I’m begining to notice more and more that when I am travelling behind a car, especially one car on its own, the driver all of a sudden for no reason pulls over and stops. I think yea ok and pull around them but as soon as I’m passed the car driver pulls straight back out again and follows me down the road.
Now i’m following at a safe distance at a reasonable speed and the roads I use most if I want to overtake I can without any problems. So why the sudden need to brake sharply and pull over? Mainly its the sharp braking and pulling in where people wouldn’t normally stop just seems as though they’re scared to be followed
Maybe they are ? They might be worried it’s somebody from here who thinks it’s clever to pull mirrors off cars if they decide the car driver deserves it? Somebody tried to do this to me many years ago…I wasn’t happy and doubt he did it again. Or maybe you have a black visor?
summertime, cars pull over a lot more (e.g. filtering). the more insecure drivers (fairweather drivers, if you will) will also not really know what to do and panic. the more riders there are, the more the cars tend to pull over. hence riding in the winter is so important - keeps reminding people we are there… safety in numbers and all that… you might be coming across a few insecure drivers, not really sure what to do when a bike comes past…?
I often get people driving along in the gutter in front of me.
I’ll be sitting in a dominant position in my lane, but they obviously think that because I’m slightly right of centre, I want to overtake - then they pull over and slow down by about 5mph.
The thing is:
a) I don’t want to overtake
b) Nine times out of ten it wouldn’t be safe anyway
c) It makes me wonder what they’re going to do next
d) It kicks loads of crap up from the gutter
It’s a bit “cheers and all that, but what are you thinking!?”…
I was speaking to some of the people I work with about something similar last week, none of them are bikers but they all said that it made them feel nervous when bikers were riding behind them and that they usuallly pulled over to let bikers past if it was safeto do so as they would much prefer them in front than worry about them riding behind them.
They probably don’t like being followed by a bike incase they loose sight of it. I must admit when I’m driving a car I don’t like being followed closely by a bike. I’d rather it be infront.
Define “behind” and “safe distance”. If you’re in the overtake position and not going to overtake, drop back to the following position until an oppotunity looks like it will present itself.
If their sharp braking alarms you, I’d say you’re too close.
Sounds like a half-baked driver who is trying to be nice to you, but unaware of how ambiguous her actions are.
I usually get the b**ch in front who drives the 4x4 into the opposite lane and weaves dangerously as she travels at 20mph, accelerates up to 40mph just before the lights and then slams on the brakes to test them. The last psycho driver decided to race me at the lights, and then cut into my lane before almost crashing into the traffic jam ahead of him as I pootled on slowly at 20mph in filter.
Besides, cagers are weird anyway. Why else do you think we refer to them as inmates?
Makes a change from the other car drivers who deliberately try and get in your way to stop you filtering because they are annoyed having to sit in traffic.
I haven’t experienced this too much except with black cabs, who seem intent on doing it!! That said it’s 50/50 as loads are very observant and do move out of the way in good time.
Yeah like the parting of the red sea but without moses coming through. Can be slightly embarrassing when they do it on a blind bend where there’s no way in hell you’re going to go past them. You can see them thinking ‘why’s that pussy still sat behind me if I was on a big loud manly bike like that i’d be past by now’…or maybe they’re thinking ‘sh!t sh!t he really is following me. Fu<k! What have I done! I’m being tracked down by a ruthless biker nutter…please, please go past…if you don’t go past I’m going to panic and crash into this lampost…aaaaaahhh’ or something.
The other week, riding into Poole, the car in front of me started to drive in the gutter and slowed right down. I was riding leisurely and was mumbling to myself about ‘the blo ody driver who was probably drunk or something…’ Travelled about half a mile like this.
Or maybe you have a black visor?
