the Ferret
Road warrior
Thread starter
Some interesting and disturbing figures
- Thread starter the Ferret
- Start date
That was too long to read word for word, but scanning over the facts and figures is quite sobering.
Except for the actual figures, there's not all that much that we didn't know about the risks we take each time we go for a ride.
This sport is too much fun to give it up or not do it in the first place.
The best we can do is gear up for the possible crash and manage the risks the best that we can through experience, alertness and training.
Except for the actual figures, there's not all that much that we didn't know about the risks we take each time we go for a ride.
This sport is too much fun to give it up or not do it in the first place.
The best we can do is gear up for the possible crash and manage the risks the best that we can through experience, alertness and training.
Ulvetanna_imp
Road warrior
Three main points here:
-Don't ride drunk or buzzed.
-Get home from your weekend ride before the evening hours, back in the garage before 6 p.m.
-Don't buy a large-displacement bike for your first machine, even if you are middle-aged guy and can afford it. So what if someone says you're on a girl's bike because you wisely got a CB500?
-Don't ride drunk or buzzed.
-Get home from your weekend ride before the evening hours, back in the garage before 6 p.m.
-Don't buy a large-displacement bike for your first machine, even if you are middle-aged guy and can afford it. So what if someone says you're on a girl's bike because you wisely got a CB500?
redbirds_imp
Road warrior
Interesting read ferret. Have to agree with Rocky and Ulvetanna, riding is too much fun to give up and always try to minimize your risks when you ride. Despite our best efforts, government safety standards, traffic laws and ATGATT, the death rate will remain at 100%. The choice we actually have is whether to die while living or to live while dead.
Ulvetanna_imp
Road warrior
"I would rather be ashes than dust. I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than that it should be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet."redbirds_imp said:
-Jack London
aschem_imp
Been there
Wish they would have included stats for accidents involving other vehicles with driver of other vehicle using a mobile phone.
emptysea
Road warrior
Thanks for the post, Ferret.
LongRanger_imp
Road warrior
Hers what I get out of it:
Of the total fatalities:
28% not licensed
42% single-vehicle accident
38% no helmet
32% over 1400cc
43% on interstate or freeway
30% DUI (43% of single-vehicle were DUI)
55% nighttime fatalities were DUI
Simple message here. Get your endorsement, wear a helmet, don't drink and ride.
Of the total fatalities:
28% not licensed
42% single-vehicle accident
38% no helmet
32% over 1400cc
43% on interstate or freeway
30% DUI (43% of single-vehicle were DUI)
55% nighttime fatalities were DUI
Simple message here. Get your endorsement, wear a helmet, don't drink and ride.
Ulvetanna_imp
Road warrior
That's the simple. Those numbers are complex.LongRanger_imp said:
Distilling this to a fatalistic philosophy makes good copy but bad advice. Jack London's words are nonetheless true, but Mr. London was anything but fatalistic; his credo, as expressed in "The Sea Wolf" and elsewhere, was "Will it work? Would I trust my life to it?"* He prefaced this with the statement, "The fact, man, the irrefragable fact!"
So here are some facts as gleaned by Longranger; what to be done about them is the question.
28% not licensed
Yes, get your license. But don't stop there. Continue training. Yes, the track is scary, but how can it be more frightening than the freeway? As Anthony Robbins puts it, strive for "Constant Never-Ending Improvement" (CANI).
42% single-vehicle accident
Nearly half of all motorcycle accidents seem to be loss of control with no other vehicle involved. That's a result of poor training, inattention, lack of focus, perhaps alcohol or other impairment. Removing impaired riding from the calculus, we are left with training. Train, train, and train some more. Don't just ride the same piece of road over and over again.
38% no helmet
Self-explanatory.
32% over 1400cc
Nearly all of those bikes are cruisers. This correlates with the alcohol consumption. The largest supersport I know of is the ZX-14, not included here. But over 40% are still in the sub-1000cc range, and many of those are going to be high-performance bikes. The lesson herre is not to go out and get more motorcycle than you can handle. The problem is human nature presses many of us to believe we CAN handle it. Been there, done that.
