My husband I both ride. He was even a road racer (like Moto GP kind, not dirt bike kind).
We always wear full gear and do our best to ride safely.
Car drivers were always the most dangerous part of riding. Now it’s infinitely worse because all those “I just didn’t see him” people are stuck in their phones so they don’t even have a chance to see us.
The legal environment was never helpful, either. Drivers who kill motorcyclists they “just didn’t see” get off with reckless driving charges with no real consequences.
I personally have been cut off and “left-turned” more times than I can count. On the plus side, it’s to the point where I can practically read a driver’s mind…I can just tell when they’re gonna turn out in front of me or do something equally dumb, often before it happens. Riding a motorcycle has made me a much better driver.
I don’t ride, how dangerous are shitty roads to you? Like if you hit a bump or pothole you don’t see or something is that ever a real risk on the highway?
The riders who fly at 90 miles an hour and weave between cars on the Interstate always blow my mind. Like, how long do they think they’ll be able to go before their luck runs out?
tbh it’s all about the speed at least when on the highway. When you are hauling ass down the highway, even a small piece of road debris can be deadly. Meanwhile you can usually dodge most things if you are going a reasonable speed and are paying attention.
If anyone cares to see what they can do here are some pics from the friends I mentioned above, don’t look if squeamish, I do not have one of the guy’s face ldo
lol, no, but our jackets have reflective material on the back and arms. I also have a super cool orange vest I can wear if I really want to.
Honestly, it doesn’t matter much. They’ve done studies where they simulate driving and have things like guys in gorilla suits or giant glowing orbs move across the screen and people just “don’t see them.” It’s a driver education and mindset thing.
The best part about riding motorcycles is when someone that has never ridden one finds out you ride. They 100% of the time instantly tell you about someone who died or crashed horrifically.
Also, look, death rate statistics for motorcycles or cars are not your own mortality rate. People have wildly different approaches to driving. For motorcycles even moreso than cars; stuff like only driving when it’s sunny versus assuming cars will see you pass through intersections at night.
Defensive driving means always assuming everyone around you will fuck up at all times
Damn I knew it was bad but I didn’t know motorcycles were that much more dangerous than cars. I figured 5 or 6x the mortality rate. It’s looks like it about 22x. 1.34 deaths per 100M miles for cars and 30.05 for motorcycles.
Well I work in a trauma center, so yeah I limit my driving. I also used to ride, again working in a trauma ER cures you of some stupid hobbies. Helmets are pretty awesome though, you have a much better chance of living long enough to donate what’s left of your organs.
