Accident report

**Boob Johnson** · 18th November 2008, 21:58

Very good read, sobering indeed. Had a mate crap off last week, nearly killed himself, riding an old K75 BMW like a sprot bike

Got off real light with a busted collar bone & a sore head. Less than half a foot to the left & it was certain death or a wheelchair at best, bloody lucky. It's a pretty shit feeling looking at ya mate & wondering if he is dead or not.

**Ragingrob** · 18th November 2008, 22:05

I hate stats that are based on number, rather than percentage outta the population. How can they compare stats from the 80s to now by number? Surely you've gotta include the factor of the motorcycle sample size within the population each year!

**RantyDave** · 18th November 2008, 22:05

Originally Posted by discotex

Proves we're better at left handers than right handers. 12% of all crashes on right hand bends vs 8% left.

Not necessarily. If you run wide on a left you "merely" end up on the wrong side of the road. Run wide on a right you come off completely.

Dave

**MacD** · 18th November 2008, 22:41

Good post Paul, I hadn't seen the latest version of this document.

I think it brings home two things in particular that people need to keep in mind: that most fatal motorcycle accidents are in the "lost control" categories on the open road, and that fatal motorcycle accidents occur at the rate of about one every 1.3 weeks.

It's a shame the age-crash statistics aren't normalised for the age profile of the current riding population, but it's probably quite hard to work this out as there will be a lot of inactive riders still holding licences that they gained in the '70s and 80's.

**Jiminy** · 18th November 2008, 22:55

42% of death where no rider fault was identified. I'm sure proper defensive riding can reduce the risk, but that's a scary big number.

Also, 37% where speed is a factor is a very high number. That's food for the 'speed kills' argument.

**Shadows** · 18th November 2008, 23:46

Originally Posted by dipshit

Because if you run wide on a right hand corner you will hit gravel/ditch/fence. If you run wide on a left hand corner you have the other side of the road to use and you will only be unlucky if a vehicle is coming the other way at the time.

Originally Posted by RantyDave

Not necessarily. If you run wide on a left you "merely" end up on the wrong side of the road. Run wide on a right you come off completely.

Dave

The thing you need to consider here is that right handers are off camber due to the crown in the road - so it stands to reason there is more potential to fuck up on a right hander than on a left hander. Also there is probably just as often a car coming the other way as there is an solid object on the side of the road in your crash path, and a car covers more ground than stationery object does.

**MSTRS:Me** · 19th November 2008, 08:26

Originally Posted by NordieBoy

Maybe the drop in 15-24 age-group deaths has something to do with the cheaper cars that are available.
Wonder if there's a corresponding increase in that age-group in car deaths.

Most definitely. Pre-90s, cars cost so much more than bikes, relatively speaking, so young motorists (esp males) went for bikes as affordable independence.
Now, with 'cheap' cars, readily available finance, and bang-for-buck performance cars....vehicle culture is quite different.
The downside of this, is that your typical young squid no longer just takes himself out, he takes a few more with him.

**dipshit** · 19th November 2008, 08:32

Originally Posted by Shadows

The thing you need to consider here is that right handers are off camber due to the crown in the road - so it stands to reason there is more potential to fuck up on a right hander than on a left hander. Also there is probably just as often a car coming the other way as there is an solid object on the side of the road in your crash path, and a car covers more ground than stationery object does.

Bullshit. How many riders have run wide into the other lane on a left hand corner and thought "thank christ there wasn't a car coming the other way!"

You don't get let off as easily if you run wide on a right hand corner.

**Finn** · 19th November 2008, 08:35

I opened this document with interest but then read 3 words that stopped me from going much further... Ministry of Transport.

**dipshit** · 19th November 2008, 08:36

And those that do run wide on a left hand corner and collide with another vehicle probably account for a large number of the head ons.

**dipshit** · 19th November 2008, 08:41

Originally Posted by Finn

I opened this document with interest but then read 3 words that stopped me from going much further... Ministry of Transport.

**Finn** · 19th November 2008, 08:42

More people die each year as a result of our third world health system than on motorcycles. What you guys should be doing is eating healthy food, excising and getting regular medical checks ups.