Late Overtake

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
mummra

mummra

Über Member
Location
Leek
Coming down Porthill Bank in Newcastle-under-Lyme (SV Link) and I took Primary ready for a Zebra crossing with an island. Was building up speed to to around 25mph.
First car overtook. no problem with that.

The second one left it a touch late as far as I'm concerned and had to cut in front of me to make it through the crossing.
Sometimes taking primary just doesn't stop planks overtaking.

Video

Audio deleted due to my foul & abusive language :whistle:
 
B

BentMikey

Rider of Seolferwulf
Location
South London
Yes, primary won't stop the most determined overtakers, but at least then you have space to brake and duck left if you choose to. That overtake was a touch late, but they can get much later and closer than that. Sometimes sticking your right arm out horizontally can dissuade the more determined drivers in this situation, just realise that within moments you're going to want your hand back on the bars and brakes.
 
D

Deleted member 1258

Guest
BentMikey said:
Yes, primary won't stop the most determined overtakers, but at least then you have space to brake and duck left if you choose to. That overtake was a touch late, but they can get much later and closer than that. Sometimes sticking your right arm out horizontally can dissuade the more determined drivers in this situation, just realise that within moments you're going to want your hand back on the bars and brakes.
Click to expand...


+1, a tad late but not the worst I've come across, as BentMikey said a right turn signal just as you start to pull into primary can discourage an overtake.
 
B

BentMikey

Rider of Seolferwulf
Location
South London
Also, assuming that's a headcam, more looking back at the driver might also help. bbborp's channel shows some super flexibility and excellent looks back on some of his videos.
 
Moodyman

Moodyman

Legendary Member
Wasn't ideal, but they can be lot worse than that. Get into a habit of looking over your shoulder before every traffic island, side roads and anytime you're braking in busy traffic.

Shoulder checks are great for being aware of your surroundings, but even better for alerting drivers behind to be careful.

When changing lanes, I often find I don't need to hand signal as drivers behind stay back when I do shoulder checks.
 
OP
OP
mummra

mummra

Über Member
Location
Leek
dave r said:
+1, a tad late but not the worst I've come across, as BentMikey said a right turn signal just as you start to pull into primary can discourage an overtake.
Click to expand...

I'd took primary coming off the roundabout at the top of the road.
Was in Primary for a good 10 - 15 seconds prior to the red car's overtake.

BentMikey said:
Also, assuming that's a headcam, more looking back at the driver might also help. bbborp's channel shows some super flexibility and excellent looks back on some of his videos.
Click to expand...

Yup I agree but I'm not sure what looking at the driver would have done.
They were going round me whatever I did.
 
N

Norm

Guest
mummra said:
Was in Primary for a good 10 - 15 seconds prior to the red car's overtake.
Click to expand...
IMO, that's the problem.

There was no obvious reason to take primary when the video started, it just appears from that 15 second clip that you ride in the middle of the road so cars will still go round you.

The car was fully past you before the zig-zags, so I wouldn't even consider that to be a late overtake.
 
OP
OP
mummra

mummra

Über Member
Location
Leek
Norm said:
IMO, that's the problem.

There was no obvious reason to take primary when the video started, it just appears from that 15 second clip that you ride in the middle of the road so cars will still go round you.

The car was fully past you before the zig-zags, so I wouldn't even consider that to be a late overtake.
Click to expand...

I've been advised previously to take Primary early so I've start to do that and now you're telling me I should take it later.
IMO it's easier and safer for me to go Primary straight after the roundabout than to pull into a queue of traffic so that's what I'll keep doing there. I doing about 20 MPH coming off the roundabout so no slower that a car at that point although they can accelerate much quicker I do end up around 30mph + going down the hill.

The car had to pull in right across me across the zig-zags, watch the vid again they clearly hadn't finished the overtake before the Zig-zags, not by much but but I think it was on the verge of dangerous.
 
MrHappyCyclist

MrHappyCyclist

Riding the Devil's HIghway
Location
Bolton, England
Whether mummra should or shouldn't have been in primary position, or how soon he should have taken the lane, is irrelevant. The fact is that the car passed too close and cut in too soon. The fact that the driver disagrees with the road positioning of the cyclist is absolutely no excuse for making a dangerous manoeuvre.
 
N

Norm

Guest
The danger with using primary as the default is that you may appear to drivers to just be cycling in the middle of the road, so they overtake you. Remember that these are motorists who will probably have little grasp of what you are doing, if someone follows you for 5 seconds, that could be a long time in their little world so taking primary early becomes meaningless to the driver, although it does, of course, allow you the room to move over if you see them coming.

If you take primary when there is a visible obstruction coming up, then there is an outside chance that a following driver will give it some thought before pushing through.

I get nervous when reading stuff like "I've been advised", as there should be no blanket advice. Unless the advice was about that specific road and in those specific conditions, then you need to adapt it. The slope would be a factor but you've also got the third lane down the middle which means that primary becomes less relevant.

As for the zig-zags, I said that they were past you before the zig-zags, not that the overtake was complete. Not that it is relevant anyway, I still wouldn't consider it to be a late overtake.

As ever with these discussions, that's all based on the video. I don't know the road, the surroundings, the angles of the slopes and, of course, personal assessments. I don't profess to tell others what to do, just what I'd probably do in the same situation.
 
gbs

gbs

Guru
Location
Fulham
Down here in the SE roads are busier and I think the "offence" of which you complain would probably pass unremarked. It did not appear to me that you lacked room to manoeuvre.

I think taking primary before there is an apparent need/restriction point might induce a resentful reaction along the lines of - "bl***y cyclist in the middle of the road". Let me be clear, I am not criticising yr position; it was correct but in today's impatient world perhaps over-anticipated.
 
gaz

gaz

Cycle Camera TV
Location
South Croydon
gbs said:
Down here in the SE roads are busier and I think the "offence" of which you complain would probably pass unremarked. It did not appear to me that you lacked room to manoeuvre.
Click to expand...

We may be used to it, but that does not mean it is alright.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom