Riding on the interstate

My first time on the interstate. Would like any and all advice. My idea is to stay in the center lane.

Ride it as if driving in the car. Stay to the right, look in mirror and over left shoulder then signal and move to the left to pass, pass slower traffic, and look in mirror and over right shoulder then signal and move back to the right when clear. Keep up with the flow of traffic. Do not become a rolling road block. The rules of the road do not change with the absence of two wheels.

Now, if frightened of the traffic - that's another thing all together.

When you say "stay in the center lane" - do you mean center of the lane? Stay either in the center of the lane (you're in) or in the left hand wheel track. Protect you space, but do not get millitant about it. Arriving alive is more important than proving a point.

If by center lane you mean the middle of three lanes - traffic should not be forced to go around you on the left and right - you've just become a rolling road block. If you can keep up with the flow of traffic and just want to ride in that lane I guess that's your choice...

Agreed.

Our instructors tell us to 'dominate' our position on the road/in a lane - we have as much right to be there as anyone else.

In the UK it is normal for a biker to ride on the Right of Centre of the lane (in other words, not near the kerb/edge of the road) to prevent anyone attempting to squeeze past in our lane. (In the UK, vehicle drive on the Left)

From what Dale says about following the Left-Hand wheel track, the same applies in the States.

The Silverwing has Presence so can dominate!

Be positive - as we know, most road-users really don't want to knock us off and if we ride positively, they know what we're about. Dither and they will be forced sometimes to do things they'd rather not do because they've got to do something!

swing one wrote:

My first time on the interstate. Would like any and all advice. My idea is to stay in the center lane.

By "center lane" you mean the center of three or more lanes of traffic ... the big question would be what speed limit you will be driving.

If you are looking to minimize risk, then a couple of suggestions if you drive the speed limit then the right lane would be safest and watch your mirror (as Dale suggested). I watch my mirror closely and I can quickly gauge the driver approaching me on my left. If you find yourself in rush-hour traffic, just realize that tempers and "stupid maneuvers" increase. During busy/rush hour traffic it would not be unusual for someone to decide quickly that the want to mover over to "faster" lanes sometimes without really looking, signals or warning (unless you watch the car closely yourself).

So if you are going to be in the "faster" lanes you have to be very prepared for "stupid maneuvers" because in their mind they are more important than you are. I have also noticed that the "stupid maneuvers" increase tremendously on rush-hour, increases Friday afternoons and holidays.

If you drive the speed limit and drive the "slower" lane (right in the US) in busy/rush hour traffic you do not find people making as many stupid moves unless you are near an exit to get off and they suddenly need to exit (unplanned) or unless you have drivers trying to do an all lane weaving trying to pass everyone - which you can see in your review mirrors if you watch them.

If the interstate is not busy, do not get complacent ... keep watching your mirrors.

Stay behind slower vehicles

All excellent advice. I try to stay out of drivers blind spot as much as possible. Sometimes this is not possible because they are blind to everything except the phone they are texting on.

Thank you all for your replys to my question. I am really excited about this trip. I am going from DE to Mass.

Enjoy the trip. If there are other questions, do not hesitate to ask.

swing one wrote:

I am going from DE to Mass.

Are you traveling through New York City or going around??

wear a yellow or orangevest 15 dollars from walmart and shift from left to right track and back every once in a while, run high beams

What I find stressful on the interstates is trying to find a comfortable riding speed without sitting behind a truck. I find that I either have to fly down the interstate, passing all the trucks or I get stuck looking at the back of one. And since they are moving at 70+ or 75+ in order to pass them, I am flying at speeds I'd rather not maintain. What do others do? thanks dan

The freeways where built for safety:

Everyone going the same direction

Traffic merges into the flow at highway speed

there are very nice emergency lanes and further grassed egress

rest stops

good maintenance ( generally)

and it cuts your time exposure in half over surface streets over the long trip

I feel safer on the freeway then surface streets where people can pull out in front of you.

Mike (papa johns) is absolutely correct in his statements above. As much disdain as I have for the interstates and divided multi-lane highways in general, they are much safer than 2 lane country roads. They are great for point A to point B movement, and occasionally they even provide a view.

Travelling on them does require a good bit of situational awareness. Driving defensively and watching and thinking ahead for possible traffic quagmires is just part of the game when riding along on them.

I tend to ride at the speed limit and find that I don't have to worry about following trucks, they can't seem to go that slow. Either my speedometer is off a lot further than I thought or 70mph that I read on the signs actually means 95mph. As much as I prefer riding the 2 lane roads I feel safer riding the interstate.
Craig

A few things to consider about usage of your mirrors and others mirrors.

1. As stated above by Dale, check your mirrors and look over the shoulder to be sure the lane you are attempting to merge into is clear.

2. Part of my rationale for which part of the lane that I am going to ride depends on who is near me and if they can see me.
A. Never ride in someone's blind spot. Either accelerate past them or ease off until you're behind them and in their mirror. ASSUME that they cannot see you and that they will merge over into your lane. If traffic is thick and bumper to bumper and you must ride beside someone, just make sure you are at least even with the driver's window so that you are in plain view to the driver.

B. I try to make sure that my bike is positioned in a lane so that whoever is in front of me or to my side can see my bike in their mirror. For example, if I pull out to the left to pass a vehicle in the hammer lane, I will ride to the right side of the hammer lane closer to the car I'm attempting to pass just to make sure that he can see me in his mirror. I also try to pass him quickly and not dilly dally about it. People can quickly forget that your there. Even so..... be alert and ready to shift left quickly in case they are so distracted and don't check their mirrors. The good thing is, you usually know whether or not they see you so this always helps me to determine how cautious to be when passing someone. I can always see their eyes in the reflection of their driver side mirror. After a while, you will develop a pretty good sense of whether or not someone sees you and this will help you to react with good judgement.

C. If I don't have to worry about passing cars then I generally try to ride the middle of my lane but I will slide to the left or right to try to increase my prescence as necessary when cars are passing me so that they are not encouraged to merge over into me.

I don't know if I agree or disagree with interstates being safer or not. I do know that often times, more people seem to be more stressed and in more of a hurry on the interstates. This is especially true in metro areas and moreso during rush hours. I don't like riding through Asheville or Knoxville as much as I would on the open sections of the interstate in the country. Plus with cars getting on and off from the left and the right and cars crossing lanes trying to get off to the left or the right you just really need to be situationally aware and savvy to all that is going on around you.

With all of this said, I do prefer to ride through the mountains and swing my Swing in the curves as far as the enjoyment factor goes. But from time to time, using the interstates has its purpose and can be done safely as long as you develop good riding skills and situational awareness.

I have absloutely no idea about Driving- and Riding-Tests in other counties but in the UK the adage was 'Mirror, Signal, Manoeuvre'.

For bikes one has to do 'Life-Savers', a glance over the shoulder, at least when moving off. If you don't, you fail!

It becomes a (good) deeply-ingrained habit, so much so that I'm still occasionally looking over the 'wrong' shoulder, having moved from riding-on-the-left to riding-on-the-right - I even do it in the car.

As for Blind Spots, some trucks and buses have a notice on the back which says 'If you can't see my mirrors, I can't see you'.
I try to keep that in mind even if there isn't a sign.