California freeway lane change crash
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 3,390
Likes: 259
From: Southern California
@ .12 seconds you can read the motorcycles speed - he's doing 80mph
@ .22 seconds you can see the car change lanes with his blinker
@ .22 seconds - impact you can see the motorcyclists speed is around 56 MPH
If I were in the jury pool - I would say 40% blame goes to the car driver & 60% to the motorcyclist's that should be in complete control of his bike at all times and was speeding
@ .22 seconds you can see the car change lanes with his blinker
@ .22 seconds - impact you can see the motorcyclists speed is around 56 MPH
If I were in the jury pool - I would say 40% blame goes to the car driver & 60% to the motorcyclist's that should be in complete control of his bike at all times and was speeding
Road Warrior
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 1,521
Likes: 185
From: Ft Myers FL
Pep Boys, 4 independent white lights with strobe controller....one light in each directional, 2 lights on the fender, attached to my brakes....so they only come on when I brake.....or if I want somebody to move out of my way.....LOL
NEVER EVER BEEN STOPPED BY A LEO.....ticket woruld be worth it to me.
NEVER EVER BEEN STOPPED BY A LEO.....ticket woruld be worth it to me.
Club Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 66,106
Likes: 51,387
From: Niles Canyon Ca.
Thought of california freeway riding shrinks the ***** on most people just read back through these posts, those of us that can do, the rest of you talk a lotta **** about something you have no first hand experience with. Different game when you live it daily..........
Road Warrior
Joined: Sep 2016
Posts: 1,327
Likes: 342
From: Tyler, TX
You can only enter a carpool lane at specific marked points. You can not cross the yellow lines ever to enter. Maybe the bike was speeding but you will have to deal with passing stopped cars in Calif if you want to use the carpool lane.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 4,353
Likes: 1,966
From: PA
At 0:17-0:18 you can see the car starts a double lane change. Not sure if that maneuver is legal, but it's not smart. He moves into the lane next to the HOV lane, forcing the car he pulls in front of to hit the brakes. That was dumbass move #1. The car then continues the double lane change across the double yellow.
Comments from the biker, under the YouTube vid:
There were a lot of things wrong in this situation, this whole event could have been diverted if the driver had simply looked before illegally crossing the double yellow into the Carpool (HOV) lane. had let off the throttle as I was approaching traffic, when this happened. I pulled the clutch and hit the foot brake locking the rear tire. I left off to get the bike upright again but it was too late to swerve.
The driver that cut me off was in a rental and had bypassed the insurance paperwork. Always have proper coverage!
I'm not comfortable flying past slow moving cars for this very reason. But I'm guessing this rider is used to it in Cali. It's risky, and on this particular day, he paid for it.
I see a skid mark on the road by the word "CAR". ABS wouldn't matter either way in this case, IMO, because there wasn't enough room between bike and car.
Comments from the biker, under the YouTube vid:
There were a lot of things wrong in this situation, this whole event could have been diverted if the driver had simply looked before illegally crossing the double yellow into the Carpool (HOV) lane. had let off the throttle as I was approaching traffic, when this happened. I pulled the clutch and hit the foot brake locking the rear tire. I left off to get the bike upright again but it was too late to swerve.
The driver that cut me off was in a rental and had bypassed the insurance paperwork. Always have proper coverage!
I'm not comfortable flying past slow moving cars for this very reason. But I'm guessing this rider is used to it in Cali. It's risky, and on this particular day, he paid for it.
I see a skid mark on the road by the word "CAR". ABS wouldn't matter either way in this case, IMO, because there wasn't enough room between bike and car.
Last edited by Bluesrider.df; May 22, 2017 at 08:44 PM.
Big Kahuna HDF Member
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 322,622
Likes: 3,077
From: .....
HD Forum Stories
The Best of Harley-Davidson for Lifelong Riders
8 Best Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Worst Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
Killer Custom's Jail Break Is The Breakout That Refused to Blend In
Verdad Gallardo
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Verdad Gallardo
Harley-Davidson Reveals Super Cool Cafe Racer Concept
Verdad Gallardo
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Verdad Gallardo
10 Motorcycles You Should Never Buy
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Harley-Davidson Needs to Fix in 2026
Verdad Gallardo
Southpaw Super Glide: A Left-Hand-Drive 1979 Harley FXE Built to Fit the Rider
Verdad Gallardo
Club Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 66,106
Likes: 51,387
From: Niles Canyon Ca.
That's the whole point of the carpool/HOV lane which bikes can use, you can go faster than the rest of the traffic which is usually half or less of the posted limit depending on the freeway.