Commuters and messengers - let's talk about skitching.

Techno Destructo

Techno Destructo

Riding In Peace
I'd like to just hear some people talk about it. Experiences, tips, techniques, horror stories, thoughts, etc...

I've done it on occasion on my commute from North Manly to Newtown... usually along Military Road. Only with large vehicles with easy hand-holds. I know large vehicles can't do sharp acceleration or movements to try to shake you off. Usually things like large trucks.

A technique I've seen a bit is people reaching down and grabbing the wheel-well of a vehicle... has anyone here done that?

Has anybody had significantly negative reactions from drivers when doing it?

Does anybody do it regularly with small vehicles? Like holding onto spoilers, sides of ute trays, or even those wheel wells?

And just to clear the air here, people... it IS illegal and dangerous, so I'm telling you NOT to do it. But for the people who already do... I'd love to hear from you about it.
 
You're not him.


I do it a little bit over here. The traffic moves much slower here than it does in most Aussie cities. I usually go for busses, they're firsted only by cabbies for aggressive driving. I found that if you tried to slingshot yourself off from their side, it tends to drag your wheels in toward the vehicle. Scared crap out of me the first time I did it.
 
I've caught a few rides on cars, but usually with permission. I recall once skitching out of Galston gorge on the back of a fishing boat trailer with a DH bike, my arms nearly fell off! Have done it a few times on semi trailers and buses where there's a good handhold, and only up to 30km/hr or so because it's a bit dodgy when they start changing gears.

Some guy - I don't know if skitching is specifically illegal, would be interested to know!
 
Here's the thing, your tyre clips their tyre and you are pretty much a dead certainty to be sucked under. Then you're pretty much ten different kinds of fucked.

If you insist on doing it, use a handhold that keeps your wheel a safe distance away from there wheel.
 
I do it every now and then, but my first tip is don't do it when you're on a fixie unless you're sure of what you're doing. Unpredictable outcomes may occur.

I really only do it if I'm in a hurry and there is something very easy to catch, other wise I'm happy to doddle along at my own pace.
 
I havn't done it for a few years but used to do it when younger and sillier.

It was always on local hills, and the rush of being hauled up the steepest hill in my area at 50-60km an hour was pretty intense.

I would do it on my downhill bike as there was around a 2-3min DH urban run back down the other side.

One day though, I waited at the roundabout at the bottm, for my veihcle of choice as usual, and as a fairly large truck rolled up with a good grip near the back, I latched on to begin the journey. The hill rolls up in 2 steep stages linked with shorter flat sections and just after the first steep section the driver started swerving all over the road, which threw me free of my grip. For some reason I didn't link his swerving to my free ride and with the speed gained, I was able to catch him again as it got steep. Once I was back on it happened again - he was driving all over the shop to shake me off, which he did successfully, and I ended up in the ditch. He stopped the truck, only to yell abuse so I took off back down the hill, and there was no way he was turning that truck back around from the position he was in.

I don't recall ever doing it again.:eek:
 
I was grinding up hill to a set of traffic lights and a truck was taking off slowly so I decided I was gonna get a lift. Then he saw me and started to swerve to the left to try and shake me off it was pretty scary becasue I was up against a wall. Im sure there is a better technique as well :rolleyes:
 
I don't understand what the dealio is with them swerving. Do they not want you there because you might get hurt? So what do they do, swerve and drive dangerously in the hope that you'll get whipped off..., kind of what they didn't want to happen anyway. Here, they just wave out the window and I let go, no probs.

Anyway, why should the trucky give a shit whether you're hanging on or not. It's your neck and you're the one who'll get busted, not him/her.
 
Binaural said:
Some guy - I don't know if skitching is specifically illegal, would be interested to know!
Click to expand...

Yeah, it is. I checked. It falls under the category of the bicycle rider being towed by another vehicle.

But then again, people talk all the time about how they ride without helmets and/or on the footpath, and those are both illegal as well (unless your 10 years of age or younger, or something like that) and we don't make a comment.

But let me reiterate... you are playing with fire when skitching. Death or being arrested. So don't do it.

