In the past we've run videos on road.cc that indicate that Russia isn't exactly the safest place to ride a bicycle. We're saddened to tell you that this video round-up isn't going to change any conclusions you've reached from those videos.
The first video on the list features a Russian cyclist riding on what seems to be a fast-moving arterial road. Following that fairly brutal collision is a slightly more light-hearted video in which a llama interrupts a bike race (we're sorry about the soundtrack).
Later we've got an inspiring documentary about a fella who started training for a ride in Corsica days after completing chemotherapy for cancer; a quick video about Thailand's underground bike revolution; a clip about how great cycling is in Bristol; prolific YouTuber CycleGaz getting a cheer from some pedestrians; and a fairly 'revolutionary' floating bicycle.
Cyclist hit by lorry
Cycling in Russia is no walk in the park. This fella takes a pretty big hit from a passing HGV, and neither he, nor his bike, escape unscathed.
The rider supposedly came away with only a fractured femur and a load of unsalvagable bike bits.
Llama interrupts bike race
We've had cyclist-on-kangaroo incidents, cyclist-on-deer incidents, and we nearly had a cyclist-on-llama incident to show you. Fortunately for these riders, nobody hit the llama, who, if we're honest, looks like he just wants to join in.
No Plan B: from cancer to Corsica
Meet Justin McLean. In September 2013 Justin was diagnosed with an aggressive form of bowel cancer. In response to completing the long, tortuous chemotherapy treatment, Justin and his friend Adam Davis devised a plan that would see him climbing the hills of Corsica mere months later.
This is his story.
Thailand's underground bicycle revolution
Riding a bike isn't as usual in Thailand as you might think. It's regarded as the poor person's mode of transport, but cycling in Thailand is going through something of a resurection.
This quick documentary explores how the young people of Thailand are bringing back the bike.
Bristol on two wheels
Bristol is one of Britain's cycling cities. This video explores a number of the reasons why so many people take to the streets by bike, and also why, despite the numerous hills, cycling in Bristol just makes sense.
Crowds cheer as cyclist shames bad driver
You might know CycleGaz already. He's a fairly notable action cam-wearing, YouTube video-publishing cyclist. What you might not know is that he's grown in reputation so much over the last couple of years, that he's even being recognised and lauded on the streets of London.
Don't believe us? Watch the video.
Floating bicycle
It's the technological advancement you've all been waiting for: the floating bicycle.
18 thoughts on “Video round-up: Cyclist almost killed by a lorry, a llama-interrupted race, and a floating bike”
It looks to me as if the
It looks to me as if the Russian cyclist didn’t look before starting to move across, admittedly he probably wasn’t expecting a lorry travelling at that speed to come from the exit slip road back on to the main carriageway……..but they are called lifesavers for a reason.
It would have been close
It would have been close either way, but I agree with you… they were riding confidently on a really busy road and then missed the real critical check before moving… like you say a lifesaver.
Love cyclegaz video !!
Love cyclegaz video !!
Agree that the cyclist didn’t
Agree that the cyclist didn’t look before pulling right in Russia. Assuming the guys behind know the planned route as well then I’d also expect a call from them? Eitherway, he should have checked!
That de Rosa Idol the guy with camera has a strange paint job?
That guy with the De Rosa
That guy with the De Rosa clearly was more concerned about his bike getting hit than his buddy getting squished while lying in the road.
The Russian lorry driver was
The Russian lorry driver was completely to blame. The cyclists were on the right of the lane in the correct position to carry on. Any vehicle further to the right would have been in the lane to go right so the undertake was completely foolhardy and illegal. You can see this by looking at the markings on the road.
It’s Russia, the markings are
It’s Russia, the markings are purely decorative.
I’m not sure that it is a
I’m not sure that it is a slip road. It’s more like a carriageway that peels off to go another direction. If you watch at the beginning of the video the cyclists move out to the middle lane which in fact is lane one of the road they want to continue on when the side swipe took place. It looks like a bike lane or a form of hard shoulder that they signal to get into after the chevrons. The lorry driver seems to have been caught out and pulled into their lane. I don’t think any of us would anticipate a vehicle coming up our inside when in lane 1. Watched this video last week and my stomach still went cold when I heard the cyclists moans when I watched again. Here’s hoping he heals up.
Russian Video.
Look carefully
Russian Video.
Look carefully (You might need to freeze frame!), it is not a slip-road but a lane expanding to two lanes to give back the lane lost at the junction. It is an out-and-out reckless and heedless undertake by the lorry driver.
The lead-rider would not be expecting the undertake and his hand-signal appears to be a group riding signal that he is moving to the right. There should be no vehicle coming up his inside and so whether he needs to perform a ‘lifesaver’ is debatable.
Suspicion and conjecture.
Lorry driver not paying attention, sees cyclists too late, can’t move out because of vehicles on his outside (or he can’t be sure) and goes for a gap that isn’t there.
Or.
Lorry driver thought it was his junction, went onto the slip, realised it was the wrong junction, panicked and swerved back onto the main carriageway without looking.
Illegal in Russia and everywhere else but you will see motorists doing this at every junction, on every major road all the time in every country in the world.
Well that’s my two theories.
levermonkey wrote:Russian
…both of which sound plausible. Either way, the cyclists should have all done a lifesaver.
Interesting comments. The
Interesting comments. The truck undertake is absolutely normal practice in Russia and while it was the drivers fault the cyclist should have been aware of that. Not sure it’s a good idea riding your bike on a motorway anyway! Surprised there’s hardly any bad language!
I assume Justin’s treatment
I assume Justin’s treatment didn’t involve surgery – I wasn’t allowed on my bike during chemo due to the risk of damage to my remaining colon. Got back on my bike as soon as I was allowed, result a huge abdominal hernia!
Chances are that all a
Chances are that all a lifesaver would have given him was the chance to go “Mother!” before he was struck.
The speed differential between the lorry and the cyclists is so large that a lifesaver may not have enabled him to see the lorry coming. A lifesaver tends to be ‘down’ to the rear with only about twenty feet being in your main field of vision (Peripheral vision will extend this range but not with as much clarity).
In the two scenarios I gave above: In the first the lorry would have been behind and to his left and so would have been invisible to a lifesaver; in the second the lorry would have been on the slip road leaving the main carriageway and so would not have registered as a threat.
In conclusion: In neither scenario would a lifesaver by the cyclist have prevented or mitigated the incident. The only thing that would have altered the outcome would have been the actions and decisions of the lorry driver.
I DO NOT dispute the value and importance of the lifesaver. It is a vital tool for the self-preservation of the cyclist. It is essential to know as much as possible about the space you are intending to move into. I am only pointing out that in this situation that whether a lifesaver was performed or not was irrelevant to the outcome and that is why I labelled the importance of the cyclists lack of a lifesaver as debatable.
Regardless of blame, never in
Regardless of blame, never in a million years would I ride on a road like that.
Peowpeowpeowlasers
Ditto what he says.
Sometimes it just happens,
Sometimes it just happens, not through choice you get stuck. There is no excuse for the drivers actions, he has just passed several other bikes before hitting (luckily only) the one at the front! :O
Do people really perform a
Do people really perform a ‘lifesaver’ when they move from primary to secondary?
But it wouldn’t happen in the UK, we have awesome infrastructure like this: https://goo.gl/maps/vTudf
to keep us safe crossing slip roads on A roads.
One thing that dawned on me
One thing that dawned on me over the weekend was, as it is in a country where they drive on the ‘wrong’ side of the road, the lifesaver would have been over his left shoulder. So not much use.