Video: tailgating a tipper truck at 40mph

This guy tailgated for 310km (averaging 70 kmh) from Riga to Tallinn.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jckZW6NOWSo

P.S. Bike was modified and truck was in on it... and there was support car.

A wartime measure for heavy goods vehicles was to restrict the speed to comply with fuel rationing and economy, no speed cameras then. The engines were fitted with a govener to limit fuel and they were registered for an appropriate speed badge, 20 or 30 mph. In the early fifties this still applied.
This was great for young and foolish teenage cyclists,(I was one) and faced with a gale force wind riding fixed gear from Lancaster to Preston on the A6 it was a no brainer for me at the time to take advantage of a lift. At 76 I could have done with one of these in last nights ten mile time trial, but then again I would not have been able to avoid the pot holes.

Is it illegal? I don't think so... So I can't really condemn it, even if it is daft. The first word that came to mind was 'Darwin'... If he takes himself out that's his problem.

Darwin Award waiting to happen.

The "outraged" type comments kind of make me chuckle, I wonder how many of them / you enjoy the scene from "Breaking Away" when the main character is doing just this...

Like a fucking boss.

If it had gone wrong he'd only have himself to blame. To clarify this for the wailing banshees of moronity getting their knickers twisted, this would not be the same as getting hit by a truck from behind or a truck turning left. Not even close to being the same. You're not even comparing apples and oranges, you're comparing apples and pan-galactic gargleblasters.

It obviously dangerous and irresponsible to do this drafting behind a lorry like this.
That's why many of us won't admit to doing this on many occasion sometimes at much much faster speeds.

Still think riding through red lights is much more dangerous
If you ride through red lights as a cyclist please stop doing it, it is dangerous and sets a very bad example.

Dumb Ways to Die Number 37.

actually doing this is no where near as dangerous as it looks

I love the hyperconcentration bubble you need to be in to do this- you have to zone out everything except your distance from the back of the lorry and the sound of it's engine and brakes.
The violent buffeting when you get out of the dead spot immediately behind the vehicle is more than a bit scary, though.

Buses are better than lorries- you can hear the engine better when it slows down and they obligingly stop at bus stops to let you get off. But they really don't like you to be there. Can't say I blame them.

Sometimes I've found a driver who will have some fun himself by towing me- I've had Harley riders out for a spin who are chilled enough to oblige.

More concerned with the Public safety matter that someone still thinks its acceptable to listen to Roxette.

I don't see what's wrong with this, there are so many reasons that drafting something large and fast is preferable to sitting in the gutter doing 23mph, with cars whizzing past your elbow, that I can't be bothered to list them.

Obviously the main disadvantage is that you can't be holier-than-thou on a cycling forum, which I think for some people is more important than getting some miles in.

"what sort of example does this set for younger cyclist 's"

I used to draft the school bus regularly as a teen on my MTB, brilliant fun. Didn't need any encouragement from seeing others do it in traffic, I knew about drafting from watching the TDF : )

Massive fun, one of my best rides home from work involved drafting a tractor up and down hills for several miles on a country road - cheers tractor man!

As for this guy in the vid, ok maybe he is taking a risk but then throughout life everyone takes risks on a daily basis. How much of a risk is it? Not much from my view, appreciate he may be doing 40mph without much braking space but lorries aren't exactly known for rapid stopping powers, so I can see no reason why he couldn't stop in time if he needed to.

Good work that man!

regularly draft tractors and mopeds, not big not clever, but beats dealing with a headwind all the time!

Drafting a truck on the way to work makes for a great ride in. Always fun to see the people riding on the left look up in surprise as you flash past.

This hardly ever happens since congestion in London is so bad, but on the rare occasions the road is free why not give it a try.

By the way you don't have to be as close as that, 10-15m will still give you a decent draft and not as scary.

I drop off the back if they go over 30 mph, I don't want to be smeared down the road if I hit a pothole.

