Death can come from behind

 There were some posts here just recently about watching for vehicles
approaching from behind. To drive the importance of that home, this
happened at the beginning of March. The victim was the president of
the only Honda Riders group i my area. He was 61 and rode a GW. The
accident occured in FLA. As traffic approached a slowdown due to a
construction zone, a lady behind him never slowed down, plowing into
the rear of his mc, ejecting and killing him and injuring 6 others.

Sad on any number of fronts... 20 year NAVY vet, due to retire this
summer from civilian service, wife left behind.

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/local/news-article.aspx?storyid 3620

The threads here mentioned folks never looking in the rear view
mirrors when stopped, instead resting feet on the ground just looking
around.

That's damn good adivce - look in the rearview mirrors as part of your
constant scanning whether you are moving or at a standstill. As they
teach in the MSF, keep it in gear and be ready to take off if you see
something coming.

That said, I have a problem with the small mirrors on bikes being able
to tell if a vehicle approaching from the rear is going to hit me.
It's hard to gauge their approach speed and distance. Any ideas you
guys can offer in that respect would be helpful to all of us.

Greg

 oasysco wrote:

Experience.  Yes, particularly when the MC mirrors are convex, vehicles
appear smaller, so they're harder to judge.  To get a feel for what the
mirrors are telling you, calibrate with a direct over-the-shoulder view.
  When you're in a situation that lets you do it safely, take a quick
look over your shoulder and compare it with what you're seeing in the
mirrors.  You'll soon have your eyeballs calibrated.
--
sjs

 
So, I have to be hit a few times before I get the hang of it? <g>


I do go over the shoulder (more to the side of the top of my shoulder)
and have nearly a 360 degree view around me using peripheral vision
and mirrors.

I'm afraid this problem is related to mirror distortion affecting
depth-perception, so I'll give your idea a shot and maybe my brain can
compensate.

Greg

 oasysco wrote:

Exactly, which is the reason you will want to build experience.

--
sjs

 
I was referring more to low light dusk/dawn/nighttime experiences than
daytime. Depth percpetion and low light/nighttime vision do not work
well together to judge headlights coming at you from behind in a
mirror. Experience might help and looking back, but that (lack of)
depth perception due to the mirror's distortion wreak havoc on my eyes
at night.

Greg