Two biker's lost forever..Easter Roads!!

[monkey99]

:weep: I just saw the news that two motorcyclists have lost there life this weekend..:argh:

Please be safe & even with the best bike/rider..show as much patience as required to get home alive when on the open road..please:weep:

One accident was with a tractor near Matamata..the other well south of the Auckland hills..so if your riding be good..be safe & ride for life!! as well as live to ride!

[beyond]

:( :( :( :( :( :( :(

[Scorpygirl]

I heard about the one in the Waikato http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?t=27960

but have heard nothing about the tractor vs bike near MataMata. OH NO!!! Please update us with more news as it comes up! Very sad.

[terbang]

Saw the same on 3 news..Very very sad..
So far in this long weekend period there have been 4 killed on the roads, 50% of them being motorcyclists..Lets keep it safe out there..

[GR81]

...the other well south of the Auckland hills...
most auckland people on here will be scratching their heads thinking there is nothing below auckland! :dodge:

[.produKt]

Nor would they have any idea where 9whateverpercentage of thier power is commin from :(

[sAsLEX]

Nor would they have any idea where 9whateverpercentage of thier power is commin from :(

well not much from down south as far as you:rolleyes:

[scumdog]

3 out 5 road fatalities over Easter were motorbike deaths, all away up north.

Not a good look for us that ride eh?:oi-grr:

[team cudby]

RIP to all 3 motorbikes rides 1 from hastings close to home please ride safely

[surfchick]

I've always been spooked by easter traffic (any pub hl actually) 'cause I so often pass a fatal accidents on the way back to AK from the coromandel. Terrible to loose so many riders.:(

[crashe]

Condolances to the families and friends of those riders that passed away while they were out riding their bikes.

RIP to the 3 riders.



www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3640154a10,00.html
Third motorcycle fatality takes toll to five
17 April 2006

The death of a third motorcyclist took the Easter road toll to five.

The 32-year-old man died after his motorcycle collided with a car at in Hastings about 6pm.

His female passenger is in serious condition in Hastings Hopsital, said Hastings police Sergeant Gary McFadyen.

Police want to speak to witnesses to the accident which happened at the intersection Pakowhai and Ruahapia roads.

It was the third fatal crash involving motorcyclists on Monday.

A St John Ambulance spokesman said one person died shortly before 4.30pm when a motorcycle collided with a tractor near Matamata. No further details were available. (see update below)

A motorcyclist also died at the scene of a collision with a car on Waingaro Road in Te Kowhai, just north of Hamilton.

Inspector Paul Marshall, from the police northern communications centre, said emergency services were called about 11.03am today. No other details were available..........

UPDATE: A 56 year old man died instantly when the motorcycle he was riding collided head-on with a tractor on Henry Watson Road, Walton, near Matamata.

[MSTRS]

Sad news indeed. Constant reminders to be careful out there. RIP to the 3 who died.

[What?]

Bugger - just heard that the guy killed at Matamata was a mate. Happened pretty close to home, but don't know any more than that.

[jtzzr]

I knew the gentleman who died in Matamata , a good man who loved his bikes (honda`s in particular ) he had more than 10 of them at home by memory. He will be sadly missed , rest in peace mate , and my condolences to the families of the other`s that also died this weekend. ride safe everyone ,you never know what`s around the corner.

[terbang]

3 out 5 road fatalities over Easter were motorbike deaths, all away up north.
Not a good look for us that ride eh?:oi-grr:

I agree its not good at all for motorcycling to have such a poor accident rate.
The up north thing probably reflects where the population is but the proportion of 60% is incomprehensible and disturbing.
So what do you reckon Scummy (the motorcyclist and the Policeman), you have been around a while by the looks of things, what is our problem..?
Honestly its time we started working together (bikers and LTSA) rather than cat and mouse games to make our hobby a safer one..
Anyone else care to add..?

[Motu]

I don't think Scumdog has a problem,you hold that one on your own.There were no Cops involved in the 3 motorcycle fatalities - why bring them into it?

[JohnR]

On the reading the reports it seems all three crashes involved other road users, rather than motorcycles on their own. I guess without knowing details it's hard to see if there was a common factor in any of them. I agree that a more diverse method of recording "contributing factors" should be adopted to enable groups of road users to identify and address common "mistakes".

Condolences to all concerned.

[terbang]

I don't think Scumdog has a problem,you hold that one on your own.There were no Cops involved in the 3 motorcycle fatalities - why bring them into it?
Oh shit here we go again..
I was asking Scumdog for his views because he is an experienced motorcyclist that also sees another side becuse he is a policeman and also long standing member of this board. In other words I would value his opinion here as to what we as a group could do to improve our statistics..!
Clear enough.?

[Motu]

Um...learn how to ride??

[Rhino]

Oh shit here we go again..
I was asking Scumdog for his views because he is an experienced motorcyclist that also sees another side becuse he is a policeman and also long standing member of this board. In other words I would value his opinion here as to what we as a group could do to improve our statistics..!
Clear enough.?
Good call terbang. I agree with you. Maybe if we can get more info from bike clubs/groups and the Police, we may just manage to save a few people every year.:yes:

That would make it all worthwhile.

