Bonneville America Forums Forums Off Topic Discussion Forums Lounge Why We Are Invisible

According to a British scientist/researcher the reason cars/trucks pull out in front of us on our motorcycles is because people forget that they have seen us due to short term memory. They (and we are all guilty of this) see something but forget what we have seen and proceed ahead in our vehicle because we have forgotten that a few seconds ago we saw a motorcycle coming down the road. Our peripheral vision for most people cannot pick up a small object or a slow moving object so it does not exist and therefore its ok to proceed.

The researcher said the best thing is to promote the idea "see a bike, say bike" and the mind will remember there is a bike coming down the road. This could be a great safety strategy for motorcyclists and bicyclists to promote and may save lives or injuries. .

The other thing is that car drivers simply aren't expecting to see bikes.
Also, most bikes will ride at, or just above the speed limit. People can’t judge the speed of something so small when viewed from the front.
Don’t forget the obvious, a lot of car drivers complete tools !

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The theory of structural determinism* also accounts for it.
Information is only processed in ways in which the organism is capable of doing. The Volvo drivers brain is not configured to 'see' the motorcycle.



*Umberto Maturnana....a Chilean biologist did some pioneering work on the neural ganglia of pigeons. The theory derives from this work.

Another theory is that many drivers simply don't see us as a threat. Thirty some years ago the California Highway Patrol was riding big Kawasakis (think CHIPS) A motorcycle magazine took identical bikes, one sporting CHP colors and another in bright red, and took them out on the streets. The red one was cut off and otherwise "disrespected," while the CHP looking bike was treated much better. Not scientific but still very interesting.

I'd agree...years back I rode BMWs....when I rode the white one drivers were more considerate and kept to the speed limits.
When I rode the green one, no effect.
Our police over here rode white BMWs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x94PGgYKHQ0&feature=youtu.be

Video put out by Fortnine a major parts supplier here in Canada.

He made a point that is often overlooked. I try to never maintain a constant relative bearing to a car or truck. I want to be moving around their horizontal axis. If I'm constantly at his three o'clock I start to be invisible. I also assume I'm invisible anywhere behind the 3:30 to 8:30 relative bearings. I always want to be moving within their sight lines so I don't get ignored. It also gives me an excuse to pass them. I love the pathetic horn his bike had. Why manufacturers put those on our bikes escapes me. A good loud horn (Stebel for me) and lots of lights.

Yep, the idea that the smaller the oncoming vehicle is, the less threat to one's continual existence (life) if things go wrong and there's contact made with it, has always been what I have believed lies closest to the crux of this sort of thing.

It's almost a "primordial" phenomenon and how early humans might have thought that the larger the animal they'd encounter in their daily travels would represent more of a threat to their lives than would a smaller animal, and thus then the tendency to discount or even ignore the smaller creature's presence.

(...nope, and also not "scientific" either perhaps, BUT this has been MY "theory" on this matter for some time now)

Heck, we don’t ride bikes, be they powered or not. We play in traffic. Get used to it. Tragic as it is...what with cell phones in play, who actually looks out the windshield anymore, more often then what, every thirty seconds?

Reminds me of a time a neighbor kid gave me a ride to school on a rainy day with his mother driving. She pulled out in front of a VW and he said "Mom, you just cut someone off!" She said, "Oh, I can't see those small cars." If she couldn't see it, how did she know it was small?
People see stuff, but they reject the images that they don't want to see. So, if you were riding down the street and someone doesn't want to see motorcycles, they won't see you. On the other hand, if your bike had a weird paint job and you were dressed strangely, their first reaction would be, "Look at that idiot!" and, having admitted that they saw you, they would have to retain the image.

We have a law here in Ontario that saws your driving lights must be on during the day, makes a car more visible. I missed seeing a car with NY plates on a merge because although I saw the Jeep I did not recognized it as a threat. I am glad they have brakes and gave me a liberal use of their horn although that was rather illogical as they had already avoided the accident. I guess that makes them feel better.

Nobody who drives a Land Rover would ever recognise a Jeep as a threat.

Funny you should say that...I have a 2000 RR 4.6 HSE (P38A) & a 2019 Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk Elite...

Squirrels built a nest in the dashboard of my buddies Jeep Commander they didn't see it as a threat.

When he took it to his garage to find out why it was running so funny the mama squirrel attacked the mechanic. They did so much damage to the wiring it was a write off.

Whilst in the UK we just train the squirrels to knit us some new wiring whilst theyre in there.