Crashes, Falls and Drops

[Subike]

You know, outside right now it is raining, a constant light wetting rain, Most of you would look out there and go, TV time.
Me, looked out there and thought, mmm, no wind , its warm, its wet, ride time...
I found no slippery spots, nothing to be wary of, just wet roads and fun.
How? At a pace heaps slower than I do in the dry, I rode to the conditions.
Doubled my braking distances, bla bla bla
Thats all you need to do, ride within the limits of your bike and skills, falls will not happen.
Expand you skill on track days or with training/mentor sessions. Not on the road where an error hurts.

[Juniper]

You know, outside right now it is raining, a constant light wetting rain, Most of you would look out there and go, TV time.
Me, looked out there and thought, mmm, no wind , its warm, its wet, ride time...
I found no slippery spots, nothing to be wary of, just wet roads and fun.
How? At a pace heaps slower than I do in the dry, I rode to the conditions.
Doubled my braking distances, bla bla bla
Thats all you need to do, ride within the limits of your bike and skills, falls will not happen.
Expand you skill on track days or with training/mentor sessions. Not on the road where an error hurts.

Guess what. I just did the same thing. Layered up. Did the motorway. Got to 100km and kept steady. Lying on my tank and battling the wind. And it was fun. Now just waiting to meet up with mate. Foot is shaking tho.

[Katman]

I don't see much in the media about bike crashes. Compared to cars where x amount of people were hurt or killed.

Here you go.

http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news...-1226645968537

[Woodman]

Here you go.

http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news...-1226645968537

How dare you.........

[Drew]

Here you go.

http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news...-1226645968537

"And more than half the riders had alcohol or drugs in their system either above the legal limit or high enough to impair their judgment."

The section in italics, is why I didn't read any further. If they believe that anything under the legal limit impairs a drivers ability, the limit is too high.

So, if they wont take that step first, all the info they have is tainted.

Is the general public as stupid as the authorities think, or are the statistic gatherers/reporters too fucking stupid to correlate the right information to start with?

[Katman]

"And more than half the riders had alcohol or drugs in their system either above the legal limit or high enough to impair their judgment."

The section in italics, is why I didn't read any further. If they believe that anything under the legal limit impairs a drivers ability, the limit is too high.

Unfortunately, many motorcyclists don't even need drugs or alcohol to have impaired judgement.

[Madness]

The average Australian would need only to look at a bottle of beer to be mentally impaired.

[Drew]

Unfortunately, many motorcyclists don't even need drugs or alcohol to have impaired judgement.

I couldn't agree more. But if the argument for "targeting motorcyclists" is as has been said there, I have a huge problem with it.

Fuck sakes. Bureaucrats exist, purely as pedants. Attention to detail is their job. If an idiot like me can see an obvious flaw in a 'report', we are fuckin doomed from the get go.

[Dogboy900]

"The stats also tell a grim story about risk-taking," he said. "Most had drugs or alcohol in their system and most had a history of traffic offences. Put those two things together with the extremely high risk that comes with being a new or returned motorcycle rider and we are talking about a very, very high risk of being involved in a serious or fatal traffic accident."

Read more: http://www.perthnow.com.au/breaking-...#ixzz2TW6dTf2R

Doesn't seem a very balanced or scientific article really.
Residual traces of drugs or alcohol which are below the limit? A history of traffic offences?

Having a few parking tickets or speeding tickets in the past does not mean you are responsible for an accident later.
Having a beer the night before does not mean you are responsible for an accident later.
There were no contrary "statistics" saying that most car drivers involed in accidents were any different.

The whole article looks like sensationalist bullshit to me. If they want people to actually take it seriously they should probably write an article that actually backs up what they are trying to say.

Yes we as motorcyclists need to watch out for ourselves, we need to not endanger other road users, but that article is just an excuse to persecute bike riders.

[Dogboy900]

Oh on the bright side I am not a new or returning bike rider, I hardly ever drink these days, don't take drugs, Haven't had a speeding ticket for about 8 years so the police in WA will probably consider me a low risk and leave me alone

[bosslady]

You know, outside right now it is raining, a constant light wetting rain, Most of you would look out there and go, TV time.

Well it's tv time for me now and I deserve it! I don't have a problem riding in the wet, I do have a problem though with riding in wind and rain so torrential I can't even see the tail lights of the car ahead of me. Almost pooed myself! So nice to be back at home in Auckland! I was hoping I wouldn't have a crash too cause that would make my long winded post earlier seem pretty stupid...

[PrincessBandit]

Everyone knows that you're considerably more vulnerable on two wheels than on four in a metal can. However some of the posts here make me think WTF are you doing on a motorbike? Yes I have dropped my bike - on more than one occasion - it's heavy and although I've stopped it going over a few times with immense concentration and willing my arms and legs to keep it upright, it's still made it to the ground a few times; yes I have had one serious crash (my mind distracted by the task at my destination rather than focussed on my ride). Boy was that a lesson in keeping my mind on what was happening around me when on the bike.

But I never go out with the mentality of expecting that at some stage I'll crash again - it's NOT inevitable - or that I am likely to drop my bike. As a learner/n00b I understand (and can still remember those days) that you may feel this way but generally these things happen when you're distracted. You need to continually develop your situational awareness, not get lackadaisical about what you are doing (because that WILL end up biting you in the arse), and preferably attend rider training sessions with a qualified instructor. Riding with a trusted and experienced fellow rider can also be of great benefit.

In case some of you don't realise it, katman's mentor statement is something along the lines of "it's not about going faster, it's about staying alive" (check in the mentor thread if you want to see who has written what about their mentor status). He rarely apologises for anything he writes - usually you get the blunt version, he doesn't do sugarcoated and warm fuzzies - but he DOES know what he's talking about.

[PrincessBandit]

- but he DOES know what he's talking about.

Ooops, should have added "about motorbikes and riding", just to be specific...

[BigAl]

Ooops, should have added "about motorbikes and riding", just to be specific...

Katman does have some relevent advice but its a pity that he's so deluded on his crusade.

Perhaps he's in need of crucifixion to be really worthy!

[Drew]

Katman does have some relevent advice but its a pity that he's so deluded on his crusade.

Perhaps he's in need of crucifixion to be really worthy!

I think that's not true. He gets flamed for telling people it's almost always their own fault, no one likes it so they battle and try to belittle him.

I did it too, I just happen to have woken up at some point....He's still a cunt though.