Video: when little old ladies attack

By

ka-pow

There you are, minding your own business, not even speeding. Then, all of a sudden, nature’s deadliest predator, the little old lady, sorry-didn’t-sees-you. This is why motorcycles are dangerous.

Thanks for the tip, everyone.

  • tomwito

    Ugh.

    • tomwito

      The sound of the bike being destroyed is horrible.

  • jwinter

    On the bright side, he will have no insurance troubles with that evidence.
    We really are a nation of shitty drivers.

  • Michael

    Wow. I got seriously pissed at her just sitting here. I hope she lost her permit.

  • http://www.brammofan.com Brammofan

    Guess I wasn’t the only one that sent this in. Damn, I hate to be lumped.
    That said, here’s the first thing that sprang to mind after seeing this video: Why did he have his camera running during what looked like an ordinary city ride?

    • http://hellforleathermagazine.com Wes Siler

      Ha, we’ve got nice readers. Appreciate it nonetheless.

      In the comments of the original video (which has now been removed), the guy said he wore the camera just in case something like this happened.

    • 2ndderivative

      I have a rear-facing GoPro going most days I commute.

  • http://www.ninja250blog.com R.Sallee

    A better title for this video: The Case for Lane Splitting

    • http://hellforleathermagazine.com Wes Siler

      I thought about doing that, then decided not to just because everyone would have gotten their butts sore about it.

      • Matt the sperglord

        Just out of curiosity, who here is actually opposed to lane splitting?

        • Mr.Paynter

          And why?

          • http://www.ninja250blog.com R.Sallee

            ‘Cause they’re frightened and don’t like people “cutting” in front of them.

        • http://www.ninja250blog.com R.Sallee

          Old women and macho men in big trucks.

  • ike6116

    Wow, maybe it’s just me transferring my own feelings but his silence and walking away says everything to me, it’s all he can do to not pummel that lady

    • Ducky

      I think it was more like shock and “fuck, what just happened”ness, and perhaps some pain too

      • Core

        I’d say so… I’d be glad to be alive, pissed off, and hoping I still had all limbs attached.. Notice how he staggered into the right lane and didn’t get hit by anything.. guess the people in the right lane were paying more attention or something..

  • http://worldof2.com/ jpenney

    The video is no longer embeddable.

    That crap is so scary. I’m always on edge at stop lights for that exact situation. R.Sallee is right about splitting/filtering. This wouldn’t have happened had the rider been able to filter up between the cars.

    Responsible splitting and filtering should be one of the top concerns of bike advocacy groups.

  • Jason

    This is more or less what happened to me at a dead stop on my beater GS500.
    Hopefully this fella lives in a state where the PIP coverage isn’t garbage (read: not New Jersey) and can get his hospital checkup covered without paying anything out of pocket.
    Dude is lucky though, that could’ve been way worse.

  • http://www.footshifted.com Footshifted

    Very lucky dude to walk away from that

  • stempere

    As pointed out by one of the commentors on a re-upload on youtube, the lady seems to be pocketing her phone in her pants as she walks towards the biker.
    There should be some sort of retribution law that give him the right to do to her car what she did to his bike. Using her head to do so would be a nice bonus.

    • Eben

      Actually, I think she’s unbuckling her seatbelt.

      • stempere

        I meant once she’s out of her car, her right hand goes to her left side, it could also be her car key…
        Anyway, sad story for the bike, but at least he seams to be unharmed.

  • Gregory

    Wow.

    Wow oh wow.

    And that grandma was so calm. “Are you ok? Are you ok,” she asks, as his bike lies in a pile of blue plastic, rubber and metal. The ~crunch~ sound is sickening. His silence is suppressed fury. He knows he escaped possible-serious-injury. She has no idea.

    I like the idea of having a continually-on video camera. Replace your records, say, weekly. Keep it in a hard drive at home. Little effort. Low cost. And when the time arrives, either catching an awesome sweeper corner or catching just such a crash, it’ll be useful to have video footage of the event.

    -gregory
    2008 KLR 650 w. milkcrate

    • stempere

      Riding in paris everyday i toyed with the idea myself but “little effort” isn’t exactly right, you have to empty your memory cards on a regular basis, keep the battery charged, mount it on and off your helmet and start and stop the recording every time you use your bike…
      I guess the perfect solution would be something similar to your cops car’s camera, recording as soon as you start the bike, powered by it and storing on SD card you can take out easily (not under your seat) but my guess is a setup like that would be quite expensive…

  • Kirill

    I don’t think granny saw the big green SUV either and would have plowed straight into it if the bike hadn’t been there

  • Frosty_spl

    I would have punched her in the mouth. Or at least call her the “C” word.

    • Myles

      Definitely C word material.

      Rider in the Vid was wearing Sidi Blades? Looks like it, those are awesome boots.

  • http://overshadowed.com/ overunder

    This is one of my deepest fear of urban riding. And I’m in LA where I can split and filter. Man that’s scary.

    • seanslides

      Split and filter man. Your only fear should be the skinny lanes on the 110, 101 and 405.

