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Last Saturday 26th about 5:30pm I was motorcycling along the A61 between Ripon and Killinghall, some of which is NSL. Most of the traffic seemed happy at 50 - 55 mph so I let the bike stretch its legs a bit while increasing my grin factor yet sticking rigidly to posted speed limits where these were in force. Vehicles were overtaken singly or in queues without any drama that I was aware of. As I approached the turning to Burton Leonard, I became aware of a car making aggressive progress through the traffic behind me. It turned out to be a silver Astra driven by a mature male. The Astra followed me very closely to Killinghall, apparently trying to push up the inside on bends and occupying much of the bike's right mirror on straights. I try to take bends wide for visibility but modified that technique lest I found myself lying on the bonnet of the Astra as I leant over. My grin had shrunk to wry smile at this stage. The Astra failed to take advantage of the few times when I slowed to allow him to pass, driving to within a couple of metres of my number plate instead. I concluded that I must have committed some crime against the Astra driver and that he was trying to spook me. This was confirmed when I turned right in Killinghall opposite the Three Horseshoes pub and the Astra passed to my left with a blast of horn and something shouted through the open driver's window. As an exercise in communication, it failed because the one noise drowned the other. A more volatile spirit might have followed the car and kicked its mirrors off for such behaviour. As I don't set out to deliberately upset other road users, I'm posting this in the rather forlorn hope that the Astra driver might be reading this and care to enlighten me so that I may either learn from my mistake or dismiss his complaint. Any offers?
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The lack of paragraphs can be quite upsetting ..... :)
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Assuming it wasn't someone from the Provisional Wing of the Punctuation Society, I think Hawkeye is missing the obvious.
The bloke behind him was obviously just a much better driver and Hawkeye had made some infinitesimal error which only a much better driver would notice. Accordingly, the much better driver chose to point it out to him by the time-honoured "I'm a much better driver" method: tail-gating and generally behaving in a way that only a much better driver could do and still maintain control.
Simple when you think about it.
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A "mature male" he was not. There are nutters about. One decided to tailgate me in Dorset, providing ample confirmation of his mental state when he followed me twice around a roundabout when I was trying to shake him off. I had done absolutely nothing to antagonize him; he had simply caught up with me in a fast-moving line of traffic and was indulging in his very own sense of enjoyment. So threatening that it is not easy to forget, but you have to move on.
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You passed within a mile and a half of my house so I know these roads well.
There does seem to be an increase in the number of idiots using this road these days, lots of aggressive tailgating and suspect overtaking (sometimes from unmarked police cars - what's that about then?). Did you see what sort of astra - I'd guess that he hadn't got the power to overtake you sensibly and felt he should push you out of the way. After all you should have been driving in the gutter not the middle of the road ;-)
To be fair though, I also see some very poor motorcycle use on the A61.
(disclaimer: I don't drive a silver Astra)
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lots of aggressive tailgating and suspect overtaking (sometimes from unmarked police cars - what's that about then?).
Quite a serious allegation against the police - Never seen this myself. Anyone else have experience of this?
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A more volatile spirit might have followed the car and kicked its mirrors off ..........
Let's hope we never come up against such bikers. Two wrongs don't make a right.
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>>> A more volatile spirit might have followed the car and kicked its mirrors off ..........
Let's hope we never come up against such bikers. Two wrongs don't make a right.
Oh, I don't know - sounds like AstraMan would have very little use for them anyway!
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Some people simply cannot bear being overtaken, however safely and properly it is done. I do quite a lot of long motorway journeys and sometimes use cruise control. In the course of a journey I often find that a vehicle which I have recently overtaken will then speed up and overtake me only to drop back to its former lower speed so that the scenario repeats itself. It is not unusual after the second or third reprise of this for the other driver to become enraged and start doing silly things like deliberately speeding up as you come alongside, causing you to choose the options of sitting there blocking the outside lane, or drop back ,or to risk prosecution by going even faster. It must be something deeply buried in the psyche of insecure people I guess.
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At times like that one wishes one had a blue flashing light to stick on the top of the car! Very difficult to deal with fools like that on the road.
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I wonder if a lot of drivers have not been corrupted by drivng in France, where tailgaiting seems to be seen as the correct way to proceed. (Otherwise, French drivers are a lot better than they were.)
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At times like that one wishes one had a blue flashing light to stick on the top of the car!>>
Or a Colt 375 Magnum.
I feel better now I've told someone that.
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Bintang
Having ridden a motorcycle in France, I can tell you that the French drivers attitude to motorcyclists is much better than their English counterparts.
I could not believe it at first, how considerate they are, making great effort to pull in close to the verge to let you pass and generally being more observant.
Hopefully going to do the "Route Napoleon" this year.
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Mr Tee,
I concur. Ride a motorcycle anywhere else in Europe, not just France and other motorists go out of their way to let you pass.
