From: bushnell@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com (William D. Bushnell)
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles,rec.motorcycles,rec.bicycles.soc,ba.motorcycles
Subject: Motorcyclist Hits Bicyclist on Skyline Blvd. (10/4/92, 1:30p)
Date: 6 Oct 92 03:35:13 GMT
Followup-To: rec.bicycles.soc,rec.motorcycles,ba.motorcycles
Organization: Lockheed Missiles and Space Co.


On a club (bicycle) ride I took yesterday up in the Santa Cruz Mountains in the
San Francisco Bay Area, I witnessed a motorcycle/bicycle incident, the
circumstances of which have been weighing rather heavily on me.  I'd like to
share what I saw with both bicyclers and motorcyclers in the hope that we can
better understand the problems we face on the roadway.

We had just ridden up Alpine Rd. from the west and were resting in front of the
stop sign at Alpine Rd. and Skyline Blvd at about 1:25p.  After a few minutes
we heard a large group of motorcyclists approaching from the south along
Skyline.  While one of my companions was talking to me, I turned and watched a
group of some 20 motorcyclists slowly (i.e. within the speed limit) ride by two
abreast in the lane.  Many but not all of them wore leather jackets emblazoned
with "Hell's Angels" on the back.

At the moment there happened to be a bicyclist riding slowly northbound on
Skyline just north of the intersection.  I could not tell how close to the edge
of the pavement he was, but I do know that there is no shoulder on this segment
of roadway, so he was probably about a foot from the white line inside the
lane.

As the group of motorcyclists approached (two abreast) the first motorcyclist
on the right who was wearing a red and white leather suit and riding a white
motorcycle, suddenly swerved to the left at the last instant and appeared with
a grand gesture to slice very close to the bicyclist.  Since the motorcyclists
were riding close together all two abreast, the motorcyclist following
immediately behind on the right side of the lane had even less time to move
out of the way.  By the time the fourth motorcyclist swerved to avoid the
bicyclist, the fourth motorcyclist was too close to avoid a collision with
the bicyclist.

What I saw was the the bicycle suddenly fly out from under its rider, launch
some 5 to 6 feet in the air, and land just off the roadway some 20 feet down
the road.  Meanwhile the bicyclist (in clipless pedals, unfortunately) was
hurled with a whiplash-inducing jerk off the rear of his bike while still
moving forward at about 8-10 mph and off the road onto the shoulder and
finally into the embankment.  He was on his feet, but his ankle or leg was
injured.  Once the group of motorcyclists saw what had happened, some of them
stopped to render aid.  After a few minutes, a couple of the motorcyclists
carried the injured bicyclist and his bike with a pretzeled rear wheel to a van
waiting near the the hot dog stand on the opposite side of the road.  The van
looked like it might have been associated with the group of motorcyclists.

Those of us on the bicycle ride talked about what we might do if anything.  Did
any of us have a cellular phone?  One of my riding friends always carries a
cellular phone.  Too bad the sheriff parked at the corner of Page Mill and
Skyline drove off two minutes before the incident.  It was decided that since I
had witnessed the entire proceeding, I should at least give my name and number
to the bicyclist should he wish to contact me later.  Unfortunately, I don't
remember seeing license plate numbers, and it's hard to identify any of the
motorcyclists since they were all helmeted and wearing similar-looking
clothing.

I walked over to the bicyclist who was now sitting in the van.  The driver was
going to take him to the emergency room.  I asked him if he was O.K.  He was
a young fellow about 20 years old maybe.  He said his leg was bruised, but when
he showed me his left leg, there was a great swelling on the outside of his
leg just above his ankle.  If he was in pain, he was hiding it pretty well.  I
gave him my name and phone numbers should he wish to contact me in connection
with the incident.  He asked if I saw which motorcyclist hit him, and I said I
wouldn't be able to identify the motorcyclist as they all looked the same to
me.  Unfortunately, none of the other club bicyclists had actually seen the
incident.

----------------------

I returned to my waiting companions as the van left and the motorcyclists
continued on their way.  Our ride was to continue south on Skyline to Hwy 9,
and we joked about maybe avoiding the busy roadway.  Nevertheless, we pressed
on.  At the top of the first significant upgrade between Page Mill Rd. and
Hwy 9, a group of three motorcyclists came zooming by.  The lead motorcyclist
dressed in a red and white leather suit riding a white motorcycle was holding
his leg out to the right, bringing his foot to within a foot or two of us.

"Did you see that?  What was he trying to do!?", I exclaimed to Bryan who was
riding in front of me.

"Oh, he's probably just trying to point us out to the guys following him.",
Bryan said.  "I wouldn't worry about that."

----------------------

First, since the motorcyclist who hit the bicyclist did not identify himself,
this is a case of hit and run.  Since the bicyclist was riding lawfully and
did not swerve or make any other sudden motion in the direction of passing
traffic, the motorcyclist is clearly at fault.

Second, whether or not the motorcyclist identifies himself, the participants in
the collision must by law file a police report since there was an injury.
Also, did I goof?  Should I have spoken with the police independent of the
participants?

Why didn't the first motorcyclist passing the bicyclist pass more gradually to
give time for his fellow riders to react accordingly?  Why the sudden slice?  I
would like to think that the incident I witnessed was just an accident and that
there was no malice on the part of one or more motorcyclists.

Is there a campaign of harassment of bicyclists by motorcyclists going on?  Or
are there just a few disgruntled renegade motorcyclists out there giving the
law-abiding motorcyclists a bad image?

What is this with the leg out to the right when passing?  Is this really a
sign to following motorcyclists, or was the lead rider trying to harass us?

Except for those with overly noisy exhaust systems, I'm usually not bothered by
motorcycles.  Since they're narrower than autos, there's usually enough room
for a motorcycle to pass a bicycle safely.

In this case, and as far as I know, the bicyclist sustained only moderate
injuries, and his bike suffered at least a busted rear wheel.  But it could
have been worse.

----------------------

As I said at the top, I'm interested in starting a _reasoned_ discussion aimed
at clearing up misunderstandings that motorcyclists and bicyclists have with
respect to each other.  Please do not start a flame war or rekindle the last
one that died off a few months ago.  I would especially like to hear from
motorcyclists who may have witnessed the aforementioned incident.  Also, since
this article has been crossposted, please note the followup groups in the
header of your reply.

Bicyclists and motorcyclists are on the road for many of the same reasons.
Why we should antagonize each other?

-- 
bushnell@lmsc.lockheed.com	(Bill Bushnell)
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles