Do right-handed people look right/left-handed people look left?

[jrenaut]

I think you’d have to repeat your study in a place where they drive on the other side of the road. I’m pretty sure I look left first, but I know I feel extremely discombobulated in other countries where traffic is on the wrong side of the road. I end up with my head on a swivel because I don’t trust my instincts about where the danger could come from. For the record, I’m right-handed.

[mstone]

I’d say you’d want to look in the direction of oncoming traffic in the nearest lane as the *last* thing you do before stepping into the lane, so it sounds like they’re doing it right.

[jrenaut]

@mstone 147415 wrote:

I’d say you’d want to look in the direction of oncoming traffic in the nearest lane as the *last* thing you do before stepping into the lane, so it sounds like they’re doing it right.

Isn’t the common wisdom near lane-far lane-near lane again? I feel like that’s what they say in oh-so-helpful PSAs.

[Judd]

Remedial kindergarten and drivers ed for everyone. I can still here the voice as the projector clicked away. Look left. Look right. Look left again. Now proceed I to the intersection.

Based on the number of people I see with walking on the right challenges in hallways and sidewalks, I’m not surprised by the observation.

I have observed that most left handed people clip out on the left side as well.

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[huskerdont]

Yup, left-right-left, that way you are crossing/turning while looking in the direction of your most immediate threat. Although many people apparently survive well into adulthood without doing this.

Habit is to mount left and unclip on the right. Right handed, though bat and golf left and can write left handed. Just to muddle what is better left unmuddled.

[jrenaut]

@huskerdont 147418 wrote:

Just to muddle what is better left unmuddled.

No, no, extra muddling is definitely preferred.

[MFC]

@Judd 147417 wrote:

I have observed that most left handed people clip out on the left side as well.

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I’ve kinda wondered about that. There is one school of thought that says to stay clipped in with your dominant foot because you have more power when you push off to start. I keep my non-dominant foot clipped-in as much as possible, and unclip with my dominant foot because it is more coordinated and I am generally clipping in and out at lights in traffic. I guess that is the difference between a racer and a commuter.

[trailrunner]

I try to clip in and out equally left and right so that my cleats wear equally.

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[jrenaut]

@MFC 147422 wrote:

There is one school of thought that says to stay clipped in with your dominant foot because you have more power when you push off to start.

That seems backwards – I unclip my dominant (right) foot, and at a start my left is mostly just making sure the right pedal is where i want it to be and I don’t really push hard until my right foot is clipped in. Although maybe that’s just because I’m mostly a transportational cyclist?

[Tim Kelley]

Oooh! Let me jump on this thread too…

For anyone who mountain bikes, do you find switchbacks in either direction to be harder or easier than the other?

For example, is it easier to take a tight turn to the left, or is it easier to take a tight turn to the right? If one way or other jumps out at you, what dominant-hand are you?

[huskerdont]

@Tim Kelley 147425 wrote:

Oooh! Let me jump on this thread too…

For anyone who mountain bikes, do you find switchbacks in either direction to be harder or easier than the other?

For example, is it easier to take a tight turn to the left, or is it easier to take a tight turn to the right? If one way or other jumps out at you, what dominant-hand are you?

I’m right-handed, and I’ve never noticed a difference mountain biking. The only place I noticed a difference was riding the switchbacks up from the Four Mile Run trail to Potomac Avenue. I finally realized it wasn’t right or left so much as that I’m more comfortable when I’m on the outside of the turn since the arc is a little easier. If you’re mountain biking, I don’t think you are quite as concerned with sticking to the right side of the trail as you are when you’re on an MUP, so you can make the arc smoother either way the trail turns.

[Tim Kelley]

@huskerdont 147429 wrote:

I’m right-handed, and I’ve never noticed a difference mountain biking. The only place I noticed a difference was riding the switchbacks up from the Four Mile Run trail to Potomac Avenue. I finally realized it wasn’t right or left so much as that I’m more comfortable when I’m on the outside of the turn since the arc is a little easier. If you’re mountain biking, I don’t think you are quite as concerned with sticking to the right side of the trail as you are when you’re on an MUP, so you can make the arc smoother either way the trail turns.

Interesting–yes, the Potomac Ave zig-zag would be another place that would work for this question. Although the sight lines there are good enough that you can take up the whole trail if you need to (and with an 8 foot long cargo bike I do need it!).

[Judd]

I’d like to see how you navigate those turns with a cargo bike. I end up putting my foot down to turn most of the time.

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[LeprosyStudyGroup]

I’m right handed and right foot dominant. I look left, right, left because duh. Had some close calls when I lived in Japan because of that habit.

From years of skateboarding and snowboarding the left is all about leading with stability and power while the right does all the dexterity stuff, so unclipping right is a must. When I was first getting back in to biking, making very tight left handed turns was much more difficult (likely to have a clipped-in-fallover) than making tight right turns. I’d say getting used to knee-to-handlebar-tight+slow left turns had a similar feeling to me as getting used to riding a board switch.

[Tim Kelley]

@Judd 147431 wrote:

I’d like to see how you navigate those turns with a cargo bike. I end up putting my foot down to turn most of the time.

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On the cargo bike the middle turns are too tight to do it smoothly, but the first and last turns you can swing it a bit wider and make it.

On a mountain bike in the downhill direction the fastest line is to take the outside:

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