Making excuses

[koba]

Ive crashed Twice on the road.
Both involved outside factor I had no control over.
However both times If I had reacted differently the outcome would have been better for me. (altho not nesseserraly for others!)

Accidents usually come about as a result of more than one thing going wrong, that is why even when we leave a good saftey margin in out riding things can still go pearshaped VERY quickly.
More reason to be ever vigilant but don't make the mistake of thinking that alone will protect you!

Jim Is right about your comments on seans accident, I have woken up to find myself playing oin a rugby field before. I remember the last quarter of the game but apparently I took a Big knock in the first 3 miniutes!
I don't remember even arriving at the game or for a good 3 hours before the knock. Head injuries are funny things and really do fuck with your memory pretty bad.
Sean had a knock FAR bigger than mine so if you doubt that had any major effect get a sledge hammer and have a go at it yourself.

[MSTRS:Me]

But then you are the perfect motorcyclist are you not?

So he would have us believe. Essentially, he rides with nobody round these parts, so where is the proof that he is a paragon of motorcycling virtue??
Just cos I claim that Whitetrash is a pussy on wheels and I can give him the learn, doesn't make it true.

[MSTRS:Me]

... if you doubt that had any major effect get a sledge hammer and have a go at it yourself.

There's a few round here that will happily help him with that

[Fatjim]

We, as motorcyclists, seem to have turned making excuses into some sort of art form. Time and time again the same ones are trundled out - "The prick didn't see me", "Bloody patch of diesel", "I never really did like those tyres", "They need to fix that bloody bump in the road" - when in fact, 9 times out of 10 if we're honest with ourselves, our accidents come down to outriding the prevailing conditions at the time and/or our ability.

And to those who keep coming out with - "you weren't there, you don't know what happened", there's a saying that goes along the lines of - If it looks like shit, feels like shit and smells like shit there's probably no need to lick your finger.

Blah blah blah blah blah

[BIGBOSSMAN]

Kat, to suggest that the accident I had where a woman made an unsignalled U-turn in front of me (riding at 50K legally) giving me 5m to stop is somehow down to 'bad rider judgement' is just plain daft.
I had a year off work, couldn't continue my chosen career and still have leg/hip problems to this day.
Likewise when I applied my front brake at an intersection in New Lynn back in the '80's and didn't see the fine film of diesel on the road. A low speed bin and hardly any damage, but it wasn't rider error either.
Like Don Quixote, your sentiments are reasonable noble and well intentioned (I think) but sadly far from the truth in reality.

[Katman]

And on an interesting sidenote - in the last 24 hours I have received 10 greens and 1 red (but Boob's my Kiwibiker Stalker so his doesn't count ) and there's some interesting names amongst them.

I'm not living in quite the land of delusion that some of you would like to suggest.

[Trudes]

I actually agree in theory to what you're saying Katman, once you are an adult and able to make your own choices about what you do you also have to take responsiblity for the consequences of those choices. However as adults, none of us like to be treated like children and told what and how to do things constantly, and some things are out of your personal control.

[CHOPPA]

I ran out of excuses years ago.... 'Oops' works just fine now! oh that and a dog ran across the road

[Mikkel]

I know there are those on this forum that would like to suggest you eat shit, I just suggest that "shit can and does happen"

I agree - except I say "given enough time, shit WILL happen!"

And on an interesting sidenote - in the last 24 hours I have received 10 greens and 1 red (but Boob's my Kiwibiker Stalker so his doesn't count ) and there's some interesting names amongst them.

We'll all just be quiet now, obviously all the green rep suggest that you're 10/11 right and only 1/11 wrong!

FFS mate, what's next? Going to use your post count to prove you got it right?



While I agree that some people make up bogus explanations about the cause of their fuck-ups I agree with those that suggest that is not only applicable to motorcycling. Quite frankly it's human nature - being honest with yourself takes a lot of courage. Only problem with not accepting a modicum of responsibility for your mishaps is that you won't learn from them.

[Katman]

We'll all just be quiet now, obviously all the green rep suggest that you're 10/11 right and only 1/11 wrong!

FFS mate, what's next? Going to use your post count to prove you got it right?

Didn't you read my post? I said Boob's doesn't count.

And I think you know exactly the point I was making with my comment about the rep.

[zeocen]

Katman, this thread insults me.

I had a semi-major off 2 days after Christmas last year, and it *was* caused by a rogue patch of gravel. Did I stop the complaint there? NO. I then went to discuss how I could have avoided it and what I had done wrong, if I had refined my basics I probably could have lessened the damage done. Finally ending up with how I can improve bad situations like that when I get back on a motorcycle.

To lump the people who actively strive every damn day they get on a motorcycle to become a better rider, with the few who decide to live their life with a track mentality is truly insulting.

And although you may seem to think you are on a one man crusade to cure the world, you're not, there are a million of you who do the exact same whinging and moaning and going about it the entirely wrong way. Everything you say is usually true, but you don't have to be such a fucking 'holier than thou' git about it because of the people who have come off on bikes, not ONE person has blamed it entirely on the bike, if they are to blame the bike it is usually followed with "but it did that because I didn't do this.."

You are getting less respect than you feel you deserve because you are being a cock in the faces of peoples passion. You can still get the message across in a timid, friendly manor, you know.

Lighten the fuck up.

[Katman]

"Rogue patch of gravel."

What, did it jump out at you?

[Matt Bleck]

Wonder what your parents excuse would be......

[BIGBOSSMAN]

Katman, there's a place for you here - hurry to the airport, you may get a standby flight to London...

[onearmedbandit]

And on an interesting sidenote - in the last 24 hours I have received 10 greens and 1 red (but Boob's my Kiwibiker Stalker so his doesn't count ) and there's some interesting names amongst them.

I'm not living in quite the land of delusion that some of you would like to suggest.

What is even more interesting is that these people choose not to support you in the open forums.

[edit] I had a look at your profile, I see you got 6 green reps for your 'treating the road as a racetrack' thread, that's understandable, I think most of us recognise double standards, even within ourselves. You also got 3 for your 'making excuses' thread, once again completely understandable and valid, as too many people (note *people*) are too quick to blame others when they themselves hold the key to their survival. So yes, you got green rep for some valid comments, well done. However when others get similar or even higher amounts of green rep you can usually see it continue onto the forums. However it seems that where ever you go there is the opposite. And a lot of these comments are coming from riders who have been on bikes for years and are very 'smart' riders. Myself included.