I took to biking about 5 years ago and have noticed that there are many more bikes on our roads. I can only assume that nowadays many of these riders are new to riding.
I have been away on a medical attachement in Malaysia throughout the summer so unfortunately I missed the london weather and my bike
But today on the way to hospital (my first day back on my bike) I was overwhelmed by the number of new bikers (which must have taken up biking over the summer), many which could not ride properly (especially when it came to filtering)
Now, I am no saint but whenever I see a faster rider behind me (or i am not mentally prepared to ride the balls of my bike) I always pull in to let him/her pass and progress at a faster rate than what I was doing. Today I did this for a guy/gal on a Suzuki GSXR (W reg) and this guy was all over the place …taking risks that even i thought were insane. He clipped his mirrors on a ford fiesta and god only knows how his head survived a clipping with a wing mirror of a coach.
MY MESSAGE TO THAT GUY IS: BRO…IF SOMEONE PULLS ASIDE TO LET THE FASTER GUYS THROUGH THEN ONLY TAKE THE BUCK IF YOU ARE MENATALLY PREPARED TO RIDE THAT LITTLE BIT FASTER…safely!!!
I think the guy (or gal) must have felt pressurized to ‘perform’ as an R1 pulled over for him. We need to let our new riders know that if you can not ride fast whilst filtering then just hang back…dont put yourself and others at risk.
I have been at work all day thinking that Damn, that guy went a long way just to either impress me (as I let him through) or he really needed to use the poo-room (toilet)
I have to admit, I don’t usually pull over for a bigger one unless he’s right up my nicotine ravine desperate to get through.
I filter pretty effectively and unless there’s loads of room, I don’t see that I have to get out of anyone’s way. They want past, its their responsibility to do it safely.
I NEVER pull over for scooters. They usually need a lesson in manners and respect as it is, so learning some patience won’t hurt them either.
But like I say, I do pull over if I’m having a slow day I guess and asusming there’s room.
That said, anyone who puts me at risk shoving past will be dealt with at the next lights.
I got knocked off in feb when i was filtering, i was just poodling along and the guy just turnt on me with no indicator or warning…
now when i filter i always cover then fornt break with 2 fingers and i am very causious (cant spell it lol) and never filter when there is a turning to the right cas some twat decides to take it.
if someone faster than me is filtering i will always let them pass if they feel safe wizzing in and out of traffic then good luck to them
It really doesn’t help when eejits at lights on bigged up bikes come up behind you at a rate of knots, rev the knackers off their bikes, wanting you to move further forward than you’re comfortable with so they can squeeze in next to you and buzz past you as soon as the lights turn amber/green.
Then they hoon off into the distance and you end up right behind them at the next set of lights. Sometimes you even end up in front of em again depending on the filtering route they’ve taken.
It used to intimidate me, now it just pisses me off.
If there’s someone that quite clearly could make better progress in front of me, I’ll move over when it’s safe to do so. Otherwise, sod em. They can stay where they are or find another route through the traffic.
My advise is quite simply ride for yourself. If someone wants to get past me, that is their decision. If it is safe for me to move over, I’ll do so, but I ride for myself. I like a good braking distance in crap weather and tend to take it easier when it is raining etc… No point in not arriving where you want to go just because you wanted to go faster than the GSXR/R1 in front of you.
As to scooters, no hassles with them if they leave me alone. If they start cutting me up, I’ll be nasty and pass them when it is safe to do so. Again, Ride for Yourself. This is the safest technique to employ and it also means you ride in your own comfort zone. Ride in a way that does not affect the traffic around you, does not cause other people to slap on anchors so you can squeeze in. So what if Mr BMW moves over and blocks your route, you’ll fit around later on and leave him behind. Not an issue.
I was making my way home from work the other day, along kenton road towards kingsbury circus, and im passing down the outside passing the traffic, pretty slow, and as i aproach a BMW Estate, the little peckerhead opened his door for a fraction trying to make me swerve
I mean moving to block the path is one thing, but that was downright stupid!
if i’d had more room id have smacked his mirrors off and then smacked him the twat
I’m with makman on this one. I am quite happy to move over for anyone who is coming up behind me but only if it is safe to do so. Most of the time I tend to filter quite carefully and there are some days when I do go for it a bit more. My daily mantra is “get me and my bike there in one piece” I certainly don’t want to take risks for the sake of making up a few minutes on my journey over all.
I’ll move over for scooters as well as a lot of them seem to be ridden by total maniacs who are intent on squeezing through near impossible gaps, but I just wish once in a while they would at least acknowledge that you’ve moved over for them.
I try and pull over if I think I’m in the way and someone wants to go faster.
Also I find it easier if I ride as “wingman” to a rider in front - they pre warn pedestrians and drivers there is a bike about and I just follow through - like following a fire engine with it’s lights on ( but not through red lights - whoops!:crazy
Sometimes I get a real ‘rat bike’ courier behind and I always assume they aer a ‘Filtermeister’ compared to me - so I let them go.
I normally filter pretty aggressively but you always get someone who is more of a hurry than you… So you let them pass in front
When a pan-European granddad sits in front of you for miles you get the hump and start revving, normally the pull over but sometimes they just sit there and ignore you
But the worst culprit is when you have 3 lanes and you are filtering on the right and some ****** decides your too slow so pulls into the inside and goes hell for leather. the cars pull into your space to let them through. Arrrgghh
Is the etiquette to use the furthest right gap to filter or have i just made this up.
Don’t get me started on 10 year olds on Scooters
The best bit of advice i have read on this thread is “Drive for yourself” and ignore the other riders unless you fancy a bit of fun.
I actually tend toturn my headlights off when im filtering through traffic, i find that drivers get a kind of target fixation when looking in thier rear view mirror and tend to drift ever so slightly towards the light, when im passing down the outside i leave em on tho
I don’t get mad about other people riding agressively. The world is a self-cleaning oven. They’ll eventually come off as a result of their bull**** actions, hurt for a while, and either reconsider their riding style, stop riding altogether or eventually empty their bucket of luck and remove themselves from the gene pool, leaving behind another mother/girlfriend/gay lover saying “Don’t ever get a bike, bikes are evil, they cost (insert dip**** name here) his life.”
Think about it – it’s a beautiful system really. Charles Darwin was the man.
Top efforst from the local Puegeout owning idiots club this morning.
Approaching Vauxhall one-way this morning and with the usual mindless moped monkey pegging it past me. Traffic ahead stationary. he shws No brakes…no brakes…NO BRAKES…ARGGHHHHHH BRAKE BRAKE BRAKE HARD HARD HARD HARD !!! Front wheel stoppy… flip! Idiot.
He was fine, moped was mullered. Almost wanted to leave the idiot there, but helped him pick bits of fairing up for a bit. He didn’t have insurance either…I Hate moped riders.
…taking risks that even i thought were insane. He clipped his mirrors on a ford fiesta and god only knows how his head survived a clipping with a wing mirror of a coach.
(toilet) 