Ride one here and a significant minority do the opposite. I'm not talking about the folk who are not aware enough to even know you're there, which is quite a few, i'm talking about those that actively try to prevent you getting past.
Can't understand why.
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AAdvanced driving advice is to ignore all and any provocation. Human instincts, unfortunately, are to win the fight and come out victorious, whatever the cost...
In a recent episode of Traffic Cops (towards the end of episode 4 of "Riding their luck" on Youtube) something similar was caught on camera by a motorcycle cop. We saw the driver of an estate car cut up and almost nudge a motorcyclist serveral times.
He caught up with the driver and two motorcyclists and concluded that some kind of "duel" had been going on, involving gestures and aggressive behaviour by both parties. Rather than prosecute all three, he got them to shake hands and drive away in a better mood.
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Rather than prosecute all three, he got them to shake hands and drive away in a better mood. >>
That's the very point that was made several times (in part at least) in the threads on speed cameras and automatic fines and points.
In the good old, reasonable days you got stopped. You got spoken to. Maybe you got away with a warning. Now there's little in the way of discretion, it seems.
Course the other problem facing the motorcycle cop, I suppose, is that in court the participants might have forgotten about any "duel" or any bad behaviour.
Off topic, I know, but an interesting conclusion: "in a better mood."
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"Having ridden a motorcycle in France, I can tell you that the French drivers attitude to motorcyclists is much better than their English counterparts."
Interesting contrast with the widespread tailgating that puts me off driving in France again.
I try to be considerate to motorcyclists, having been one myself. As ever, it's those who don't ride sensibly that spoil things for everyone else and antagonize some car drivers.
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I would sincerely hope that this Astraman and others of a similar level of 'intelligence' are not Back-Roomers. If not, I'm off!
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Hopefully going to do the "Route Napoleon" this year.
Make sure you take a camera, done in twice N-S in a car. Beautiful scenery but too dangerous to look when you are driving!
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I think I'd have tried to get another car between you, but of course that isn't always possible. I've noticed when I filter down to the front at traffic lights, some drivers suddenly ready themselves for a quick getaway, when previously they were just dozing. Testosterone has something to do with it, I think...
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That was me JBJ. Nothing more annoying than waiting at the lights in law-abiding automatic pilot snooze mode and noticing some eager beaver sneaking up on your nearside door mirror with two wheels in the cycle lane hoping to get in your way by out-accelerating you when the lights change...
:o}
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Not just you, Lud. It happens all the time!
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The 3.5 V8 Landy was great for that. Used to scare any remaining hormones out of any traffic light grand prix racer. Not that it was all that fast as such, but in the wet especially it could accelerate savagely to about 40. if you were brutal. I think its presence was helped by its lack of roof, huge tyres, and the fact that it was hand painted orange over its many off road derived battle scars. I must stress that this was a very long time ago and I promise I have very nearly grown up now. ;-))
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Have I misunderstood you JBJ? Are you on a bike when you filter down to the front at traffic lights?
Of course I always let them go first. They hardly ever get in the wa, just some people often with L plates.
If so I'm very sorry. I thought you were one of these Vauxhall vans or carphounds of one of the thousand sorts who do that in cars.
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I know I caused you no offence but last Monday, crossing the River Wear southwards on the A19 I pulled into the middle lane a bit too close to a motorcycle. He made no fuss at all about it and just moved out a lane himself but I feel I done wrong and want to apologise. Truth is, I was mad at the Merc driver who had gunned past me , pulled in then slowed right down.
As a motorcyclist myself I wish to do penance on this website. How many hail Marys must I do for forgiveness?
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dc,
send me enough money for a pint and i'll take your penance on behalf of all motorcyclists
:-)
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I notice the Astra driver waited until you had turned off, before giving you verbal. Takes the sting out his menacing behaviour a bit.
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I notice the Astra driver waited until you had turned off before giving you verbal.
Bit like somebody who, for reasons I cannot now recall, saw fit to give me a one-finger wave about 3 weeks ago - having first waited until he thought my view was obscured by the C pillar (which it wasn't, obviously). Clearly another steering-wheel warrior. I wonder how brave these people are when they are out of their cars? Not very, would be my guess.
I too cannot understand the sheer hostility that some people display towards bikers. Yes, we can beat queues. Yes, we can out-accelerate most cars. But these are the flip side of the fact that if it rains we get wet, and if people spill slippery stuff on corners we are likely to fall off. I am forced to conclude that either it is a virility thing, or these people were firghtened by a motorbike when they were small.
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dc send me enough money for a pint and i'll take your penance on behalf of all motorcyclists :-)
Oi! If there's any money collection to be done on this thread, I'll be doing it, thank you very much :-|
Paragraph, and "punctuation", inserted by popular request.
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