PS: Motu, I'm not knocking you, as you are one of the most sensible posters here, but I think that terbang has a good point. If we all work together, we will achieve more than on our own.:rockon:

[terbang]

I wont even hold the harley thing against him..promise..:msn-wink:

[XP@]

I agree its not good at all for motorcycling to have such a poor accident rate.
The up north thing probably reflects where the population is but the proportion of 60% is incomprehensible and disturbing.
So what do you reckon Scummy (the motorcyclist and the Policeman), you have been around a while by the looks of things, what is our problem..?
Honestly its time we started working together (bikers and LTSA) rather than cat and mouse games to make our hobby a safer one..
Anyone else care to add..?
Suggest you have a look at http://www.rideforever.co.nz/index.html
Some more practical stuff would be good too... eg KiwiBiker challenges the KiwiRider & the KiwiPolice to a skills competition... can't see us winning, but it may emphasise the more "graceful" side of riding.

[scumdog]

So what do you reckon Scummy (the motorcyclist and the Policeman), you have been around a while by the looks of things, what is our problem..?
Honestly its time we started working together (bikers and LTSA) rather than cat and mouse games to make our hobby a safer one..
Anyone else care to add..?

Hmm, 'been around a while' - what are you trying to say.....

Anyway, my 2 cents worth - sometimes it's plain old bad luck - you know, wrong-place/wrong-time and/or some form of mechanical/tyre failure. (poor maintenance maybe?)
MOSTLY:
Others it's because of too much increasing complacency - not being aware of surroundings/what's happening nearby etc, and 'assuming' others have 'seen' you.
Others it's because of riding style - too much speed in the wrong circumstances, 'centre-lining' into oncoming traffic (who may well be unaware of you being on the road), fanging it on an unfamiliar road where loose gravel/farm machinery or livestock may be literally 'just around the corner'.
And finally riding too close to others and/or trying to 'catch-up' with said others.
We ARE our own worse enemy.
I ride in a very paranoid fashion, treating everybody as blind and/or irrational and/or incompetent, getting a speeding ticket is far from my mind as it is unlikely to kill me..

[rasty]

You nailed it scummy. Especially the bit about riding style.

[terbang]

The usual suspects and I agree wholeheartedly. I tend to follow the theory of monitoring my Handling skills, my Mental skills and my Self control skills. (being a Busa rider certainly tests the self control bit). And what you have said falls into at least one of thos categorys. A one liner from Motu profoundly states that we need to learn to ride better. That really sums it up and having been on a recent Newbie ride I noticed that such rides were in fact bridging a big void between the basic licence (riding around cones) and the end product (out there doin it competently on the road) with the guys eager to absorb any information they could get whilst airing their concerns to someone they trusted. Let me compare it to Aviation (sorry but its what I know) A new Co-pilot will be initially type rated on the aircraft i.e Boeing 737 (it goes on his licence) this legally qualifies them to fly the aircraft (like the learners licence) but what happens next is they are given a period (100hrs) of "on the line" training under the supervision of a senior Captain. This period bridges the gap between the raw Qual and the real world before they are let loose on line by themselves. It costs but it produces a more competent product. It is this "on the Road" training that is missing in our motorcycle world. Our Industry has little leadership with MNZ into racing and BRONZ and similar only having quiet voices and the LTSA being for regulation. Some of the clubs offer good stuff but it costs and clubs are not for everyone. So I guess what I am trying to say is the expertise and the machinery is out there but the cohesion isn't because of the lack of leadership. Guess its all been said before and this weekends statistic may be just the bad luck side but we all need to put aside our differences (and that is with our regulators and police as well) and just think MOTORCYCLE and how can we improve things. Lets face it if we appeared a more responsible bunch then maybe we would gain some value and concession as well from these people. There is no such thing as a free lunch and it costs to get good leadership and I for one am prepared to put my hand in my pocket to achieve such a goal.

[KATWYN]

getting a speeding ticket is far from my mind as it is unlikely to kill me..

Thats a good one.

[denill]

Anyway, my 2 cents worth - sometimes it's plain old bad luck - you know, wrong-place/wrong-time and/or some form of mechanical/tyre failure. (poor maintenance maybe?)
MOSTLY:
Others it's because of too much increasing complacency - not being aware of surroundings/what's happening nearby etc, and 'assuming' others have 'seen' you.
Others it's because of riding style - too much speed in the wrong circumstances, 'centre-lining' into oncoming traffic (who may well be unaware of you being on the road), fanging it on an unfamiliar road where loose gravel/farm machinery or livestock may be literally 'just around the corner'.
And finally riding too close to others and/or trying to 'catch-up' with said others.
We ARE our own worse enemy.
I ride in a very paranoid fashion, treating everybody as blind and/or irrational and/or incompetent, getting a speeding ticket is far from my mind as it is unlikely to kill me..
Now I reckon that sums it up SOOOO perfectly. :clap: :clap:
When Scumbag becomes the Police Commissioner all will be well...........

[loosebruce]

I knew the gentleman who died in Matamata , a good man who loved his bikes (honda`s in particular ) he had more than 10 of them at home by memory. He will be sadly missed , rest in peace mate , and my condolences to the families of the other`s that also died this weekend. ride safe everyone ,you never know what`s around the corner.

A good man and bloody good friend, one of the guys who got me into motorcycling with my uncle, am deeply saddened by the loss, and more so saddened for my uncle who was more than good mates with him, he was a very good rider, one not to take too many risks but still hack along very nicely, but guess you just never know and it's one of those things, To top it off also knew breifly the guy who lost his life down SH22 some very sad cricumstances behind his loss, great weekend, happy easter huh.

Keep it safe guys n girls.