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Posted on 09/21/2006 12:38:32 PM PDT by martin_fierro
SCDPS: Males Older Than 35 Lead Motorcycle Fatalities
(Columbia) – The South Carolina Department of Public Safety released facts today regarding an trend in motorcycle fatalities that shows males older than 35 to be more involved in motorcycle deaths.
The study shows the average age of a motorcycle fatality victim during the time period studied was 41 years old.
This trend in motorcycle fatalities is the opposite of other motor vehicle collision deaths. The SCDPS says the younger, 18-34 year old male is typically the demographic that is overrepresented in fatal collisions.
"Our goal here is not to put a damper on anyone's fun or personal freedom but to educate this segment of our population about the unnecessary risks they are facing," said Highway Patrol Colonel Russell F. Roark. "Inexperience is the key factor contributing to most of our single-vehicle motorcycle deaths."
After observing a steady rise in fatality numbers, the SCDPS formed a task force to look at the facts behind each Highway Patrol-investigated motorcycle fatality in 2005, and those that occurred in the first half of 2006. The committee analyzed motorcycle fatalities from January 2005 until June 2006.
The committee found that there were 156 total motorcycle fatalities during that period. The Highway Patrol studied 114 fatality packets that were complete and were Highway Patrol investigated collisions.
The SCDPS says the same pattern emerged again and again: middle-aged male; driving too fast for conditions; shown as contributing to the collision and not wearing a helmet.
The SCDPS released these numbers: - 114 fatalities studied - 90 percent of those killed were male - 66 percent were over the age of 35 - 64 percent were not wearing helmets - 73 percent of the time, the motorcycle operator contributed - 54 percent of the fatal collisions involved speed as a factor
The SCDPS says Troop Three, located in the Upstate, led the state in the number of fatal motorcycle-involved collisions.
Motorcycle fatalities in the Lowcountry – Troop Six – varied from the statewide averages, with younger males more likely to die on sport motorcycles.
The SCDPS says the statewide trend in fatal collisions follows a consumer trend as well: baby boomers and those older than 35 purchasing high-end, luxury cruiser motorcycles but failing in many cases to obtain the necessary training or licensing to ride such a motorcycle.
The SCDPS found that between 1990 and 2003, motorcycle ownership rates among baby boomers increased 44 percent nationwide, versus only 6 percent with non-baby boomers. Middle age consumers, are responsible for the fast growing segment of motorcycle registrations.
In South Carolina, the SCDPS says motorcycle registrations have risen in recent years from 56,000 in 2001 to 85,000 in 2005. Motorcycle fatalities have increased as well, the SCDPS says they jumped from 75 in 2001 to 94 in 2005, and they say 2006 is looking to finish as a record year with 84 fatalities so far this year.
A Motorcycle Safety Task Force has been spearheaded by SCDPS and met for the first time this week. The SCDPS says their goal is to bring together law enforcement, motorcycle enthusiasts, safety advocates and the SC Department of Motor Vehicles to work as a unit to find ways to increase training opportunities and educate this demographic to prevent such losses.
SCDPS also wants to emphasize that motorists need to be more aware of motorcycles on the roadway. They say in two-vehicle collisions involving motorcycles, the motorists are more likely to be at fault. The report shows failure to yield is one of the leading reasons motorcyclists die. The SCDPS says it can be difficult to spot a motorcycle in traffic or judge their speed.
Nationwide, the SCDPS says motorcycle fatalities rose 13 percent from 4,028 in 2004 to 4,553 in 2005; almost half of the people who died were not wearing a helmet. The SCDPS says South Carolina had a 10 percent increase during that time.
The only way to die!!!
You're A Great American™.
I think most cyclists are boomers at this point, so I'm not surprised.
I'm here to serve. >:-}
I'm curious what the breakdown of the stats are. Even w/ helmeted vs. unhelmeted riders there's a big diff. in a skid lid and a full face. Also a big diff. btwn the leathered up rider and the jeans and t-shirt rider.
Also, how many are the cager's fault? Was alchohol involved?, etc.
Anyway, be safe; rubber side down; all that good stuff.
My eyes and my reflexes were the 2nd and 3rd things to go bad.
Thanks. Nice banter. I'm old. I hurt. I ride.
Just got another biker started. Helped find his first bike and pass his permit test. Gave him one of my full helmets.
He's learning on a Honda Rebel, with a Harley tank. He's stoked.
I'll be delicately diplomatic and not ask about what #1 was.
< |:p~
SC ping! Well, kind of...
I'll say it again, Don't outdrive your brain, your skill, your reflexes or your headlights and do drive as if you're invisible. It's served me well (never dropped one or been down in over 55 years of riding).
Mark
Actually, my personal thought is that when I'm on my bike, I drive like I'm a refugee from the movie "Death Race 2000!" That all the cars are driven by angry, homocidal maniacs who are out to run me down.
And I'm afraid to say that I dropped my brand new Ducati 900SP on the second and third days that I owned it... Once on each side! Damned EPA! It was jetted so lean from the factory that unless I revved the engine to about 3000RPM when I took off from a start, it would backfire through the carbs and stall! Those first 2 times took me by surprise and I couldn't get my feet back down off the pegs in time to save it. The dealer wanted me to give it at least a little bit of a break-in, at least a few hundred miles before rejetting the carbs, but I returned it to be done (and get my high, carbon fiber cans and K&N air filter) at less than 200 miles. It was just too dangerous to ride. Forget dropping it, stalling the bike at a stop light could easily be fatal.
Mark
Left foot.
Sciatica.
Got to where I wasn't sure about moving around the shifter.
Compensated with a heel / toe lever.
Lucky you.
That guy's a statistic waiting to happen-- a basic MSF course would greatly extend his lifespan.
"...Too many old(er) folks (easy, I'm 45) trying riding for the first time. I started on a 1975 Honda Mini-Trail at the age of 9 and never looked back..."
The good news is that you've miscalculated your age and you're actually younger than you think...and now statistically safer. If you were nine years of age learning on a 1975 model-year motorcycle the earliest you could have possibly been born was in the mid-1960's. Celebrate the good news!
~ Blue Jays ~
You could instead purchase a headlight modulator that toggles the high and/or low beams electronically rather than having loose equipment bouncing around on your motorcycle.
~ Blue Jays ~
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