prius's stopped for no reason, SUVs, Pickups, bicycle packs, downed trees, gravel, rocks, boulders, sand! and all sorts of other dammed things that you can't see because the roads are narrow, twisty with a lot of ups and downs.

They say it's a road but basically it's a goat path / horse trail that they paved

One of the days I might actually make it to a track where I can ride at 80%.

[Triple Jim]

Strange bouncy front end... Could it have been a flat front tire? Made my stomach turn...

That's why I wondered if there was sand in the road.  But if he grabbed the front brake, that could have been some sliding or a small version of a tank slapper.  I agree that he was going way too fast if not hitting a truck was a goal.

[Lannis]

Because of Deer, Bear, skunks, dogs, cows, Prius's stopped for no reason, SUVs, Pickups, bicycle packs, downed trees, gravel, rocks, boulders, sand! and all sorts of other dammed things that you can't see because the roads are narrow, twisty with a lot of ups and downs.

Note, however, that all of the things you mention could show up in YOUR lane, in the wrong place.   They can get you, but you have a better chance of avoiding them if you're not hammering around blind turns at speed.

In THIS case, the truck was in his OWN lane, and there was no good reason to go over there and hit it ...

Lannis

[HardAspie]

So long ago that it makes me old just to think of it I was fast. I had the Zook GT 550 and could ride roughshod with it then the twin cam CB 750F that was worse. One day, whilst leading several riders toward The Rock Store and down a very tightly twisty canyon road I noticed just how many turns had sand. I had one of those realizations that changed my life.

I realized that making a turn was not all about me and my bike's ability to accomplish the turn; I had to take into account things that I could not see. I reasoned that I must be able to bring my machine to a full stop from whatever condition of speed and bank angle and acceleration it might be in within the road that I could see. I realized that there could be sand and rocks and Buicks and critters and people in the road ahead. Even if I had the right to prang my bike and kill myself I had no right to involve others in my folly.

I slowed down and became more boring but a better rider.

[56Pan]

Not so much for me.  A "Pucker Vid" would be from a Go Pro of someone at reasonable speed paying attention, and a deer jumps out.  THAT could happen to me.   

THIS isn't going to happen to me, just like I'm not going to die of AIDS.   I just choose not to engage in the behavior that causes it.

Lannis

 :1:

[Triple Jim]

II reasoned that I must be able to bring my machine to a full stop from whatever condition of speed and bank angle and acceleration it might be in within the road that I could see. I realized that there could be sand and rocks and Buicks and critters and people in the road ahead.

The way you worded that describes very much the way I feel about riding where I live, except it's more likely to be a tractor with a wagon load of tobacco, or a cow that wandered out of his pasture, or two cars stopped in the middle of the road, with drivers' windows aligned, the drivers just shooting the breeze.

[lorazepam]

The way you worded that describes very much the way I feel about riding where I live, except it's more likely to be a tractor with a wagon load of tobacco, or a cow that wandered out of his pasture, or two cars stopped in the middle of the road, with drivers' windows aligned, the drivers just shooting the breeze.

Add in Amish buggies, copious amounts of horse manure, and an endless supply of deer and you have riding here.

[HardAspie]

Reasonable speeds, open eyes, quick responses, and a tad of luck!

[kris]

I've always enjoyed a slow pace, taking in the scenery, enjoying the ride without stress.  I don't care if I don't wear out the sides of my tires and I don't care what anybody else thinks.  Been riding for 40 years without incident(in Southern California)!  Looks to me like this guy was pushing the limits, glad he survived and if he gets back on a bike I hope he learned something!

[SteveAZ]

Not so much for me.  A "Pucker Vid" would be from a Go Pro of someone at reasonable speed paying attention, and a deer jumps out.  THAT could happen to me.   

THIS isn't going to happen to me, just like I'm not going to die of AIDS.   I just choose not to engage in the behavior that causes it.

Lannis

I ride conservatively as well. I got all my dumb years out of the way on dirt bikes.

