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+--- Thread: A Lesson In Attentiveness (/showthread.php?tid=811)
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A Lesson In Attentiveness - emptysea - 08-20-2020
On my commute today (which is really more of a short ride than it is an actual commute), I was cut off by a guy in a red Cadillac who was talking on his phone. We both were stopped at a stoplight, he in the left lane and me a few cars back, but in the right line waiting to turn right. I was pretty irritated at his lack of attention to driving and was sort of glaring at him from a distance; not that he noticed since he was still on his call.
That's when I felt the bump from being struck from the rear by a young girl in a Kia Soul. Apparently, she was on her way to or from her physical therapist and was doing some stretches at the stoplight and didn't realize that she was rolling forward. The bump was about as forceful as when the CB1100 gets pushed of its center stand. No damage to the bike that I noticed and none to her car and no injuries and I remained upright throughout. She was very upset and apologetic and she reminded me of my daughter. She looked so panicked that I felt my job at that point was to calm her down. I told her that I was fine, explained that we should exchange information in case some damage shows up later, and told her that there was no need to contact the police or her insurance company at this time (that last piece of advice may not be valid in other states or in more serious accidents). The bike seems fine, but I'm having it in for an oil change and whatever service is slated for 36,000 miles so I'll have them look it over.
I find irony in the fact that, had I not been distracted by the guy on the phone, I would have seen the girl doing her in-car stretches and pulled forward out of harm's way. If the guy with the Cadillac had been more attentive, he would not have cut me off. If I had been more attentive, I'd have been watching my mirrors instead of the guy in the Cadillac. If the girl in the Kia had been more attentive, she'd have not allowed her car to roll forward into my bike.
If any good came of this incident, it would be that I believe that 2 of the 3 people that contributed have learned lessons:
Kia Girl: Pay attention to your surroundings, even when stopped at a stoplight.
CB1100 Guy: Lesson #1 - Pay attention. Lesson #2 - Don't let the idiots out there make you forget Lesson #1.
RE: A Lesson In Attentiveness - Cormanus - 08-20-2020
Nicely told MTC. Lessons worth learning. Is there a lesson about people who drive Cadillacs? I wouldn’t know. We don’t have hem here.
I saw with interest that our police are trialing cameras that can detect mobile phone use by drivers.
RE: A Lesson In Attentiveness - emptysea - 08-20-2020
No lesson about people who drive Cadillacs, but there is one other lesson I learned...when you tell your wife that you were glaring at the guy for talking on his phone while driving, expect her to respond "I've told you a million times that you are not a policeman so stop calling out other drivers for their traffic violations". If you have a loving wife like I do, this response will be preceded by "Glad you're OK".
RE: A Lesson In Attentiveness - the Ferret - 08-20-2020
Dang, what a conundrum. Looking ahead at an idiot and getting smacked from behind by one. Glad you are ok Sea.
RE: A Lesson In Attentiveness - Cormanus - 08-20-2020
You are, indeed, blessed, MTC. I apologize for forgetting to say I’m pleased you’re OK. I’m also impressed you managed to comfort Kia Girl. Finally, I might just correct the one little typo that escaped your eagle eye.
Edit: you got there before me!
RE: A Lesson In Attentiveness - emptysea - 08-20-2020
I almost always type "policy" when I mean to type "police". Probably 40 years of working in insurance.
RE: A Lesson In Attentiveness - Cormanus - 08-20-2020
A Lesson In Attentiveness - PowerDubs_imp - 08-20-2020
Ugh.
Better than me. I would have ripped into her.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
RE: A Lesson In Attentiveness - Bheezy27403_imp - 08-20-2020
We know.
RE: A Lesson In Attentiveness - Gone in 60 - 08-20-2020
Empty, first of all, glad you weren't injured, and sounds like your bike is OK. That was very nice of you to comfort the girl in the Kia, rather than getting upset with her. And a very good opportunity to look at the situation as a whole, and recognize that by focusing on one thing, your attention was taken away from something else which was more critical at the moment, watching your mirrors at an intersection.
I was ruminating on this not too long ago, when a post came up on ADVRider about how many times you've ever dropped a bike while stopped. I've done it a few times, and listing them, I realized each incident was the result of paying more attention to something else than the procedure of stopping, parking, and getting off of a bike.