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Originally Posted by
Clyde1820
If the spot where the door opens is a legitimate lane, then 100% of the time it's the driver's failure to view oncoming traffic and yield.
That said, it's hard not to assume a solid (even majority) percentage of parked drivers are going to fail to even look. In that sense, a cyclist might well be grossly disregarding of the chances. But I wouldn't go so far as to suggest it's ever the cyclist's fault -- as the cause was disregard for oncoming traffic and failure to look, not the oncoming traffic itself.
JMO
That being said, I was taught how to drive a motor vehicle by a pair of exceptionally retentive defensive drivers. They were perfect as driving instructors. To this day, I still hear their little warning bells ringing in my head as situations arise. I almost always see something coming, imagine it could be worse, and thus avoid things that many would simply ride/drive right into.
Because I suspect every other moving or parked vehicle, every pedestrian, every dog on a leash ... everything that might be a risk, if the stars align.
One thing I try to do in tight spaces is: ride the bike in the vehicle lane, as just another vehicle on that road. Much safer. Where that's impossible, I generally slow my pace so that if a mindless parked driver does swing the door open without concern or looking, it's more likely I'll be able to brake or avoid the worst of it.
+100 to this attitude. I have similarly posted:
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
So often on these threads about calamities or near misses,
I post about my mindset that I believe gives me that extra edge
Originally Posted by
FBinNY
In all fairness, I don't think there's anyone who's been riding for a long time, who hasn't at some time (or many times) ridden in that zone where the only thing separating us from disaster is favorable alignment of the stars. (Note the "us" rather than "him")
We all take chances and make mistakes, but fortunately life is"organized" with plenty of forgiveness.
In my experience the difference between disaster and "whew, that was close" is millimeters and microseconds, and not anything we can take credit for.
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
I try to keep safe with certain aphorisms in my head that come to mind to alert me when I encounter a situation where unseen dangers may lurk, such as “
Like a weapon, assume every stopped car is loaded, with an occupant ready to exit from either side.” or“Don’t ride over an area (such as puddles or leaves) when you can’t see the road surface."
…I was hit from behind by a “distracted” (? inebriated) hit and run driver on an otherwise seemingly safe and peaceful route. By good fortune, I’m alive and relatively unimpaired.
Over the past few months I have come to realize that my safety aphorisms (link), collected over the years by personal or vicarious experience, are my way of actively aligning the stars in my favor, to anticipate those unseen and otherwise unanticipated dangers.
FWIW, for my own information at least, my other aphorisms beside those above [include]:- ...
- ...
- ...
- Jim’s Law of the Road: “No matter how well-paved and lightly traveled the Road, a vehicle is likely to pass on the left as you encounter an obstacle on the right.”…my argument to wear a rearview mirror.
Those are all I remember for now, and they all pop-up in my mind as I encounter the situation.
Last edited by Jim from Boston; 06-19-20 at 07:53 AM.