Shocking Motorcyclist crash.

[pete]

Very sobering public information film.

http://www.suffolk.police.uk/newsandeve ... nched.aspx

[Dominic]

Sobering indeed.

I'll probably get a flaming for this - his mum says "motorists slow down".... it was her son on a bike doing 97mph through a junction - perhaps she should be saying "bikers slow down"?...

The car was with no doubt in the wrong to pull into the path of the bike, but surely some very basic defensive driving / riding could have seen that coming?

Good for the family for sharing the video and hopefully it will make a difference.

[Shug]

A biker isn't a motorist?

[tut]

Sobering indeed.

I'll probably get a flaming for this - his mum says "motorists slow down".... it was her son on a bike doing 97mph through a junction - perhaps she should be saying "bikers slow down"?...

The car was with no doubt in the wrong to pull into the path of the bike, but surely some very basic defensive driving / riding could have seen that coming?

Good for the family for sharing the video and hopefully it will make a difference.

Spare a thought for the motorist as well, regardless of fault, for that to happen in a split second with the rider killed, is going to take a hell of lot of getting over.

tut

[Dominic]

A biker isn't a motorist?

S'pose so, but it's a term I think most associate with car drivers... IMHO

[Shug]

Agree it's very sobering. And it's important for everyone to remind themselves that when you take chances on the road, the chance you are taking is death.

Also Dom - from reading the accompanying report, I don't know if the inference is that in this case the speed was irrelevant, as the driver admitted they did not see the bike, or the car travelling behind (was that also exceeding the speed limit? We don't know) Whether that viewpoint out of respect for the family in letting the video be used, I also don't know.

However, I also agree that running at the ton on that bit of road with potential for traffic turning across wasn't that bright on the part of the deceased biker and not something I'd personally do.

It's a good video that puts across the danger well and really makes you think - and I salute the family of the killed rider for releasing it.

[Shug]

A biker isn't a motorist?

S'pose so, but it's a term I think most associate with car drivers... IMHO

Perhaps just my reading of it, but I feel she was referring to all road users.

[j2 lot]

I found that hard to watch, having just been in an accident where I simply wasn't seen by another road user it really was quite chilling and does show what a fine line there can be between life and death.
Counting myself lucky to be here despite some long lasting damage.

[Andy]

As a biker, who's fully aware of the risks involved, spend 5 years as an IAM observer helping others improve, that's shocked me as to just how quick that happened.

Everytime I'm out on my bike, I'm constantly questioning 'are they going to pull out on me', 'have they actually seen me'. The speed of the biker was causation factor, but the road was pretty straight at that junction and the bike looks pretty modern so likely to have had a wired-on headlight. I'm not defending either side here, it's pretty pointless as it doesn't really matter who's right or wrong when someone gets killed.

Sadly, our whole road safety campaign in this country revolves entirely around speed, and fair play to the Suffolk Police for not jumping up and down solely on the speed issue. From what I've read, most accidents occur below the posted speed limit and are generally entirely avoidable had the driver/rider/cyclist/pedestrian been paying attention. Until someone invents a camera that can prevent and prosecute people for not paying attention and inconsiderate behaviour, sadly this kind of thing will still happen.

The DSA/DVLA will issue someone with a car or bike driving licence for up to 50+ years without as much as a retest or compulsory further training*. There is no industry or workplace in this country that would allow something as comparatively dangerous as motor vehicle to be operated without reassessment, how can we honestly drive for 50 years without anyone questioning it until something terrible goes wrong? I drive for a living and I need to be reassessed at least every 6 months and I'm totally in agreement with it.

My heart goes out to all involved. Biking is the most amazing way to get about, and like the band of brothers and sisters here in SE, there is very much a community spirit between all bikers, and on the whole they're very well behaved, just like those that into their cars in a big way I don't think there's many here who could could honestly say they haven't been out for a spirited drive in their time.

Keep safe folks

[pete]

I know there have been some crashes but I really agree with Shug's comment, hat off to the family for allowing and participating in this.

[Dipper]

very sobering. its hard to comprehend how quickly things can go so wrong. the car driver made a mistake no doubt. we all make mistakes. bikers need to be aware of that and ride accordingly. theres a time and a place for riding quick and that stretch of road wasn't it. its a tragic video but hopefully will have a much greater impact than the usual slow mo, acted out stuff that most of us will be immune to.

[Scotty C]

Very similar accident to one I had in the Exige, driver never saw me just like the driver never saw the rider. 5 years on and I still get heart palpitations every time I come across a driver coming the other way indicating to pull across my path. When I had my crash I took the decision to drive to the right hand side of the oncoming car and hit them. This was due to the time I had to react if I had been going any fast im not sure I wouldn't have had the same reaction. I even remember screaming just like the biker in the clip.

Im sure that the bikers speed here didn't give him many option and the stat will say "well if he hadn't been speeding, it wouldn't have happened"

I think this accident is 100% the car drivers fault and they will have to live with that for the rest of there lives.

There is a couple of reasons I've never owned a motorbike since I was 17 and rode a 125cc, I would love to get a bike now but I just don't trust other road users and I don't trust myself.

Very sad to see this.

[renmure]

Chills me a bit seeing that. Reminds me of an occasion about 4 years ago now when I almost wiped out a biker by me doing something similar at a similar type of junction on a similar type of country road not too far from home.

No idea in my case if the biker was speeding because I simply didn't see him. Fortunately there was a different outcome because in my case I was able to slam the brakes on half way across the road and he was able to ride into the gap between me and the roadside and come to a halt well beyond what would have been the point of impact.

It's fair to say that we were both fairly shaken up and we "had words" ... well he did really because there wasn't much more I could say other than "sorry, I did not see you".

The rights and wrongs of it were fairly immaterial. The facts were that was a very bright sunny day, he didn't have a headlight on, he was in black leather/biker gear, there were trees on either side of the road and I can only assume that all the holes in the swiss cheese lined up so that every time I looked ahead when approaching the junction, he was simultaneously passing through dark shadows and again when I went to turn he was at the point where he would have been silhouetted against the shadows of the trees. Add into the mix what must obviously been a lapse in concentration from me and it could have been a fatal outcome.

[BigD]

Very, very, sobering and very similar to what happened to me when I was riding back from St Andrew early in my biking progression and still inexperienced, thankfully I wasn't going quite as fast and managed to drop the speed and get round the back of the car that turned in front of me, just clipping the rear of the car and sliding down the road towards the car that had been behind the car I hit, again luckily he was paying attention and drove to the other side of the road to avoid hitting me as I slid down the road (he was probably just trying to avoid hitting the bike). I recall missing his front bumper by inches.

The chap in the car was a tourist and the first thing he said to me was "Did you not see me?". I was in too much shock to really think about that........

What this did do for me was make me extremely careful when approaching junctions and especially those with cars ready to turn.

I really feel for the guy and his family and those of the car driver as it came from nothing really. He did seem very relaxed on the bike with his left hand off the bar just before. I would have to say that speed did effect the outcome of this.

Just shows that it can happen to anyone.

[Shug]

What I always do when there's a car either coming out of a junction, or turning across, is to be going at a speed that means I can ensure I can see the whites of their eyes to make sure they're looking at me. Not saying it's foolproof, but I've had a couple of occasions now where I've seen myself that the driver is looking elsewhere (into the road they are turning onto, or the opposide direction coming out) so I've been on the brakes and already been slowing when they've pulled out.

Shame that anyone (in a car or bike) has to have this mindset, but it's really the only way. Elises are just as bad for people not seeing you, so it's a case of driving like every other road user is on a mission to kill you if they can...