Finally, A report that doesn’t pander to MADD and the NHTSA and blame alcohol for the majority of crashes. Slow down and pay attention and you won’t die on a bike. Stick to the back roads too. Less cell phone talking inattentive drivers in the country.
I think they need to take a wider view and research and tabulate the cause of the accidents to determine if aging riders or the size of the bikes are even factors at all. Aren’t most motorcycle accidents caused by failure of the other driver to see the biker ? Maybe part of the problem is aging drivers of the other vehicles ? No way to know without doing the appropriate research. I think the writer of this article had too limited a focus – had already pre-determined it to be only one or two factors causing the increase.
Another useless stat., more bikes on the roads, more accidents. The other responses were correct, give us some more detail as to what type of accident caused the fatality, right of way violation, rear end, solo, weather. Oregon has a 55 mph speed limit that is strictly enforced so that shouldn’t be a major factor, unless the idiot on the cell phone hits you in the rear going 55!
Since th #1 cause cited in the article is “speed going into a curve”, it seems the cycle experts are correct ……… it’s the operator not the machine. There has to be a difference in ability levels of a cyclist who grew up with small bikes and graduated to larger, more powerful ones as opposed to the mid-life crisis people who jump into cycling with a touring bike. Reflexes also diminish with age. The trump card to all of this is the basic fact that when you assume the risk of riding atop a machine instead of inside one, your risk of being seriously injured or killed increases significantly. In a cycle collision with any solid object, bet on the solid object. You can be the safest, most skilled cyclist in the world, but if someone in a car or truck does something stupid……..you will lose everytime. It’s simple physics. Trying to make vehicle drivers more aware and safety conscious will never work. Motorcycles, while great and fun machines, have been and will always be the most dangerous form of transportation on the plantet. They are aptly dubbed “donorcycles”.
As the price of gas keeps going up, so will the sales of motorcycles accompanied by all the ususal statistics. I would like to see a similar study of Asian or European countries that have many more motorcycles than the U.S. and know how to drive.
Let’s cut the older cyclists some slack. They’re having fun even if only for a short time. After all, killing themselves by slamming into the side of a semi at 65mph sure beats rotting away in an old age home.
A couple of points to make here:
– number of miles driven is key. Sure there are more older bikers out there, but what is the national statistic of fatalities per miles ridden, per age bracket? I would guess it would not be what this article seems to say.
– Loud pipes cannot be of any useful effect in saving lives. When considering the Doppler effect of sound waves it is clear this loud pipes saving lives is scientifically invaled.
– We need a comprehensive new study of MC accidents. It is over thirty years since the Hurt Report came out. It is time for an update.
Yeah, they work for the cars that are near you & may not have noticed you riding beside them on the roadway, but I have to agree that a new census needs to be completed if they want real figures.
The comment about more bikes on the road more accidents – no doubt this is true, that was my first thought as I know several riders that have only been doing this for a few years (10) or less & of the ones I know, we are all pretty careful when riding solo & usually a lot more relaxed as a group – you get noticed more if you do a group ride, even if it’s only two of you… for some reason it just works better & you got a beer buddy when you get to stop!
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Finally, A report that doesn’t pander to MADD and the NHTSA and blame alcohol for the majority of crashes. Slow down and pay attention and you won’t die on a bike. Stick to the back roads too. Less cell phone talking inattentive drivers in the country.
I think they need to take a wider view and research and tabulate the cause of the accidents to determine if aging riders or the size of the bikes are even factors at all. Aren’t most motorcycle accidents caused by failure of the other driver to see the biker ? Maybe part of the problem is aging drivers of the other vehicles ? No way to know without doing the appropriate research. I think the writer of this article had too limited a focus – had already pre-determined it to be only one or two factors causing the increase.
Another useless stat., more bikes on the roads, more accidents. The other responses were correct, give us some more detail as to what type of accident caused the fatality, right of way violation, rear end, solo, weather. Oregon has a 55 mph speed limit that is strictly enforced so that shouldn’t be a major factor, unless the idiot on the cell phone hits you in the rear going 55!
Since th #1 cause cited in the article is “speed going into a curve”, it seems the cycle experts are correct ……… it’s the operator not the machine. There has to be a difference in ability levels of a cyclist who grew up with small bikes and graduated to larger, more powerful ones as opposed to the mid-life crisis people who jump into cycling with a touring bike. Reflexes also diminish with age. The trump card to all of this is the basic fact that when you assume the risk of riding atop a machine instead of inside one, your risk of being seriously injured or killed increases significantly. In a cycle collision with any solid object, bet on the solid object. You can be the safest, most skilled cyclist in the world, but if someone in a car or truck does something stupid……..you will lose everytime. It’s simple physics. Trying to make vehicle drivers more aware and safety conscious will never work. Motorcycles, while great and fun machines, have been and will always be the most dangerous form of transportation on the plantet. They are aptly dubbed “donorcycles”.
Loud pipes save lives!
Yeah ……… they also drown out the sound of bones snapping and the horrifying screams of people sliding along the pavement at 70mph.
As the price of gas keeps going up, so will the sales of motorcycles accompanied by all the ususal statistics. I would like to see a similar study of Asian or European countries that have many more motorcycles than the U.S. and know how to drive.
Let’s cut the older cyclists some slack. They’re having fun even if only for a short time. After all, killing themselves by slamming into the side of a semi at 65mph sure beats rotting away in an old age home.
A couple of points to make here:
– number of miles driven is key. Sure there are more older bikers out there, but what is the national statistic of fatalities per miles ridden, per age bracket? I would guess it would not be what this article seems to say.
– Loud pipes cannot be of any useful effect in saving lives. When considering the Doppler effect of sound waves it is clear this loud pipes saving lives is scientifically invaled.
– We need a comprehensive new study of MC accidents. It is over thirty years since the Hurt Report came out. It is time for an update.
Yeah, they work for the cars that are near you & may not have noticed you riding beside them on the roadway, but I have to agree that a new census needs to be completed if they want real figures.
The comment about more bikes on the road more accidents – no doubt this is true, that was my first thought as I know several riders that have only been doing this for a few years (10) or less & of the ones I know, we are all pretty careful when riding solo & usually a lot more relaxed as a group – you get noticed more if you do a group ride, even if it’s only two of you… for some reason it just works better & you got a beer buddy when you get to stop!
I would like to see the new census!