Dangerous intersections

[unwind2]

I've another question....maybe should be a new thread but here goes. At some stop signs in the burbs where you sight from all directions is clear, nobody coming either way....I'll do the slow down to nothing but just before the point of having to put a foot down then go on.

I've heard folks say that you are not considered completely stopped and can get a ticket if you don't put a foot down? True? Or subjective?

[fish]

good question

[dui546]

Originally Posted by unwind2

I've another question....maybe should be a new thread but here goes. At some stop signs in the burbs where you sight from all directions is clear, nobody coming either way....I'll do the slow down to nothing but just before the point of having to put a foot down then go on.

I've heard folks say that you are not considered completely stopped and can get a ticket if you don't put a foot down? True? Or subjective?

GREAT QUESTION!

I'd say subjective. Some riders are very skilled and can control the balance of the motorcycle in combination with the clutch and brake to a complete stop without having to put a foot on the pavement. I know that I can do it and I have done it, especially at a right turn on red and without a passenger on board. I've practiced it in parking lots. However, keep in mind, STOP does not mean slow down. "If forward motion is observed and the motorcycle does not come off the front shocks or, in other words, the motorcycle weight does not slightly shift back, then, one could argue reasonably that the motorcycle was not stopped."

I find myself always putting a foot down in moderate to heavy traffic. It gives me an opportunity to look twice, three times, and then four times before proceeding. I ALWAYS catch myself putting my foot down when my wife is a passenger.

BUT, (and I will look into this further), I do remember in the motorcycle test I took 28 years ago in Pennsylvania that the State Police observer told me to be sure and put my foot down at each and every stop so that "he knew" I had stopped and looked both ways in accordance with the standards of the law.

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I have a good story for you...serveral months ago, there was a girl on a sport bike that pulled next to my police car at a red light. The looked awesome. She was on a brand new black sport bike, wearing all black...leather pants, jacket, gloves, tinted helmet shield, etc. She even had heels on her over the calf leather boots! Her blonde hair was just down to about the middle of her back. She was H-O-T and was something that on sight would make you go OOOOOOOOH (cause I did).

I was in the straight lane behind another vehicle in my unmarked po-po car. She pulled into the right turn lane next to me and proceeded to the stop bar. She slowed to a stop, stopped, and then fell over on her right side. She did not put her foot down. On the scale of 1-10, the fall was a 10. She maintained her riding form all the way to the ground. It was like something out of the show "Laugh In." I then pulled in behind her and activated my lights. I helped her get up and push the bike to the side of the road. She had her motorcycle license for about 2 weeks and was still working on the mechanics of riding.

Hence, you can buy the best gear, look the part and fool the world. BUT, that in itself does not make you a safe rider. YOU CANNOT BUY EXPERIENCE.

[Top Cat]

I have a question. If she hadn't have fallen down, would you have pulled her over anyway just to see what she looked like under that tinted shield
Come on Brian, you can level with us ;)

[flightdoc]

TC, that was my question too???? Tell us po po. I haven't heard that term since being in PA last summer for 3 weeks with the guard.

Originally Posted by Top Cat (TC)

I have a question. If she hadn't have fallen down, would you have pulled her over anyway just to see what she looked like under that tinted shield
Come on Brian, you can level with us ;)

;)

[dui546]

LOL...let me qualify that...she was 22 years old. (I checked her birthday on her license) and she was active duty military.

My daughters are 23 and 21. ::)

Have you ever noticed how the kids seem to get younger looking when you learn that they are actually in their early to mid 20s? ???

AND...that those actresses from yester-year are all aging quite nicely?

I get to look at a bunch of driver's licenses over the course of a normal day. Sometimes, I look at a birth date and think, "Damn, he is younger than me and he looks old." AND...reciprocally, I sometimes think, "Damn, and she is a grandma????? I'd of never guessed it" ;)

[cactusjack]

Guilty as charged. In my neighborhood, at a stop sign with no traffic from any direction, I don't linger long enough to put a foot down. But if there is traffic, down goes 1 or 2 feet.

[dantama]

My intersection claimed another one yesterday. If I could just see the emergency vehicles flashing lights etc. it probably wouldn't catch my attention so much.

But I hear them hit each other as well. I'm getting to know the sound of cars crunching really well.

[billmac]

DUI gave us a bunch of good information. I applaud his efforts in getting impaired drivers off our roads. If police officers really want to save lives and property, they need to work in the DUI unit. After all, which police group does more to keep us safe?

In regards intersection traffic laws, these are typically state laws and can vary from state to state.

[flightdoc]

On Interstate 95 in Maine the state police place "dummy" cruisers in contruction areas, in the medians, and have a radar gun constantly on. It's wild when a group of vehicles are screaming down the highway and suddenly come over a small rise and the radar beam hits one of them with a detector......brake lights all over the place!! pretty funny actually. I learned a long time ago ( the hard way) never lead the group down the road and don't do things that draw attention to yourself. More fun just cruisin down the road now.

[dantama]

Originally Posted by Dan Lund

My intersection claimed another one yesterday. If I could just see the emergency vehicles flashing lights etc. it probably wouldn't catch my attention so much.

But I hear them hit each other as well. I'm getting to know the sound of cars crunching really well.

Last nights sounded particularly noisy so I went to have a look. For the first time while I've lived here a car got hit hard enough to get pushed off a 15 foot high cement wall and into a river below that runs between the two streets.


The wrecks are always on the west bound side, never on the east bound side. My wife and I are particularly careful on that side.

Man, Dan, that's like living on Dead Man's Curve. How do you sleep at night?