You can watch a video of a guy bullfighting getting gored by a bull (just an example) and it might make you pucker a bit. There's no implication that you're a bullfighter yourself just because you experience a reaction. You've never flinched during an action movie involving a situation you'd never find yourself in?

It seems like you're implying anyone who has a reaction to that vid other than stoic "I feel nothing because I would never do that" must ride like the guy in the video. That's quite a silly assumption. Am I missing somthing here?

[Lannis]

I ride conservatively as well. I got all my dumb years out of the way on dirt bikes.

You can watch a video of a guy bullfighting getting gored by a bull (just an example) and it might make you pucker a bit. There's no implication that you're a bullfighter yourself just because you experience a reaction. You've never flinched during an action movie involving a situation you'd never find yourself in?

It seems like you're implying anyone who has a reaction to that vid other than stoic "I feel nothing because I would never do that" must ride like the guy in the video. That's quite a silly assumption. Am I missing somthing here?

No, you're right - and I'm not implying anyone that "puckers" at a video must be doing the same thing himself.

But there is a difference (probably due to my overactive imagination) as to how I react to a video or situation that I MIGHT find myself in or MIGHT happen to me, as opposed to watching someone in a wingsuit or racing on the Isle of Man or fighting a crocodile.     

If the video is of someone calmly riding down a road like I would, I'm waiting for the "OH Sh##" moment and will feel a certain way when it comes.

Whereas if I'm watching a jackass-style video for some reason, my reaction is completely different and doesn't involve puckering ....

Lannis

[Toecutter]

I read a quote from the rider.

He came around the corner, spotted the truck, panicked and grabbed a handful of front brake... pretty sure this is where you see his bike stand up slightly.

After that (pure speculation on my part) my guess is that he fixated  on the truck.

[Triple Jim]

That's a really common mistake.  One of my insurance agents told me that out in the country, the primary way that a rider wrecks is to take a curve faster than he has the skill to do it, but probably not faster than the bike has the ability to do it.  The then grabs lots of brake, straightens up, and rides off the road, often into something like a tree.

It happened to a friend who was riding behind me last year.  He rode right into the woods at a curve.  By pure luck, he found a clear footpath and didn't hit any trees.  Since he was on a Hayabusa, I had assumed he had more skill than that.  I was on my Mille, and I wasn't out for setting any speed records.

[Toecutter]

It took me many, many 1000s of km of riding to get to a point where I was confident enough to "push harder" into turns when things started getting sketchy... to avoid the front brake, to ignore the vehicles and distractions and just focus on the line.

I see this as a lack of experience on the rider, (not to mention the wide line he picked on a blind corner) and it's the number one thing I'm trying to reinforce in my wife, as a new rider.

I notice it in a lot of "motorycle fails" videos... you can see the moment the rider focuses on a road sign, or the back of his buddies bike (the video of the harley riders on The Dragon... one guy rides of the road and his buddy just... follows him).

[HDGoose]

Not so much for me.  A "Pucker Vid" would be from a Go Pro of someone at reasonable speed paying attention, and a deer jumps out.  THAT could happen to me.   

THIS isn't going to happen to me, just like I'm not going to die of AIDS.   I just choose not to engage in the behavior that causes it.

Lannis

So you're not going to get any blood transfusions either. Lannis, I personally have lost 4 people who dies from aids. One was a Marine officer. His wife got a tainted blood transfusion. The disease was spread from her, to their newborn, and to her husband. So tell me again how his behavior should have been changed.

[jas67]

The way you worded that describes very much the way I feel about riding where I live, except it's more likely to be a tractor with a wagon load of tobacco, or a cow that wandered out of his pasture, or two cars stopped in the middle of the road, with drivers' windows aligned, the drivers just shooting the breeze.

Last summer, just on the other side of a small hill was a calf standing in the middle of my lane.    Fortunately, I had slowed before going over hill to a speed that made it possible to stop fast enough to avoid hitting the little bovine.