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How many stop at a stop sign............???

motorman587

New member
In Florida, on a motorcycle, a person does not have to put your there feet down to be considered a stop, so with that said how many of you do this, I do this sometimes, look both ways, and just roll through a stop sign??? I try to force myself to stop and place both feet down, I feel like I am cutting myself short if I just to a quick peek.
 
"STOP" is a pretty unambiguous word. I might not need to put a foot down if sight lines are clear as I approach the sign, but the rotational speed of my wheels reaches zero before I proceed. Most of the time I can balance long enough to check traffic in both directions without touching down. I'm not aware of any laws requiring touchdown; that might be awkward for car drivers.:rolleyes
 
I was going to say I was with Natrab but add the fact that it should be a one-handed or stand-up wheelie. To do otherwise only confirms one's shortcomings. :laugh

But I always stop. Not sure what I'd do if I didn't HAVE to stop. Seems like a recipe for unintended forceful deceleration.
 
This is something I do all the time.

I "TRY" to see if I can come to a complete stop without putting my feet down.

Getting very good at it! Even for just a second.
 
Spin Tires On Pavement.

Some states do require that at least one foot be planted, to be a "lawful" stop.
South Dakota required that both feet be planted (at least in Sturgis); I don't know if that's still the case.

Where I live, the city does not have the $$$ to support enforcement of the many 4-way stops around here; as a result, there are an awful lot of punks rolling right on through. And yes we've had the related accidents, including damage to cars parked near those corners.
 
Spin Tires On Pavement.

Some states do require that at least one foot be planted, to be a "lawful" stop.
South Dakota required that both feet be planted (at least in Sturgis); I don't know if that's still the case.

Where I live, the city does not have the $$$ to support enforcement of the many 4-way stops around here; as a result, there are an awful lot of punks rolling right on through. And yes we've had the related accidents, including damage to cars parked near those corners.

I suspect (but am not certain) that the "one or 2 feet down to be a stop" , or the similar "must be stopped for 2 seconds" are all just local interpretations of "come to a complete stop". Officers I've spoken with have said that there's nothing in the code that says certain behaviors must occur, just that the wheels need to stop turning. Sturgis, specially during rally time, seems to create their own laws and interpretations of existing ones just for collecting that lovely Rally Revenue.
My wheels stop, but more times than not my feet never leave the pegs.
 
On the BMW I will roll through some stops. Others I may just let the wheels stop and then go while still balanced.. That said... IF I have a very satisfactory look at the situation. If I am not satisfied with my look I will stop and do it again. At some stop signs at the bottom of a exit ramp where the lane is angled into the lane you are going to, I will angle more perpendicular to get a good look. My flexibility is on the decline and sometimes rotating all the way to one side with the head, looking through the eye of my glasses (where the prescription just doesn't fit as well) and the edge of the helmet isn't satisfactory. All that is on the BMW K12RS

On the Honda RC51, It is not a joy for me to ride in lots of traffic areas. The more forward position means as I roll my head from side to side, like you would scan if standing means I see down the road and up on the sides. So I use more care there. So on the RC, I almost always come to a stop I can satisfy myself about the traffic situation.

If I am riding with others and have some behind me. I generally will come to a stop and then go. I avoid keying off the person in front of me that it was clear for them so it must be for me, and I don't wish the same thought to occur for the person behind me.

As for a skill that I work on and then lose if not used is the being able to do a stop and go with feet up. If I am having to think about it, then I am distracted from really seeing what is happening. If I am 'in the zone" so to speak, it s a nice skill to use.

NCS
 
"STOP" is a pretty unambiguous word. I might not need to put a foot down if sight lines are clear as I approach the sign, but the rotational speed of my wheels reaches zero before I proceed. Most of the time I can balance long enough to check traffic in both directions without touching down. I'm not aware of any laws requiring touchdown; that might be awkward for car drivers.:rolleyes

+1

Except when in the Lambo :laugh
 
This is something I do all the time.

I "TRY" to see if I can come to a complete stop without putting my feet down.

Getting very good at it! Even for just a second.

That's what I do as well. It also depends on where I'm riding and what the traffic is like.
 
I make a game out of it and come as close to a full stop as I can without putting my feet down. After years of practice, about 50% of the time it is a genuine full stop.
 
I do the "slow race" thing most every stop light. At stop sign intersections, I do a quick head check, and if no traffic approaching, I do the feet-on-pegs stop and go. The wheels actually stop, which is all the Louisiana statue requires.

