VegasTriker

I was riding my recumbent trike in my own neighborhood when I came to a side street with a car stopped at the stop sign I was just about to cross in front of the car when I realized the driver could not see anything coming from my direction because her dog was between her and the open window. If I couldn't see her it was likely she couldn't see me either. I stopped and yelled about getting the damn dog out of her window so she could see to drive. I only rode past after I was sure she knew I was coming.

raria

Do you think riding a trike is more dangerous than a two wheel bike? I could imagine the sight lines in many cars is bad.

Cyclist0108

If you could see her, why do you think she couldn't see you?

Dogs like to put their heads out the window. They perceive the world primarily though their sense of smell, so driving along with your head out the window is probably the doggie equivalent to an acid trip.

eja_ bottecchia

79pmooney

The OP wrote "... If I couldn't see her it was likely she couldn't see me either. ..." Where do you and eja_bottechia get that the OP could see the driver? (Just askin'. I wasn't there.)

Ben

Cyclist0108

Well, somehow he figured out it was a woman. (I'm willing to bet he wouldn't have been yelling at some huge guy with a red MAGA hat).

Cyclist0108

Sounds like the closest a dog will ever get to going to a Grateful Dead concert.

Daniel4

Cyclists and good drivers should also look out for this kind of thing. If you can't see the driver's face directly or in any of the mirrors, he or she can't see you either. And that would be true for large trucks and busses. I wouldn't have yelled, but honked with my loudest bicycle horn.

KraneXL

Do you know what the # 1 excuse by motorist is after an auto/cyclist accident?

eja_ bottecchia

Flip Flop Rider

thats funny

VegasTriker

I could see that it was a woman when I passed in front of the car and could see the driver. To the question about a trike being more dangerous than a regular bike, this is one that is often asked by someone who has not ridden one. The trike is 7 feet long from tip to tail and my head is just about 36" above the pavement. I was also using a very visible flag, not the one that you buy at your local bike shop. I was dressed in bright red sweatpants and orange and brown sweatshirt so clothing should also be visible. It is just that the dog took up the entire space where the driver should have had a clear view.

I have had just one accident in over 40K miles on recumbent trikes. It had to have been an impaired driver. It was a 35 mph zone on a street with 4 regular lanes and a turn lane. Sunday morning at about 11 am in bright sunlight. It is a marked bike route and the road is straight with nothing to block line-of-site. The driver came straight up the right lane and clipped the handlebars on the trike. I lost my mirror and safety light but otherwise neither I nor the trike was damaged.

MikeyMK

My recumbent trike is invisible to motorists. I've only ridden it on my own street and neither a neighbour reversing off their drive, nor a car at the T-junction, gave way to me as they should.

From a distance I recon they think i'm a child in a go-kart, and once near enough i'm under their window line.

The start of the nearest MUP is off the next street from mine. On my bikes I use the pavement in this bike-fiendly town, wherever there isn't an MUP, but the trike is not so easy to negotiate the kerb and it's relatively crashy over bumpy stuff.

eja_ bottecchia

BobbyG

AirZound Airhorn. Coupla friendly toots, crisis averted (dog possibly agitated).

KraneXL

You answered your own question: The excuse is "I didn't see him."

MikeyMK

Mine's electric so I can fit a car horn, as I have to my e-bike. Perhaps it'd have been useful for the driveway incident (I sat there by her car with my arms crossed, waiting for the penny to drop when she saw me halfway off the drive) but, as with the bike, incidents like the T-junction would be too late.

I generally don't find horns useful for their purpose, on any vehicle - usually the first thing you do is avoid the accident first, and the horn then only becomes useful for releasing a signal of disapproval... which isn't helpful or constructive.

Clyde1820

I've often seen dogs in between people and the steering wheels and/or windows. Can block the view, and can also block the driver's ability to effectively steer the vehicle. It's one of the warning signs I try to watch out for. Like inattentiveness, failure to make eye contact, anger (judgment impairment), weaving/wandering, etc.

Unsafe.

BobbyG

...but more socially benign than cursing.

Rootman

It happens, what I hate is dogs barking at me when they pass. A few weeks ago someone passed, too close, it was at a slow speed and she was passing in an intersection too I may add. Would have been fine except for the German shepherd type dog half out the window that was inches from my face snapping and barking as he went by.

KraneXL

That was peculiar. Horns are warning devices before the fact -- in coordination with your accident avoidance. They're useless afterwards.

MikeyMK

Contrary to what a horn should or shouldn't be, the issue is in the resource available - if someone pulls put on me, I'm on the brakes. And if i'm on the brakes, where's the horn..? Its near my thumb but it's still not easily attainable whilst i'm busy trying to avoid getting killed.

I didn't see that this needed expansion, but as I'm here, the motorists here should be aware that motorcyclists have the same problem, which is why videos of motorcycle near misses and accidents feature very little in the way of horn accoustics.

Rollfast

Just stay back from that car.

How hard is that?

I got my doctorate from a Crackerjack box before they took the surprise out, but hey.

Rollfast

guess it's back to Foo...

tsheeran

While everyone understands that dogs like to put their heads out of a vehicle's window, it should be illegal for this to occur in the front driver or front passenger windows. We wouldn't allow children to sit on laps even though they perceive the world through an intimate connection with their parents.