Aussie Rules

Aussie rules

UP FRONT

David Edwards

AS AFETY BRIEFINGS GO, TFIIS ONE DEFinitely had a Down Under flair, especially the lengthy rundown of indigenous road hazards.

“Avoid wombats at all costs,” chastened our tour leader. “It’s like running into a beer keg with paws.”

So noted.

Nor was Australia’s better-known national symbol a mammal (marsupial, actually) to be trifled with.

“Watch out for the big kangaroos,” we were warned. “They’ll rear back on their tail, slash out with their hind claws and rip your intestines out.”

“Sounds a lot like my ex-wife,” said someone from the other end of the table.

Nods all around.

Our hosts for a 10-day backroads meander from Sydney to Phillip Island for the MotoGP races and back were particularly qualified to deliver safe-riding tips. The crew at Stay Upright Motor Cycle Techniques (www.stayupright.com.au) have trained some 200,000 riders since opening doors in 1981, and 10 years ago branched out into guided tours of Australia, on road and off. A likeable lot, too. Company founder Warwick Schuberg manned the chase/luggage truck, senior instructor Dave Gibson, as smooth on the street as anyone I’ve seen, was on point, and riding sweep was ex-racer Wayne “Clarkie” Clark, a contemporary of Wayne Gardner who once held the lap record at Bathurst’s demanding Mount Panorama road course.

That night, 250 miles down the road, over several fine Australian lagers, the talk turned to riding techniques-specifically, group-riding tactics.

“What’s with you bloody Yanks and your flippin’ staggered formations?” Warwick wanted to know.

Stay Upright preaches strict adherence to a technique they call “Roadcraft,” which stays the same for solo or group riding. Mr. Schuberg has written a book about it, but basically Roadcraft centers around “buffering,” or keeping as much of a safety zone around you as feasible. Basic tenet is the 3-second rule-whether what’s ahead is a truck or fellow rider, maintain a “one-elephant-two-elephantthree-elephant” following distance.

This is opposed to our Motorcycle Safety Foundation (www.msf-usa.org) and its time-tested technique for group riding, which calls for a 1-second spacing between riders in a left-right-left staggered formation (i.e. 2 seconds of following distance between you and the rider directly ahead).

“We avoid staggered riding,” said Gibson. “Okay, it looks cool, but in our view it has no redeeming features and only increases the risk of multi-bike pile-ups if one rider makes a mistake.”

Besides, the other prong of Roadcraft is an almost constant repositioning of your bike within the lane, something that would send Gold Wing road captains into a tizzy of unhitherto heights. Basic starting point, road straight and level, conditions ideal, is the inside wheel track, next to the centerline. This positions the rider farthest away from the potential danger of side roads and driveways, plus the aforementioned animals darting out from the foliage. Approaching traffic in the other lane, however, cues a move to the outside wheel track. In Australia, roads tend to be narrower and bumpier than ours, and gaining some separation from oncoming trucks with their ominous bridgework of “roo bars” soon seemed like a pretty good idea.

Blind crests call for a reduction in speed and a shift to the middle of the lane, ready to avoid either a car that’s coming the other way crowding the centerline or one that’s on your side half off the shoulder just over the rise.

Good practices all, but I defended the staggered formation, especially if it wasn’t slavishly adhered to in adverse road or weather conditions. For one thing, Stay Upright’s single-file conga line of bikes with 3 seconds between each is easily broken up by passing cars, especially on multi-lane urban highways. Ever ridden in L.A.?

“Sure, the group gets spread out, but so what,” defended Dave. “Big groups of riders should break up anyway into smaller groups based on riding skill, likely speed, etc. This makes life easier for slower riders in the group who risk crashing trying to keep up with faster riders.”

Yep, I’ve seen that happen. Likewise, those nose-to-tailers who don’t pay attention when route directions are given out and fear getting lost are a liability.

“All riders should agree before moving off where the next stop will be so there is no pressure to keep up,” Dave noted.

Still, I like a staggered formation’s ability to easily accordion in on itself in heavy traffic, to move a large number of bikes quickly through towns and, sorry Warwick, but out on the open road, on long, limited-access straights, I like the additional lines of sight offered.

Maybe an amalgam of the two styles is the answer, a free-form melding: Adopt the 3-second rule, but give each person the choice of riding staggered or not depending on what feels right at the time. Works for me.

In any case, I do endorse the reasoning behind Roadcraft, which stresses the “OAR” system of risk management. Observation and Anticipation, then formulating a plan of action in Response.

“That’s the key,” said Schuberg. “Always be alert, always be thinking, always put yourself in the best position possible-rather than just sitting there and letting a situation happen.”

No arguments from me. Whether you adhere strictly to Aussie-rules Roadcraft, or incorporate elements into your own personal roadcraft, little r, you’ll be a better, safer rider. As always, no guarantees about the ex-wife. □

This column is dedicated to Donald Simpson, a good rider and a good friend of this magazine, who tragically lost his life in a traffic accident while touring Australia. He is missed heartily and remembered fondly by all who rode with him.