“Should’ve kept his eyes on the road.”
Redditor /u/utterlyunimpressed knew using a GoPro Hero 7 as a dashcam would come in handy one day and earlier this week (Jan 12,2023) he unfortunately proved himself right.
In a video pulled from his GoPro he shared to the /r/IdiotsInCars subreddit it shows /u/utterlyunimpressed travelling southbound towards Houston on the 290 just before the Sam Houston Tollway Exit.
You can see the whereabouts of the crash on Google Maps linked here.
Check out the video below.
OP starts to change lane and veers back as he suddenly sees a motorcyclist approaching fast to his right.
The motorcyclist takes offense to his abrupt, aborted lane change and gives him the bird.
OP continues on as they both take the Sam Houston Tollway Exit, keeping a safe distance from the motorcyclist.
The motorcycle rider is presumably not paying attention, does not see the Nissan Crossover begin to stop in front of him and, according to OP,
“I believe he over-braked due to a short stop which caused the bike to flip, then it tapped the crossover.”
Without hesitation, OP stops and assists the bike rider and his passenger.
“We blocked them off, called an ambulance immediately, stopped him from moving her more (since he was yanking her head), got him to turn off his bike (which was still running and beginning to leak flammables), kept her out of horrendous shock by talking calmly to her and reassuring her help was coming.”
“I calmed him down from trying to fight the driver of the SUV, stayed with them until the police and ambulance came, and gave my statement.”
If you’re wondering what his priorities were when he first approached,
“He was yelling about totaling his new, uninsured bike.
From the video we can see the motorcyclist is OK, but OP does mention his passenger might have a broken leg plus some severe road rash, enough injuries to, in his opinion, keep her off bikes for a while.
On top of this being a timely reminder to snag a dash cam or, in this case, keep that GoPro in your closet running while you drive, it’s also another reminder to, as a driver or motorcyclist, stay vigilant and attentive at all times.
You may, as this motorcyclist demonstrates, get a middle finger off in time, looking super cool but, if you don’t refocus your attention after the fact, it could prove to be a dangerous misdirection of your attention.
