[Ogre]

I’ve been searching around for Motorcycle accident statistics. I found a pretty good fact sheet from NHTSA. I have found it quite illuminating. Some of the more shocking information is:

“Forty-one percent of the 2,182 motorcycle riders who died in single-vehicle crashes in 2007 had BAC levels of .08 g/dL or higher. Sixty-five percent of those killed in single-vehicle crashes on weekend nights had BACs of .08 g/dL or higher.”

That means more that half of the fatalities (on weekend nights) had involved drinking of some sort. That is amazing to me. I guess the stereotype of biker bars has some truth to it. If you want to look into some of the other facts the study found, it is available in the section of links on this website (right around the middle of the page)

—> http://nhtsa.gov/portal/site/nhtsa/menuitem.6a6eaf83cf719ad24ec86e10dba046a0/

Reading this sort of thing reminds me of the importance of constant vigilance while riding.

Something I have not been able to find is whether one type of bike (ie. cruiser vrs sport) is more commonly involved in accidents. In most of the info I find, motorcycles are all lumped together and do not differentiate. My mother has decided that sport bikes are more dangerous. This is because she recently learned to use youtube, and she sees all the idiots showing off and crashing. I decided not to correct her, as I want a cruiser, and the safer she thinks I am the lees likely she is to call the police (to see if I am dead) when she hasn’t seen me for a week.

Peace. Truth. Comedy.
OGRE.

[Ogre]

From http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/Rpts/2001/809-360.pdf

Findings from FARS data provide insight into possible reasons for motorcyclist fatalities
in single vehicle motorcycle crashes and could aid in the design of crash prevention
programs:

-More riders age 40 and over are getting killed;
-More motorcyclist fatalities are occurring on rural roads;
– High BAC levels are a major problem among motorcycle operators;
– Half of the fatalities are related to negotiating a curve prior to the crash;
– Over 80 percent of the fatalities occur off roadway;
– Undivided roadways account for a majority of the fatalities;
– Almost two thirds of the fatalities were associated with speeding as an operator
contributing factor in the crash;
– Almost 60 percent of motorcyclist fatalities occur at night;
– Collision with a fixed object is a significant factor in over half of the fatalities;
– Braking and steering maneuvers possibly contribute for almost 25 percent of the
fatalities;
– Helmet use among fatally injured motorcyclists below 50 percent; and,
– Almost one third of the fatally injured operators did not have a proper license

Please don’t feed the animal.

[Jim]

Interesting facts, they seem in line with common wisdom on motorcycle safety. The only one I wonder about is what’s up with the over 40 statistic? More riders in their 40’s buying bikes (like myself) ? Slower reflexes?

[supermedic]

Those are some pretty astonishing statistics. They practically eliminate people who have a license, drive the speed limit and don’t drink. It’s as if those bastards make laws for a reason!

Haha! Seriously though, how do you guys shift when you’ve got a beer in your hand, I just can’t figure it out… Should I get one of those helmets with the straws?

[Phil]

I have a cupholder on my tank

[Candice]

In regards to riders over 40, I read that those riders are buying the very large bikes, like Goldwings and the heavier the bike was in the accident, the more likely that the accident was FATAL.

[supermedic]

That’s a pretty good idea… but do you think there’s too much wind at 90mph to flip up my face shield and get my sip on? Maybe if I just hold my mouth open real wide and tip my beer about 6 inches in front of my face…

[Phil]

supermedic … you are crazy ! opening you mouth and trying to pour a drink in there at 90 is dangerous!

I usually use my glove to fix the throttle at 90mph, so i can use both of my hands to take of my helmet… then i take a quick sip and put it back on.

On another note, make sure you put any alcoholic beverage in a paperbag, cops, and other drivers don’t react to kindly to seeing you sip a beer or vodka…

[supermedic]

Hahahaha. Touche, my friend!

[shaggles]

In the MSF class they were very clear that alcohal and motorcycles do not mix. Unlike a car you have to balance a motorcycle and that becomes a lot more difficult after even one drink. (I haven’t tried it-that’s what they told us in class.) I don’t think it has anything to do with “biker bars”. More people leave bars in cars than on bikes.

[Candice]

Have a few beers, then go rollerblade backwards around some orange cones lined up about 10 in a row about 3 feet apart or if you never did that before you might have to do 6 feet apart, you know in and out, you will hit almost all of them. I tried it a few years back and when not under the influence I NEVER hit a cone. Made it REAL clear that drinking reduces your abilities A LOT!

[Ogre]

I am a tech junkie. one of my favorite things is my amazon kindle e-reader. One of the features is asking a question and they send answers back to the kindle. Last night I asked “Which motorcycles are involved in crashes more often, Sport style bikes or Cruisers?

The answer was what I expected, but some of the figures seem a little to impressive, Here is the answer I got.

Answer from NowNow:
Sports Bikes

Sport bikes have the highest death rates among all types of motorcycles, according to the Highway Loss Data Institute. Drivers of these high-performance racing motorcycles are being killed nearly four times as often as people who drive Cruiser models, a new insurance study shows. Motorcycle deaths in general have skyrocketed from 2,116 in 1997 to 4,810 in 2006, and now account for 11 percent of all traffic fatalities, U.S. Transportation Department figures show. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety blames the popular super sport motorcycles in part for the dramatic increase. Sport bikes made up less than 10 percent of registered motorcycles in 2005 but accounted for over 25 percent of rider deaths. Super sport bikes are built on racing platforms but modified for the highway and sold to consumers. They are very lightweight and have powerful engines. For example, a 2006 model Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R produces 111 horsepower and weighs 404 pounds. In contrast, the 2006 model Harley-Davidson Ultra Classic Electra Glide produces 65 horsepower and weighs 788 pounds. We know that a lot of the people who get into sport bikes are adrenaline junkies with a daredevil mentality. They’re not out to take a cruise to enjoy the countryside. They want to get a rush by pushing it to the limit.

They always give a source. Here is the website —>http://www.cyrilhuzeblog.com/2007/10/10/motorcycle-accidents-sport-bikes-versus-cruisers/

The link takes you to a blog. It sites “The Highway Loss Data Institute” It took a while to find their website, but I finally found the information and here is the HLDI website study that had the information from the Blog post above

.—> http://www.iihs.org/research/fatality_facts_2006/motorcycles.html

Interesting stuff, but i don’t think it relates well to the licensed, non drinking, respectful folk who frequent websites like this.

Please don’t feed the animal.

[Author]

Posts