43% on interstate or freeway
High-traffic conditions, usually on the way to, or way home from, a destination. Situational awareness and a proper ability to keep the motorcycle out of harm's way - meaning excellent control of hard braking, maneuvering, and acceleration, often combined - are critical. Not many riders have those skills.
30% DUI (43% of single-vehicle were DUI)
Riding impaired is illegal and stupid.
55% nighttime fatalities were DUI
More impaired drivers and riders are out in the nighttime and early morning hours. Stay off the road during those times. In fact any kind of night riding is more dangerous because of poor visibility, disorientation, and fatigue. Pick another time to travel.
Also make darn sure your bike is well-maintained; tire pressure and condition, chain adjustment, suspension, brakes and so on need to be in good shape.
And don't buy a large, heavy bike over 1000cc as a first bike. You will probably not be "fine."
*David Starr Jordan, Founding President of Stanford University, and friend of Jack London
kmoney_imp
Road warrior
I always find these stats interesting, as they're the underlying basis (or independent variables, if you want to think of it as a regression analysis, as I tend to) of the aggregated "motorcycles are so dangerous stat" people always point to. If you actually filter all the personally avoidable factors, you can see how quickly the safety of motorcycles increases.
Ulvetanna_imp
Road warrior
Yep. It's a choice.kmoney_imp said:
GoldOxide_imp
Road warrior
Easy to repeat the obvious: Motorcycle riding is one of many therapeutic freedoms available that is repeatably accessible on-demand and can be economical while enjoying it.
Compare that to skydiving, deep sea diving, sailing, most vacations, etc. All good, but can take time to plan, wait for, stress over, and recover from. In addition, typically you are never alone.
Compare that to skydiving, deep sea diving, sailing, most vacations, etc. All good, but can take time to plan, wait for, stress over, and recover from. In addition, typically you are never alone.
tommymck
Been there
Yep... There are a few things that jump out and a bunch that is left hard to interpret. The stuff about older rider fatalities continuing to increase is likely to do with the percentage of riders who are older today than in the 70s. There is a lot that could have been provided with this data that could add to context and understanding. Showing motorcycle deaths compared to automobile deaths is meaningless unless you know the relative percentage of motorcycle riders compared to automobile drivers. Showing deaths sorted by gender is meaningless unless you know the breakdown of male to female riders.
I always knew that riding is more dangerous than driving. I actually take some comfort though in the fact that if you don't drink and ride at all, you drastically reduce the risk. I'm a pilot (for fun, not work). I follow the same "12 hours from bottle to throttle" rule for riding that I do for flying.
I'd also like to see a breakdown by make and model (with the corresponding data showing percentage of ownership). Sure, there are less under 30 deaths today than in years gone by. But I'd be surprised if as a percentage, the 20-something dudes flying by me at 120mph on a sport bike aren't actually less safe.
I always knew that riding is more dangerous than driving. I actually take some comfort though in the fact that if you don't drink and ride at all, you drastically reduce the risk. I'm a pilot (for fun, not work). I follow the same "12 hours from bottle to throttle" rule for riding that I do for flying.
I'd also like to see a breakdown by make and model (with the corresponding data showing percentage of ownership). Sure, there are less under 30 deaths today than in years gone by. But I'd be surprised if as a percentage, the 20-something dudes flying by me at 120mph on a sport bike aren't actually less safe.
GoldOxide_imp
Road warrior
Interesting points, and another: The increase in volume and the number of unaware cagers plaguing our roads just raises the odds for everybody.tommymck_imp said:
jimgl3_imp
Been there
got two things from all that:
we baby boomers who ride are getting older
very few states out there with no helmet law
cheers ; )
we baby boomers who ride are getting older
very few states out there with no helmet law
cheers ; )
GoldOxide_imp
Road warrior
Yeah, those have been constants indeed.jimgl3_imp said:
LongRanger_imp
Road warrior
There's no helmet law in my state, which I'm fine with. It's common to see stereotypical "lifestyle bikers" cruise past without a helmet (or any other gear for that matter), but I'm always astounded when a helmetless guy flies by on a Goldwing or BMW. Certainly, these guys should know better, shouldn't they?
GoldOxide_imp
Road warrior
LR: One word: "ego".
peterbaron
Road warrior
+1^...GoldOxide_imp said:
