Another one bites the dust

[Oblivion]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ar...ectid=10714935

Should I be surprised?

[Usarka]

Why exactly are you wondering if you should be surprised?

[ynot slow]

Can see Katmans' views on crashes almost when this is written,not doing our cause to lower fees etc any bloody good.
Assuming the reporting on erratically riding can be proved.

[FJRider]

Considering the state of a lot of the roads in Christchurch at the moment ... to someone who is unfamilar with motorcycles .. the riding style may look "erratic" ...

Save the silly comments untill the facts come out ...

[Mekk]

Could have been erratically avoiding the van.

[Katman]

(Before anyone starts, I'm not speculating on this accident - I'm speaking generally.....)

It is imperitive that we, as a whole, become intolerant of avoidable accidents.

Until there is widespread condemnation from within ourselves for inattentive and/or irresponsible riding nothing much is going to change.

"Aw bugger, don't worry though, bikes can easily be replaced" is such a piss weak attitude to adopt.

[Katman]

And........

We need to stop searching for ways of trying to explain an accident off as "unavoidable" and rather, look for ways of seeing how it could well have been avoidable. (And not the usual piss weak argument of - "yeah well, I suppose I could have stayed home that day instead").

[ynot slow]

Considering the state of a lot of the roads in Christchurch at the moment ... to someone who is unfamilar with motorcycles .. the riding style may look "erratic" ...

Save the silly comments untill the facts come out ...

Shoot the messenger why don't you.How many people will read this story and think "typical dickhead driver(yep all drivers)"without waiting for facts,whether road was to play or not is unimportant to those people.

[Elysium]

The story seems to imply the rider is somewhat at fault by his 'erratic driving' as described by witnesses. No I'm not surprised by this but at the same time I'm getting tired of reading this sort of shit in the media.

Katman you're cunt but have to agree that there needs to be more of an effort from us to stop this shit from happening. I'm really starting to get sick of seeing riders out there going hard out in town and wearing fuck all protection.

Example being someone living in my street who rides a Kawaka ZX6 up and down my street almost daily at around 80-100km/h and only wearing shorts, shit and shoes.

[Usarka]

FFS the guy may have had a stroke or something. It's sad that people automatically assume he was riding like an idiot without any proof. Twats.

[Elysium]

FFS the guy may have had a stroke or something. It's sad that people automatically assume he was riding like an idiot without any proof. Twats.

True he may have had a heart attack. Will have to wait until the full story comes out. No one is implying this guy was at fault, just that the media has made look that way.

[onearmedbandit]

Lets assume the guy was riding like a tool. A 42yr old tool. How many other 'middle-aged' guys do you see acting like tools on the roads in cars? Shed loads. You know the type, shaved head, goatee, identical mate in the passengers seat, driving a 89 EA Fairmont. Are these guys reachable? Do they give a fuck about fines? Do they give a fuck about other people? Do they give a fuck whether they have a license or not?

Is it honestly motorcyclists responsibility for these guys? Do we tar all car drivers with the same brush when we bump into Shane and Dazza in the Fairmont? My point is, there are idiots everywhere, we will never get rid of them. And so we will always have stories like this, assuming the guy was riding like a tool.

If it turns out it was as the media have portrayed it, I wouldn't be surprised to learn it's a Triumph Speed Triple or Four. I've seen one getting around in that area of recent, guy rides like a maniac with or without a passenger. I've been next to him at lights and he'd be about that age group too.

[Toaster]

FFS the guy may have had a stroke or something. It's sad that people automatically assume he was riding like an idiot without any proof. Twats.

Agreed.

Media... when have they ever reported facts? As usual they dig for opinion that sells headlines at the expense of those involved.

[Toaster]

It is imperitive that we, as a whole, become intolerant of avoidable accidents.

Until there is widespread condemnation from within ourselves for inattentive and/or irresponsible riding nothing much is going to change.

Agreed. One thing I do as an individual is start the ride by reminding myself to focus and be prepared for anything, making sure concentration is 100%. Then at the end asking myself what I could have done better, rather than accept the status quo with my own riding.

It's about fun, but also and making it home safe to ride another day.

As my 3 year old son tells me when I leave... "Daddy be sensible, be smart, be safe". Yes he is only 3.

[over5tayer]

Agreed.

Media... when have they ever reported facts? As usual they dig for opinion that sells headlines at the expense of those involved.

if it became habit for every rider to attach a camera before they saddled up the media would be forced to report the facts. We could all then benefit from the incident by having Katman critically analyse the shit out of the video - pointing out everything that the rider did wrong and what they should have done right.