Originally Posted by
BobbyG
A close call on the ride home from Sunday brunch with a friend. Something similar happened a few years ago.
I guess since the advent of cell phones, people will sit in their cars and talk, text or peruse the internet before getting out. So just because you didn't see a car pull over and park, doesn't mean a door won't open.
I don't remember if there was a car behind me, but there's a good chance I just drifted right.
https://youtu.be/jqaZNMwuMrs
Originally Posted by
Lemond1985
BITD, parked cars could be safely presumed to be unoccupied, because 99.9% of them were.
But these days, it's the opposite, you pretty much have to presume every parked car is occupied until proven beyond a reasonable doubt otherwise. People just LOVE sittin' in parked cars these days, for no apparent reason.
Originally Posted by
Korina
[MENTION=493878]Lemond1985[/MENTION], me too.
I always assume they're occupied, even when you can't see a driver.
A few years ago a cyclist was doored when the driver leaned over to the passenger side to get something, then
kicked his door open before sitting up. It didn't go well for the cyclist; major head trauma. Always assume
Originally Posted by
banerjek
The vid is an excellent illustration for why riding in the door zone should be avoided and why riding left and knowing what's going on behind you pays.
Expecting people to do the right thing is not a good plan -- if even 0.1% screw up for whatever reason (including physical disability), the math catches up with you if you stay out long enough.
Originally Posted by
dedhed
Treat every door as if it was loaded.
So often on these threads about calamities or near misses,
I post about my mindset that I believe gives me that extra edge.
Originally Posted by
FBinNY
In all fairness, I don't think there's anyone who's been riding for a long time, who hasn't at some time (or many times) ridden in that zone where the only thing separating us from disaster is favorable alignment of the stars. (Note the "us" rather than "him")
We all take chances and make mistakes, but fortunately life is"organized" with plenty of forgiveness.
In my experience the difference between disaster and "whew, that was close" is millimeters and microseconds, and not anything we can take credit for.
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
I try to keep safe with certain aphorisms in my head that come to mind to alert me when I encounter a situation where unseen dangers may lurk, such as “
Like a weapon, assume every stopped car is loaded, with an occupant ready to exit from either side.” or“
Don’t ride over an area (such as puddles or leaves) when you can’t see the road surface
…I was hit from behind by a “distracted” (? inebriated) hit and run driver on an otherwise seemingly safe and peaceful route. By good fortune, I’m alive and relatively unimpaired.
Over the past few months I have come to realize that my safety aphorisms (link), collected over the years by personal or vicarious experience, are my way of actively aligning the stars in my favor, to anticipate those unseen and otherwise unanticipated dangers.
FWIW, for my own information at least, my other aphorisms beside those above [include]:
- ...
- ...
- ...
- Jim’s Law of the Road: “No matter how well-paved and lightly traveled the Road, a vehicle is likely to pass on the left as you encounter an obstacle on the right.”…my argument to wear a rearview mirror.
Those are all I remember for now, and they all pop-up in my mind as I encounter the situation.
Last edited by Jim from Boston; 05-22-19 at 08:30 AM.