My No#1 fear of riding these things, is to have some $#@$% pull out in front of me right out of nowhere, then HIT THE BRAKES and sit there staring at me coming right towards him at a high (or even moderate) rate of speed.

http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/5153/127563np5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Without the reaction time needed to stop from hitting him, this photo is usually the end result. I've always thought about buying a bike. I've even mentioned it in here a few times, but fear of what you see here in this photo has always prevented me from actually doing it. :(

OUCH!!!

I once owned a bike until I dropped it one night. I was enroute to the 4th bar from the 3rd and pulled up to a red traffic light and forgot to put my feet down and fell over........needless to say, I sold the bike the next day.

That isn't your usual Motorcycle and car crash. Using your logic I could post a picture of a car crashed into a semi and you would give up driving cars... The fact is people everywhere don't act responsibily when operating every form of transportation there is including their feet...

If you don't ride a motorcycle then you shouldn't have any fear of them and if you do ride and it causes you great fear park it and don't look back.

Accidents are exactly that, accidents. No one goes out in the morning and says "I think I'll get myself in a crash today", but there is a cause or reason for any accident. (cell phone, speed, eating, reading the paper, just plain not paying attention, lack of experience, etc.)

By looking at the above picture, my gut feeling is the bike was speeding. Granted it looks like someone pulled out in front of him, but in most cases, if the bike operator was doing the speed limit and paying attention, it may have not been so serious a crash. I have owned motorcycles for over 40 years. Time and time again, cars pull out in front of you or cut you off. When you ride a bike, you have to anticipate what's in front of you all the time, and always be thinking of a "way out" if this or that happens. Motorcycles are dangerous, but if you use your head, you can greatly reduce the chance of crashes. You have to drive defensively, and never lose respect for the machine. Once you relax and get too comfortable is usually when things like this happen.

As Dennis stated, using your logic, no one would ever ride a snowmobile, jet ski, boat, or any mode of transportation if they had a previous mishap. Unfortuately, in motorcycle crashes, you may not even get a second chance to try it again. Some people are willing to take the risk, others are not.

I highly doubt the motorcycle was going the speed limit, even with some of the smaller cars made so weak or soft I have never seen a bike or crotch rocket reach the drivers door like this one. As mentioned if you ride defensively and never lose respect for the machine you will greatly decrease your chances of an accident.

Motorcycles are dangerous
When people that don't know what they are doing own them. Trend is to get the fastest crotch rocket your pocket can afford and show off. To many times you will see videos of guys doing insane stunts on roadways or finding some straight road and doing 180 mph, oops car pulling out.

My No#1 fear of riding these things, is to have some $#@$% pull out in front of me right out of nowhere, then HIT THE BRAKES and sit there staring at me coming right towards him at a high (or even moderate) rate of speed.

http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/5153/127563np5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Without the reaction time needed to stop from hitting him, this photo is usually the end result. I've always thought about buying a bike. I've even mentioned it in here a few times, but fear of what you see here in this photo has always prevented me from actually doing it. :(



I know this is off topic but this is exactly why I would never own, or put my family in one of these little tin can cars. If a speeding motorcycle did this can you imagine what a full size truck would do?:sad:

When people that don't know what they are doing own them. Trend is to get the fastest crotch rocket your pocket can afford and show off. To many times you will see videos of guys doing insane stunts on roadways or finding some straight road and doing 180 mph, oops car pulling out.

Prime example :eek:

http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/7134/124176cn7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Last week the local New Jersey newspaper quoted a statistic that motorcycle accidents increased dramatically in the last year, versus a steady trend for many prior years. ?

Agree with most, you assume the risk. If you don't like them, then don't get on them.

Yes, I know there are m/c accidents, but look who is wrecking them - the crotch rocket people and the baby-boomers - their own stupidity, er, lack of planning, planning to stay alive. You take driving lessons to learn how to drive a car, you should take m/c lessons on how to drive defensively. Certainly would make auto driving alot easier for the rest.

Yes, there are other groups of accidents, not just crouch rocketeers, but people who don't think. People don't anticipate enough to avoid what might be coming. Yes , I know people can not predict the future, if you could, you surely wouldn't be here on this forum, but still, one needs to think about "what-if" situations and take a defense attitude.

Yes, there are more m/c accidents, but look at the number of registrations also, it has increased, and so has the population, gas pricing, registration fees, etc. It will never end until the next Ice Age.

I'm done now.

Originally posted by coach420:
Last week the local New Jersey newspaper quoted a statistic that motorcycle accidents increased dramatically in the last year, versus a steady trend for many prior years. ?


