Posted on 04/07/2011 10:58:19 AM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
In 2009, 5,474 people were killed on American roads due to distracted driving. Now, April has become National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. The MSF has put together a list of 10 things cagers need to know about driving around motorcycles. I hope you’re not reading this on your iPhone from the driver’s seat.
1. There are many more cars and trucks than motorcycles on the road and some drivers don’t “recognize” motorcyclists. They ignore them, usually unintentionally. Look for motorcycles, especially when checking traffic at an intersection.
2. A motorcyclist may look farther away than he or she is in actuality. It may also be difficult to judge a motorcycle’s speed. When checking traffic to turn at an intersection or into (or out of) a driveway, estimate that a motorcycle is closer than it looks.
3. A motorcycle can be easily hidden in a car’s blind spots or masked by objects or backgrounds outside the car. Thoroughly check traffic, whether you’re changing lanes or turning at intersections.
4. A motorcycle may seem to be moving faster than it really is. Again, don’t immediately rely on your perceptions.
5. Motorcyclists sometimes slow down by downshifting or merely rolling off the throttle, thus not activating the brake light. Don’t tailgate motorcyclists. At intersections, anticipate that motorcyclists may slow down without any visual warning.
6. Turn signals on a motorcycle are not often automatically self-canceling. Some riders, (especially beginners) sometimes forget to turn them off. Try to determine whether a motorcycle’s turn signal is for real. And if you’re driving a car, remember to use your turn signals too. They’re a great communication tool for riders and drivers when used properly.
(Excerpt) Read more at hellforleathermagazine.com ...
Most? Kindly cite your source.
I was proceeding eastbound on a street in town here when a driver exiting a parking lot started to roll out after looking directly at me. I realized he was also looking into the sun and could not see me. The 'unnecessarily' loud noise I made by grabbing the clutch and revving the engine alerted him to my presence, saving us both from having a bad day.
What you perceive as 'unnecessary' may not be readily apparent as prudent.
But then, you have 'thought about' getting a motorcycle.
If you had one, you'd know.
The medical community refers to motorcyclists as “organ donors” for a reason
Not without my express authorization, they don't.
I especially wouldn't do that when it is just starting to rain. It'll bring up all the oil from the cars and trucks who stopped at the light and you might end up going down.
I'm curious how that figure was attained, and whether it was through fewer riders riding fewer miles (or if that was even considered).
I have read a lot of MC safety studies, even before the Harborview study, and have found that there are often other factors not taken into account when attributing fewer fatalities to mandatory helmet laws.
Depends on how long it's been since it last rained, but yeah.........
35 years of driving. Next question.
I would not even begin to claim to read the minds of that many people to determine whether they thought traffic laws applied to them.
However, from my observations, I think your dataset is limited beyond your comprehension. There is a lot of country out here, and people ride differently in different regions (different rules--imagine that), and ride differently on different types of roads.
I do think a 150 is a good starter bike, 250 can be a bit hard for a beginner to handle
Amen to that!
True enough, it’s the rider not the bike, but the GW just seems to namby to me, too “comfortable”, like riding a Lazy-boy on wheels!
I've been in a skid at 60 mph (oil slick) and lived with some scrapes, thanks to the helmet
Bagger Harleys are little different in that regards, just noisier and with more chrome
Nope. If you want to wear one, no one is stopping you. You don't need a law.
If you fall off a bike at 20 mph and hit your head on the side-walk, it could lead to some injuries -- at 80, it's death
If you're going 80 down the sidewalk on a motorcycle, you have other problems a helmet won't cure. Solid impacts at that speed and even less just transfer the blunt force to different parts of the skeletal anatomy, so something else gets broken--and helmets break in high speed (above 40) impacts as well.
I've been in a skid at 60 mph (oil slick) and lived with some scrapes, thanks to the helmet
Please don't confuse the abrasion resistance which benefitted you with impact resistance. Yes, you benefitted, because you had an ablative shield between your head and the pavement.
In the most notable example in my experience, the leathers saved me some nasty wounds, but if I'd had a helmet on, the outcome would have been worse. As it was, my glasses frame tagged the pavement and I got a cut in my cheek, but a helmet (of the style common then) would have abruptly turned my face into the pavement as I was sliding.
For now, let's say simply I prefer to be able to see and hear better, and have the reduced moment of inertia the absence of a helmet provides when I want to look around--which is often. There isn't much heavy traffic here, except in town, and that's the smallest part of North Dakota.
It sounds cliche, but I think I am in a better position to assess my relative risks than some legislator, especially after 35+ years in the saddle.
Helmet use, if you want to, is fine with me. There are occasions when I have used one myself, but I generally prefer not to.
Between the mileage on my organs (I'm a great-grandfather), and not wanting to encourage any quack to pull the plug while I'm taking a nap so they can sell off spare parts, I'll pass on the organ donor gig, thanks.
Thank you for recognizing superior intellect. Have a nice day.
Go ahead and keep admiring yourself, but your “superior intellect” looks like an @$$hole. You’re almost as big an egotist as 0bamao.
You are the one making sweeping generalizations with inferior data, ad hominem attacks, and reading minds. Point one finger and you have three more pointing back.
I see that you have Polish flag, are you in Poland? There used to be a Polish lady who posted on FR, her husband was in the Polish military in Iraq and a member of Special Forces: GROM was the acronym it. I don’t remember her FR handle, I do remember she was learning English. ;) I wonder what ever happened to her??
I have some things to say about helmet laws and other laws that remove personal choices, later. ;)
And I think an experienced biker like you has the full right, experience and wisdom to do so and also know how to drive so you don't need one!
The reason I think for helmet laws is both for newbies and for those who think they can ride after a year or less (that was me ;-)
GG and still biking -- you sir are added to my list of role-models!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.