Dead Motorcyclists
- Thread starter SkyRider
- Start date
There are two types of motorcyclists. Those that have been in an accident and those that will be in an accident.
Actually statistics indicate that a motorcyclist is at highest risk for an accident in their first few years of riding. If they don't have an accident in this period their chances of having one becomes very low.
That said I am the only motorcyclist I know who has not gone down at some point!
Make that two (knock on wood). I hear repeatedly that its only a matter of time before you go down - I only hope its a minor altercation or simply dropping the bike. The safe riders out there don't take chances and have an extreme awareness of their surroundings especially around other vehicles. Unfortunately other vehicles may not share that awareness and any altercation doesn't usually end well for a motorcyclist.
I guess the younger ones (i.e. the typical idiots weaving in & out unsafely) have faster reflexes or get blind stupid lucky?
As an enthusiastic bike commuter I always assumed that we were the most despised form of road transportation, but I think we come #2 behind motorcyclists given the Toronto car reactions I see when commuting and a motorcycle whizzes or squeezes by... Hopefully most of these deaths were simple human error and no road rage/malice... There doesn't tend to be much sympathy for 2-wheelers...
Here's my theory about middle age motorcyclists who were killed this year. I think it's an affliction call "middle age crazy".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Age_Crazy
A few years ago my middle age supervisor bought his first motorcycle. My advice to him was to take it to a deserted country road, go slow and practice before going into live traffic.
They get into motorcycling late in life, buy huge heavy bikes that have terrible control (cough Harleys cough), don't take lessons and ride in huge packs ignoring typical safety procedures. When I took an intro riding course when I was younger, the old guys there who did come for lessons did terribly, several of them failed outright including one guy who crashed. They also often eschew proper safety gear to maintain some kind of stupid image. They'll ride in half helmets when the majority of impacts happen in the chin area.
My cousin has been riding for years, but he was involved in an accident last year due to some schmuck who made a lane change without checking. My cousin suffered a minor injury to his leg.
Maybe that has something to do with the jet-engine-like noise these fucktards make on their motorbikes.
I saw it on CTV NEWS, but here are a couple of other sources.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thund...count-for-half-of-motorcycle-deaths-1.2743274
http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2014/09/18/4090579.htm
^^^This...
I myself know many guys my own age buying the big bike, taking the course and hitting the road. I've pondered this myself, thinking it's no problem, as I road dirt bikes as a kid, but with the poor driving ability I see on the roads today, coupled with distracted drivers, texting and talking, I wouldn't climb on a bike at all. The roads are too crowded with dummies and I value my life and body too much. Buying a bike and starting to ride when you're older is not the thing to do. You lack years of experience in bike handling, coupled with poorer vision and slower reflexes, only good fortune will be the angel that protects you on the roads today.
Many motorcyclist deaths and injuries are also the result of single vehicle accidents. One young guy killed himself when he crashed his bike into a wall.
As much as I love motorcycles I dont think I would ride one ever again. Living in T.O its way too overcrowded and dangerous to ride one. I ride mountain bikes and I have a road -gravel bike with 40 tires so I ride roads up north that have wide shoulders and mix it up with gravel roads and gravel rail trails. After doing 150 km you feel great and much safer then motorcycle. You can still go pretty fast and enjoy the scenery.
Meanwhile riding a road bike is how world motorcycle champion Nicky Hayden lost his life this year. I would rather be able to go the speed of traffic than have idiot after idiot passing me while on a bicycle. At least on a motorbike I have some semblance of control. On a bicycle, pretty much everything is out of your hands.
That's funny because foreign motorists probably have more experience (good or bad) with motorcyclists than Canadian drivers. If we're talking Europe, there is a much higher bar to entry for driving any vehicle. Our licensing system is laughable compared to them
