Motorcycle Survival in 3 Seconds

[AlabamaNomadRider]

What’s a simple way to boost your safety margin for long-term motorcycle enjoyment?

How about counting to three?

More specifically, three seconds.

That’s the time/safety cushion you should maintain between yourself and the vehicle in front of you.

You can mentally note the time/safety cushion by observing the vehicle in front of you pass some roadside object, such as a sign or telephone pole. Start counting (begin with “zero”) when the forward vehicle crosses the mark, and count how long it takes for you to pass the same mark. A good time/safety cushion will be at least three seconds.

The time/safety cushion works, regardless of different speeds. The faster you are going, the more space you need between you and the vehicle in front of you. Of course three seconds at a spirited riding pace will encompass a greater physical distance than three seconds at a mellow pace.

Although you, personally, may be an alert rider and able to quickly react to swerve or brake at the last instant to avoid a collision, why not just make your whole job a lot easier by keeping at least a three-second time/safety cushion in front of you? This will give most riders enough time to react urgently and safely when the vehicle in front suddenly brakes due to something in their way that you cannot see yet.

Develop a personal riding habit of counting to three to better orient yourself to the time/safety cushion you normally give yourself. You may be surprised to find that you do not give yourself a generous enough margin (and don’t cheat by counting to three too fast!).

Whether you are riding fast or slow, giving yourself a buffer of three seconds between you and the motorist in front of you will ensure you have a large enough time/safety cushion to boost your long-term riding enjoyment.

[MarkG]

Good advice! I have used the three second rule for years. I know many suggest the two second rule, it is just a little to close for comfort. Especially when I am not familiar with the area I try and stay farther away from whatever is in front of me.

[cactusjack]

I use the 3 second rule as well. Unfortunately, 3 seconds leaves enough room for some yahoo to cut in front of you.

[Sin City Stan]

Been using the 3 second rule for years be it a bike, car or truck. I have to admit that it's squeezed to 2 seconds in traffic.

[AlabamaNomadRider]

I alway use it myself but like Scott says, some pecker head will always jump in my space and then I have back off a little more.

[brote]

Have been using this for years since have a "Zone Control Driving" Course with AT&T. It certainly works well but here in Atlanta it is hard to leave 3 seconds because the other drivers will squeeze 3 cars into that space. So I try to stay off the interstates in town.

[jims]

Good advice. I see a lot of young sport bike riders climb right up the rear bumper of cars they want to pass on our country roads here. At best they will aggravate the car driver who will carry the grudge to all cyclists and at worst the driver will hit the brakes and the cyclist will become a trunk emblem.

[blowndodge]

My next motorcycle will do zero to sixty in 3 seconds..... does that count??

[AlabamaNomadRider]

Now that depends on your situation Brad. If you need to get going in a hurry that might just be the ticket.

[Sin City Stan]

Originally Posted by Blowndodge "Darksider"

My next motorcycle will do zero to sixty in 3 seconds..... does that count??

Might want to invest in some Velcro fasteners on your butt to keep you on the seat.

[bendusty]

Don't forget to increase the time in bad weather to 5-10 seconds depending on road conditions.

[clayton]

Originally Posted by AlabamaNomadRider

I alway use it myself but like Scott says, some pecker head will always jump in my space and then I have back off a little more.

Thats a fact...pecker heads...
My commute to work is 23 miles, 75% of that time I am running maybe 30 mph due to stop n go idiots watching something else they shouldn't be...
So I try to leave a good distance between myself and the car ahead of me to try and not use the clutch to death...sure enough some "pecker head" pops in to spoil the day....