Wide turn into moto rider oopsies

[flank]

The shocking video of a head-on crash which left biker with broken back

WARNING: Some readers may find video distressing - Police have released the footage of the crash, which happened in the Peak District, to urge people to drive carefully and show the importance of bikers wearing protective gear

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk

The experienced rider, from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, suffered a broken back, a broken sternum and a broken wrist in the crash, while his motorbike was destroyed on impact.
The driver involved in the incident, which occurred on Mortimer Road in the Peak District, near Stocksbridge, in April last year, has now been jailed for 16 months.

"Thankfully, the motorcyclist was wearing a full leather, air bag suit which activated and inflated as he was propelled off his bike. Without it, in a collision at this speed, he would most likely have died.”

 

[Nigel]

I was wondering why he got 16 months, but it seems he pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, and is chairman of the "Subaru International Drivers' Club"!

Lee Marklew, mitigating, said Pratt had been chairman of the Subaru International Drivers' Club since 2011, but the position was now "lost to him."

The former IT trainer had been in the Peak District on a scenic drive with the club, Mr Marklew explained, and was heading home in the car which has a top speed of 155mph. "He ran to Mr Broadhead's aid and made it plain to all around that he was at fault," he said. "The incident is a source of genuine shame."
Pratt, 41, of , admitted causing serious injury through dangerous driving, when he appeared at Sheffield Magistrates Court, on December 19.

On Thursday, Judge David DIxon told him: "Anyone that is in control of a high-powered sports type car needs to be aware of the vehicle's capability and their own capability.

"You failed to take any account of the bend that led to this incident. The message must go out loud and clear. If you drive any vehicle you must drive with care."

He jailed Pratt for 16 months, and banned him from driving for three years.

Car club chairman jailed for Peak District crash which injured biker

The chairman of an international car club who was travelling too fast on the wrong side of the road when he hit and seriously injured a motorcyclist in the Peak District, has been locked up.

www.thestar.co.uk

Not sure why he didn't get around the corner when the car following and doing the same speed did without problem, appears to have slid wide because he put the brakes on very hard when he didn't need to, probably wasn't concentrating as well as going too fast.

I think there should have been a sharp bend and slow sign since the bend wasn't visible until he was quite close, and especially with a road junction just around the corner, should probably have put some blame on the road and then for a first offence should have got a shorter sentence.

 

[kamkar]

When you go into the other lane like that, or think you are a race driver and cut thru the other lane in a bend to keep to the race line,,,,,,, you are a very bad driver.

I often go thru turns in the road, say with a 50 km/h recommended speed at 80 km/h, only to see the car behind me brake down to a slower speed, and then cut the turn like he/she are some kind of race driver.
And i do also hit the apex of those turns but the apex for my own lane, not the overall apex of the turn.
A example could be this turn i often go thru on the way to see my old mother, as you can see by the sign the recommended speed are 50 km/h, i can do it much faster on dry days and with no traffic ( 80 km/h )
I think on a dry day the max speed for my car and tire combination are probably a little over 90 km/h, but i am not going there unless a car filled with murderous gangbangers are right behind me.

AND ! i also only "force" my way like that thru bends if there are no oncoming traffic, cuz i might loose control and hurt another person, and that would be very bad.

This are also why i would never drive a motorcycle or for that a bicycle in public anymore, drivers of cars are simply too bad and too distracted nowadays.

 

[Nigel]

When you go into the other lane like that, or think you are a race driver and cut thru the other lane in a bend to keep to the race line,,,,,,, you are a very bad driver.

Very true!

We do know that he had been to a club meeting, maybe he had spent the day on a race track and got used to taking the racing line rather than slowing for the corners! At only 67 along the straight and slowing a bit before the corner it seems to me that he should have been able to make it on the correct side of the road, the car behind managed it, and if anything it seemed to be catching up.

 

[kamkar]

If he had been to a track, maybe by now his tires was toast.

 

[tk000]

Is anyone going to point out that the idiot on the bike is doing a front wheelie, leaving him with zero ability to potentially try steering out of the way and possibly avoiding the moron who can't drive?

 

[Nigel]

Is anyone going to point out that the idiot on the bike is doing a front wheelie, leaving him with zero ability to potentially try steering out of the way and possibly avoiding the moron who can't drive?

