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Top 6 points on the Harties rider crash

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<b>RIDERS COLLIDE HARTBEESPOORT:</b> A screenshot from a video posted to YouTube shows one rider lying on the ground moments before being joined by two others following a collision near Hartbeespoort. <i>Image: YouTube</i>
<b>RIDERS COLLIDE HARTBEESPOORT:</b> A screenshot from a video posted to YouTube shows one rider lying on the ground moments before being joined by two others following a collision near Hartbeespoort. <i>Image: YouTube</i>
harties crash biker
CAPE TOWN - On Wednesday (July 30), Wheels24 showed a video of three bikers who collided with a car near Hartbeespoort in North West province. Our readers' response has been amazing...

Wheels24 reader ROBERT CHANDLER shares his views on the incident:

I would like to throw my opinion out there regarding the incident. I am an avid biker with 39 years riding experience with many of them being in some or other metro or municipal police force on fast response bikes.

I have trained advanced riders in high speed, emergency response and pursuit riding techniques over the years so I feel I can add a little to the debate.

'IT WAS AVOIDABLE'

I can only comment on the first two bikers as I could not find any footage of the third biker involved.

So here goes:

Firstly, the Merc driver is 100% at fault. Secondly, to answer News24's question – 'Could the bikers have avoided the collision' – Yes.

In my opinion, biker one made a few riding errors that robbed him of the essential clear space needed to provide him with sufficient time to take necessary evasive action.

VIDEO: 1 Harties crash, 3 bikers down
 
My observation as follows:
1 Approaching the intersection – he maintained sufficient space behind the vehicle in front however  as he became closer  to the congested intersection he elected to reduce the following distance between himself and the vehicle in front.
2 His riding position on the road was incorrect. He was way too close to the centre line thereby reducing his view of what was happening in front and thereby cutting down his reaction time.
3 On entering the intersection he correctly reduced speed however not enough as he closed- up his following distance.
4 He unwisely started to accelerate before he had cleared the congested intersection further reducing his following distance and view. At this time his position on the road was ill advised as he was far too close to the centre line.
5 No evasive action was taken i.e. a swerving to the left.
6 An instinctive grab of the front brake and disengaging of the clutch resulted in the front wheel slipping out from under him more the five metres before the impact with the Merc. Note he was on the ground before the impact.

My opinion – this was avoidable if the biker one had complied with the basic safety rules such as
1 Ride on the safest position on the road
2 Maintain sufficient clear space and following distance
3 Never accelerate out of a congested intersection
3 Be attentive at all times.
4 Scan the road and look ahead. This guy was looking no further then the rear of the car in front of him.
5 Disengaging of the clutch and instinctive grab at the front brake indicate a need for refresher training in emergency avoidance techniques. This was an avoidable collision.

My opinion on Biker two:
1 Approaching the intersection he is riding directly in line with the front biker. We all know this is wrong as bikers following one another should ride in a staggered formation.
2 His following distance was poor and too close.
3 Before riding directly into his friend and the Merc there was no discernible evidence of any reaction from him. There was no deviation from his straight line, no noticeable reduction of speed.  
4 Taking the time frame from this video’s clock, biker two had at least four seconds to take avoiding action. Biker one dropped his front wheel at 0:26, biker two impacted at 0:30. Where were his head and eyes, in a dark hole? He attempted no avoiding action.

Summary: Both bikers could have avoided this collision if they:
1 Maintained clear space
2 Selected the correct position on the road
3 Were attentive – their reactions or lack thereof support this statement
4 Were trained to perform a basic collision avoidance technique i.e. emergency swerve to the left. The Merc came to a stop after hitting the motor vehicle in front and there was more than enough space to the bikers left to carry out this maneuver safely.

Do you agree/disagree with Robert Chandler’s views? Email us and we’ll publish your views on Wheels24

Click here to read more readers' responses!

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