Lanesplitting in Los Angeles

[Sluppps]

i can see how lane splitting on a sm or sport bike is safe but i would be crazy scared to do it on a bike like this

[rudman2]

absolut mein fahrstil!

[lesdeth12]

Man, you surely move fast between the cars! I still don't have the guts to hit it so hard in such a tight space.

[Blackwater200]

I love two wheeled vehicles, wish there where more people in them the world would move much more faster with less traffic.

[luckysod04]

looks like a death wish to me

[adamthelizard]

@luckysod04 - Well I'm not dead yet.. not even close:)

[zm5431]

thats how its done :D

[alleywatson]

ah the joys of motorcycling at rush hour

[panzzzer777]

cheater)))

[wclattimore]

I love how some people move over, but more often are the people riding that center line. I ride myself, but not sure I have the cojones for all that. lol

[StevieChapstick]

what're you riding? sounds like a v-twin.

in TX they just passed a law that if traffic is moving under 20mph it's legal to weave. Yay!

[adamthelizard]

It's a V-Four (86 VFR)

Have fun playing in the traffic..

[FXThug]

This is how fatalities happen.

[adamthelizard]

Look at the date of this video, FXThug. I've been doing this daily for many years.. Clearly this is not how fatalities (or even injuries or accidents) happen to me.

[adamthelizard]

Hell... I'm still riding that same VFR.

[garryinnola]

Isn't this against that law, though? What if one of the vehicles changes lanes suddenly? I think it's a ticketable offense, is it not?

[adamthelizard]

Already been asked and answered. Lane Sharing is LEGAL in CA and not a ticket or violation. If a car jumps, I move with it and around it.

[garryinnola]

Well, good for you. I know that it is illegal in some states if not so in CA. I still think it would be pretty easy to get hit by a car changing lanes right as you are passing it. I'm sure this has happened to some lane splitters. Good luck.

[adamthelizard]

Yea. Not legal everywhere, but CA is a forward thinking state. Cars change lanes into me all the time, and it's pretty easy to deal with once you get some practice. I will cut/post a video that is just made up of clips of avoidance-techniques. People do swerve.. often without signaling.

[garryinnola]

I'd like to see a vid of that. And, yeah, CA is forward-thinking except for Prop 8 and a few other crazy things.

[bensbravebabybenz]

@garryinnola isn't prop 8 the legalization of marijuana? not so crazy in my opinion. it's weed not ecstasy or meth.

[garryinnola]

No. Prop 8 was the de-legalization of same-sex marriage. I think it's now in court.

[FXThug]

Curious do cops ever pull you over or anythin?

[mwhkelly]

Motorcycle couriers can get from law offices in Century City to the downtown courthouse in less than 15 minutes on the 10 - at 5PM!

There aren't many old M/C messengers in LA, but there are a few rich ones :)

BTW, the old guys always ride at 7/10ths, not 10/10ths, that's why they're old.

[dslide]

good stuff

[mitchelldo4]

i was splitting traffic going 75 and thick traffic going 65. when the rx7 dashed from right to left i got 20' of rubber down before hitting him. splitting traffic in calif is playing with death just like riding a motorcycle. ilove doing it and laugh at how rediculous it is to be legal.

[bluenapalm123]

Filtering at higher speeds is NOT legal in the UK as its viewed as dangerous driving. It mainly allowed to avoid traffic queues traveling at a slow pace. 40mph and below.

[fritz2525]

Dude I have to commute in LA traffic and Ive lane split with highway patrol officers leading the way. Its legal in California. I dont know how people can handle it in thier cars just sitting.

[pacerintl]

yes what he's doing is illegal but the cops rarely enforce it, it's clear from the video the driver is reckless and doesn't use good judgement but hey it's his life.

[adamthelizard]

Thanks for the feedback.

Check out my *NEW* videos.

Lanesplitting in LA #3 and #4.

This one's a couple years old now...

[Masterryman]

Respect your nice Lanesplitting :p

keep safely

[nipponoholic]

I save over an hour in commute time lane splitting in West Australia, and now that i'm moving to Seattle it's going to be one of the things I'll miss the most... :(

[JoshRom]

lol. you're such an attention monger posting videos on the internet and then whining when people disagree with what you're doing.

[adamthelizard]

I am stating facts and nothing else.

If you don't like my work, don't watch.

