Originally Posted by
andr0id
Sorry about your falls.
I think part of your problem is that you are not driving your bike like a car. You should look up vehicular cycling and learn the concepts.
I say this based on this description.
First, the flashing WALK light is NOT for you* and you should not be crossing in a crosswalk. You should either be in the lane or on an improved shoulder.
Secondly, you NEVER should put yourself on the right side of a driver in the right lane unless all the traffic is stopped. The "right hook" is so common that is has the name "right hook." You should have ridden behind that vehicle and then you would have made it safely through the intersection with no stopping required at all.
You could have probably avoided the first fall too by anticipating and avoiding rather than stopping.
* other than as a indicator that the red light is getting stale.
This is good advice based on the fact that both of your situations have happened due to right hooks. Remember, you are traffic when you're out on a road, so try to obey traffic laws...there's a million different ways to handle red lights, but I always suggest to beginners to stay behind cars and get in line just like if you were driving. People are idiots and they don't pay attention to their surroundings, nor do they use blinkers, so it's hard to tell if they see you or what way they're turning.
For the most part, it sounds like bad drivers are a bigger issue than your clipping in and out of your pedals. Still, practice helps, as well as establishing an unclipping technique that you do every time you need to unclip. For me, I always unclip my left foot. I usually do so before I need to stop, maybe 5-10' away from where I need to stop. I coast to my stopping point, adjusting my balance, and slowing down simultaneously. As you become used to the same technique it becomes second nature. You're still going to have issues at times due to unforeseen circumstances...happened to me a couple of months ago when a lady pushing a stroller walked out in front of me. My left foot was unclipped, but I had adjusted my weight to the right and couldn't get my right foot out and down I went.
Just don't get discouraged. It happens to everyone.