With the high price of gas and some motorcycles getting 60-70+ mpg, more people are buying them, more on the road= increase in accidents.

I have been riding since I was 6-7. I will crash one day. If I can walk and use my hands, I will ride again, In oklahoma, without my helmet.
My choice.

No matter who was at fault, the motorcycle rider almost always comes out the loser in car-motorcycle accidents. That's why I choose not to ride motorcycles.

No matter who was at fault, the motorcycle rider almost always comes out the loser in car-motorcycle accidents. That's why I choose not to ride motorcycles.

Truer words have never been spoken

As an experienced motorcyclist (I currently own both a "crotch rocket" and a Harley), I would have to honestly say that I'm far more worried about the cars on the road instead of the other cyclists.
Far more car vs. motorcycle accidents are caused by cars than motorcycles. The majority of motorcyclists ride well within their limits and within the law. Sure, there are jerks on sport bikes but there are more jerks aggressively driving fast cars (and god forbit, Camaros). Motorcycles are more difficult to see and most accidents occur when someone pulls out in front of one or makes lane changes without looking or opens their car door and on and on.
How many motorcyclists do you see wandering all over the road while talking on their cell phone?
Riding a motorcycle is more dangerous than driving a car, yes. But most of the danger is usually created by the other vehicles on the road. Not always the case, but certainly more time than not.
The pictures being posted are the extreme, don't you think? More realistic would be the photos of what happens in most motorcycle accidents. The car driver usually comes out on top in one of those accidents.

As an experienced motorcyclist (I currently own both a "crotch rocket" and a Harley), I would have to honestly say that I'm far more worried about the cars on the road instead of the other cyclists.
Far more car vs. motorcycle accidents are caused by cars than motorcycles. The majority of motorcyclists ride well within their limits and within the law. Sure, there are jerks on sport bikes but there are more jerks aggressively driving fast cars (and god forbit, Camaros). Motorcycles are more difficult to see and most accidents occur when someone pulls out in front of one or makes lane changes without looking or opens their car door and on and on.
How many motorcyclists do you see wandering all over the road while talking on their cell phone?
Riding a motorcycle is more dangerous than driving a car, yes. But most of the danger is usually created by the other vehicles on the road. Not always the case, but certainly more time than not.
The pictures being posted are the extreme, don't you think? More realistic would be the photos of what happens in most motorcycle accidents. The car driver usually comes out on top in one of those accidents.
Again...Truer words have never been spoken. I am FAR more worried about the other guy/gal than I am myself. I have taken all sorts of motorcycle rider skills courses and constantly trying to have an advantage when I am eventually on course for an accident.
2 pennies...

http://www.motoxschool.com/images/holeshothhh.JPG

Race dirtbikes and it will get you into the drive defensive mode.

I like bikes also, I rode a lot growing up - dirt bikes. My wife will not "allow" me to have a bike. Thats about the only thing in our lives that she is insistant on. Its probably a good thing becuase I love speed. My favorite movie quote is "I love anything fast enough to do something stupid on".

Good luck and be careful to all you guys riding out there.

I've been riding a Motorcycle since I was 18 , Im 32 Now. Im gonna give it up already ... I've had 2 accidents , and many many close calls ..!!!

Plus I have less friends now than when I did when I first started riding .

I too saw that one with the guy who slamed in the back of an 18 wheeler . That pic did it for me ......! For someone who rides a bike , I dont like seeing stuff like that . its embeded in my mind now.

That isn't your usual Motorcycle and car crash. Using your logic I could post a picture of a car crashed into a semi and you would give up driving cars... The fact is people everywhere don't act responsibily when operating every form of transportation there is including their feet...

If you don't ride a motorcycle then you shouldn't have any fear of them and if you do ride and it causes you great fear park it and don't look back.

Yep. Perfectly put Dennis :thumbsup:

I've owned 2 motorcycles. The first was thankfully stolen. I owned it when I was young and drunk. Before wife and kids timeframe.
Did what Keith described more than once and forgot to put my feet down at a stoplight.
:DLMAO just thinking of what an idiot I was. How friggin hilarious a cop video that woulda made.
Dropped it a couple times being cool and going thru curves I obviously didn't have the ability to handle.

Fast forward 22 or 3 years, I was a level headed sober guy most of them. And what do I do? I buy a stinking Vulcan 1500 V-twin.
Oh, that's a machine.
I think, hey I'm all grown up and don't drink. I bet I can be grownup on a bike now.
WRONG.
It seems I am the proprietor of a brain switch that operates inverse to the ignition switch on a bike. Gawd I had fun on that bike.
I lived thru 2 years of it. I had grown up some, and the sobriety paid dividends. Never laid it down and always remembered to hold it up at stop lights:D.
I sold it. Figgered I'd gotten it out of my blood. Didn't need to go fast anymore. Fastforward 3 more years....

