Don't Ride in the Middle to Left Side of the Lane
 

I'm sick of seeing weekend warriors on the roads I frequent doing 15mph tucked into their aerobars and staying a foot or two to the right of the double yellow on 55mph roads.

Stay to the right of the lane for your own safety and respect for other users of the roads -- cars, bikes, MCs, farm equipment, I don't care. If you are not the fastest vehicle on the road then move to the right. Hogging the lane to 'protect your right' may be legal, but it's just damn rude to vehicle traffic. A driver that gets stuck behind some asshat in the middle of the lane is going to remember that inconvenience for a long time. Move to the right so they can pass you safely with minimal intrusion into the other traffic lane.

Try to keep your view of the white line between your front wheel and shifter. If it's outside your shifter you are too far over.

Stay to the right. Even if the road is rough riding on the white line itself can be smoother than the middle of the lane.

I've never seen anyone riding in the middle of the road for no reason. I occasionally do for short periods if the lane is too narrow for someone to pass safely. This occurs on short wooden bridges, construction zones, narrow residential streets etc. We also ride two up on rural roads and cars have to pass in the other lane. They don't seem to mind.

+1

On lightly travel roads I ride down the middle of the lane. It make me a lot more conspicuous and the road is smoother with less debris. I move to the right if/when vehicles approach from the rear.

You are also from Ga, so given that I know what you deal with every time you ride. It doesn't matter WHERE you are on the road in many places in Ga there is going to be some asshat come along and cuss, beep, throw something, smoke you out, air horn (etc). Case in point. Riding down a completely deserted, straight stretch of country road with visibility for a quarter mile both ways. Some jerkoff comes down the road blaring the horn and squealing brakes and flipping my riding partner and I off as he passes as if we were the biggest inconvenience this fellow had yet come across in his driving career. Completely out of pure spite cause there was certainly no other reason for it.

Often times in busy areas I will see people do exactly what you are describing in order to avoid getting buzzed by drivers who are not aware, or don't care that cyclists have a right to the road. In the end, it might have taken 60 seconds out of your day to give the other cyclist some room and get around safely. I certainly don't see a point in harboring that anger and allowing it to pay rent in your head over something that as a cyclist you should be able to easily understand.

I ride at least 2-3 ft off the left to give me room to swerve over for cars that pass too close and debris on the side of the road.

i prefer not to.

It's MY lane. I ride where *I* think it is safest to do so.

If that is on the left hand side, then I will be there.

If it is dead centre in the lane - not uncommon on roads with broken pavement - then that is where I will be.

If I am in the centre of the lane and a car comes up behind me, I will move left as soon as it is safely practicable for *ME*. Your impatience does not trump my safety.

DG

I don't believe I made you my boss.

I'm with this guy, I see too many people riding in the middle of the lane going 15mph, it's annoys me and it annoys drivers even more. And these are the same people that get angry when someone honks or yells at them, what do you expect when you are blocking the whole lane going 15mph on a 30mph+ road?? I don't have a problem with riding on the edge of the road, why do you guys have to take the lane? I hate all the "it's our right to take the lane" c**p, your rights are not going to help you if you get hit by a car and get killed.

I think the point of most folks argument is the fact that in a situation where you take the lane you force the driver to pass only when safe to do so, like they should. When you ride to the far side of a lane the apparent path is to pass whether there is actually room or not like many drivers do when you leave lane.

Yep... me staying alive trumps anyone else's convenience. The only exception is an emergency vehicle with lights and sirens, in which case I will get as far over as humanly possible even if it means stopping completely but even then staying alive takes priority.

Off to the correct forum.

Thank You for not stinking up Trollhiem!

Man, that opinion is really gonna fly in the good 'ol A&S.

Nope. Not even close.

If you really want to be a safe and courteous rider you will share the lane when it is wide enough and other conditions are appropriate and take it when sharing is unsafe. You will show your choice -- share or take -- by your position.

Riders who follow your unwise advice will find themselves sharing lanes that are not wide enough for safe sharing.

When I do take the lane, it's either the right tire track or dead center. I stay clear of the left side unless I'm making a left turn, then it's only a short distance from the intersection, since a few motorists seem to "mysteriously" drift over closely to or drive on the center line.

Let me tell you what happened to me yesterday. On a 2 laner when 2 cars coming from the opposite direction decided to pass a slower one. Neither one got around the slower one before we all merged. Luckily, I had some shoulder and was inside the white line as far as I could go. Had I been out there close to the yellow(because it was my right) my kids would be fatherless today on Father's Day! As it was, I just saw my life pass before my eyes! I'm ordering another front blinkie light as I type.

If you'd been IN the lane and visible, the car wouldn't have been there to squeeze you off the road.

If I'm on a steep climb approaching a blind hill or corner I'll take the whole lane @ 8mph on a 35 mph road. Keeps cars from bouncing into me after they get into a head-on collision with a UPS truck. YMMV.

I usually try to stick to roads with really big shoulders or bikelanes for the most part, however.

I agree that you should take the lane when needed and share when safe, but I think the OP is referring to those who are only trying to make a point and take the lane just because they can when they really don't need to for safety. To my understanding,in most states that is illegal, as slow moving vehicles must stay as far right as practicable (yes, I fully understand what that means).Riding center or left only because you want to will encourage some drivers to make you move, and will create a bad impression when they encounter other riders.

Which brings up something I was thinking about yesterday. How come bicycles are not required to carry some type of slow moving vehicle symbol like tractors, construction equipment, etc. (I'm asking because I don't know the answer)

Riding the white line is suicide. I will take the best position in the lane in accordance with my safety as dictated by the circumstances. Your opinion on the matter is irrelevant. That is all.

No, in this particular case the front vehicle did not have the horsepower to make a quick pass. They were moving slightly uphill(me going down) I was doing about 25mph. It took him about 5 seconds to even get in front of the car he was overtaking. I was shouting "come on, come on, faster, faster get around him! GEEEETTTTT OOOVEEER!"

Or it would have rammed him at 50mph.