I think the biker did exactly the right thing, reduce the speed as much as possible by braking in a dead straight line. From his point of view he would have expected the car to return to the correct side of the road so to change lanes would have been stupid, in any case bikes don't turn instantly, he didn't have time and attempting to do so would have meant he couldn't lose speed, losing speed probably saved his life. As for the wheelie, probably wasn't intentional, but it did mean he went over the car leaving the bike behind instead of into it still on the bike, the bike ended up much worse than he did.

The car should have gone back to the correct lane, or turned right off the road, staying straight towards the bike was the worst and most unexpected thing to do. I assume he did that because he got a bit of oversteer and corrected it as he would if he was on a race track where nothing would be coming the other way. An Impreza with a track tuned suspension and track tyres could easily have turned in time to avoid the head on collision, unlike the bike it didn't need to transfer weight first, not sure if it could have completely avoided the collision, but a side to side impact would probably have avoided the jail sentence.

 

[SawMaster]

First, sixteen YEARS sentence would have been more appropriate- this was nearly a homicide by premeditated negligence Save only for an unexpected, unforeseeable, and great loss of traction or a mechanical failure, you should not ever be out of your lane to the degree that it causes a crash of any kind. If you're over there temporarily with cause your speed should be such that you can get back in your lane fully before anyone else needs to react by take avoiding action. What I'm seeing here is some kid (or still immature ex-kid) with a fast car who thought that at least part of the public roadways could be used as his personal racetrack Yes, I did similar in my youth as many of us probably did but that does not make this a forgivable act or reduce it's impact on an innocent persons life. Driving as this guy did it is almost certain to cause a crash sooner or later

Could the curve been better marked or warned for? Of course it could but we're still supposed to be driving at a speed which will allow us to maintain control of our vehicle under every circumstance, and if we can't see what's ahead we're supposed to slow down to ensure we can get through safely or stop before we crash ior cause someone else to do that Perhaps all curves need huge flashing neon signs with half-naked dancing girls on top of them to make sure we at least look toward the sign telling us about what we should already be prepared to expect and properly deal with. I'd even pay higher taxes for that kind of "road safety program"

Did the rider do the right thing? Probably not- it would have been better to GTFOOTW than collide with any car, even if that meant dumping the bike in the dirt off the road. But there was scarcely any time for the poor slob to choose what to do. He had time to make one decision and follow through only with it and nothing else. Had it been me I'd have seen the way the curve was going to play out and I'd have already considered "what if?" and been ready to leave the road instead because I drilled that way of thinking into my head when I was riding. But I will not lie- there would have been a nearly equal chance that I'd do as he did if I thought it would avoid the crash once I saw that it was imminent. On a bike, one half seconds loss of focus on your survival can kill you or worse, even at low speeds. Only a few of the rider's I've known were like me on always looking for the softest spot to crash should things go wrong and being fully prepared to commit to that if needed. It's rarely emphasized enough in motorcycle safety training courses It goes against instinct but you'd better learn it because one day you're going to need it if you ride (end of rider safety sermon )

Phil

 

[jokiin]

They both suffered some target fixation, you see something coming and worry you'll hit it so you do

 

[Nigel]

Could the curve been better marked or warned for? Of course it could but we're still supposed to be driving at a speed which will allow us to maintain control of our vehicle under every circumstance, and if we can't see what's ahead we're supposed to slow down to ensure we can get through safely or stop before we crash ior cause someone else to do that Perhaps all curves need huge flashing neon signs with half-naked dancing girls on top of them to make sure we at least look toward the sign telling us about what we should already be prepared to expect and properly deal with. I'd even pay higher taxes for that kind of "road safety program"

I came across a corner yesterday on a road of similar status, also up in the hills and also a little unsighted due to a slight crest, no flashing neon signs, but there was no excuse for not slowing down:

Sharp bend signs on both sides with extra yellow background and extra reduce speed now notice, plus SLOW road markings, plus rumble strips:


More rumble strips, more road markings, no overtaking, and extra big turn signs:


Extra yellow backing for the truck sized turn signs:


And just in case you still didn't slow down, that is a special high grip road surface just for the corner to help you get around!

Presumably people still crash, but when they do it is not the fault of the roads people.

 

[SawMaster]

Awwww- no dancing girls, what a disappointment

Phil