Fear of death or injury

[fishmitch_imp]

all i can say is OUCHHHHHH !!!!!!

[redReno_imp]

Every now and then I'll spook myself and I worry. I have three kids and it's not always the bike that has me worried but just other drivers in general, either taking me out or all of us in the car.
Thursday before we got cut loose for a 4 day week end we were informed about 8 US Marines deaths (all within a 7-8 day period), 2 of them were on motorcycles and another death was actually a daughter in a car accident. I had a bad gut feeling but went riding anyway the next day.
My bud and I ended up riding over 200 miles and even got caught in some heavy rain trying to rush home through the mountains. I had a blast though! Even having gone through a huge puddle with mud and getting my bike super dirty, I didn't mind washing it off the next day, thankful I made it safe and I would be enjoying Easter with family and friends and no unexpected deaths.

I've only been riding for about 2 years, and I really enjoy it.

[The Spaceman_imp]

So here's an issue ripped straight from today's headlines: a couple with two toddlers spent their lives on their sailboat, cruising from port to port. They were on course across the Pacific with the youngsters when their boat sank. They got off the boat in their inflatable and were rescued by the Coast Guards.

People are ripping into the couple for "recklessly endangering" the lives of the youngsters by taking them sailing! Many people are saying they should be charged the cost of the CG rescue. I find both of those ideas to be ridiculous. The kids I met who were with cruising families were smart, happy, well-educated, and were loving life. Not everybody has to live in a suburban house and drive an SUV tank to raise their kids safely.

[Barkingshins_imp]

Spaceman,
I can't speak for the rest of the world but, here in the U.S., we have become absolutely hysterical about safety. Most people are very eager to lay down some pretty harsh judgments on anyone who dares to engage in any sort of risky activity, however modest the risk may be. As it happens, we are also hysterical about children. Bumps and bruises are now to be avoided at ALL costs and just about ANYTHING that your child enjoys doing is probably under attack by one advocacy group or another. I, for one, am glad that I grew up in the Wild West of the 70's and 80's... back when being a kid was actually fun.

George Carlin said it best - "Grown-ups have taken all the fun out of being a kid, just to save a few thousand lives."

Deep down, Spaceman, I suspect that the people ripping into that couple are jealous of their relatively adventurous lifestyle.

[mininsx_imp]

I quit riding when my son was around 2, one, because I seemed to be having a lot of "close calls" and two, because one of my friends from work (who used to ride after drinking and getting high) wrecked and broke his back, and was in a wheelchair the rest of his life. I didn't want my son to be raised by a dad in a wheelchair so the bike was sold. When he was 14 or 15 I got another bike. I was good for about a year then I totaled it (my fault). Got another one and flipped over the hood of a car and totaled that one (not my fault). A couple of years later I got a Honda RC51 (first sportbike) and I ended up totaling that! (My fault-new to bike but should have known better) I almost quit after that because that one did some damage but I didn't, and I'm still riding. Crazy? Maybe, but we're all gonna die some day anyway, so might as well enjoy it while you can.

[lagoje_imp]

I see some common themes in all these videos..... too much speed for the conditions, lack of awareness, too much speed, lack of braking/swirving skills..... and too much speed. oh, and I almost forgot... too much speed.

[avsbezzy_imp]

So here's an issue ripped straight from today's headlines: a couple with two toddlers spent their lives on their sailboat, cruising from port to port. They were on course across the Pacific with the youngsters when their boat sank. They got off the boat in their inflatable and were rescued by the Coast Guards.

People are ripping into the couple for "recklessly endangering" the lives of the youngsters by taking them sailing! Many people are saying they should be charged the cost of the CG rescue. I find both of those ideas to be ridiculous. The kids I met who were with cruising families were smart, happy, well-educated, and were loving life. Not everybody has to live in a suburban house and drive an SUV tank to raise their kids safely.

AMEN Spaceman!

[MFGUSA_imp]

Well said Spaceman & Barkingshins. I suspect mainstream mankind won't be reverting back to the ways of our youth anytime soon.

[Tortuga_imp]

I quit riding when my son was around 2, one, because I seemed to be having a lot of "close calls" and two, because one of my friends from work (who used to ride after drinking and getting high) wrecked and broke his back, and was in a wheelchair the rest of his life. I didn't want my son to be raised by a dad in a wheelchair so the bike was sold. When he was 14 or 15 I got another bike. I was good for about a year then I totaled it (my fault). Got another one and flipped over the hood of a car and totaled that one (not my fault). A couple of years later I got a Honda RC51 (first sportbike) and I ended up totaling that! (My fault-new to bike but should have known better) I almost quit after that because that one did some damage but I didn't, and I'm still riding. Crazy? Maybe, but we're all gonna die some day anyway, so might as well enjoy it while you can.

Maybe, just maybe this is a sign? I dunno.

So here's an issue ripped straight from today's headlines: a couple with two toddlers spent their lives on their sailboat, cruising from port to port. They were on course across the Pacific with the youngsters when their boat sank. They got off the boat in their inflatable and were rescued by the Coast Guards.

People are ripping into the couple for "recklessly endangering" the lives of the youngsters by taking them sailing! Many people are saying they should be charged the cost of the CG rescue. I find both of those ideas to be ridiculous. The kids I met who were with cruising families were smart, happy, well-educated, and were loving life. Not everybody has to live in a suburban house and drive an SUV tank to raise their kids safely.

AMEN Spaceman!

AMEN Spaceman!
plus one.

I see some common themes in all these videos..... too much speed for the conditions, lack of awareness, too much speed, lack of braking/swirving skills..... and too much speed. oh, and I almost forgot... too much speed.

Or in cases of slow reactions/swerving skills maybe 'not enough' speed..hehe.

[Greg_imp]

I've just discovered [url=http://wmoon.wordpress.com]the blog of Wendy Moon. Wendy had "an alternative view of the efficacy and safety of the Motorcycle Safety Foundation rider training curriculum".

Wendy wrote that she no longer considered it worth "the mental effort required to maintain that protective attitude. I am not free to live in the now because I’m enslaved to the future 'what if.' ...So we gradually distance ourselves from experiencing a full and free life and we don’t even know it. As a society, we’re like kids so bundled up against the snow we cannot move at all.... Embracing that risk rejuvenates the soul and empowers one to live the rest of her life as she wants."

Statistics are useless for knowing what will happen whenever YOU get on a motorcycle. Aggregating the actions of large numbers of people ignores the fact that people vary widely in skill level, acuity of awareness, quickness and appropriateness of response. Everything else being equal - which it never is - one rider could always be in much more danger of serious injury or death than another.

I doubt there has ever been a person on earth who has not lived in close proximity to lethal risks on a daily or even minute to minute basis. We who are alive are simply adapted to such things and don't even think about them in most areas, but for some reason there is an inordinate fuss made about motorcycling.

You may have noticed me referring to Wendy in the past tense. Yes, she is dead ... from a sudden heart attack at the age of 57.