So I’ve only had my bike about a month, no problems in the traffic yet, then the first time I head to the Newbie night at Ace Cafe I start to see random behaviors on the roads…
Am I at higher risk as a member of London Bikers???
Looks like a normal day in London.
^^ +1 - Don’t see anything !! (out of the normal)
Just gotta stay 2 steps ahead !!
I guess I better get used to it then & make sure I’m always paying attention!
+1 to the above. Didn’t notice anything unusual in your vid. Ride with the mind set - “everyone wants to kill me”! Will make you suitably cautious/ defensive before overtaking, while filtering etc. Don’t expect cage drivers to look for you in their mirrors, or whilst waiting at junctions and don’t be surprised if they carry out manoeuvres without indicating. When looking at a gap thinking ‘can I make it?’ - don’t bother - if you have to ask yourself the question, you’re taking an unnecessary risk. You can always filter to catch up to the next set of traffic lights!
Annoying, but the harsh reality.
Oh and get yourself booked on a Bikesafe day asap. You’ll get a copy of the IAM rider manual which will also teach you about road positioning, vanishing points etc.
Forgive me for sounding a bit ‘preachy’, but if some of my words help to prevent you having an unnecessary ‘off’ then it’s worth it. 
Good advice thanks… For Bike Safe, I’m gonna sign up after I’ve done my DAS, until then just going to be extra careful and take it easy on the filtering etc.
so you’ve got the whole of a month of experience and you think this is abnormal behaviour on the roads?
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
To be fair the weather is now looking good so there will always be a lot more chancres on the road. Although that events in that vid are pretty normal.
Well do a BikeSafe. You can do it on 125 AND IT WILL help you for your DAS. And it’s cheap.
Regarding your way in… well nothing unusual, I would say that even nice, no problems (the cyclist maybe a bit close as your cam is on right side of helmet).
I can repeat other posts. In London everything trying to kill you. (full stop) This ride was like Sunday walk in the park.
R
You passed the LB newbie night test
Now we can call off ,the its a knock out team
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Looked ok to me was it only twice that would be a good day out for me
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Just remember the first days of sun the cage drivers go in to a dream state
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Pin
that is nothing, try riding at night and have a pedestrian on the other side of the road ( on the right ) run behind a vehicle that is big enough to hide them and in front of another moving vehicle ( traffic moving at about 30mph) then him assume that the other side will be clear…that prick is lucky i had an accident with a pedestrian before, but it still baffled me how he can run across the road like that…so yeah watch out for those cause once you run them over they will be crying that it’s your fault, i can only hope that one day there’ll be a truck coming their way.
Why did you beep at the cyclist? I see she pulled out a bit to get around the grate but it’s her lane and beeping her is as likely to panic her into swerving out as anything else.
Edit: That came off a bit preachy, I wasn’t intending to have a go, just noting that cyclists sometimes need to avoid potholes etc (if you think they’re bad on a 120mm motorbike tyre, try hitting one on a 23mm wide bike tyre) 
Hi
Try to look on the bright side
You are still here and doing ok for your first month
It just takes time to figure it out that everyone is trying to kill you
Most of the time the poor souls don’t see you " that’s what they all say"
Keep at it see you next time you are out
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Pin
you should not be undertaking and why toot at the cyclist?
Maybe we should give the poor guy a break.
At the end of the day he has L plates and learning…if he has no one to tell him about the good bad and ugly.
He only going to learn by asking on a site like this.
I had several friends that had been riding a long time. They have taught me from there mistakes and misfortunes.
Hopefully some of us can guide Alex instead of having a dig at him.
Ally has given some very good tips. We can all learn from each other.
Keep it up Alex
stick at it Alex, i’d have beeped the cyclist too if they had pulled out a bit further, the purpose of the horn being to alert someone of your presence after all.
everyone is right though, that is pretty normal behaviour and after a while you will develop a sixth sense about what others are about to do, in the meanyime though you’ll just have to keep your wits about you and stay alert.
keep riding, it will only get better.
