Fiona Philips on GMTV hates bikers

oh, right.

Well, thanks then, I suppose.

 

Did you notice I'd moved the furniture around a bit in your lounge?

 

Surprisingly absorbent.

 

good old M&S quality - they think of everything.

 

Aside from the undertaking bit being illegal, what's wrong with what she's
said?

IME, for a lot of people on motorbikes, she's absolutely right. Overtaking
cars turning right is a fairly common accident, riding along with lights
a-blazing is common too ("They can see me" - just nothing else) and cutting
people up _is_ off-putting.

Instead of venting your bile at her, I'd have rather taken the time to have
the XJC-OC look inwards and make sure they aren't guilty of any of the
above.

 

We've done this bit before, many times - it (mostly) isn't!

Apart from the fact she's talking crap, she could well be the cause of
more stupid people having a go at folks on bikes and give the idiots
in the gumbymint another excuse to introduce more fuckwitted
legislation.

Then get out more... there's more to the world than Shit City (London)
and the south east - and *she* needs it ramming home to her!

IME usually caused by drivers either indicating at the last second, or
not bothering. However, I will concede that some motorcyclists have
appalling observation skills.

OK, on my Tiger, it makes no odds if I use main beam or dipped,
because my lights are in their rearview mirror, anyway. The only
choices I have are: off (no chance - an excuse for them to claim a
SMIDSY) or sidelights (fuckall use).

Your solution is?

NO! What's fucking off-putting for them, is being woken from their
slumbers!

She is a TV presenter - she can shape the opinion of millions of
viewers, simply by making stupid comments like that! It is NOT HER JOB
to voice her opinions on national TV. She is there to do exactly what
the director and producer tell her and do what is in the script - NOT
spout off like that!

Look at how the tabloids can sway public opinion. She presents tabloid
TV, FFS!

She has abused her position as a person who many people, for whatever
misguided reason, look up to and who they believe speaks the truth.
She needs a public bollocking for that!

 

I wonder how many of us have had Dave Corden picking us up on over-taking
approaching a junction. I know he got me for it.

 

Whilst I don't disagree with you, that's more likely to be achieved by
the people kicking cars, punching mirrors etc. than some dozy bint's
underinformed opinion on some prole-focussed tv programme.

Are you sure that the producer didn't ask her to come up with something
to excite a reaction?

 

I can't believe how many people do this, especially when they're
overtaking something slow-moving, like a truck, and they reckon they've
got the time to make the manoeuvre....

....while at the junction is a car waiting to pull out, whose driver sees
the truck, and thinks: "That's coming slowly - I've got time to make the
manoeuvre...."

And the rest is inevitable.

 

This is something I'm pretty paranoid about and avoid doing.

 

Read what I wrote again, that is what I was saying, ie she was wrong about
it being illegal, but otherwise I think she had a point.

But she's not.

People on bikes are doing it all on their own - it's obvious in the fact
that people like her are making the statements. She wouldn't, if they
weren't. It's obvious in that one of the most 'dangerous' roads in the
country would end up nowhere in the stats if you removed bikes etc.

I just spent a week in the South West - I saw the same level of rubbish
riding as I see in the SE.
BTW, I don't ride in London - haven't in over 18 months. I ride in Oxon,
Bucks, Wilts and the like.

Training : NEVER overtake into a junction. Once you pass the sign, it's game
over.
Champ/Common sense: You can judge it - ie a car doing 60mph is unlikely to
suddenly turn.

No arguments with lights at all - it's the use of main beam/poorly adjusted
dip.
It's unnecessary, irritating and in some cases dangerous. I still remember
the Pixie ride out where virtually everyone had a go at Nidge because of the
main beam usage. If it irritated us, god knows what other motorists thought.

Really? You really think that everyone out there in a car is sleeping and
gets woken up when another vehicle passes two inches from theirs? Get off
your high horse for a moment and actually THINK about what other read users
impressions of certain motorcyclists actions are - is it going to be
positive? Highly unlikely.

That doesn't mean we can't have fun (killjoy that I am) - it just means a
bit more awareness of what we're doing, be that impressing the totty with a
well lofted wheelie, or making sure you overtake in a reasonable manner. I'm
sure I'll be labelled a 'twat' or something now.

Perhaps, but I wish people would look a bit closer to home as to why people
might be making these statements in the first place.

 

*sigh*

<mental note 212> Make things more obvious.

"Aside from the undertaking bit being illegal, what's wrong with what
she's said?"

translates to :

"She's wrong about the undertaking, but not about the other stuff"

 

In many cases a junction is the only place without double white lines...

 

Fah! What sort of wimp are you? Live dangerously, man!

 

There is a POV which would say "but you noticed him - job done!"

Yes, IME.

Horse??? Ha!!
I drive a car to work sometimes, so I see it from both sides.
They are asleep.
When they are awake, they are either shouting at kids, fussing over
kids, adjusting hair/makeup/tie, on the bloody phone or lighting a
fag.
Then they go back to sleep.

I'm with you, on that (apart from the wheelies).

Regardless, she is out of order. If you disagree, ask the BBC to bring
back Kilroy - when you boil it down, subject aside, all he did was
express his views.

They are both guilty of making discriminatory comments and some people
will find her comment as inflammatory as others found Kilroy's. Why
hasn't she lost her job? IMO, she should.

 

<G>

 

<lifts desk lid - gives Vs>

 

Same here, but it took getting knocked off doing it to make me like
that.

 

"It's always the same boys"

 

I once knew a female undertaker called Dianne, at the time she was as I
recall the only female undertaker in the UK, I wonder if she's still
doing the job, or how many women undertakers there are now.

Maybe lots of them overtake on the left, mistakenly thinking they're on
their way to pick up the kids from school.