Lane question

Two lanes going one direction.

Two lanes going the other direction.

Grass median in between.

I'm riding in the right of two lanes going the same direction.

I've found that when I ride on the right side of the right lane, cars
will occasionally fly by me, essentially in the right lane. They swerve
just a bit over into the left lane, but most of the
car/tires/mirror/etc. is in the right lane.

Remember, this is two lanes going the SAME direction, so they're not
having to cross into oncoming traffic.

Now...

If I'm riding over to the LEFT of the RIGHT LANE... (Hope that makes
sense.)

Cars don't really have the option of 'straight lining it.'

They HAVE to move entirely to the left lane to get around me. Also,
there's not enough room in the RIGHT lane for them to get around me to
the right. I seem to OWN the right lane. It's mine and I can do
whatever I want with it. There's is the left lane...


On top of all this, I'm 6' 5", and I wear BRIGHT RED jerseys. There's
very little chance of them not seeing me.


My question:

When you're riding in the right lane of two, which side of that lane do
you ride on and why?

Thoughts/suggestions/life_saving_tips?


TIA,

-Bianchi Bob

In article ,
Hell and High Water writes:
Two lanes going one direction.

Two lanes going the other direction.

Grass median in between.

I'm riding in the right of two lanes going the same direction.

I've found that when I ride on the right side of the right lane, cars
will occasionally fly by me, essentially in the right lane. They swerve
just a bit over into the left lane, but most of the
car/tires/mirror/etc. is in the right lane.

Remember, this is two lanes going the SAME direction, so they're not
having to cross into oncoming traffic.

Now...

If I'm riding over to the LEFT of the RIGHT LANE... (Hope that makes
sense.)

Cars don't really have the option of 'straight lining it.'

They HAVE to move entirely to the left lane to get around me. Also,
there's not enough room in the RIGHT lane for them to get around me to
the right. I seem to OWN the right lane. It's mine and I can do
whatever I want with it. There's is the left lane...


On top of all this, I'm 6' 5", and I wear BRIGHT RED jerseys. There's
very little chance of them not seeing me.


My question:

When you're riding in the right lane of two, which side of that lane do
you ride on and why?

Thoughts/suggestions/life_saving_tips?

There's a sweet spot to be in, where cars will pass
you with enough clearance, and without their having
to move entirely into the next lane over. If you're
too far to the left of the right lane, chances are
you'll get some knuckleheads trying to pass you on
the right. Maybe try riding just to the left of
the right tire mark on the pavement (between the
tire mark and the oily strip down the middle.) Or
you might not even have to move that far to the left
to keep the cars from buzzing you.

Your description of the street greatly reminds me
of Vancouver's King Edward Boulevard. The grassy
median fools some drivers into thinking the two
lanes on one side are 2-way, so they end up driving
the wrong way.

Watch out for cars pulling utility trailers with
stuff hanging over the side.


cheers,
Tom
--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

On Wed, 5 Oct 2005 09:42:22 -0500, Hell and High Water
wrote:

Two lanes going one direction.

Two lanes going the other direction.

Grass median in between.

I'm riding in the right of two lanes going the same direction.

I've found that when I ride on the right side of the right lane, cars
will occasionally fly by me, essentially in the right lane. They swerve
just a bit over into the left lane, but most of the
car/tires/mirror/etc. is in the right lane.

Remember, this is two lanes going the SAME direction, so they're not
having to cross into oncoming traffic.

Now...

If I'm riding over to the LEFT of the RIGHT LANE... (Hope that makes
sense.)

Cars don't really have the option of 'straight lining it.'

They HAVE to move entirely to the left lane to get around me. Also,
there's not enough room in the RIGHT lane for them to get around me to
the right. I seem to OWN the right lane. It's mine and I can do
whatever I want with it. There's is the left lane...


On top of all this, I'm 6' 5", and I wear BRIGHT RED jerseys. There's
very little chance of them not seeing me.


My question:

When you're riding in the right lane of two, which side of that lane do
you ride on and why?

Thoughts/suggestions/life_saving_tips?


TIA,

-Bianchi Bob

Bad idea.

