What's with all the crashes over the weekend?

[short-circuit]

How many car drivers died over the weekend through treating the road as a racetrack?

Last weekend is a snap shot in time that suits your argument

[Katman]

Last weekend is a snap shot in time that suits your argument

I have a customer who has a farm on Tirohanga Road just out of Taupo.

He said there were motorcycles doing racetrack speeds along that road all weekend.



(And btw, I'm sure I could find you quite a number of weekends that suit my argument).

[Maha]

Yep tis the silly season ! I vote compulsory track day for all riders at the beginning of every summer, instead of wham lets deal with every senario on the first ride !

Lets look at that little closer.....

On a track there are no oncoming vehicles.
The track surface is vastly different from the roads we use.
A track day can be used for 'balls to the wall' riding, not the best riding action on the open road at times. (its been proven time and time again)
After a track day, you come away feeling fucken amped! (one would imagine)
At a track day, how long are you on the bike at any given time? 20 mins?
Rider stamina and ability to make the correct judgement at any given time are similar on both track and road, but differ beacuse of the points above.

[sinfull]

Lets look at that little closer.....

On a track there are no oncoming vehicles.
The track surface is vastly different from the roads we use.
A track day can be used for 'balls to the wall' riding, not the best riding action on the open road at times. (its been proven time and time again)
After a track day, you come away feeling fucken amped! (one would imagine)
At a track day, how long are you on the bike at any given time? 20 mins?
Rider stamina and ability to make the correct judgement at any given time are similar on both track and road, but differ beacuse of the points above.

You sound like your speaking from experience there Maha ! Are you ?

[jrandom]

I qualify on 3 counts.

Fashion-obsessed feminazi nerd?

Fair call.

[Kickaha]

Cause I'd like to suggest NZ has a far worse culture of idiocy with vehicles of the four wheeled variety

I reckon you'd be wrong or they'd be killing themselves at a far greater rate

[short-circuit]

I reckon you'd be wrong or they'd be killing themselves at a far greater rate

Road fatalities are only one indicator or idiocy. I never made any comments about the safety of motorcycles or the level of protection they offer on impact. I just suggested that NZ has a culture of stupidity with vehicles in general - so do we ban cars too?

[dpex]

So very true.

And going by the antics of quite a few riders I saw in the 130km between Chez Scundog and the Burt Munro over the weekend I am surprised the death toll of motorbike riders is as low as it is.

I bet a lot of the drivers in cars and trucks that these idjits passed have a pretty dim view of motorbike riders in general.

Scum, you're a front-line cop, eh? You get to deal with the mangled bodies, right?

It follows that your innate cynicism, as with all cops, is bred into your day.

But the fact is, scum, neither you nor any of your compatriots can ever cause any driver to not have a crash. All you can ever hope to do is walk away from a crash-scene, shaking your head and thanking the fact it wasn't you on the gurney.

Cops can't stop crashes. Only the drivers can. But they never will.

Some of the guys you observed would have been really good riders. As safe as houses regardless of their antics, because they're good at it. It's the weekend warrior behind the good-guy who poses the danger. His ego (as has mine in past) gets in the way of his judgment and skill, and boom! Another fatality.

But how can you, as a cop, stop this? This answer is. You cannot.

No cop, anywhere, has ever stopped a road crash because, unless you happen to be in an indestructible vehicle and manage to place it between the crashee and the chrashor, you cannot stop the crash.

Only good driving stops the crash. And you know it.

Bad driving is just something which fills 'accident' statistics.

[jrandom]

Some of the guys you observed would have been really good riders. As safe as houses regardless of their antics, because they're good at it.

You weren't here exactly two years ago, were you.

[rocketman1]

To get answers to the accident rates you have look at the statistics.
All available on the MOT website
47 motorcycle deaths last year to year ending Sep 08. 87% male
48% failing to negotiate a corner, thats 23 dead on corners!! and from memory about 37% at intersections
That says alot doesn't it.
Most accidents happen on corners doesnt that tell you something!
All the know all say slow in fast out...bullshit
Slow in fast out, doesnt mean a thing, 35kmh can be too fast for some corners,
It comes down to knowing the road and the conditions.
If you dont know the road slow down, don't try to keep up with your mates, even if you know the road, you must tell yourself this time and again when riding in groups !! You do not know that someone just lost half a trailer of gravel on the corner you are about go around at 100km/hr...No you have NO idea... Your OFF mate, join the statistics. One thing that is for sure another 23 will come unstuck on corners this year, not being Sad ,just honest.
We can all corner faster than we should, and race through intersections.
But we as motorcyclists must ride to survive, go fast in the right places, but don't push the corners too hard, if you want to do that go to the race track.
Be here next year to ride another summer I say....Good luck

[Maha]

You sound like your speaking from experience there Maha ! Are you ?

No not at all..........
You opened up another branch for discussion........was in no way questioning your comment, I have never done a track day....in saying that, I have never played rugby either but I know how the game is played.

[scumdog]

You weren't here exactly two years ago, were you.

I'm with jrandom.

There's a thread on KB relating to that right now.

The world is full of people who are believe 'it won't happen to them' because they think they don't have the failings of 'mere mortals'.

The cemeteries are full of those people who found out they DO have the same failings.

[sinfull]

To get answers to the accident rates you have look at the statistics.
All available on the MOT website
47 motorcycle deaths last year to year ending Sep 08. 87% male
48% failing to negotiate a corner, thats 23 dead on corners!! and from memory about 37% at intersections
but don't push the corners too hard, if you want to do that go to the race track.

Thanks for that google is my friend but so is you lol Interesting that corner stat aye ?

No not at all..........
You opened up another branch for discussion........was in no way questioning your comment, I have never done a track day....in saying that, I have never played rugby either but I know how the game is played.

Fair enough but i have to point out the above corner stats ! well i mean it speaks for itself !
I aint talking ass of the seat cornering, i been to prolly 8 or ten track days now Maha and last week was the first one i actually tried getting the ass off(cause its all about learning more) but i can actually state as fact, that my ability to corner has improved tenfold !
A yr ago or less even i still had fixation moments and some bad moments at that, where i was close to being a statistic (prolly cause i was coming in to hot for my ability) Won't say i'm a great rider, far from it ! But with each track day my cornering on the road improves, My knowledge of what my bike can or can not do improves !
Perhaps it could be that, or perhaps it's cause i aint looking for my adrenilyn rush of speed on the road no more and slowing down out there !
Either way track days save lives in my opinion !

[naphazoline]

add 1 more to the weekends toll.

a friend of mine dropped his harley,and got gravel rash pretty bad.
he was turning off a gravel road into a driveway.
so at least speed or stupidity can't really be blamed
he used his body to save as much damage to the bike as he could.
the downside is,he's a wee bit sore

[dipshit]

Either way track days save lives in my opinion !

Until it goes to their heads that is. Then most advantages are undone.