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puttbutt

puttbutt

Well travelled
Location
NY
just this past week, heard of a 70 y/o rider who had a fatal incident while riding in my neck of the woods. just saw it on the bottom part of the screen while watching the local news. no info. from the main news cast. guess it wasn't important enough to delve into it any further. 😔
 
Oregonstaffy

Oregonstaffy

Well travelled
Location
SW Oregon
Here too, an old guy (younger than I am) failed to negotiate a corner on a favorite road of mine and ended up in an oncoming Jeep's radiator a couple days ago. Pay attention, ride within your skill level, wear the gear, ride sober, all of which improve your chances of survival. Things still happen, but much can be avoided. Riding season is definitely here be safe.
 
Andyb

Andyb

Well travelled
Location
UK
Don’t get too alarmed. There must be many more people riding motorbikes now than in 1975, and riding more miles And a high percentage of the fatalities were boozed up or had no licence.
Unfortunately some go and buy bikes with too much performance for their abilities / experience and it does not always end well.
Yes there is a risk in riding, there is a risk in everything, and unfortunately in a crash with a car we will usually come out worse.
 
Caspice

Caspice

Well travelled
Location
Here and There
Oregonstaffy said:
Here too, an old guy (younger than I am) failed to negotiate a corner on a favorite road of mine and ended up in an oncoming Jeep's radiator a couple days ago. Pay attention, ride within your skill level, wear the gear, ride sober, all of which improve your chances of survival. Things still happen, but much can be avoided. Riding season is definitely here be safe.
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Andyb said:
Don’t get too alarmed. There must be many more people riding motorbikes now than in 1975, and riding more miles And a high percentage of the fatalities were boozed up or had no licence.
Unfortunately some go and buy bikes with too much performance for their abilities / experience and it does not always end well.
Yes there is a risk in riding, there is a risk in everything, and unfortunately in a crash with a car we will usually come out worse.
Click to expand...
These posts reminded me of an incident that occurred at a local motorcycle shop many years ago. A "Guy" with more money (credit) than brains had just taken possession of a new Victory. I distinctly heard the shop owner asking Guy if was he sure he wanted to ride the motorcycle home. Guy was wearing sneakers, shorts, tee shirt, one of those idiotic egg-shell skid lids, and was insistent that he knew how to ride. No idea if Guy had an M endorsement or not. He rev'd the engine a bunch of times, stalled and almost fell over. Started it again and, while dragging his feet, wobbled out of the parking lot onto the highway. I walked over to the shop owner and said that's not going to end well. He agreed. Said he tried talking Guy into buying a "beginner" bike but Guy wasn't having any of that, preferring to spend $25k on status statement.

We were still standing outside the shop talking for a few minutes when we noticed traffic on the highway was becoming congested. Guy had made it little more than half a mile before losing control of his brand new motorcycle and getting injured. Guy was unable to properly negotiate the first intersection and went down. The only fortunate thing was that he wrecked directly in front of a fire department so the paramedics were quickly there to render aid. The motorcycle was still operable (kind-of) and one the the shop guys walked down the street and rode it back up the shoulder of the highway and right into the service bay. Expensive mistake.


It is important to ride within your ability level, get some training, practice skills, wear proper gear, and get a license. Crazy as this seems, one salesman who sold me a motorcycle has only ever had a learner permit. I presently live in a State where wearing a helmet is optional. I regularly see people riding while dressed in sneakers, shorts, and tee shirts. That is their choice. Personally I do not like wearing all of the protective gear - but I wear it anyway. Road debris is painful when it impacts your body. I have experienced several kamikaze birds while riding interstate highways. Had a Japanese beetle knock two of my teeth loose on one helmet-less ride decades ago. Had a truck in front of me kick up a large rock that cracked my face shield and almost knocked me off of the bike while riding the Washington DC beltway. I know firsthand that when your body impacts another vehicle, bounces off and slides down the asphalt it sustains damage. I want to try and minimize any more potential bodily harm so I gear up each and every ride: ATGATT

Motoring on public roads is a group participation activity that works best when everyone adheres to the same rules. Ride safe everyone.
 
Spoody

Spoody

Well travelled
Location
North Carolina ,USA
Because I read about motorcycle accidents Yahoo will include them in the news section. I find that for every vehicle turned in front of biker accident there are far more lost control ran wide in curve or for some reason just left the road. Speed is usually the culprit it doesn't have to be high speed just too fast for conditions. I personally seldom do the speed limit if no one is behind me . I prefer to ride around 5 miles an hour slower and just enjoy the ride . I tell people the one thing that will get you killed on a motorcycle is speed.
 
S

SwiftyMorgan

Finally made it
Location
USA
Caspice said:
Sad news. Typical that an automobile turned in front of the motorcyclist. Caused a collision that resulted in a loss of life and not cited.
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Ugh. Yeah. I saw this a few days ago. My wife would have left me for Treat, ever since seeing him in Hair. Upon hearing the news, knowing my Meteor was being delivered today, she wasn't thrilled.

