MotoVixens

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Technology and Profiling

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With new technology being introduced into automobiles, the increased use of smartphones and just the sheer inattentiveness of drivers or being distracted, it is more crucial than ever to be more aware when riding.  The AAA conducted a study of motor-vehicle safety systems and found that motorcycles were detected 26% more slowly than a typical car.  The fact that dealers use this as a positive selling point can lull drivers into a false sense of security that they will be able to detect any vehicle and choose not to take a quick glance to make sure.  While technology is truly a wonderful thing and it continues to advance at lightning speed, for riders this can be more cause for concern than give us confidence that we will indeed be detected.  Just because you see their caution light come on in their mirrors as you enter their blind spots doesn’t necessarily mean they see you, there may actually be a car they are picking up entering that spot behind you, so pass them with caution and always ride as if you are invisible.  Remember there is the blind spot and then the death spot as I previously mentioned in the last blog, that would make you directly in that death spot.

I’ve adapted profiling cars as I ride, it is exactly what it sounds like…watching them ahead and behind me to see if their driving is erratic, distracted, have their heads down, are rocking out, having an argument, etc.  Those are just a few things to look out for when you are riding to help you make the best decisions and basically steer clear of them.  I’ve noticed the best drivers have stickers of manufacturers that are motorcycle driven, they often are very understanding and will move over to let you pass and at times move back to keep others from riding up your backside.  In contrast, those driving high performance sport cars are very happy to try to engage you in a race, don’t bite!  They are often going to draw undue attention of law enforcement and who needs to be caught up with that?  In the Pacific Northwest, I also find pickup trucks to be awesome, they are usually sport enthusiasts of the two wheeled kind and are very conscious of motorcyclists.  As you ride, start profiling a bit and soon you’ll see that there definitely people in certain cars that are more attentive drivers, others that are completely oblivious and some that will surprise you and I don’t know about you, but I hate surprises, especially when they come in the form of a 3-4 lane change last minute (oh shit) I need to make the exit kind of variety.  Look into the cars ahead of you when you are behind them, have they looked up to see you there (could you see their eyes glance up in the rear view mirror)?  Good, then they are acknowledging they see you, if not, get away from them as soon as possible.  Also, if the people are looking to change lanes they typically will turn their heads to see if the lane is clear, give them a bit of space to do so and look at tires, they don’t lie, if they are pointed in your direction, slow it down a bit just to make sure they see you.

As motorcyclists, the burden of our safety is placed on ourselves so put yourself in the best position to be seen, ride with the flow of traffic (don’t be so far behind that cars speed up to get around you) and ride with complete awareness.  Ride with a plan and then have a backup just in case, our machines are very quick to respond to our inputs so use that to your advantage when you are surrounded by automobiles…try to ride to those gaps in traffic where you can take a a breather until you hit the next cluster of cars.  Riding is such an integral part of our lives and I know we would all like to continue to do it for a lifetime so let’s make it a priority to be better educated and get the skills necessary to make that happen.  The riding season is upon us so let get out there and Vixens Ride!

 

Optical Invariant and Why Motorcyclists should be more aware

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As motorcyclists we ride with the thought process that we are invisible and that may not be far from the truth. There are a great deal of collisions due to a car suddenly turning left into the path of a motorcycle when the motorcyclist was clearly in the right to pass or a car turning left into the path of the motorcycle at an intersection in broad daylight when there are no obstructions. This begs the question why this happens and why is the percentage so high?

Research by a Texas Tech University psychologist brings to light that the large percentage of this problem isn’t due to poor driving or carelessness, but could be due to a basic human judgement error caused by the way the brain judges distance and time. Pat DeLucia, coordinator of the Human Facts Psychology Program at Texas Tech University says these types of brain miscalculations plays a crucial role in motorcycle accidents involving automobiles. DeLucia states that in her studies small, near objects can appear farther away than larger, farther objects. Her studies showed how the brain interprets objects, their size and motion and how it relates to an object’s time to impact. Her finding concluded that an objects size affects distance perception and may be the reason that car drivers miscalculate a motorcyclists distance and speed. The brain uses two visual cues to determine the time of impact. In the first, a moving object is reflected on the eye’s retina, it expands as it approaches the eye, providing the brain accurate information about when the object will hit this is called an optical invariant. However, the brain also uses “rules of thumb” such as various “artist” depth cues as a shortcut. According to DeLucia, the brain interprets objects with a larger retinal image as closer and since motorcycles are smaller than cars, the brain may use this shortcut to judge them as farther away than it actually is.

So let’s do some math here: it takes the average rider 1.2 – 1.5 seconds to react from seeing danger to realize it is a threat, make a decision what to do and react. Using 1.3 sec reaction time at 30mph that’s 56.94 feet to react, at 60 mph it requires 114.4 feet, and at 100mph 189.8 feet to react, pretty sobering isn’t it? Considering the odds are stacked against us already, it is our responsibility to arm ourselves with skills and knowledge to make us better, safer and more aware riders. Be proactive, knowledge and skills will help you take control of situations and allow you to anticipate where situations can arise. Riders need to focus and not be complacent our lives are literally in our own hands. Riding is as safe or as dangerous as you allow it to be.

Take care, ride safe and Vixens Ride!