A Pan Galactic GargleBlaster is a drink (from the book, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy)

"Its effects are similar to having your brains smashed in by a slice of lemon wrapped round a large gold brick" (apparently)

"After two of those babies, the dullest, most by-the-book Vogon will be up on the bar in stilettos, yodeling mountain shanties and swearing he's the king of the Gray Binding Fiefdoms of Saxaquine"

Wise advise is to, "never drink more than two Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters unless you are a thirty ton mega elephant with bronchial pneumonia"

God I love those books! They were a four part trilogy of books (apparently)
Or was a trilogy in four parts? I cannot remember....

And absolutely f. all to do with this story.....

This is not the first one of these videos I've seen: a Dutch cyclist drafting at 85kph! http://youtu.be/lnYp4srEooI

Another at 49mph: http://youtu.be/bTLrp0JgZt0

I regularly used to draft buses around London but they started putting the exhaust at the back rather than on the side so its really not pleasant to do any more.

Back in the 60s, a clubmate of mine got behind a truck on the A38 in Staffordshire. Bowling along happily at about 35mph, the lorry passed over a fallen kipper box without touching it. Roger did not!

idiotic irresponsible and dangerous, reverse the situation and how many would be whining about being tailgated by the truck?
And I believe the government made tailgating illegal recently along with middle lane hoggers too so hes probably also breaking the law..

When I was young a man committed suicide under a lorry my father was driving, it was a simple size of lorry. I remember vividly how my father described the police hosing the road and putting the victims body parts into a bucket

Hope he was honest on Strava! All done it, dangerous, yes, fun yes, life without any risk...boring! Also if he hits the truck, it is his fault! Better than being targeted by looney 'I pay road tax' (actually my new car is exempt, do I need to get it crushed now?) drivers!!

I think the rule 'anyone can do anything they want, as long as it does not adversely affect someone else' applies.

What few have grasped here is the impact on the driver if it goes wrong.. and if nothing else it's pretty rude if you haven't got permission beforehand, it would stress out many a driver I imagine.

By condemning this behaviour I realise I'll get branded as a 'hysterical wailing moronic banshee with my knickers in a twist' by some, (probably by the same people who themselves wail hysterically about the daily injustices visited upon them by dangerous motorists!)

But so be it - I'd rather be alive.

PS I have learned from experience how little time you have to react when a lorry you are drafting suddenly brakes - this is the main reason why I wouldn't do it again after I almost went under. The new Michelin pro3's I flat spotted probably saved me, TBH.

Mad bloody tipper drivers. Likely to brake hard for no reason.

Bloody irresponsible of some people!

Did he not know that using a mobile phone while driving is illegal.

Was on a club run back in the eighties and had just got my first Avocet computer. I got in behind an artic at the top of a long smooth dual carriageway descent; hit 67mph.
I was seventeen at the time. Foolish, irresponsible, dangerous, a twat! Yes.
One of the scariest, enjoyable, intense, visceral, memorable moments of my life; absolutely!
I doubt there are very few on here who haven't ever done this.

Bloody idiot what on earth does he think he is doing having fun on a bike! To make matters worse his bike isn't steel and there no brooks saddle!! He needs to understand that cycling is serious stuff!

Imagine thinking personal autonomy still exists in this day and age I mean the days of John Stuart Mill and all that liberty crap are well gone

Mill states that it is acceptable to harm oneself as long the person doing so is not harming others. He also argues that individuals should be prevented from doing lasting, serious harm to themselves or their property by the harm principle. Because no one exists in isolation, harm done to oneself may also harm others, and destroying property deprives the community as well as oneself.Mill excuses those who are "incapable of self-government" from this principle, such as young children or those living in "backward states of society".

Good for him! We used to be a country of great adventurers, people pushing themselves to their limits, going above and beyond. Now we are a country whose favourite occupation is putting ourselves (usually others) down. Lets all mind our own business and get on with enjoying our own lives. Just because you couldn't countenance drafting a moving vehicle doesn't mean its wrong. Spending long hours on a computer getting high blood pressure worrying about everybody else's business is probably more dangerous..... just saying. Oh, and if you ever see me doing anything you think I shouldn't, please don't worry about me 'cos I certainly won't be worrying about you!

Roads are not the right place to behave in such a reckless and selfish manner, go to a racetrack or a velodrome or take part in an organised event if you want to 'prove' yourself, but putting others at risk for your own ends is immoral and illegal.