His agent pulled no punches, "...Treat was killed today..."

The driver was making a left and it's now reported, stopped, and that's when Treat made contact. Not sure why the driver stopped. The driver recognized Treat, when he went to assist him.

By all accounts, Treat was a great guy and honestly I see more outpouring than I did for Tina Turner (an international star by any measure). No discredit to her and I certainly respect her and her accomplishments, but Treat reached a lot more people than I expected.

I try to evaluate these events, to understand what action would/could I take in the same circumstance. We all know right or wrong doesn't matter because we're the ones suffering the outcome. I have to believe Treat thought he was free and clear and for some reason this driver just stopped. not sure how much time Treat had to react, but he was a motorhead, so it's not like he didn't have skills. I tell you, I hate the auto-shutoff on ICE vehicles and not sure if the Element has that, but something caused this crash and it wasn't Treat.

I can't lie, I am very excited that my Meteor just arrived, but this crash takes away some of the joy. RIP Treat
 
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Lost in the 60's

Lost in the 60's

Well travelled
Location
Mobile, Alabama
A Vermont man was charged in the crash that killed actor Treat Williams, Vermont State Police said Tuesday.

Ryan Koss, 35, was cited Tuesday evening on a charge of grossly negligent operation with death and released, the agency said in a statement.

He is scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 25 in Bennington, it said.

Koss, of Dorset, Vermont, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It wasn’t clear if he had counsel; the state Office of the Defender General did not immediately respond to an inquiry.

The June 12 crash in Dorset happened just before 5 p.m. when Koss started to make a left turn on Vermont Route 30 into a parking lot, state police said.


Koss, driving a 2008 Honda Element, turned in the path of Williams, who was riding a 1986 Honda VT700c motorcycle, state police said.

"Williams was unable to avoid a collision and was thrown from his motorcycle," the agency said in a statement the night of the crash.

A medical examiner later concluded the actor died of severe trauma and blood loss.


 
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Splinter

Splinter

Well travelled
Location
Buenos Aires
Careless car drivers, as just referred to above, are my biggest worry. Not only do they pull out at junctions without even looking, but most of them are playing with their phones.
From my point of view, knowing this already, make me ride defensively.
Another is being in a hurry. Today for example, I was asked to return to a location in the middle of Buenos Aires because the client had forgotten to give me a vital document, but they only gave me 45 minutes to complete the job because the location would be closing at 4 pm. I explained why I wouldn't do it and we rescheduled the job for tomorrow.
 
Stig57

Stig57

Well travelled
Location
Wigan
I was out today and the only idiot was a guy on a 1200 BMW GS who was in the middle of the road and drifting (pogoing to be honest) my way because he'd taken a bend way too fast on a narrow and bumpy country lane. Even the bloody cyclists who normally fill the road playing peloton were riding single file and not a single nervy car moment over 150 miles.
 
Gone in 60

Gone in 60

Well travelled
Location
California
My wife is a medical professional who is transitioning from a home care role to a new job which will be in a hospital.
She's cared for people at home with lingering effects of motorcycle accidents, and it hasn't phased her much. But, we've had the discussion about the first time that she'll be responding to someone rolling into the hospital from a crash. It's going to make an impact, for sure.

Knock on wood, in all of my years of riding, I've only had one accident, a left-hand driver who panicked and stopped in front of me. I was able to slow to an impact speed so slow that I stayed on the bike and it suffered minimal damage. But, it happened a block from my office, and I pass the spot every day. It's a good reminder to stay on my toes.
 
StefArmstg

StefArmstg

Well travelled
Location
Colorado
My first bike was a Allstate scooter. Lots of sheet metal pulled around by a 65cc moped motor. I still managed to crashed it frequently. I remember getting out of the shower once and marvelling that I didn't have any scabs on my body. (That was in the days when 14 year olds could get a license for a 5hp motorcycle).

I think the Brits (and probably others) have it right. Low displacement learner's licenses. You can still kill yourself, but it's more likely you'll need the help of an auto driver to do it.

I think I've crashed about two dozen times on the pavement, almost all in the first two years, on bikes under 150cc. (Dirt crashes? Uncountable).

After several years riding a Norton Commando, I bought a '73 Z1. It didn't handle as well. I crashed it on the first canyon ride. Excessive speed may have also been a factor.

My most (potentially) dangerous crash was when I stopped for a yellow light without checking my mirror first. I already had both feet on the ground when the SUV behind me locked up the brakes, and knocked the bike out from under me. It landed in the intersection. I remained on my feet, with grill of his car inches from my back.

That was on my almost new W650. The driver told me afterwards, he thought, oh no, I've hit a classic Triumph. At least he had his priorities straight.
 
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