Some of y'all knowI ride too.I have been a licensed rider since I was 14 years old,over 46 years. Wow,kind of makes me feel old seeing it spelled out.
Riding is a hazardous activity,period.You either accept that and learn to deal with it or stay in a car.Some can ,most can't.
The biggest threat are cars or should I say the boneheads behind the steering wheel.It has gotten worse as time passes.Sure more cars are a problem but it is the inattentive drivers more than anything.Add the increased impatience,aggressiveness and rudeness of people in general,it gets dangerous.
I go out riding most everyday of the year. I try to keep in mind that I'm invisible to cars and they are trying to kill me. Defensive driving takes on a whole new meaning when you're on two wheels. I will say that I think it has also made me a better car driver.
I don't have the stats,just what I have observed and heard. The young,indestructible,know everything riders on the crotch rockets are most likely the majority of self caused deaths & accidents.Young kids on a piece of inexpensive plastic that can do 150 mph is insane.
The average age of us that ride Harley's are 47 years old.The vast majority of us have learned to slow down and pay attention. Enjoy the ride,not how fast you can get there.
This is the same as us Baby Boomers that get 400-600 hp Cobras versus a 20 year old getting hold of the same.
Way too few of you have ever taken a school to drive your Cobras.That is damned dangerous too.(I have)
Most States now require a MSF riding course to get a motorcycle endorsement. Worth every penny. I know other riders that retake the course every few years just to break bad habits they may have picked up.
I still look at the course for new riders as a two wheeled "Driver's Ed".Good enough to maybe get you to the 7-11 and back alive.
PRACTICE - PRACTICE - PRACTICE
I do everything I can to make my scooter visible to others,I ride within my skills and the abilities on my scoot,I practice,I ride defensively and I ride with a smile on my face.
It is easy to get real pissed off at the stupid way a lot of cagers drive. I learned to let it go. A 800 pound bike will lose every time to a 4000 pound car/truck.
If I get killed on my scooter,I died doing what I love and with a smile in my heart.
My choice.
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