[yester64]

Hi,
everytime i talk to someone and say i will drive a motorcycle, all i get is ‘oh no don’t do it’. ‘To dangerous’ etc…
Should that dis-encourage me now?
I know the danger that looms but i am a save driver (with a car) and i think i can manage the risk.
Any advice on that topic?

[eon]

Any crash on a bike is going to have more serious consequences than in a car, just no arguing that one. The flip side of that is stripped of your protective cage (with airbags, traction control, ABS blah blah blah) you much more involved with the ride and in tune with the traffic while on a bike. I have no doubt I am less likely to have a crash on my bike than I am in a car for those reasons and the fact I have increased visibility and increased mobility. With practice, you learn to read the road and the traffic flow and see and avoid situations before they even develop. These are skills car drivers should be taught as well but we all know that is not going to happen. So meanwhile you have to take responsibility for their mistakes and make sure you don’t get caught out by them. Cause if you do, you are the one who is going to pay.

Other than traffic incidents, the other major cause of bike crashes is failing to take a corner. Lots of reasons for this but it boils down to simple rider error. Take plenty of training and avoid riding outside your limits and you should be fine.

So is it dangerous? Yes.
Can the risks be managed? Yes.

A lot of the headlines are grabbed by the 40 something year old on a cruiser failing to take a corner, or a 20 year old sport bike idiot doing wheelies down the interstate. Avoid falling into those two categories and you already have a good start

[CrankyHippo]

Life itself is dangerous, you’re not going to get out of it alive in any case. This is a good topic but varies greatly from person to person.

I asked myself the same question when i first started riding, my parents, grand parents, some friends said not to do it, then again some friends said do it (the ones i ride with now, haha)

To start i’ll say if you think you will enjoy riding motorcycles then you should do it. Personally it’s changed my life, despite the risk i love the way i feel riding on a motorcycle seeing the world and learning. That being said there’s a lot more to being safe then just being a good driver. Many things are out of your hands, i’ve known riders who always rode safe and by bad luck a car will pull in front of them or hit a gravel patch and go down. I’ve also known riders who always push it to the limit on the street and haven’t had an accident…yet.

Like many things motorcycles are all about RISK MANAGEMENT. If you want to increase your life expectancy on a motorcycle take the proper steps learned from countless number of riders over the years.

1st, Start Small, Ninja 250/500, GS500, SV650, etc.

2nd, Motorcycle Safety Class is a must, even if you are a terrific driver and have never had and accident. There is so much that new riders don’t know that they don’t know.

3rd, Get good gear,Helmet, Jacket, Gloves, Boots, & Pants. Laying motorcycles happens to everyone, just don’t loose any skin over it.

4th, Be continually learning, by reading books, watching videos, talking to fellow riders. I recommend Total Control, Twist of the Wrist (which is a DVD, awful acting but some of the best information)

One last thing, if you think you have good self control it will be tested while riding a motorcycle, it’s very tempting to ride over your head. Many people think that they’ll resist the temptation to twist the throttle too much (i’m a victim of that)

Sorry for the long post, but if you’re going to do motorcycles do it right, if you find you can live with out it then don’t ride. What it all comes down to is what YOU want to do and what you’re willing to lose/gain, if your family/friends love you they’ll want to see you happy, even with the risk. For me riding out weighs the risk, good luck.

[CrankyHippo]

Great point, even if you’re not interested in going “fast” or having a sport bike, knowing how to take a corner is paramount. There is such a thing being able to go faster safer.

[JackTrade]

It’s totally true…every time you hear about motorcycles in the news, it’s either (75%) a guy on a supersport doing something stupid at high velocity, or (20%) an older guy who does something merely dumb at a much slower speed, but with less protective gear and less robust constitution or (5%) something about gangs and drugs that usually references “Sons of Anarchy”. No wonder non-riders have such a bad view of bikes.

One of the corny but usefuly things about the BRC is the ladder of risk concept…gives you the right framework to think about riding, and about the dangers involved.

[briderdt]

When people at work ask me about my bike, often it’s people who ride off-road because “I’m absolutely scared to ride on the road.”

It’s funny, I’ve ridden bicycles on the road for over 3 decades, and not ONCE have I hit pavement because of a car. I HAVE because of other bikes (I raced for several years). I’ve had a couple close calls (usually people doing the same thing that kills motorcyclists — making a left turn into an on-coming bike), but never actually hit or gone down trying to avoid it. And I hear the same thing from people when talking about riding a bicycle on the road.

And on the motorcycle, even though it’s only been just less than 2 years, can’t even really say I’ve had a close call. Maybe it’s the bright yellow bike, but it just hasn’t happened.

So I’m a little amazed at the fear people exhibit when talking about riding on the road. Especially people who already ride a motorcycle, just off road. So when I hear it, I think: Why the fear? Is it because you’re afraid every one drives like YOU do?

[JackTrade]

On the street, there are too many variables over which we have no control (mostly other drivers)…so you have to compromise your total attention from a 100% pure technique focus to a combination of technique and safety margin.

I think that for some people, that compromise detracts from the experience, and they’d rather limit their riding environment/opportunities rather than their pursuit of total technique. So they ride on tracks or dirt only. I get it. It’s not me, but I do understand it.

When I used to do track days in my car, at first, it’s really scary riding some guy’s bumper at 80 mph while surrounded a pack of cars. But after awhile, you realize that it’s probably no less safe than driving normally on a public expressway.

On the track, predictability rules….you’re all (in theory) braking at exactly the same places, accelerating at the same points, etc. At any given moment, you know how the guys in front and in back of you are going to behave and you can plan accordingly. Notice how on a racetrack, there’s usually one line that everyone takes through the course….driver’s don’t usually go to the inside of a turn when everyone else is going outside.

In the real world, you never know when some wingnut is going to pull out right in front of you, or grandma’s going to decide to hit the brakes.

[TrialsRider]

In my case it’s grandma drives right at you and wingnut tries to run you over from behind ;(
The best safety feature of a motorcycle is agility and with a skilled rider on board, it’s ability to ‘no be there’ I generally feel as safe riding ( we don’t call it driving ) as when I’m driving my 1 ton truck, right up until the instant a collision occurs.

[Author]

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