  • rustycb450

    Been there. Done that. Almost the same deal, 50-60 year old lady in a minivan. We were on a rural two lane road, posted 55mph, guy in front of me making a left. I stopped behind him and next thing I know I hear screeching tires.

    Thank God I was stopped in the left side of the lane and she swerved to shoulder and just clipped the right side of my CB450. Lost my right turn signal and bent up my exhaust, but I was able to walk/drive away. Crazy women.

    I can understand how she didn’t see me, but what about the damn car that was stopped in front of me. While waiting for the cops, I made sure to say, “thanks for not killing me today, my 4 month old son thanks you too”. That got her crying good. I was really hoping that it would emotionally scare her so maybe she’ll pay attention next time.

  • ontheroad

    He lucked out on that one… +1 for the lane-splitting comment. Wes: I don’t know why readers would be butt-hurt about it, pretty cut and dry that it would have saved this guy’s ass. Are there actually riders out there who oppose sensible lane-splitting?

    The enraged silence is classic. I’m surprised no one has mentioned his ninja-like exit from the bike, looks like he bounces off the car in front of him right onto his feet. Good form.

  • http://www.thisblueheaven.com Mark D

    Yikes. Its scary how a tap from a car that would be a small dent in a bumper completely destroys a bike.

    • Jeff

      Or worse a body. 8 years ago my silver sv650 and I had an unsolicited love tap with the front of a Ford expedition in a similar situation, except that driver was going about 50mph and claims to not have seen the line of cars stopped in the left lane waiting for someone a few cars ahead to turn left. Guy tried to drive around/away after sending me flying, but his front was a nice v shape from my bike/body and leaking fluids. Various L1-4 fractures in the back, busted hip, messed up ankle, and being concious as a black Audi A4 swerves around your helmeted head on the ground, while being unable to move serve as memories. Was able to get back on a bike 2 years later after a lot of pt/rehab. Still ride today, got a little pimp in my walk. Thank god for being alive, fully geared up, & Astar back protectors.

      This video gave me a sick feeling and I thought long & hard about watching it. As it played I thought about the bikers that I met during my recovery that are in permanent care due to their injuries. My journey, the pain, the helplessness of lying on the pavement….I am so glad that it turned out seemingly good for this guy, but all too mindful of those that didn’t have as good a fortune as we did.

      Do I lane split today, yes. Am I paranoid that it will happen again. Yes, because while that was the worst hit of my biking history, it wasn’t the first and it wont be the last based on the stats of how much I ride. Only thing I can say is at least none of them were my fault. :shrugs

      Keep the shiny side up.

  • Dave H

    I don’t know what I would have done in that situation. If there’s one thing that scares me about riding, it’s pulling up to a light and being rear ended by the perpetually oblivious. It’s exactly why I usually park my front tire next to the back tire of the car in front of me at a light. After my first six months of riding daily, I began just assuming that everyone around me on the road is a complete and total idiot. It’s worked well so far.

    That guy’s landing was completely ninja. And keeping his mouth shut and walking away from that lady was easily the smartest thing to do in that situation.

    • ursus

      +1 on keeping his mouth shut. Jacked on adrenaline, who is prepared to be their own physician and enter something like “yes” into the record of what happened. Incidentally, if you have to call the police or ambulance yourself and they ask if anyone is hurt, make sure they know where the accident is, hang up, and let them do their job and show up.

    • jwinter

      Assuming everyone else on the road to be an idiot is not just pragmatic, it’s pretty damn accurate.

    • Mr.Paynter

      My first bike, my mother’s boyfriend at the time and the first biker I ever really hung out with said:

      Ride like everyone else is actively trying to kill you!

      It works.

  • ike6116

    “This is why video cameras should be banned.”

    Oh wait wrong article.

  • http://www.firstgenerationmotors.blogspot.com Emmet

    Take a look back and make sure the person behind you slows? I’d pull out my MSF book if I didn’t have a night class to get to.

    Damn that’s scary. I need to get some fluorescent tape for the back of my black Icon Strongarm jacket.

    • http://www.postpixel.com.au mugget

      But then what use is it if you see the person coming for you and you still have nowhere to go?

      Best practice – always have an escape route.

  • Kentaro

    Thank God it was just his bike that got crushed.

  • Core

    “I’m so sorry…” DERP DERP DERP… YEAH YOU COULDN’T SEE THE GIANT BLUE THING IN FRONT OF YOU!… Ack…

    This is the only thing that really scares me about getting a bike. I can dodge em if I can see em, but if they pull a sneak attack like this shit…

  • Scott

    First thing I do EVERY time I come to a stop in the city is check the mirror. This is exactly why. You have to count on the stupidity of everyone else.

  • Archer

    Hmmm… California plates. Was this in Cali? So why no lane splitting?

    • Mr.Paynter

      Some guys are just not confident splitting?

  • Skank NYCF

    Damn old people really give the sportbike community a bad name and they cause insurance rate hikes. Shes lucky she didnt kill a poor soccer mom and all them kids. Damn reckless old bitch. Take it to the track and get your ass handed to you by a real racer!

  • Jeremy

    What about a brake light that blinks when the bike isn’t moving? Sort of like the F1 cars do when it’s rainy. Must improve visibility somewhat.