If you don't like bikes, don't ride.

Peace out.

[adamthelizard]

@ joshrom and all the doubters/haters.

From the CA Highway Patrol's website:

"Lane splitting by motorcycles is permissible but must be done in a safe and prudent manner."

go look on chp dot ca dot gov if you don't believe me...

I've already said I ride 25,000+ miles a year.

After 7 years as a courier I can assure you it isn't luck, it's "safe and prudent" driving.

Hence, it's LEGAL under California Law.

Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

[adamthelizard]

@Dershnof

No more than about 30-35 mph.

Slower at times (obviously.)

[Dershnof]

How fast were you going through all that traffic??

[nolester]

this is a functional way to get people through traffic. Just let the motorcycles get through and out of the way. Always signal when turning or moving out of your lane jerkies. Go crash your SUVs

[connorross28]

i hate motorcycles so much i cant belive this is legal

[busapassion]

You mean you don't have the guts to ride a motorcycle. I've been riding cycles in Los Angeles since 1984 and safely.

[connorross28]

i dont even have much guts to drive my car in la after some stupid motorcycle ran in to the back of it lmfao

[truejamworks]

I think it's great this is legal. However, if you try this, beware of drivers who don't know, like myself when I first moved to Los Angeles from NYC. I don't know how many times I almost clobbered a motorcyclist approaching from the rear, as I intended to shift to a lane to my right.

[busapassion]

That is why California law is so specific, you can only do a lane change when IT IS CLEAR AND SAFE.

[Dershnof]

That was quite awesome riding

[epslon2001]

Great! I am looking for rules on whether we can do this or not in Georgia. I have seen people doing it, done it myself sometimes but still not sure about what the law says. FYI - I have been driving a motorcycle back in India for 7-8 years and if you have seen the kind of variables that we need to worry about while driving there, this seems v-e-r-y safe.

[busapassion]

Only California, Japan, europe and australia is lane splitting legal.

[MacDonnell2007]

In Brasil we only ride between the car/trucks... hehehe

[Baltimoreboy410]

Dats gay cause here in Baltimore(east coast) they'll write u a ticket suspend ur licences and god knows what eles.

[OhhReallyNow]

well as far as i know.. most.. MOST cops dont care about lane splitting, as far as i know.. we dont get tickets for that.. i was on the 210 and a guy was lane splitting and a chp bike rolled next to him and they were staring at each other a bit then the CHP told him to get back into his lane.. no ticket though

[SiLenTAnGeL88]

i always see ppl on motorcyles lanesplittting since i live in california too but sometimes ive seen some close calls on the freeways :p

[BeemDubya]

Good job! That's how it's done... the rider keeps moving, no unnecessary risks, fast enough but not too fast. Thumbs up from me!

[costamesa22]

Hey great video looks like Santa Monica Bldv through Beverly Hills, Century City and West Hollywood.

[vbdenny]

I was amazed to see how many people split lanes in California where it is apparently legal. Here on the east coast they will give you a reckless driving ticket right quick if they see you doing this. In California it seems like a great way (maybe the only) to get through all the heavy traffic.

[BeemDubya]

Yep, legal. You will notice that at 6:15 the rider passes a police car which does not give chase. It's also not as dangerous as it seems... to me at least... I'd rather lane-split and be a moving target than just sit in traffic waiting to get rear-ended.

[Coup1]

As someone who lives in Los Angeles and puts up with traffic, I'm jealous. The amount of groud you covered in 7 minutes is remarkable. Santa Monica Blvd. does not move in that area.

Not to nitpick, but there not much occurring in the actual City of LA in the clip.

[wormsoup]

that had me on pins and needles at times. I just knew you was going to crash. You got guts.

[FizzerMeTimbers]

thats awesome man. how long did it take you to get used to judging how much room you have?

[adamthelizard]

Been riding for about 10 years, splitting lanes for 5-6 years. It's a constant learning curve.

[podtheguard]

good video. i should maybe shoot me going around M25 in uk.

[pottue]

5:01 was pretty close one :D

[adamthelizard]

Thanks for the concern dohun. I ride through heavy LA traffic on a daily basis, and it's a constant struggle to keep it at a safe level. I leave home each day with the clear intention of returning home in one piece, and that is what I do. I HAVE had a fair number of people "pull out" on me and have found that going with them usually solves the problem. I've pulled next to and around a bunch of people who never saw me coming.. be safe and check out my other video too. Adam.

