We’ve all done this at a moment in our lives: heading out on the open highway with buddies and twisting that throttle for dear life, whether to see whose bike is faster on that road or simply, how fast will the two-wheeler go. Aside from being flashed and getting a ticket for speeding (possibly losing your license and bike in certain places for doing 200 in a 50 zone), riding fast together with other fellows does come with increased risks.
That is, watching out for the others and constantly observing what’s happening around with the other bikes becomes just as important as riding itself. In fact, riding a group, even in a group of two bikes, means that riders have to adopt a completely different strategy because ahem… they’re not alone, if you will allow such a repetition.
What others are doing is just as important as what you are doing
The biggest thing when it comes to riding with others is that a rider must be able to react in due time to any changes in the group’s dynamics. Riding in a single file is of course the worst formation, and failing to follow the two-second rule is probably just as bad, arguably the biggest cause of crashes in such scenarios.
The Kawasaki rider obviously miscalculated his approaching speed and was completely oblivious to the very possibility that the bike in front of him slowed down a bit, for traffic or other reasons. I mean, when riding with another fellow behind you, one can presume that the guy in the back is smart enough as to watch your riding and make the necessary correction to his or her own speed and trajectory, right?
Now, this crash could have been easily avoided if the Ninja ZX-10R rider rode in a staggered formation, several feet off-axis in relation with the camera bike. With the bike in front of him inadvertently slowing down, all he needed to do was to swerve past the slower machine and watch out for what lay ahead. But he just made another choice…
Anyway, you can always check out this comprehensive guide on How to Ride in a Group and Why, if you want to be better prepared for safe outings with your buddies.
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