Funny story: Our former Chief of Police was a long time motorman in the department before he moved up in rank. One afternoon he was riding to work on the Road King, and doing the feet up stops. Some woman, in a van behind him, pulled up to his side at a longish traffic light intersection and demanded to know why he was not stopping. He informed her several times that he did fully stop, and she then demanded to know who the chief was. He told her several times "that would be me". He asked her what the problem was, and she stated "My husband rides and when he stops he has to put his feet down, so you did NOT stop". Being a gentlemen, her told her "Maybe I am a better rider than your husband" and the light changed and he road away to work.
 
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3rd gear stop:)

I got caught!!! Tehachapi, Ca.. A rural exit off Hwy58, I came off a freeway ramp with STOP sign and had clear view of two lane I was turning on to. I busted it in "third gear":(. Well, this is slightly off topic, BUT I had white unmarked PolarBear we call'em(CHP) following me, right behind me and I did not see it:(. MAN, was I guilty, guilty as one can get! LADY CHP stopped me and I never forget her words as she walked up. WHAT THE H*** was that??? I got helmet off and plea'd my case, I'm GUILTY as all get out Mam, no excuses I say. What else to do? She took my license, did all the in patrol car computer searches for any dirt and came back to me, chewed me out and "LET ME GO" free, no ticket:). Some CHP have heart:). No, I don't always stop, but have this reminder with me always:). This was about one year ago....Randy
 
I stop forward momentum...no feet down unless I need to yield ROW to someone. Sometimes terrain and weather change that style.

Many years ago a local sheriff was demanding that all bicyclists on a MS 150 charity ride plant both feet at HIS stop sign in a tiny 3 building town on the route. That year it numbered about 12K folks. He was writing tickets and hollering as we trackstopped ...counted three and rolled on. I chuckle still when I motor thru with same technique.
 
I can stop with my feet on the pegs, do it all the time. So I come to a stop sign and see a local LEO coming, I have plenty of time to pull out, come to a complete foot on pegs stop and pull out. He pulls me over and asks if I know why. I don't, he says I didn't stop. I said why would I not stop if I saw you coming. He says he didn't see me put my foot down, I tell him I don't need to. He let me go. I think when he saw a 50 year old, gray haired guy, agatt, clean record on a BMW, that helped my cause.
So I get thinking, the cops have a tough job why not make it easier for them. How long does It take to touch the ground before proceeding? We have signs and stickers for the car drivers "look twice save a life". I figure I should too. So now I make foot down stops and keep everyone happy.
 
In Wisconsin, the statute does not specify that a foot touch - only that the vehicle (motorcycle) be completely motionless, as in wheels no longer turning (what we as LEO's looked for if it was necessary to 'split hairs').

While I can produce such a stop in perfect balance, too much attention is focused on that 'skill' and not on situational awareness.

I stop, put a foot down, become situationally aware, and then proceed. That extra second of safety over the course of a riding career might subtract several hours off my life, but I consider that worth it, as opposed to bragging rights for "never putting my feet down, if I can help it."

Not an impressive maneuver in my universe.
 
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I do the "slow race" thing most every stop light. At stop sign intersections, I do a quick head check, and if no traffic approaching, I do the feet-on-pegs stop and go. The wheels actually stop, which is all the Louisiana statue requires.

Funny story: Our former Chief of Police was a long time motorman in the department before he moved up in rank. One afternoon he was riding to work on the Road King, and doing the feet up stops. Some woman, in a van behind him, pulled up to his side at a longish traffic light intersection and demanded to know why he was not stopping. He informed her several times that he did fully stop, and she then demanded to know who the chief was. He told her several times "that would be me". He asked her what the problem was, and she stated "My husband rides and when he stops he has to put his feet down, so you did NOT stop". Being a gentlemen, her told her "Maybe I am a better rider than your husband" and the light changed and he road away to work.

That wouldn't be the one and only Chief Jeff LaDuff, would it?? Has to be...........:)
 
Have to admit it depends on the day and where I am. Probably a 70/30 split between full stop with my foot on the pegs and full stop with my foot down. I do come to a full stop because I am trainable and can transfer that training from one setting to another. When I was a teen I apparently did a rolling stop and received a failing grade from a LEO on a reportcard he called a ticket. At that time it ment all my driving/riding privilages were suspended for thirty days by law ? sixty by parents.

FWIW: I lived in South Dakota some time ago and was curious about what their laws where. A foot down does not appear to be a state requirement but is implied in their Motorcycle Handbook.

http://legis.state.sd.us/statutes/DisplayStatute.aspx?Statute=32-20&Type=Statute

http://dps.sd.gov/licensing/driver_licensing/documents/MotorcycleHandbook8-26-10.pdf
 
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