1. drivers may try and squeeze between you and the curb, especially if
they're planning to turn right and the right hand turn lane is coming up
and you're riding a bit slow.
2. abusive drivers may actually try and buzz you to your right, and with a
clear line of sight out the driver's window, can 'near miss' by an inch or
less.
3. inattentive drivers in the left (passing) lane may drift over the line
to their right and hit you by accident.

Best, imo, to ride in the right (slow) lane in the right-most tire track. A
driver will normally leave about 3-4 feet on their passenger side to pass
you and if there isn't quite three feet, will move over almost completely
into the left (passing) lane anyway.

jj

On Wed, 5 Oct 2005 08:14:19 -0700, (Tom Keats)
wrote:

When you're riding in the right lane of two, which side of that lane do
you ride on and why?

Thoughts/suggestions/life_saving_tips?

There's a sweet spot to be in, where cars will pass
you with enough clearance, and without their having
to move entirely into the next lane over. If you're
too far to the left of the right lane, chances are
you'll get some knuckleheads trying to pass you on
the right

Yeah, the more I think about it, you're actually begging someone to try and
squeeze by on the right, maybe partly on the berm.

Parenthetically, I've been finding that young females are more, and more
showing up as the most aggressive drivers on my rides. It seems they are
not the smiling passive persons you see walking around once they get behind
the wheel. It's somewhat puzzling. It seems to be 'why are you playing in
MY road on a toy when you should be at work' or something like that. heh.

jj

"Tom Keats" wrote in message
...
In article ,

There's a sweet spot to be in, where cars will pass
you with enough clearance, and without their having
to move entirely into the next lane over.

I agree for most cases. But there is always the odd instance of someone who
crowds you no matter how ideally you are located.

Hell and High Water wrote:

Two lanes going one direction.

Two lanes going the other direction.

Grass median in between.

I'm riding in the right of two lanes going the same direction.

I've found that when I ride on the right side of the right lane, cars
will occasionally fly by me, essentially in the right lane. They swerve
just a bit over into the left lane, but most of the
car/tires/mirror/etc. is in the right lane.

Remember, this is two lanes going the SAME direction, so they're not
having to cross into oncoming traffic.

Now...

If I'm riding over to the LEFT of the RIGHT LANE... (Hope that makes
sense.)

Cars don't really have the option of 'straight lining it.'

They HAVE to move entirely to the left lane to get around me. Also,
there's not enough room in the RIGHT lane for them to get around me to
the right. I seem to OWN the right lane. It's mine and I can do
whatever I want with it. There's is the left lane...


On top of all this, I'm 6' 5", and I wear BRIGHT RED jerseys. There's
very little chance of them not seeing me.


My question:

When you're riding in the right lane of two, which side of that lane do
you ride on and why?

Thoughts/suggestions/life_saving_tips?


TIA,

-Bianchi Bob



Bob,

I ride on the left side of the lane in such a situation all the time.
The only "problem" is the occassional person who will honk at me and
tell me I'm supposed to be over to the right. If I ride on the right
side of the lane, I use a lot more of it than most bicyclists, who
typically ride right on the edge. By riding further out, I become a
moving impediment, and motorists generally slow down and move over. Like
you said though, it is inevitable that some jerk will pass too close and
too fast.

Act like a vehicle operator and get treated like one.

Wayne

Hell and High Water wrote:
Two lanes going one direction.

Two lanes going the other direction.

Grass median in between.

I'm riding in the right of two lanes going the same direction.

I've found that when I ride on the right side of the right lane, cars
will occasionally fly by me, essentially in the right lane. They swerve
just a bit over into the left lane, but most of the
car/tires/mirror/etc. is in the right lane.

Remember, this is two lanes going the SAME direction, so they're not
having to cross into oncoming traffic.

Now...

If I'm riding over to the LEFT of the RIGHT LANE... (Hope that makes
sense.)

Cars don't really have the option of 'straight lining it.'

They HAVE to move entirely to the left lane to get around me. Also,
there's not enough room in the RIGHT lane for them to get around me to
the right. I seem to OWN the right lane. It's mine and I can do
whatever I want with it. There's is the left lane...


