Real world rides, real world riders

Fluoro memories

I was riding a Honda Transalp and was wearing a fluorescent waistcoat I had bought for a couple of pounds from a builders’ merchant.

Anyone who is familiar with the A303 in summer knows that the traffic is horrendous. As you approach the end of each dual carriageway section, the cars and caravans are nose to tail down both lanes as they try to merge into one lane.

I found, however, that the traffic parted as I approached the tail of each traffic jam to allow me to filter. That was, until I approached Thruxton, where a motorcycle meeting had just ended. Hundreds of bikes were leaving the circuit and I could see the cars edging together to make it difficult for the bikes to filter. That was, until they saw me, when they parted again.

The only explanation I have is that the drivers thought I was a policeman, because of the fluorescent jacket. The end result was that I continued to filter through the traffic, followed by a string of sports bikes, that promptly departed into the sunset when the road ahead was clear.

The moral is that wearing a fluorescent jacket is not always a bad thing.

Martin Best
Guernsey