Lane Splitting Death - not an RIP Thread

[Lex Talionis]

I've said it before, I'll continue to say it: Many riders who lanesplit lack imagination.

Especially for those lacking imagination, and for all lanesplitters, here's a cautionary story:


From: http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_30206798/palo-alto-motorcyclist-killed-crash-highway-101

Palo Alto: Motorcyclist killed in Highway 101 accident
By Mark Gomez, mgomez@bayareanewsgroup.com
Posted: 08/04/2016 10:21:43 AM PDT | Updated: 94 min. ago

PALO ALTO -- A motorcyclist was killed Thursday morning following a crash with two other vehicles, including a commercial truck, on northbound Highway 101, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The crash occurred at 9:15 a.m. just south of Oregon Expressway, according to the CHP.

The crash closed all northbound lanes of traffic for about 2-1/2 hours, snarling the morning commute. All lanes reopened at 11:45 a.m.

The CHP reports the motorcycle was "splitting lanes" between the two far left lanes when it crashed with a Chevy Equinox in the fast lane. The motorcycle rider was thrown from the bike and run over by the commercial truck, according to the CHP.


Lex

 

[budman]

Godspeed rider..

Terrible.

Splitting near big trucks is really dangerous and I will hold station to get past them most of the time rather than take the chance. Even at 5MPH those big ass wheels are a death sentence. It only takes a tip over to be lethal and maybe that is the imagination the OP is thinking applies.

I am sure it was terrible to see

 

[gixxerjeff]

Godspeed rider..

Terrible.

Splitting near big trucks is really dangerous and I will hold station to get past them most of the time rather than take the chance. Even at 5MPH those big ass wheels are a death sentence. It only takes a tip over to be lethal.

So much truth here.
I treat big trucks the same way, Dennis.
To be perfectly honest, I modified my lane splitting/truck behavior years ago as a direct result of comments and observations I saw in other threads.
This is one instance I can point to (there are many) where I have concrete proof Barf made me a safer rider.

 

[Pluot]

101 North in the morning is my daily commute. I wonder if it is someone I saw regularly. RIP

 

[Marcoose]

Merged.

Hang on, I thought Lex's thread was to discuss the dangers of lanesplitting in general, not the specific crash this morning, even though he quoted that crash's passing to illustrate said dangers. I'm deleting my post above. I didn't mean any disrespect to the people that knew the rider that perished.

 

[Spec-ECU]

Hang on, I thought Lex's thread was to discuss the dangers of lanesplitting in general, not the specific crash this morning, even though he quoted that crash's passing to illustrate said dangers. I'm deleting my post above. I didn't mean any disrespect to the people that knew the rider that perished.

No, you're right. I was trigger happy.

 

[zixaq]

I've definitely changed the way I ride near big trucks and buses. Particularly anything with a trailer, as that can get weird fast.

Thanks to t3h BARF for helping me not die.

RIP Rider.

 

[hophead]

Yeah I no longer split with a semi next to me either and some box trucks as well.

 

[Joseppi]

if im in traffic and in the right lane and i see a rider coming up i move over to cover half of the shoulder so he has comfortable room to get by,from what i see out there,i am in the minority as fars as big trucks doing this,riders dont wantto be next to me very long and i dont want them there so i give them as much space as possible to safely pass,but i see alot of assholes driving truck every day in the bay and most of them dont give a rats ass about the riders or people in cars in general

 

[KittenMeat]

yeah, I will switch lanes if possible so I don't have to split near a truck, or I will take the entire lane as I pass it.

The wheels are big enough to destroy anything that comes in front of them.


the problem with splitting is that nobody teaches other riders how to do it safely.

we all had to, for better or often worse, figure it out the hard way: by avoiding a series of near hits.

this is sad and terrible, and maybe we can look at how we teach effective motorcycling to address this. Every time I see an accident, I try to think how could we all have stopped it from happening?
My medical school really focused on the area of primary PREVENTATIVE care in their class structure, so maybe it's just baked in at this point?

Equipment? Technique?
Legislation?
Training?

Not everything is preventable. I prefer to keep that category as small as possible (giant meteor strikes, freak gasoline fight accidents)

 

[Ahab]

?
I don't feel safer next to a car than next to a big truck. Both will kill me if they run me over

 

[Cookie Monster]

I'll split next to a big rig if it's stopped in traffic (for example coming up to a red light, or traffic is completely stopped on the highway). I wouldn't feel comfortable if the truck is moving at all.

?
I don't feel safer next to a car than next to a big truck. Both will kill me if they run me over

It's harder to get crushed underneath a car than under a trailer of a big rig.

 

[Smilygo]

And speed is another reason for an accident. I was in a cage yesterday on N101 and a guy in Black Honda CBR600 (could be 1000) lane splitted between my Prius and a pick-up truck around >80mph. I was doing 70 and so did the pick-up truck. I knew the Honda was coming because I am a rider but other cagers don't see or care. When lane split, speed could kill you easily.

 

[DataDan]

Some wise remarks about splitting and trucks in this thread. MORE THAN HALF of the 80+ lane-splitting deaths in California over the past 12 years (as reported in the news) have involved large trucks.

However, from the news reported so far, this one was slightly different than the usual truck fatality scenario. Typically, the rider gets squeezed in a tight space alongside a big rig and goes down under its wheels.

Here, the rider was splitting 1-2 and collided with an SUV (details of that collision not reported). He lost control of the bike and went down, the bike in the #2 and rider in the #3 in front of a 2-axle flatbed truck. Just about any vehicle in the #3 could have killed him.

RIP, rider.

 

[budman]

I'll split next to a big rig if it's stopped in traffic (for example coming up to a red light, or traffic is completely stopped on the highway). I wouldn't feel comfortable if the truck is moving at all.



It's harder to get crushed underneath a car than under a trailer of a big rig.

There is a vid out there with that exact scenario. He lost his balance and then his life. One of the worst vids I have ever seen. Left a lasting impression.

 

[El Feo]

There is a vid out there with that exact scenario. He lost his balance and then his life. One of the worst vids I have ever seen. Left a lasting impression.

Oh my God. Remember that one?!

Can't erase the horror of seeing that video.

I'm with Cookie. Stopped rigs only.

 

[HeatXfer]

That is a horrifying incident. I too avoid splitting past any commercial vehicles, but that appears not to be the case in this instance.

Not that there was any involved but I see lots of risky behavior every weekday morn & afternoon on 80 & the BB: splitting past a truck is the least of it.

 

[Enchanter]

I'll split next to a big rig if it's stopped in traffic (for example coming up to a red light, or traffic is completely stopped on the highway). I wouldn't feel comfortable if the truck is moving at all.

It's harder to get crushed underneath a car than under a trailer of a big rig.

I've had 2 acquaintances luckily escape injury, but have their bikes totaled when they were splitting past a stopped big-rig. In each case, the rigs started moving before they were able to complete the pass. The gap narrowed, and they were caught.

I never split past big-rigs or similar vehicles with exposed wheels.

 

[akacastle]

RIP fellow rider and sincerest condolences to friends and family. ^^^^also thank u enchanter for mentioning the stopped big rig scenario. Hope if those close to fallen rider read this post they don't take it as a callous comment. If anyone is saved by this being a learning experience the fallen riders death will not have been in vain.

 

[VicTim]