Why the hell are there cars on the course????

Hey, at least nobody really got hurt (from what I can tell)

actually the car did signal - so the bike came up on a car that had slowed and had its signal on.
Personally I would have gone to left

assuming you meant "right" and not "left"....

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I tweet!

Dave, no need to link to examiner stories.

Seemed pretty clear he went to the left a bit as the truck passed to
get some drafting. Once you do that, might as well get on the horns
so you can brake. At that point, you can stay in the draft, but stay
back a bit and look for either a safe point to pass (maybe to the left
if it looks like he's gonna turn right), or let the car accelerate away.
Might not have been the rider's "fault", but he definitely could have
done better.

Tom A.'s 3 rules of riding your bike (or motorcycle) in traffic:

1. Assume you're invisible.
2. Assume all cars will turn in front of you if they can.
3. When in doubt, see rules #1 and #2.

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http://bikeblather.blogspot.com/

Especially when you can see the truck is using his brakes, it is pretty obvious he is going to turn. While you can say he didn't use a turn signal, I woul rather be alive than dead and have someone to blame.

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Ride Scoozy Electric Bicycles
http://www.RideScoozy.com

This.

Legally *maybe* the car was at fault, I don't know how it works in Washington. He didn't signal, for sure. But that was a seriously dumb move by the cyclist.

ask my ex or kids how often I call out left and right as the opposite of what they are. it's like 75%, so, yup

this means, never ask me for directions, or you will go the wrong way.

i can hold my right hand up, know it is the right hand, point it to the right, and then my mouth will say to turn left. I have no idea why that wire is crossed in my head

maybe your corpus callosum is severed or not working properly

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Split-brain

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Kat Hunter reports on the San Dimas Stage Race from inside the GC winning team
Aeroweenie.com -Compendium of Aero Data and Knowledge
Freelance sports & outdoors writer Kathryn Hunter

There's a difference between "could have avoided" and "at fault." The cyclist absolutely should have been more prudent and avoided the accident, but was NOT at fault. The rider followed the rules of the road--the car did not. Therefore the car is at fault.

Did the rider follow the rules of the road?

One of them is not run into the back of someone

another is not to overtake on the right, I believe.

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Kat Hunter reports on the San Dimas Stage Race from inside the GC winning team
Aeroweenie.com -Compendium of Aero Data and Knowledge
Freelance sports & outdoors writer Kathryn Hunter

Here's my 2 cents. The truck was wrong. He deserves a ticket for failing to signal or yield. I'm betting the law allows that cyclist the right of way in the bike lane. The truck must signal and yield to a vehicle in the lane, whether it be a car or a cyclist. The truck failed to signal and yield to another vehicle in the right lane (the bike lane in this case). If you are turning right from the left lane of a highway across the other lane you must yield to cars in the right lane, you can't just turn and expect everyone to stop for you. Same thing here, he technically cut off that other vehicle (cyclist).

Now for common sense: No way am I passing that truck on the right. I'm looking at all the dirt on the truck (I'm sorry but that says something right there), the gas station, the truck slowing.....I either slow down or pass on the left, which you are allowed to do in most states. Cyclists can pass on either the left or right.

BTW - the cones were only on the exit side of the driveway into the gas station. They were placed to prevent vehicles from coming out of the station not into the station.

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Paul

The brain is fascinating and does some really weird shit!
Im glad my sons epilepsy is controlled with medications so he doesnt need such a drastic intervention.

Yay science!

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who's smarter than you're? i'm!

Yet another impatient driver operating an oversized carbon belcher in an unsafe manner. Surprise, surprise. But don't expect the driver to get a ticket because anti-biker bias is still a dominant theme in America, unlike Europe where bikers are welcome.

Also, I'm not sure the race organizers had properly secured the course. If the cone in the driveway was supposed to stop traffic from turning right, was that sufficient? Apparently not. so I'd say race organizer negligence appears to be contributing cause.

I've been hit 7 times, so, yes, I have an axe to grind!

-Robert

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"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." ~Anne Frank

LEGALLY the driver might be at fault. But the fact of the matter is, if you ride like that guy was riding, odds are you are going to get hit at some point.

Like others have said a car ahead with brake lights on means trouble, you should be thinking that something unexpected can happen, stay left. When the right turn indicator came on further proof that going right might not be such a good idea.


It's been my experience that cars overtaking you and wanting to turn right have a hard time judging your distance and often speed up a bit and make the turn thinking you are still far enough away to do so safely. I would never stay right in that situation, even if I had to brake hard and drop back then go left.


Both equally at fault.


Ron W.

If the cyclist was a motorcycle rider, the truck would be held at-fault.

Obviously. But I think the legalities are important. Because we don't want cars on the road driving like that--it's dangerous. So it's necessary to both ride defensively and emphasize to drivers that they have a responsibility to avoid us.

Glad he is ok but....

The rider hit the vehicle, not the other way around. Signal or not you don't pass on the right. Race or not you slow down if a car in front of you slows down.

Should the driver get a ticket for not signalling, yes. Should the rider accept the blame for hitting the vehicle after trying to pass on the right, yes. It is pretty clear in the video that the vehicle could only be doing one of two things, stopping or turning right, there is no left turn possible.

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Rodney
TrainingPeaks | Altra Running | RAD Roller
http://www.goinglong.ca

That wasn't a bike lane and it's illegal to pass on the right when there is no lane (at least in NY, and the shoulder doesn't count) . The truck has no requirement to yeild to traffic behind. So while the truck failed signal; the bike failed to yeild, followed too closely and tried to make an illegal pass.

Not true, if the biker had an expectation that no right hand turns by vehicles would be allowed into businesses. If I were on the jury, I'd hammer that driver. He's too stupid to be driving.....

-Robert

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"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." ~Anne Frank

The problem I have with this particular guy's move is that he's directly behind the truck almost until the last second, and then moves to the right AFTER the truck slows. Because of this I'm willing to give the driver a considerable benefit of the doubt.

Assuming the driver knows the cyclist is going to pass on the right - what should they do? Typically they should probably brake harder so that they don't drive right past the entrance to the gas station. But if the cyclist is NOT going to pass on the right and is correctly anticipating that the driver wants to turn right, chances are they're going to remain behind the truck and any hard braking might force the cyclist to emergency brake or crash right into the back of the truck.

The driver, if they saw the cyclist in their mirror, is in a tough position here. Either they continue what's a legal move, or they make an equally dangerous sudden stop. Of the cyclist's 3 options (left right or middle), passing on the left is clearly the only safe option.

As a cyclist I would MUCH prefer if drivers make predictable moves that aren't out of the ordinary. That right turn is a very predictable, ordinary move. A sudden brake to let a cyclist pass on the right is not.