What Does It Mean When A Biker Swings Their Left Palm Downwards?

Are you planning a long trip with your biker gang? If so, then there are two main things that you need to have knowledge about. First is obviously how to ride the bike, and the second is the different hand gestures that bikers use on the road. Knowing about these gestures will really help your group communicate with each other on the road. These hand signals can act as a lifesaver if your biker gang is not connected to each other through a headset while riding.

There are many hand signals that bikers use while riding. For instance, you may see a biker pointing two fingers up. This signal is called "double file," and it is mainly shown by the biker who is leading the group to signal other bikers to change the formation on the road. Similarly, you'll sometimes find a biker swinging their left palm downwards while riding. This gesture is used to signal other bikers to slow down.

One of the unsaid rules of riding bikes in a group is that the biker leading the group should regularly communicate with other group members and tell them what their next move on the road will be. When the lead biker sees that the path ahead is not clear — maybe there is a lot of debris on the road or there is heavy traffic ahead — they can let the other bikers know about it by swinging their left palm downwards. This hand signal will tell their riding group that they need to slow down their vehicle.

When the lead biker notices that the road ahead is now clear, they can signal their motorcycle group to increase their speed by doing just the opposite of what they did to signal to slow things down. They need to use their left palm again, but this time, instead of swinging it downward, they need to swing it upward with their palm facing up. You'll also see that the lead biker will repeatedly perform this slowdown or speed-up signal. The repetition of the signal properly shows the intention of the lead biker, and it also increases the likelihood of other bikers seeing the signal.