captmoto i dont blame you for giving up riding as it was your on choice but...i used to live in dagenham essex (now australia) and i know what london is like for bad driving in fact i only drove a few times into london its a total nightmare at times!!!

pommie

Does the fact you are alive to tell the tale mean you condone sheer selfish stupidity?

In general;
That clip demonstrates why bikers get a bad rep and the hospitals refer to us as donors.

I can't for the life of me see what is so brave about being utterly stupid?

If you want brave join the armed forces and do a tour of Afghanistan and face the real deal. The streets are NOT race tracks and we need to be at least a touch civilised. Boy the testosterone of some people!

I know several smokers who are over 80, they are the exception and not the rule though. I also now understand why bike insurance has shot through the roof!

Ryland

Oh I never said I was perfect, in fact the contrary, on a bike I am a **** because my survival instinct dictates to me that for me to stay alive I have to believe that the car in front is going to stop suddenly, u-turn without indicating and the one immediately to my right is going to cut me off toward the left, and say he never saw me. Now if I anticipate their carelessness, as a biker I have double the chance not to get troncated by them by overtaking them before they cause me ill health. And that process repeats to the next car and the one after until you get to your destination. Take no prisoners and you'll make it through another day = my guardian angel theory.

Red mist takes over me when I ride (or to be precise = used to) through traffic, I am not condoning the actions of these riders nor mine. By the book yes I am an outlaw.

Fact is Ryland, risk is taken crossing the road on foot, on a pelican crossing with the green man saying "you go boy!" Out comes Mr. White Van on the cellphone with his boss screaming "wtf are you why are you late with your delivery?"

Bad reputation or not, when you buy a bike you should be conscious in the higher risk of being on two wheels entails, as opposed to be a cage around you.

You can have an accident on a bike, either by being knocked off it, or through your own mistakes, sometimes stupidity, carelessness, lack of spacial awareness, wide angle view, incapacity to read the "body language" and potential intentions of all the vehicles closer to you and the ones 500 yards away from you. When you can process all these information on the fly and react as swiftly as possible with the correct move, these capacities, togther with your ability to brake, dodge, and power up when needed, are the skill I am referring to which are what save your life on a bike.

If you take an advance riding course you are taken at fast pace by the instructors through the worst possible case scenarios, with the emphasys on mastering the art of avoiding accidents, not by pu$$yfooting at 30mph on a dual carrageway, no sir!

If, with all due respect to you and your ideals, you think all bikers should ride their bikes behind a car a 10mph because there is traffic and "thou shalt not filter", then you might as well get into a comfy pair of slippers and sit on the couch at home watching Ophrah, with hot cup of coco.

But hey, I repeat: I never said I was perfect. I can hold a perfectly civilized conversation with anyone's daddy, but put me on a bike and I am my own mate no one else's if I start thinking oh... my bad! I've just gone and overtaken that 40' truck on the inside, well in my book I would have a perfect good reasons to have done that, because that truck happened to be veering to the right without indicating, and since his mirrors are way above me he won't even know I am behind it.

Oh and one more thing. I have been 18 months in the army compulsory service, I don't want to get into the stories of what it was like in there, but it is safe to say, it was not a smooth 18 months ride... the worst experience I had while in the army was to be sent to pick dead poeple out of post earthquake rubble including children as young as 2 with their necks and heads bent way back behind their bodies often mutilated.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/11/23?catId=5

someone opened a can a worms with this thread......:066::tank:
Rambo, HELPPP!!!!

Oh, but... wait! We are all entitled to our opinions, myself included I respect Rylands opinion as well as I expect him and other to respect mine whether they agree or not.

:072:

What a bad man you are.........

Living in Lima/Peru, i know what you�re talking about!
But, I'm still a bit more conservative: At least i still do have mirrors on my bike!:Driving_6XFY3G:

Having spent some time in Spain and Portugal I can only add what a buzz you get from ridding in traffic its so different to open road ridding. But I do the same on my mountain bike too blasting past cars and trucks is what its all about. Else you may as well be in a car stuck with the rest of them with all the creature comforts.

That said I spent 6.5 hours yesterday ridding up from Falmouth in some ****ty weather and I would have given anything to have been in the most embarasing tin box and dry

but hey today the sun is out and the smile is back - RIDE ON :seasaw:

Keith, your signature pics and logo are in need of upgrading as well as your username, how about Kei Th M?

Thanks :thumbsup:

http://ktim.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/...42_wd9Zw-M.jpg

I must confess that this little blighter brings out the :evil4: in me!

http://ktim.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/...56_CnAhC-M.jpg