Rider in distress signal

Landon said:

What is the signal if you choose to ride with no helmet?

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Do I really want input from someone who can't perform risk/impact assessment.

Unless it is "Caution ahead, my riding buddy wiped out and left slippery brains all over the road!"

FWIW, I've heard the helmet signal. I guess I spend too much time on motorcycle forums and not enough riding!

Tom Mac 04a said:

Always thought that ment single file... but maybe he just was offering his services and he liked you

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Off-road riding, you hold up how many fingers for the number of people behind you, so the guy coming the other way knows how many more bikes to watch out for.

I always heard helmet on the seat taking a break. Helmet on the road assistance required. I usually stop or give a thumbs up and look for a response if the road is busy.

Hand on top of the helmet LEO ahead.

Little known one
Guy jumping up and down flapping his arms like he's trying to fly standing next to his pick up truck means you're about to run over my ladder at a high rate of speed. Or it was a hell of a coincidence and he was try'n to fly. Might be a local thing LOL.

st1300r said:

Little known one
Guy jumping up and down flapping his arms like he's trying to fly standing next to his pick up truck means you're about to run over my ladder at a high rate of speed. Or it was a hell of a coincidence and he was try'n to fly. Might be a local thing LOL.

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This is often mistaken for a biker who has inadvertently stopped on top of a fire ant nest.....

Mellow said:

Tapping on the top of the helmet is also a Southern thing - means Bee In Helmet.

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I take exception to that....

SupraSabre said:

As far as the tapping of the top of the helmet. I see that probably once a week on my commute in the carpool lanes, which is great, because you never know where they might be hiding!

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I'm all for them hiding while monitoring the HOV lane. I used to have to commute in several miles of freeway with an HOV lane. In my car I couldn't look to the left because it ticked me off to see all the violators use the lane then cut somebody off if they saw the CHP.

Now about once a month about 20 motors from various departments hammer violates. The last roundup had over 200 violators during the morning rush. Nice work.

Now if only CA made the hand-held electronics violations moving violations.

ST Gui said:

I'm all for them hiding while monitoring the HOV lane. I used to have to commute in several miles of freeway with an HOV lane. In my car I couldn't look to the left because it ticked me off to see all the violators use the lane then cut somebody off if they saw the CHP.

Now about once a month about 20 motors from various departments hammer violates. The last roundup had over 200 violators during the morning rush. Nice work.

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The situation down here is different than what you describe. On I-15 the carpool lanes are physically separated from the main freeway with concrete barriers, you can only enter/exit at designated places. The enforcement I see most often is a laser speed check being performed by a motorcycle cop sitting on his bike on the side of the carpool lanes. They prefer being there to being on the main freeway because its less hectic and there's only two lanes of traffic to deal with instead of 5 or 6. They probably also write a fair number of illegal use of the carpool lanes tickets as well, but they seem to be primarily interested in speeders. The illegal users are difficult to determine because you can be a single driver with a FastPass transponder, so not having a visible passenger in the car isn't incriminating by itself.

dwalby said:

The San Diego north county I-15 carpool lanes are patrolled fairly aggressively, I always just assume they're there somewhere, because they usually are. About a year ago one of them was setup in the northbound lanes as I was traveling south. As I closed on another biker riding northbound I starting doing the top of the helmet tapping thing, only to realize as the bike got closer that it was a CHP bike. :crackup

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They aren't too bad. From Escondido, to where I have to pull out for the 56 west, there are days I'm will see a couple, and then there are lots of days I see none...and I have a pretty good nose for them! :angdev1:

Yeah, I checked twice today just before tapping the helmet and I was glad I did...saved a little embarrassment! 4:

ST Gui said:

I'm all for them hiding while monitoring the HOV lane. I used to have to commute in several miles of freeway with an HOV lane. In my car I couldn't look to the left because it ticked me off to see all the violators use the lane then cut somebody off if they saw the CHP.

Now about once a month about 20 motors from various departments hammer violates. The last roundup had over 200 violators during the morning rush. Nice work.

Now if only CA made the hand-held electronics violations moving violations.

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Maybe LA is that bad too, I try to stay away from that kind of traffic! But down here, once you get south of Escondido, there is a wall between the carpool lanes and the regular lanes, so it is a bit harder to jump out of. In Escondido, I watched an idiot jump in to the carpool lanes over the double yellow... He did it right in front of a cop! Nailed him!

Sometimes when I'm taking a break, I'll leave the left saddle bag open and place the helmet on the back of the bike. It's never failed, someone asks if all is good. It does not matter if it's in town or on the road.

I very recently used this on the side of the road. Jacket on the ground helmet on top. Having a significant amount of plastic off saddlebags, side and tank covers off attracts some attention also. (that vacuum petcock is a PITA when it breaks) Had 3 pull overs (including two cops) to make sure all was ok.

Recently...in west-central IL...came upon a bagger with two chaps in black leathers standing by the bike just off the two-lane north of small town...as I slowed & moved toward shoulder of lane to come up behind them...the shorter of two...braided goatee & multiple tats & piercings ran to bike , knelt down to bag & dropped some "pouch" into bag...then ran into ditch to let his taller cohort deal with me...said: "Help is on the way...Help is on the way!"...with that, I replied: "Good Luck"...and pulled back onto road into town...out here in the somewhat rural areas it has become apparent that drug deals/exchanges are happening alongside roadways out of town & the bikers are the "marketeers"...makes it more dicey to decide as to who might be a riding "kindred spirit" in need of some assistance & who might just be using the roadside to do a set-up illegal exchange...

I always thought a helmet on the ground by front or rear wheel means "I need help"; a single outstretched finger upwards indicates to a follower that there's an obstruction and use single file; a tap on the helmet to an oncoming rider means LEO ahead. I generally slow when I see a bike on the side anyway and wait to be flagged down or flagged away.