WRONG. I bought Wolf. I figger if anything is gonna kill me, it's gonna be wolf.
Or maybe it'll be the Natural Gas Compressors I earn my living fixing. Or maybe the cigarettes. Whotahell knows? Something's gonna get me.

And evrytime I see a stinking Valkyrie I make an Adams Family Lurch noise:D. And I try to make myself look the other way, like when your buddys wife bends over.... you try real hard not to look but you just got to man you got to.

And I know someday I'll buy one, and I'll try to behave. For awhile I'll be successful, maybe. Maybe not.

I would do it all over again. Except the drinkin. But if I hadn't done that, how would I know that it's just as fun if not moreso sober? If I hadn't bought motorcycles, how would I know if I like them or not? Yeah sure I got a defective brain switch. Most of the people I see riding don't. And I'm growing up. Really I am. I was until a couple years ago anyway....

Wanna go for a ride?:D

I take offense to each time someone says "those crotch rocket riders" or sport bike guys, in front of a comment about doing something stupid. Betty and I both ride, crotch rockets, and not once has either of us done some stupid stunt, a wheelie, or anything rediculous like that on one. We've taken safety courses, ride responsibly, and trust me, we have to watch FAR more what the other cars on the road are doing than what we're doing ourselves. Next time you're out driving around and see a bike, watch the other cars around them, like the guy driving behind the bike 1 ft from the rear tire for example.

heat,

"forgot to put my feet down and fell over"

I was riding my Son's 21-speed, light weight high-speed, bike w/ the toe crap dealies around town one Sat morning and rolled up to a busy junction and flat forgot my feet were in them and like said, I fell right over on the curb!!

Luckily NOT into the car next to me!!

It just asked me if I was OK and I felt about 6" tall so embarrassed I was!!

All I could say was that it was my Son's bike and those damned foot dealies!!

I picked my sorry-as- up when the light went green and away I went and did NOT use them again!!

pdq67

Did what Keith described more than once and forgot to put my feet down at a stoplight.
:DLMAO just thinking of what an idiot I was. How friggin hilarious a cop video that woulda made.


heat,

"forgot to put my feet down and fell over"

pdq67

Yeah guys, Not a proud moment in my life. I was young, dumb, and a drunk. I never had gotten my M/C license either....How often did you see a bike pulled over by a cop? Small detail but when I was approaching the light I was even with a bunch of girls in a car and after I dropped the bike I felt pretty foolish. They were laughing hysterically as the light changed and they pulled away.

I dont have a dreaded fear of motorcycles, its the morons that are out on the road and are to busy talking on the phone :mad:, or putting makeup on :sad:, or eating a full corse meal :(, or just not paying attention :clonk:. What ever you drive, its a full time job because if you do something stupid, guess whats more than likely to happen, thats right, your going to scratch the paint.

And for what its worth, yes I am a motorcycle rider. :thumbsup:

Oh, and btw, my long gone Crippled Buddy that had the hopped up '58 'Vette got ran over by a car in DC back years ago on his KHK Sunday morning after racing between Bars the night before!! Ended up w/ a broken back!!

He healed as best he could so he later just installed hand control's on the 4-speed 'Vette back in, I wanns say '63 or so!!

I've posted about the 160 to 170 mph, 8 mile trip we made late one Sat night back then before for a run to get a half pint of VO!!

pdq67

Yep, that would be my worry people not paying attention. I flew into Ohare about a month ago and we were on the beltway heading out of Chicago, and the taxi I was in passed a guy driving a Suburban eating a steak and cheese sandwhich with one hand and using his other to talk on his cell phone. Picture that going about 80 down the highway! I have no idea how he was driving!

I take offense to each time someone says "those crotch rocket riders" or sport bike guys, in front of a comment about doing something stupid. Betty and I both ride, crotch rockets, and not once has either of us done some stupid stunt, a wheelie, or anything rediculous like that on one. We've taken safety courses, ride responsibly, and trust me, we have to watch FAR more what the other cars on the road are doing than what we're doing ourselves. Next time you're out driving around and see a bike, watch the other cars around them, like the guy driving behind the bike 1 ft from the rear tire for example.

Crotch rocket riders know who they are that do these things, but I do have to say that I am a Harley owner and atleast in my area I have never seen a Harley go past me on there back tire, maybe because they cant but thats why they are pointed out. JMHO

When I ride the bike I must admit I see every car at at intersection every brakelight and every turnsignal, you have to or you wouldnt survive.