Gotta' agree there, if you're hit from behind the bike is going forward no matter what you do with the gas or brake...
Hurts to think about it....
I do flick the brake light on and off when I see a car coming up behind me, seems like it might help.  Leaving a little space in front seems a good idea too.

also...if you're gonna' try to squirt forward out of the way, I think it would be best to angle right......right would get you off the road or at least in the same general direction of cross traffic...

(instinct makes you go left,..ever try to do a right-handed dounut?..we always try to lay down a bike on the left) strange but true...

probably coundn't think fast enough anyway...

This is a long-standing issue. Way back in the '60s I was stationed in England. When a new driver took their licence test (car) they were required, at every stop light, to put the car in neutral, release the clutch, and set the hand brake. The logic: If bumped, the foot comes off the clutch, and if the car is in gear it rolls under power and at least momentarily not under control. I don't know how they handled automatic transmissions, as there were virtually none there.

Just this month I was reading an article on motorcycle training in England (Motorcycle Consumer News August 2008), said to be considerably better than the MSF. At stops, motorcyclists are expected to sit, motorcycle in neutral, clutch released, right foot on ground and left foot in position to shift into First, holding the bike in position with the front brake. Again no mention made of automatic machines, such as modern scooters and most mopeds.

I have done the thing both ways, in cars and on motorcycles, and I cannot say which is "better". When I drove a semi I usually used the neutral and clutch released technique, partly because of the stiff clutch springs and partly to give "red-light runners" a little more time to be clear before I started the truck moving. To the best of my knowledge there have been no controlled studies, and I suspect it would be exceedingly difficult to design one that didn't get anyone hurt.

daweise1 wrote on 07/23/08 at 07:50:26:


I've got about 10,000 miles in this year so far - about average for me, I've been commuting since 2004 and after initial bike set up and break in, I've never adjusted a clutch cable.

Got behind a Hardley yesterday while driving my wifes car. Guy put it in nuetral at the red light. When the light changed, 2 or 3 cars to my right went through the light before I did because he was having to put his Hardley in first. I'm going to keep leaving it in first at lights.

I've never had a problem with shifting into first at a stop except when I was new and occasionally when it buggers up and it wont engage.  To make the timing easier, I watch for the yellow light for the opposite direction if I'm close enough or wait until the light turns green when I'm behind other cars.  Plenty of time to shift.  

This Harley rider must have had either a very very very heavy bike or half a brain.  If you're trying to beat traffic, you can keep your left appendages on the bike.  Shifting should only take the 1/4 of a second that you need to pull the clutch and stomp.

Taking what Ive heard about being able to escape and understanding the virtue in that, I just check my mirrors every few seconds.  If a car is coming from behind, I shift into first until the car is no longer behind me or is stopped.  Otherwise, it stays in neutral.  On longer rides, I like to take little on-the-bike stretch break so I'm not holding the same position the entire ride.  The Savage is also low enough that I can stand full up and keep the bike up with my legs so I can try to shake the monkey butt.

And Bill is right, in a way.  You wont necessarily move backwards relative to the ground, but your bike will move forwards faster than you.  Since your body isn't strapped to the bike, it's a separate system and has its own inertia.  The bike will move forward but you will stay in position until something moves you forward (back of the seat, seat friction, handlebar grip).  What bill is saying is that as the bike moves forward under you and you try to prevent yourself from ending up on the pavement, your arms will suddenly go taut and your hands will come into full contact with the grips, likely pulling your hands off the levers and rotating the throttle.

Thats why the MSF stresses that you keep your wrist in a lowered position.  If you're at the top of the throttle, you can twist it open as you try to hang on.

justin_o_guy2 wrote on 07/24/08 at 03:47:57:

Robertomoe is right, and has a good point. As far as sitting at low rpm, the Savage is going to have as much or more torque as any MC. If you don't have control of the MC - or have it pointed where you want to go, start rolling on the throttle, and then pop the clutch you are going to get undesired results. It's just good practice to keep your wrist "low" - wrapped around the throttle, so if you pull straight back, you roll off rather than on the throttle.

SimonTuffGuy wrote on 07/21/08 at 11:48:25:


...and able to thump another day.