Never relax.. never assume you're safe

[FinalImpact]

Path to getting a drivers license to operate a Motor vehicle

1) Age 14- through 16 : Ride a bicycle on roads with low speed limit
2) Age 16- through 18 : Ride a moped,scooter,bike with low BHP, excluding highways
3) Age 18 - through 21: Drive a small car
4)Over 21, mandatory testing for SUV drivers.

Also wasn't there a petition to include motorcycle specific training material and questions on the drivers education in plenty many states in the North East, this was the case in CA. Not sure what the curriculum/test includes now.

Oh and banning cell phone use whilst in gear.

Modification:

1) Age 6 through 8 : Ride a bicycle on road, track, downhill, etc
2) Age 8 through EOL : Dirt bike/motorcyle (EOL = End of Life)
3) Age 10 - through 15: Farm truck, tractor, Sand rails, ATV's, Parents cars - obtain permit at 15 in the states.
5) Age 16 - your OWN CAR that you paid for, learn the rules of the road better
4)Over 18 - free for all, drive what you want. You can be prosecuted now! :thumbup:

That's closer to how I grew up!

 

[Erci]

The hard part is incorporating whatever you could have done into a strategy for riding that you can always do.

You can't expect the unexpected; Do you try develop a means of scouting for necessary information that provides as much feedback as possible, and faithfully carry it out?

In simplest terms: We teach that there are 3 general categories we should search for: road conditions, traffic signs/signals, other road users (be it cars, bikes, people, animals.. etc).

Out of the 3, only the latter can move. So.. once you've spotted anything in 3rd category, ask yourself "what is the worst and stupidest thing that person/animal can do?"

Will that always work? Not 100% of the time.. because we're not perfect and 2 things can go wrong:
1. We fail to identify something that can move.
2. We identify something that can move, but take the wrong action.

Example:

this past weekend I was in large group ride (35+ bikes) which I didn't know any of the riders or their skill sets. While in route to a destination I thought I'd made wrong turn and was going to pull onto a side street to turn around. I braked slowly, had my signal on, was just inside the center line of the road waiting for traffic to pass before turing onto a side street - AND MUCH to my surprise, some idiot comes flying between me (very close to the center line) and an oncoming car. Our handle bars couldn't have cleared by 3 inches. I didn't even have time to crap my pants and it was over as they were long gone!

Point being, 1/4 second in time and my day could have ended right there in heap on the road. I cleared the area behind me, was still traveling about 20 mph but slowing when this guy came through at ~ 80 mph. Yes, heartrate was accelerated for bit!!! As said, it was over before anything happened. SCARY! If I had to guess that person didn't see me slow down and WAS distracted!

FWIW: this was 4 lane road, with guard rails on both sides thus HE was behind me and didn't come from a side street. There was an empty lane to my right. I did not see him behind me either and suspect they were coming up at speeds into the triple digits....

About the only thing that comes to mind is: maybe it's not the best idea to be part of a group ride with 35 bikes.. especially if you're not sure of skill levels and how those riders generally behave. That's a Captain Hind-side answer though. :don'tknow:

 

[Verharen]

I tend to beat myself up for being less than perfect...

...because we're not perfect...

Just wanted to point this contradiction out. You know this, so no beating yourself up even if you are one of the Lords of MSF. :thumbup: I think it's okay to reach in the direction of perfect, but one should always keep in mind that it is impossible to actually get there.

Even for sniff6 who's so close...

 

[Karate.Snoopy]

Modification:

1) Age 6 through 8 : Ride a bicycle on road, track, downhill, etc
2) Age 8 through EOL : Dirt bike/motorcyle (EOL = End of Life)
3) Age 10 - through 15: Farm truck, tractor, Sand rails, ATV's, Parents cars - obtain permit at 15 in the states.
5) Age 16 - your OWN CAR that you paid for, learn the rules of the road better
4)Over 18 - free for all, drive what you want. You can be prosecuted now! :thumbup:

That's closer to how I grew up!

Good for you mate :thumbup:

In the light of ongoing research
Decision Making part of Brain not fully developed until 25

And in some cases that may extend well beyond the golden years.

Hence I would like to see more driver education/test, may be even a frequent one for younger folks.

 

[FinalImpact]

In simplest terms: We teach that there are 3 general categories we should search for: road conditions, traffic signs/signals, other road users (be it cars, bikes, people, animals.. etc).

Out of the 3, only the latter can move. So.. once you've spotted anything in 3rd category, ask yourself "what is the worst and stupidest thing that person/animal can do?"

Will that always work? Not 100% of the time.. because we're not perfect and 2 things can go wrong:
1. We fail to identify something that can move.
2. We identify something that can move, but take the wrong action.

Example:

About the only thing that comes to mind is: maybe it's not the best idea to be part of a group ride with 35 bikes.. especially if you're not sure of skill levels and how those riders generally behave. That's a Captain Hind-side answer though. :don'tknow:

That is in fact Risk Mitigation (not riding)!!!! Obviously I choose to march on. In doing so I made an effort to keep me safe. I looked over the crowd continuously observing those with gear & w/out gear, gear condition, bike condition, with Chicken, No chicken (level of crazy) and by 1/4 of the ride in found a sensible chap who matched my style, actually rode a line and did my best to place my self out of harms way from those making risky maneuvers. Well so I thought. lol

More you ask? The fun didn't stop there! In that same day on a single lane road of 14' wide or less, two came up real hot behind me. We were pulling a good clip but I don't cut corners or take senseless risks. Apparently some do as I saw it in mirror. I waved one by and then a bit later the other. The "other" was cheating death as I watched this guy cut two blind corners which could have ended badly. I'm assuming his thought was his buddy in front of him cleared the path (haha lol), but THAT MEANS NOTHING on a blind corner. The Third corner after passing me he was in the ditch head over heals - bike trashed. Which lead to this:
What I learned today:
When you're surrounded by maniacs with a death wish, let them by and stay back so you're not caught up in their crash!

This principle was applied and it works!

To your point, this was my biggest group ride and I expected there to be some fools along the way. My goal was to not be a statistic that day and have fun!

 

[Erci]

Just wanted to point this contradiction out. You know this, so no beating yourself up even if you are one of the Lords of MSF. :thumbup: I think it's okay to reach in the direction of perfect, but one should always keep in mind that it is impossible to actually get there.

Even for sniff6 who's so close...

Well put and LOL @ almost perfect sniff6. Thanks for cheering me up :thumbup:

 

[motojoe122]

Awhile back I came into a situation where I was at a yield waiting on traffic to be able to turn left across 2 lanes of traffic, just when I had a gap to proceed, this jackass comes flying by on my right into the flow of the southbound traffic! I was so pissed that I grabbed a handful of throttle and went after him....STUPID!!! I locked up the rear and did a 90 deg. slide up to his rear bumper. Should I have checked behind me before I moved from the yield lane..YES! Was my reaction correct...NO!!! Did the driver learn anything...NO, prob didn't even realize I was right behind him. Did I learn anything...YOU BET!

 

[mxgolf]

Eric, Thanks for the safety reminder. I too have seen some stupid stuff on the roads. I did a poker run once and saw some pretty stupid stuff. This was mainly a Harley Davidson run with some guys from work + 100 or more other mostly Harley riders. There was a guy flying past other riders the whole day. Passing over double yellow lines and I was just waiting for an accident but that day must not have been his day to die. Should have been by the way he was riding but not that day. Just a reminder we can't be too safe with all the crazies out there trying to get us. BE SAFE OUT THERE GANG!