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My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

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Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#321
post #310

I live in a mountainous area that attracts huge amount of motorcyclists on weekends. Most of the fatal accidents I recall in the last years (usually around a dozen per year) were caused by right of way violations by cars, by excessive speeding of the cyclists, or by risky overtakes. I am not sure how a brake light would help there. Also, serious off-topic question to the motorcycle enthusiasts here: how do you cope w…

They simply don't care for the second part. Some even consider it a safety feature (to be known well in advance) and modify exhausts to be louder accordingly.

The amount of time me or our kids were woken up by some ferrari, maserati, chopper et al flooring it on purpose on nearby intersection past midnight has been many, punishment 0 nothing. After moving to rural countryside its one of many aspects I am certainly not missing from previous life and would have hard time coming back to lower quality of life in cities.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#323
post #296

My motorcycle pet peeve is that if you ride bicycles routinely the control differences between bikes and motorcycles become potentially dangerous, especially while riding the motorcycle. I'm not sure how to align their controls more, but if your bike has a rotary handle shifter and one day on the motorcycle you "shift" with the throttle, it's not going to go well. There are a number of other possible control goofs yo…

I regularly ride both bikes and motorbikes and this never has been a problem, even though the lever that is the rear brake on the bike is the front brake on the motorcycle.

> even though the lever that is the rear brake on the bike is the front brake on the motorcycle

Then your bicycles brakes have been put back on the wrong sides (is home maintenance by a previous owner to blame?).

The front brake should _always_ be on the right. Just like a motorbike.

EDIT: Correction. It appears US and UK bicycles have their brakes on opposite sides. How bizarre!

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#324
post #310

I live in a mountainous area that attracts huge amount of motorcyclists on weekends. Most of the fatal accidents I recall in the last years (usually around a dozen per year) were caused by right of way violations by cars, by excessive speeding of the cyclists, or by risky overtakes. I am not sure how a brake light would help there. Also, serious off-topic question to the motorcycle enthusiasts here: how do you cope w…

When I was a child, our suburban home was at the mouth of a dead-end but very straight street. It was 100% residential, 25mph, single lane each way, but many motorists abused it. We could often tell when someone was lost, looking for the freeway, looking for a through lane that would put them somewhere else.

When there was a high-speed crash into the barrier at the end, the car would often plummet into a ravine into the valley below. My mother tended to call this "taking the shortcut to Benihana" as that was the restaurant to be found at the bottom of the ravine (not an actual shortcut, but just a macabre sense of humor.)

Now we had some neighbors with a very picturesque home a few blocks down. They were from Switzerland, and Dad owned a Volkswagen repair shop a few blocks in the other direction. Since they worked frequently on German-engineered Volkswagens, they also worked on Porsches. And so it worked out that Dad would often bring home a Porsche to work on or to play with, or something in-between. Dad had 2 or 3 sons who all loved cars, and so by the time they were driving age, there were quite a few Porsches in circulation there.

And we always knew it, because those 911s are not quiet. And the sons would not be quiet either as they gunned their engines to show off their nice Porsches, in various states of souped-up or in-progress repair. It became a more or less nonstop parade of motors for a few years.

My parents never miss an opportunity to complain, and so there is plenty of traffic still to give them a chance. There is at least one resident down the way with an obnoxiously loud motorcycle, so Mom and Dad always cluck and chide and complain as that vehicle takes its turn on the street.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#325
post #317
post #310

I live in a mountainous area that attracts huge amount of motorcyclists on weekends. Most of the fatal accidents I recall in the last years (usually around a dozen per year) were caused by right of way violations by cars, by excessive speeding of the cyclists, or by risky overtakes. I am not sure how a brake light would help there. Also, serious off-topic question to the motorcycle enthusiasts here: how do you cope w…

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/noise-camera-tech... The UK is trialling noise pollution cameras that mail fines to your home, same as for speeding. It's an externality whose days are numbered.

Sickening use of tech. Living in a true surveillance state

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#326
post #236

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you read the article then you will see that the accelerometer is a feature that makes it safer. Apparently, motorcycles can brake even if you don't use the brake, and then you really want the lights to turn on.

> Apparently, motorcycles can > brake even if you don't use > the brake They've even made cars with that "motorcycle" feature, it's most commonly activated by moving a sort of "stick" situated between the driver and passenger seat.

Weirdly, this happens with every vehicle as soon as I take my foot off the accellerator, except when it's downhill.

(kidding. IIRC EVs do regenerative braking (and trigger the brake lights) when you lift off the accellerator.)

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#327
post #323
post #296

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I regularly ride both bikes and motorbikes and this never has been a problem, even though the lever that is the rear brake on the bike is the front brake on the motorcycle.

> even though the lever that is the rear brake on the bike is the front brake on the motorcycle Then your bicycles brakes have been put back on the wrong sides (is home maintenance by a previous owner to blame?). The front brake should _always_ be on the right. Just like a motorbike. EDIT: Correction. It appears US and UK bicycles have their brakes on opposite sides. How bizarre!

No. In continental Europe, the front brake is always on the left. Might be different in the UK and US.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#328
post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh, now I see that it's just based on an accelerometer. Marketing it as "wireless" seems to suggest that it is monitoring the brake lights rather than "automatically" flashing based on motion.

Tbf, even cars put the brake lights on based purely on deceleration nowadays in addition to triggering when the brake pedal is pressed. It's covered by legislation in both EU and US, since BEVS and PHEVs can have very aggressive regen braking, and the legislation basically says if your rate of deceleration is above X, then lights need to be on even if the brake pedal hasn't been pressed.

In addition, some cars - I don't know if this is legislated or a feature - will blink the brake lights or even the alarm lights if it detects a sudden hard brake (emergency brake). But people would do that themselves anyway if they for example had to slow down suddenly due to a traffic jam or whatever.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#329
post #310

I live in a mountainous area that attracts huge amount of motorcyclists on weekends. Most of the fatal accidents I recall in the last years (usually around a dozen per year) were caused by right of way violations by cars, by excessive speeding of the cyclists, or by risky overtakes. I am not sure how a brake light would help there. Also, serious off-topic question to the motorcycle enthusiasts here: how do you cope w…

Id like to see this kind of brake light as the default for any vehicle, not just motorbikes.

As for the noise, I get it. And I think the industry and the riders are to blame, motorbikes have been getting outrageously loud. Especially the fact that some newer bikes even come with exhaust valves that open at like 55-60 km/h is insane to me.

While I enjoy the hobby I cometely understand why Südtirol did what it did and I won't be surprised to see strict limits like these pop up elsewhere too.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#330
post #90

When I was commuting daily in the SF fog, I discovered that putting on of these [1] on my helmet did wonders to keep cars further off my tail. It moves the brake light up to eye level for people in SUVs and also triggers on engine braking. Wish it were cheaper, but was a worthwhile investment for me. Also, consider looking into airbag vests if you ride regularly. Also expensive but (supposedly) make a huge difference…

Motorcycle fatality rates have been trending upwards, not downwards[1]. Brake lights on helmets may illuminate one of the culprits: An ever increasing number of American trucks with poor visibility. Sitting on a bike, you're even shorter than a pedestrian and more likely to be completely out of sight. Perhaps its time to start regulating for better visibility, as Europe has done. [1] https://www.iii.org/fact-statisti…

> Motorcycle fatality rates have been trending upwards, not downwards

Doesn't seem to be the case in the UK [1], but I don't think we have nearly as many large vehicles as in the US.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/reported-road-casua...

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