Other people driving

Odysseus

I'm just throwing this out for discussion really and proably because I'm still very angry over it. I have a few bikes but I picked up up a Vespa 200PX a while back as a long term project. I keep in down at my mums, anyway as soon as she seen it she was saying "I can't get on".

She is 82 and for years I put her off getting on any of my bike as she couldn't get on them. However, the PX is ideal she can stand on the floorboards and as the saddle ends before it reaches the handlebars, she can slid on to it and I have a backrest so she feels safe with that.

Generally I take her to do a bit of shopping, up to my dads grave and she likes to go to Bray so I take there a bit. I was thiking of taking her away for a few days next month and I was thinking on using the bike if the weather allowed it.

Anyway, I'm taking her home from shopping the other night and I don't know where she came from but as I was taking a right turn at a junction with filter lights, this cnut undertakes me as then slides in front of me to get to the lane beside next to me.

Now I have full kit for my mum, but I still don't like the idea of her taking a slide as you can imagine. One of the worst things about the above was her attitue, waving her hands out the window clearly indicating I was in the wrong. Of course, as she sees a small bike, we all know it allows her to undertake me at at a junction and then cut across me.

Now look we are all used to this, but now I find myself thinking about whether I should continue this. My dad had bikes for years, my mother loves getting on the PX, but now I may have to stop it because of bad road behaviour by others.

I don't know I just think this is a terrible reflection of peoples behaviour on the road. Anyway I hope that makes some sense, I think I just have to put it out there as a way of making my call on the matter.

Cheers.

daenerysstormborn3

As you probably know, given your biking experience and your father's, this is something that you can either get angry about and lash out, try to forget about it and move on or rant to friends/the internet to get it off your chest. Unfortunately the attitude of other road users to vehicles smaller than theirs is going to take a long long time to change, if ever.

We've all had close calls, most of us have probably had one, maybe two, minor accidents down to the actions of other road users and I'd say it's extremely rare to meet a biker who has never had a serious off caused by the actions of other road users. All we can do is learn from these experiences, where possible. If it's too nerve-wracking for you/your mum, it might be time for her to hang up her helmet. I know she probably loves the bikes but an accident, even minor, at her age could be extremely damaging - the older you get, the harder it is for your body to heal.

I am the only girl in my group of friends that drives a bike, all the lads do, and no matter how many times I tell my non-biker friends about a near miss that I scraped through by the skin of my teeth, they still seem to think that as long as there was no actual contact or crash that it's no big deal. I think a lot of road users operate like that unfortunately.

I'd be interested to see some figures representing bike damage and rider injuries caused by careless/dangerous driving by other road users but no actual impact.

Quebec Delta Mike

Odysseus,

As my own mum is 80, I can appreciate what a thrill it is for yours to get out on the Vespa with you. There's no getting over some people's rude and dangerous driving, no matter what the consequences for you and your mum. It really is your call, how confident are you with her on board, you are after all responsible for her at the end of the day? All the proper gear, I commend you on that, will not save her from a broken arm or hip, or worse if it comes to a fall off the bike. So, be carefull, and good luck.

QDM.

Topper Harley

Hey Odysseus,

I have to start by admitting my experience on bikes is limited having only started about a month ago although I have years of experience driving cars.

Other drivers behaviour will always drive you nuts but I've found that, with a few exceptions, a lot of them actually seem to drive more carefully when they see me around them on the bike (almost like they're scared and don't want to be responsible for killing me). Hopefully you've experienced this too and have taken some encouragement from it.

Like I said though, there are exceptions, whether it's the people who don't see you or the people who don't care about you but I'd like to think that these people are getting fewer and fewer as awareness is raised through the likes of the RSA ads.

It'd be terrible for you give have to stop bringing your mother along because of others' behaviour but I suppose if you're no longer comfortable doing it you have to take that into account. Hopefully with your previous experience and now this latest incident to add to that, you'll always manage to avoid assholes creating a situation like this again or at least safely deal with the situation when it arises.

CJhaughey

I just read this article and was struck by how inequitable the licensing system is between cars and motorcycles.
Something like this would help a car driver learn how a cycle or motorcycle is affected by traffic and how positioning on the road is different to a 4 wheel vehicle.
With the launch of the new licensing requirements for bikes it would make sense to include this as part of the car drivers license.

Odysseus

Cheers for the replies guys, I guess I just needed a bit of space to rant a bit. I'm on bikes a long time and have had my spills, hospital stays and ops from them. I spent six weeks and had six ops from coming off at about 15mph 20 years ago. So I'm just conscious of how much damage can be done from a slide.

Anyway I took her out to Bray today, and that when well. Even with the kit it must show that she is an OAP I had a car pull up in the next lane and start taking pics.

So I'm putting off any decision for the moment, she gets too much out of it. I will just have too be even more defensive.

Cheers again.

Odysseus

Apologies double post

thomashood10

Six ops? Damn

I took a Ford Cmax to the knee recently at about 10 mph, pretty sore but walked away.

Majority of drivers here are brilliant motorists, but there's still a lot of bogies out there that will undertake you and all kinds of ****. People who drive vans seem to be just pissed off at life all the time.

cantdecide

I'm currently on the mend myself (I'm not even supposed to be be in Ireland) due to the carelessness of a third party and the utter mind-boggling reckless of another so it's a very pertinent question to me. I can't add much to the very good points made already except that, assuming she still has the good faculties to understand the risks she is taking herself, you can't be responsible for much more than doing your utmost to stay as safe as possible eg choosing safe places and times and making sure the bike is in good order etc. Of course you will always have your veto but if it makes her happy and you're being responsible.

Odysseus

cantdecide wrote: »

I'm currently on the mend myself (I'm not even supposed to be be in Ireland) due to the carelessness of a third party and the utter mind-boggling reckless of another so it's a very pertinent question to me. I can't add much to the very good points made already except that, assuming she still has the good faculties to understand the risks she is taking herself, you can't be responsible for much more than doing your utmost to stay as safe as possible eg choosing safe places and times and making sure the bike is in good order etc. Of course you will always have your veto but if it makes her happy and you're being responsible.

Yeah exactly, the PX was off the road for a while and I just didn't have the cash to get it sorted so I was using my other bikes. Anyway, she kept asking me was I not getting it fixed because I thought she was no longer up to it, and she was upset. Her mood even lifted when I got it back on the road, most times its just a few k trip wise, once a month maybe take her out for longer; but its important for her; and TBH I'm proud of her that she will still get bon a bike at her age.

So we will see how it goes for a while longer. Cheers