James Burleigh
Well-known member
Coming home on the freeway today, Saturday, from a quick jaunt up to California Sport Touring to pick up a new pair of winter gloves and a dual controller for my heated gear, I was reminded about one of my driving rules. I was reminded about it because I failed to use it.
The occasion for the reminder was an interaction with a large fuel tanker that began to signal left into my lane just as I was in its left rear quarter and about to pass it on its left (i.e., in the "fast lane" of our two freeway lanes).
The rule is, "Question what you think you know." Nothing happened, BTW, thankfully. But it was a wake-up call because I coulda gotten crushed, and if I'd followed the rule, that possibility never would have arisen.
A simple example of the rule is to anticipate that the car signalling left in front of you may not actually be going to the stop sign up ahead, but planning to turn left into a seldom-used parking lot entrance before the stop sign. So if it suddenly slows to make that turn, you won't crash into the back of it.
I learned the rule the hard way when a package delivery truck suddenly turned into me one night in San Francisco on my commute home and knocked my rear tire a couple feet to the side. I was on my Sportster at the time and managed not to go down. But I did utter "F**k" pretty loud.
The truck was in the center of three lanes, and I was a little behind it in the curb lane to its right. When it started to signal right into my lane, I figured (1) it knew I was there and (2) like me it was headed up to the signal light ahead another 100 yards to turn right and head down onto the freeway. So in spite of the signal, I started to pass it. But just as I did so it suddenly turned 90 degrees into my lane, into me, and kicked out my rear tire. I had gunned it to squeeze through the door before it closed, but still got clipped. Turns out in fact it was turning into a driveway mid-block (yes, from the center lane).
So today I'm heading down the freeway in the left of the two lanes. Ahead of me is the tanker truck with about four cars slowly passing it in the left lane. I kinda let all the cars get ahead till I engage with the truck, so I don't get in a tangle.
I notice a white car cut in front of the truck a little tight and think what a retard the person is, cutting in front of a truck, no signal. Then I notice the white car jump left again into the right lane. Hmmm.... Curious.
That's about when I start to move in closer to the truck to make my pass, and then he starts to signal. Here's what a smarter person would have wondered:
1. Why did that white car come back to the left so quickly?
2. Why is this truck wanting to come over when there's nothing ahead for it to pass?
So like the idiot who passed that package truck in San Francisco one evening many years ago, I figured this truck knows I'm there, and he'll wait to come over till I get by.
So I shot on by, hugging the left of the lane as usual, and being aware of my "out" in the far-left breakdown lane. And the truck did not come across my line. But as I passed it I saw what was going on:
There were three cars pulled to the far right side of the freeway; the middle one was a CHP cruiser. The truck was coming over to clear all those cars.
So I totally blew that scenario. I should have stayed back from the truck and not dived in for the pass when it started signalling. (In my defense, I believe I was already at just about its rear tires when it started signalling, so maybe hitting the brakes wasn't an option, and I did have an out to the left. But there was that white car.)
Remember, JB: Question what you think you know. I presumed the truck was making an elective lane change and could decide when it would get over. If one of those cars had jumped out, I would have been toast. If the truck's suddenly getting over for no reason, figure he's coming over now.
The occasion for the reminder was an interaction with a large fuel tanker that began to signal left into my lane just as I was in its left rear quarter and about to pass it on its left (i.e., in the "fast lane" of our two freeway lanes).
The rule is, "Question what you think you know." Nothing happened, BTW, thankfully. But it was a wake-up call because I coulda gotten crushed, and if I'd followed the rule, that possibility never would have arisen.
A simple example of the rule is to anticipate that the car signalling left in front of you may not actually be going to the stop sign up ahead, but planning to turn left into a seldom-used parking lot entrance before the stop sign. So if it suddenly slows to make that turn, you won't crash into the back of it.
I learned the rule the hard way when a package delivery truck suddenly turned into me one night in San Francisco on my commute home and knocked my rear tire a couple feet to the side. I was on my Sportster at the time and managed not to go down. But I did utter "F**k" pretty loud.
The truck was in the center of three lanes, and I was a little behind it in the curb lane to its right. When it started to signal right into my lane, I figured (1) it knew I was there and (2) like me it was headed up to the signal light ahead another 100 yards to turn right and head down onto the freeway. So in spite of the signal, I started to pass it. But just as I did so it suddenly turned 90 degrees into my lane, into me, and kicked out my rear tire. I had gunned it to squeeze through the door before it closed, but still got clipped. Turns out in fact it was turning into a driveway mid-block (yes, from the center lane).
So today I'm heading down the freeway in the left of the two lanes. Ahead of me is the tanker truck with about four cars slowly passing it in the left lane. I kinda let all the cars get ahead till I engage with the truck, so I don't get in a tangle.
I notice a white car cut in front of the truck a little tight and think what a retard the person is, cutting in front of a truck, no signal. Then I notice the white car jump left again into the right lane. Hmmm.... Curious.
That's about when I start to move in closer to the truck to make my pass, and then he starts to signal. Here's what a smarter person would have wondered:
1. Why did that white car come back to the left so quickly?
2. Why is this truck wanting to come over when there's nothing ahead for it to pass?
So like the idiot who passed that package truck in San Francisco one evening many years ago, I figured this truck knows I'm there, and he'll wait to come over till I get by.
So I shot on by, hugging the left of the lane as usual, and being aware of my "out" in the far-left breakdown lane. And the truck did not come across my line. But as I passed it I saw what was going on:
There were three cars pulled to the far right side of the freeway; the middle one was a CHP cruiser. The truck was coming over to clear all those cars.
So I totally blew that scenario. I should have stayed back from the truck and not dived in for the pass when it started signalling. (In my defense, I believe I was already at just about its rear tires when it started signalling, so maybe hitting the brakes wasn't an option, and I did have an out to the left. But there was that white car.)
Remember, JB: Question what you think you know. I presumed the truck was making an elective lane change and could decide when it would get over. If one of those cars had jumped out, I would have been toast. If the truck's suddenly getting over for no reason, figure he's coming over now.
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