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October 05, 2005

Finally, An Excuse to Buy a Leather Jacket

Ok, as Dailey was nice enough to point out, I seem to have hit another blogging hump. But that's ok, because I have recently acquired new skills with which to surmount said hump. No, not bo-staff skills, or even computer-hacking skills (which, by the way, I already posess); I'm talking about motorcycle-riding skills.

Quick backstory: Lawrence was selling his scooter, and I was interested in snatching it up. I hopped on for a quick ride and immediately ran the thing into a parked car. My sore shoulder and leg healed quickly, but my sore pride was not as easily sated.

One of the many lessons I've learned during my short time on this earth is: "Don't get angry. Then you're no better than the machine." I signed up for a CHP motorcycle course soon after my little incident and I have since conquered the two-wheeled beast.

So I plan on buying a bike now, because the course was just so damn fun. But I'm interested to hear what you guys have to say about motorcycles and safety. Do you think motorcycles are too dangerous? Just for purposes of clarity, let me preface the discussion with a few things:

Anyone have any opinions?

Posted by jake at October 5, 2005 02:23 PM

Comments

This summary of a report on CA motorcycle accidents makes for useful reading.

Some highlights:

Approximately one-fourth of these motorcycle accidents were single vehicle accidents involving the motorcycle colliding with the roadway or some fixed object in the environment.
In single vehicle accidents, motorcycle rider error was present as the accident precipitating factor in about two-thirds of the cases, with the typical error being a slideout and fall due to overbraking or running wide on a curve due to excess speed or under-cornering.

So, the lesson appears to be "don't speed, don't brake too hard, and corner properly." All of which I think you're sensible enough to stick to. As for the other 75% of accidents, well that's those pesky car-drivers...

In multiple vehicle accidents, the driver of the other vehicle violated the motorcycle right-of-way and caused the accident in two-thirds of those accidents.
The failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents. The driver of the other vehicle involved in collision with the motorcycle did not see the motorcycle before the collision, or did not see the motorcycle until too late to avoid the collision.

So... look out for yourself, basically. I know you ride a human-powered bike around the South Bay, so you should have had plenty of practice at assuming you're completely invisible to car drivers everywhere.

There's a load of other interesting stuff in there which provides useful advice in how to cut down on the risks.

This last one surprised me the most, given the number of accidents that seem to spring up as soon as it rains in CA:

Weather is not a factor in 98% of motorcycle accidents.

So yeah, you're a sensible guy. Be careful, and I don't see any problem with it. And let's face it, chicks dig leather jackets, so it's all good ;)

Posted by: simon at October 5, 2005 10:04 PM