On top of all this, I'm 6' 5", and I wear BRIGHT RED jerseys. There's
very little chance of them not seeing me.


My question:

When you're riding in the right lane of two, which side of that lane do
you ride on and why?

Thoughts/suggestions/life_saving_tips?


TIA,

-Bianchi Bob

All jurisdictions in which I've lived require cyclists to ride as close
to the curb as practical except when preparing for a left turn. The law
never seems to specify how close - it uses weasel words.

Here in Winnipeg, I generally ride about a metre out from the curb as
there is too much debris (sand, gravel, glass, litter) nearer the curb.
I find that taking a metre of the road usually forces drivers to pull
out properly to pass me.

Jeff

Hell and High Water wrote:

My question:

When you're riding in the right lane of two, which side of that lane do
you ride on and why?

Thoughts/suggestions/life_saving_tips?

It depends on the circumstances, as do most things.

If there is a paved shoulder that's obstruction-free, I will often ride
near its left edge or on the line.

If there is no shoulder I will generally take the lane, unless there is
really heavy traffic. How much of the lane I take depends on how fast I
am going; I generally move right if it's a climb and my speed falls
below 10mph or so.

If there is really heavy traffic all trying to go 60mph and there is no
shoulder, I will find another route. This is rarely necessary.

In all cases, I try to be mindful of what drivers will see and expect
under prevailing conditions, and attempt to avoid being a sudden
surprise to them.

RichC

On Wed, 05 Oct 2005 15:52:19 GMT, Wayne Pein wrote:


When you're riding in the right lane of two, which side of that lane do
you ride on and why?

Thoughts/suggestions/life_saving_tips?


TIA,

-Bianchi Bob



Bob,

I ride on the left side of the lane in such a situation all the time.
The only "problem" is the occassional person who will honk at me and
tell me I'm supposed to be over to the right. If I ride on the right
side of the lane, I use a lot more of it than most bicyclists, who
typically ride right on the edge. By riding further out, I become a
moving impediment, and motorists generally slow down and move over. Like
you said though, it is inevitable that some jerk will pass too close and
too fast.

Act like a vehicle operator and get treated like one.

Wayne

That's cool, but have you ever had anyone buzz you, or pass you to the
right because of your left of center riding habit?

While it's important to take the lane, I just think it's a bad idea to give
them any chance to pass you on the right by being too far out into your
lane.

I'm somewhat anxious on a two lane each way road when I come up on a third
lane for right hand turns, knowing that some a-hole will no doubt try to go
by on my right somehow getting up to 45mph in a turn lane, just to make the
point that I'm 'in the way', even if they pass safely.

jj

On 10/5/05 9:42 AM, in article
, "Hell and High Water"
wrote:

Two lanes going one direction.

Two lanes going the other direction.

Grass median in between.

I'm riding in the right of two lanes going the same direction.

I've found that when I ride on the right side of the right lane, cars
will occasionally fly by me, essentially in the right lane. They swerve
just a bit over into the left lane, but most of the
car/tires/mirror/etc. is in the right lane.

Remember, this is two lanes going the SAME direction, so they're not
having to cross into oncoming traffic.

Now...

If I'm riding over to the LEFT of the RIGHT LANE... (Hope that makes
sense.)

Cars don't really have the option of 'straight lining it.'

They HAVE to move entirely to the left lane to get around me. Also,
there's not enough room in the RIGHT lane for them to get around me to
the right. I seem to OWN the right lane. It's mine and I can do
whatever I want with it. There's is the left lane...


On top of all this, I'm 6' 5", and I wear BRIGHT RED jerseys. There's
very little chance of them not seeing me.


My question:

When you're riding in the right lane of two, which side of that lane do
you ride on and why?

Thoughts/suggestions/life_saving_tips?


TIA,

-Bianchi Bob

A bad idea! Continue to assert what you believe is your equal right to the
road in this fashion and eventually one of the nut cases behind the wheel
out there is going to clip you. They will either pass too close on your
left or try to squeeze by on your right, specially if they are planning on
making a right turn.
Chuck