Back on topic... I've never actually waited around for an opportunity to skitch... It's just when riding along, if I can match a suitable vehicle with an easy hand-hold that I latch onto. And even then, I've done it only rarely and for a few seconds. Mostly due to fear that the driver would do something wacky if they saw me. But it's been a blast each time I've done it. I just saw Lucas Brunelle's latest video where he's doing it in Mexico City, on the freeway, and they're just FLYING. Very impressive.:eek: After seeing that, I've had the urge to try it a little more and for a little longer.

By the way, I've titled this thread starting with "Commuters and messengers..." so as to make the title long enough that the word "skitching" would never be seen in the forum index if looking at the entry for the Cross-Country/Road forum from the top level of the forums. Combined with the fact it's in this particular part of the forums, I'm hoping that only mature, older riders actually open this thread. ;)
 
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johnny said:
I found that if you tried to slingshot yourself off from their side, it tends to drag your wheels in toward the vehicle. Scared crap out of me the first time I did it.
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Johnny, did you have front shocks on when you did this? I imagine if you did, that slingshotting would cause your front forks to dive slightly possibly causing the direction change. But I'm only guessing here. FYI I'm doing this on my 700c full rigid commuter with high psi skinny road tires.
 
johnny said:
The traffic moves much slower here than it does in most Aussie cities.
Click to expand...


Well, that sounds like a more civilised part of the world....

Have tried it a couple of times, and very briefly, hanging on to the rear indicator bulb thingies on buses. But as other correspondents have attested, it can be a bit scary as the front wheel dives.
 
I seem to recall Rick Boyer breaking his leg, being choppered out of buller or some place and rehab for 6months a few years ago as a result of skitching...

That's a warning of the downside...

But it can be fun:rolleyes:
 
Trams are good to skitch as they can't swerve to throw you off. They do like to accelerate in an effort to get you off though.

The last time I skitched was onto my mates car as we were going from a school up to my house. Its about a 3km trip.
Around corners. Up hills and at 60km at times. My arm was aching by the end of it. I probably wouldn't do that in a hurry again. Bit scary
 
One of the great things about living in Phoenix is the abundance of VERY large SUV's to hold onto. Great for towing/skitching whilst being very late for college.
But alas college is but a distant memory, 8 years and 35 pounds ago, Scottsdale police hate cyclists in general so don't even bother talking your way out of the fine:mad:
 
I used to do a bit of it when i was working as a courier but only really on the arterial roads heading back into town.

As for horror stories only the one of my own when i was just starting to learn 'how to'. Was cruising along at around 50 - 60 km hanging onto a very long truck with 2 trailers. I was scanning from the road up to the side mirrors to see whether or not the driver had realised i was there. Anyhow he spotted me and continually started glancing back in my direction, then he started to accelerate. Due to it being a 4 lane road, us being in one of the middle lanes i was hanging onto the rear right hand corner of the last trailer slightly rear of the truck so i didnt hang over into the right hand lane beside me too much.
Anyway he just kept accelerating and i had another scan further up the road and saw traffic banked up at the next set of lights, thought something wasn't right with the picture and swung off from behind the truck into the right hand lane. As i did so the driver slammed on the breaks. Had i been any later swinging off i would have ended up the arse of the truck which would have been pretty painfull.

I have learnt from that occasion

1. if you have to hang over into another lane do so
2. If the driver starts glancing back at you in the mirrors repeatedly its usually a bad sign and your ride may well be over


As for other horror stories, 1 other workmate got his wedding ring caught inside the tray of a ute and had to hang on until the guy pulled up at the next set of lights and another workmate got chased by a guy in a small truck up and along the pavement before he found a set of stairs to run up.

Some drivers seem not to mind having a hanger on but others get a bit psycho when they find a 'limpet' on their car/truck etc so once they have spotted you be ready for the worst..............
 
For the record, it is illegal. Andy from Fyxomatosis got fined $150? Im pretty sure, he posted the fine on his site. I can't remember exactly how they worded the offence however.

As for me, there have been many times where Im tempted, but with fixed gear and my legs constantly moving Im too scared:eek: I have drafted a couple of very large trucks, and thats also quite frightening! Although I haven't tried, trams look pretty easy to grab hold of, but you travel faster than them anyway so it kinda defeats the purpose.
 
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