If this is all you have seen in London in a month’s worth of riding, count yourself lucky. 
As others have said, slowly slowly you will develop a sense of what’s about to happen and will be able to predict a lot of people doing daft things… But then again even after a couple of years when you think you’re doing it right, an accident will happen that won’t be your fault but could have been avoided had you done a number of things (I speak from experience on this :D)
In this case the cyclist is a very minor thing but I remember doing the same thing when I had just started riding. At the time I thought I was in the right but now I would think that I need to remember, they have every bit as much of a right to be on the road as you… So give them space especially if you are coming from behind. Remember you have suspension to deal with potholes, they don’t 
Take it easy dude and most of all… enjoy your bike!
Serrisian assume this is sarcasm. They have same right as I have the same right to be a plastic surgeon, I have a knife and I know how to slice bread and ham.
Alex - remember, that cyclists can just slightly touch you when you are at speed, you will end up in the back of car/van/bus they may just pick up bike and ride of, no registration, no insurance nothing, and your fault. Unless you have that camera always on but this is not 360 degrees camera so hard to proof that cyclist swerve into you.
Just in general be careful, try not tu undertake, unless you are 100% sure that you can do it safely, even when you doing it try to not have much of a speed difference with vehicle on right lane, if he is driving slowly then pedestrian can walk from behind the car. And yes cyclist dont have suspension (i had in my bike but well…) but what is more important cyclist dont have mirrors, common sense and humble approach to riding on PUBLIC road. They can swerve into your line for no reason at all.
Look at traffic lights, if light goes green for you, there is 10% chance that some idiot think he will drive pass he’s red (had this week ago in car, today on bike).
Remember people in London are from around the world, sometimes their world dont have any road law introduced so its hard to switch straight away (to harsh, well at least honest).
Be especially careful in heavy traffic, 2-3 packed almost stand still lines. Everyone is frustrated, everyone want to get to his destination and because of stress loosing his senses. My private advice about filtering, never faster than 15mph more than traffic moving, and when traffic moves at speed of 40-50mph just dont (definitely not on 125cc).
Remember that you are in love in your bike, you don’t want her to be hurt, and you are the one in charge in this relationship. Be rather safe 2 min late than sorry on time.
I’m sure this is not all what I could say, but let gather all what we want to say, or pass to others and that would be useful for everyone. I believe I will learn something even when I’ll be old and grumpy. (so about now)
Hope this helps,
R
no mate, no sarcasm whatsoever… you can choose to see them as pesky annoyances that shouldn’t be there but you would be completely wrong in doing so.
They have every right to be on the road and treated with the same respect as any other road user - you have no more right over them to be on the road, no matter what you think. I’ve seen just as many twats on bikes and scooters as I have in cars, buses and bicycles… Ultimately we are all trying to get somewhere so let’s not fight over a piece of tarmac, yes?
So you saying that if I’m going to jump red lights, scratch cars, brake mirrors, go onto pavement and shout at pedestrians crossing on green then you will say I have every right to be on the road?
Ok that was extreme example, something simple, shoulder checks. Joining traffic in the correct matter, signalling manoeuvres.
To have the right to be on the road you have to pass test of highway code and road safety and manoeuvres. Then your vehicle have to be roadworthy and taxed to keep the roads condition, and insured in case you cause damage to other road users and pedestrians. There are certain Laws to obey to be recognised as part of in that case road users.
Bicycle is not a way forward as a primary way of transportation, if it would car as invention will never survive as well as motorbike. Fair that it become a cheap way of transportation in every country, cheap way of transportation without taking any consequences of rider behaviour in UK.
So my view about cyclist you can translate same as I see the cow in India, can do whatever wants and no one do anything with it.
So as you can see it is much higher than your statement about “the same right”.
R
ps. two different opinions and we can now stop before alex’s thread will be transformed with thread about superiority of Easter over Christmas