[dohun]

you're pushing it bud, janvis is an idiot but you are pushing it. It's only a matter of time before someone pulls in front of you. Your riding ability and experience hardly matters compared to the attentiveness of the drivers.. Driving 5-10 MPH slower will result in you getting to your destination maybe just a few seconds or few minutes later than you could have.. I've been riding for over 16 years and have over 300,000 miles under my belt.

What do you like more, going fast or going home?

[inuyashataru]

you have balls of steel HAHAH wish i had some ~_~

[adamthelizard]

Tacho is working... speedo was replaced with Felix The Cat. I guess you could call him a totem animal perhaps. Yes.. bike was laid down by previous owner (got it for 700 dollars!) so I removed fairings and converted to naked.

[vonkaltenborn]

I notice the gauge not working. Has this bike been in a wreck? In other words, I'm guessing it's an offering to the Gods.

[KRSBlair]

This was awesome...During the video i was like moving with the bike lol... This is awesome i do this in oklahoma but im not sure if its legal what kind of bike was that? i like the sound of it..

[adamthelizard]

thanks. I think it's only legal in Washington DC and California, but I'm not sure. I'd plead ignorance if they pulled me in some other state... riding a V4 Honda (1986 VFR to be exact.)

[adamthelizard]

Hey janisviolin,

Nothing complacent about it, I can assure you.

I'll agree that my riding is flawed, but I am a human being and always striving to improve.

Again: I HAVE BEEN SPLITTING LANES 5 DAYS A WEEK FOR OVER 5 YEARS AS A MOTORCYCLE MESSENGER AND HAVE BEEN SAFE AND CAREFUL IN THAT TIME. MY SURVIVAL IS NOT JUST BLIND LUCK. I RIDE 500+ MILES PER WEEK, MUCH OF IT BETWEEN THE LA TRAFFIC. IT IS SAFE AND IT IS LEGAL. Thanks for your thoughts.

A

[quinzx]

You're lucky its legal. Sucks to have a backwards road system like here.. Its easy to spot that you're watching for cars that might be changing lanes, and you're not going very fast. Not to mention that the lanes are nice and wide. Good vid.

[janisviolin]

Contrary to what has been said, from an experienced track and street rider, his riding is flawed in many ways. For the most part he is manuvering, nay, riding the narrow corridor between cars and very little else. Anyone with a week of experience on a bike can do that. Anyone with 3 months of riding experience can do what I saw in this video. Bottomline is it highly unskilled, dangerous and will eventually have one ultimate result.

This style of riding is simply too complacent.

Godspeed

[CrimsonMX5]

wow intense for sure what kind of bike are you on?

[adamthelizard]

Thanks very much.

No contact there.. just a close squeeze

It's happened before, and can be okay if you see it coming. Not a top choice though.

And Yes, I let considerate riders know I appreciate their consideration.) We're all out there together.

Thanks again.

A

P.S. More videos coming soon.

[Nunchakudo]

Superb riding, great vid! Was that a mirror slap at 5:02 or did you get away with it? Hope you gave those bikers a wave for letting you through.

[adamthelizard]

P.S. - I've been doing this DAILY for 5+ years. :0

[adamthelizard]

For the record, this is LEGAL in California (DC too.)

And it beats the H#LL out of sitting in traffic.)

Boxes are for SUCKERS.. get it?

Peace,

A

[gooleh]

That could be dangerous...

[okello1]

dude you are crazy..isnt this illegal? If i was driving one of the cars you cam across i would have boxed you in to a crashing halt.

[iarmand]

...and if anyone saw that, you'd end up in jail for aggrivated assault, attempted murder, or some similar charge. Illegal or not, trying to hurt someone because you don't like the fact that they aren't stuck in traffic like you are is simply wrong.

Motorcyclists face a lot of danger out there without people like you trying to hit them intentionally!

[adamthelizard]

Thank you. Riding a 1986 Honda VFR700.. old school V4.

[monkeymule]

Great vid. What kind of bike is that?

[Fuschimuschi]

Nice.

You got so beautiful weather over in California, why aren't more people riding bikes?

[couponclipper]

If only the rest of the country was this intelligent. Nice riding.

[adamthelizard]

Many thanks. Glad to show others how it can be done.