How often do you check your mirrors?

Old Glory

Old Glory

Joined
May 25, 2007
Messages
496
Location
Huntsville, Alabama
Bike
ST1300
STOC #
7219
I recall an article by Larry Grodsky in which, depending on the environment, he said he checked his mirrors every 3 - 5 seconds! This seems like such a riding distraction that I seldom check unless I'm changing lanes or the situation is complex. No doubt in my mind that checking is safer. If you suddenly need to swerve it's good to know if an adjacent lane is clear or not.
So I'm curious, how often to you check your mirrors?

John-

"Thinking outside the dodecahedron"
 
Not enough unfortunately. I still find it difficult to get used to the ST's mirror position. With my old bike where mirrors where above the grips, it was much much easier....
 
I am a mirror checker (multivex mirrors to boot) and yesterday was a prime example of why checking is so important. Myself and two other friends were cruising along about 65 on real back country road in Southern Florida. Without any warning whatsoever a guy goes by us on a bike doing about 160mph. We never saw him or heard him. His headlight was out so that wasn't possible to pickup in the mirror early. He was riding a gray/black bike with a gray (dark)jacket on. This guy scared the living H*** out of all three of us, but knowing what we know about that road we knew more were coming. Within 3 minutes 15 more bikes past us doing anywhere from 100-150mph. One little swerve from any of us and it would have been over.
 
I think the intent of mirrior checking is situational awareness and the 3 - 5 second rule is common for driver training to promote that. If you are out for a country ride though, with nothing around, it is distracting and unecessary.
 
I'm checking them constantly, but certainly not to the point it impedes what I'm doing going forward.

I avoid riding "in" traffic if at all possible. I'm either in an empty pocket in front of it (most often), or going slower in an empty pocket behind it. Some may consider that overkill but I'm just not comfortable riding along with the traffic.
 
I'd say every minute depending on the situation. At stop lights, I watch my mirrors until the car behind me comes to a complete stop. Back roads, I always check before and after corners. In town my head is almost on a swivel.
 
I suspect that like all things having to do with good riding technique, the frequency with which you check your mirrors is directly linked to the situation you find yourself in. For example, I use my mirrors a lot while stopped in traffic. Don't want run over from behind, not sure that I'd be able to do anything about it but guess I would like to know I'm about to be creamed. I also have to keep an eye on all those BDC around me in traffic. I don't just have threats from in front and behind, but I regularly have threats from both sides as well. I think that in most cases a check every 3-5 seconds seems a bit obsessive to me, but I think I check mine every 10-15 seconds and sometimes more frequently, depends on if I seen something of concern in a previous check.
 
Old Glory said:
he said he checked his mirrors every 3 - 5 seconds!
Click to expand...

That sounds about right. I check every 3-5 seconds on roads with traffic and about every 5-10 seconds on highways with less traffic. What concerns me is that even when checking every 10 seconds on open highway every once in a while a bonehead in an auto will pass me doing 95mph and then I begin checking every 3-5 seconds again.
 
Constantly.

I actually like the position of the mirrors on the 1100 and I use them all the time. As much as humanly possible, I want to know where all of my "outs" are at any given moment. You never know when you're going to have to take evasive action and knowing what's around you gives you the best chance of making the right decision.
 
I use floodlight vision and because of that I technically am always looking in my mirrors with some level of focus (not 100%.)

If I detect motion I then commit more attention to them in order to asses the threat.
 
echo said:
Maybe every minute? Or two? I have a helmet mirror. Its better.

You gotta have situational awareness riding in traffic. Nutcases can sneak up on you in seconds.
Click to expand...

Yo! Echo... do you have a picture of your helmet mirror? The only one I have seen is a dental mirror on bicycle helmets. Whatcha got?
 
I was taught in my experienced riders course last year that 70% of all accidents will happen in front of you, so you need to be aware of that fact. I check my mirrors a lot, especially when slowing as you never know what's behind you. I don't have a set time as it all depends on the riding situation, but the mirrors are a very useful tool and should be used in a way to make you aware of what's around you.

wdupmults
 
Not enough!... I've had a few sneak up on me without notice. But I always do the check before changing lanes, exiting, etc and that has saved me.
 
Always checking my mirrors, as well as watching many levels of vehicles in front of me. Nothing more important than being completely aware of your surroundings at all times.
 
Probably not enough at times, but decidedly situational. I check them often when something is configured to require it. Drop it down to 10-15 sec.in density without I or anyone else making changes or something developing around me. Certainly I glance more often when doing something like slowing in traffic, changing lanes etc. Probably out to 30 sec. or so on a non crowded average density country slab. As often as the situation calls for leading or riding in a group (which can be pretty often), Probably a minute or even more on open back roads as it is a rare event to have something come up behind me then, again unless I'm slowing for something then a check is always mandatory. i probably should and maybe I even do check more often than the minute, but not sure of that. I drop back to the 10-15 sec. quick glance on back roads and secondary highways, whenever I've slowed the normal pace to follow behind traffic.

Thinking this through as I type, the configuration of a developing situation or developing intention on my part, will be what really triggers a serious check, as that is what will most likely raise the need. I do use a 360 awareness model, but strongly weight that to the front unless there a reason to do otherwise turns up.
 
I'm impressed by how often y'all checking the mirrors. I also always check when slowing or when stopped at a light, but need to check more often in traffic. I check more often on the interstate since events happen quicker and some folks like to sweep across lanes.

An example of when I should have checked.
Sitting at a stop light, waiting for a left turn arrow to enter the interstate on the way to the Jackpine Savage Rendevous two years ago, the light changes, the women in front of me is on the cell phone and doesn't notice, the car behind me honks. We all go and enter the superslab. I'm in the third lane of a four lane, she's in the second, still on the cell phone. I want to pass but figured she's distracted and don't want to chance it. Sure enough, she swerves over in front of me. In retrospect, we're going nearly the same speed and I could do nothing or better brake to increase our separation. Instead I swerve left also, however, not knowing what's in that lane and not having time to check, I split the lane, which is dangerous I know. Fortunately, there's no one there. If I had been checking mirrors, I could have changed lanes without letting it all hang out. Other things I did wrong: while trying to decide to pass her or not, I later realized I was in her blind zone. Lessons learned.

John-
 
I check often when on the commute to work. Don't know for sure how often, but would guess an average of once every 3-5 sec depending how heavy traffic is. In between towns on the road I will let that time slip out to as long as 30 seconds between mirror checks, usually when there is no one back there and I am just tooling down the road. If I change lanes or if I do see someone coming up I will be watching them like in town. Like was said... situation awareness.
 
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