The Blind Crest Pass
You are riding a sport bike on a two-lane mountain road at 45 mph. The speed limit is 45. You are climbing toward a blind crest where the road bends left just beyond the top. A slow flatbed truck is ahead of you at about 25 mph, and you have been behind it for a mile. You can see perhaps 200 feet of clear road ahead before the crest, and the left lane appears empty in that stretch. The center line is a solid double yellow. Your tires are warm and the pavement is dry. A light wind pushes you slightly toward the center of the lane. You are eager to make up time.
1. Can you legally and safely pass here? Explain.
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No - this is not a legal or safe pass.
- A solid double yellow line means no passing; crossing it is a violation regardless of whether the lane looks empty.
- The crest is blind: you can only see about 200 feet, and at closing speeds an oncoming vehicle could appear with almost no time to react.
- Passing on a blind crest is one of the most lethal motorcycle mistakes; you would be in the oncoming lane with no escape.
- The correct choice is to stay behind the truck, maintain a safe following distance, and wait for a legal passing zone with clear sight distance.
2. What if the truck slows to 15 mph and you grow impatient? Does that change the answer?
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No. Impatience is not a legal justification, and the hazard is unchanged.
- The solid line and blind crest still prohibit and endanger a pass.
- A slower truck actually increases the time you would spend in the oncoming lane, raising risk.
- If you are delayed, the safe options are to accept the delay or pull over at a safe spot to let traffic clear and regroup.
- Never let frustration override the sight-distance and marking rules.
3. Describe how you would execute a pass once a legal passing zone with clear sight distance appears.
Read the worked answer
Make it deliberate, quick, and only with a large margin.
- Confirm the center line has changed to a broken line and you can see far enough ahead to complete the pass with room to spare.
- Check mirrors and blind spot, signal, and move into the left lane smoothly.
- Accelerate decisively to pass, then return to the right lane only when you can see the truck in your mirror.
- Cancel your signal, resume a safe following position, and stay alert for the next hazard.