Risky Business!

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Rat
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Re: Risky Business!

#16

Post by Rat »

Oldewing wrote:here we are talking about the ride..........................................and weather is keeping me off it crying1 crying1 crying1

A rare occurrence .... I'm riding and you're not !! dancr

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Re: Risky Business!

#17

Post by CYBORG »

RAT wrote:
Oldewing wrote:here we are talking about the ride..........................................and weather is keeping me off it crying1 crying1 crying1

A rare occurrence .... I'm riding and you're not !! dancr

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Me Too :crosso :crosso :crosso :crosso :crosso :crosso :crosso :crosso :crosso :crosso :crosso :crosso
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Re: Risky Business!

#18

Post by chewy999 »

CYBORG wrote:Numbers can be made to say anything.
Amen to that, when people throw statistics around, this is what I say.

Roughly speaking, 25% of road deaths involve drunk drivers. That means 75% of road deaths are caused by sober drivers.

So, STATISTICALLY, it is safer to drive drunk.

Now that is obviously ridiculous, but shows how you can twist the figures.

Soon be warm enough to ride as we've had a bit of snow.

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Previous Rides,
1980 CB250N Good to learn on
1981 CX500 good mid range tourer, went to Austria on it!
1983 GL1100C Pride and joy, sold when I bought my 1st house, big mistake
1985 GL650 Silverwing another mistake, horrible bike
1986 CBX550 Good commuter
1989 Suzuki GS750 (1976) cheap and cheerful until a dog ran out in front of me on Xmas Eve, 1991
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Re: Risky Business!

#19

Post by desertrefugee »

chewy999 wrote:
CYBORG wrote:Numbers can be made to say anything.
Amen to that, when people throw statistics around, this is what I say.

Roughly speaking, 25% of road deaths involve drunk drivers. That means 75% of road deaths are caused by sober drivers.

So, STATISTICALLY, it is safer to drive drunk.

Now that is obviously ridiculous, but shows how you can twist the figures.

Soon be warm enough to ride as we've had a bit of snow.

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Re: Risky Business!

#20

Post by Sidecar Bob »

Someone once told me that his statistics prof often said "Give me a wide enough pencil and a small enough graph and I can prove anything.

Unless something has changed drastically over the last couple of decades that statistic doesn't make sense. Or are at least taken out of context. The last time I heard, in Ontario (where they have made it much harder to get your bike license without taking a safety course) and based on accidents per million Km travelled, motorcyclists were far less likely to be involved in an accident than people in cars (probably because you have a better chance of manoeuvring to avoid collision). BUT based on injuries & deaths per million accidents, if you were involved in an accident on a motorcycle you were far more likely to be killed or seriously injured than people in cars. At that time, when taken as injuries & deaths per million Km travelled it worked out to slightly more risk of injury but about the same risk of death.

I have a feeling that they have quoted the deaths per million accidents stat out of context.

My own experience of exclusively driving motorcycles since '85, on sidecar outfits (or trike) in winter since '87 and on sidecar outfits year round since 2009 with only 1 accident in all that time while most people I know that drive cars exclusively have had at least 2 or 3 accidents in that time would seem to indicate that either I am a statistical anomaly or bikes are safer than cars :-D
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Re: Risky Business!

#21

Post by twowings »

I've also seen statistics from the Ontario insurance industry that shows that a large portion of the deaths and accidents are caused by unlicensed riders with almost no experience. From memory, it was stated that almost half of the deaths and accidents were caused by those two factors alone with alcohol being a contributor in a lot as well.
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Re: Risky Business!

#22

Post by Sidecar Bob »

Yep. Way back when I took the course the insurance companies recognized it as the equivalent of a year of safe driving. I don't expect that has changed much so if you can encourage as many people as possible to take the course before getting on a bike it should increase their likelihood of surviving by essentially eliminating much of the "lack of experience" factor.

BTW: I read something some years ago about a study in which car drivers were put in simulators to see how they reacted to what was on the road around them (including motorcycles) and then answered questionnaires abut their driving history & a bunch of other stuff. There was a definite correlation between experience on motorcycles and noticing them in traffic such that even people who had been taken for a single ride on the back of a motorcycle decades before were several times more likely to notice bikes in traffic than people who had never been on a bike.

One more reason to take as many people as possible for rides as often as you can :crosso
Mr. Honda ('83 GL1100/Dnepr) summer How a motorcycle evolves thread
The Famous Eccles ('84 CX650EI/VeloUral) winter Never Ending Build (CX500forum)
Click: Colour schematics for all GL1000 & GL1100 and GL1200 standard models plus instructions on how to download the full size version
"A guy with two sidecars can't be all bad." - Cookie
Another guy with two sidecars..... Hmmmm... must be something to that....
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Re: Risky Business!

#23

Post by HOTT »

I don't ride to die.
I ride to live. (sounds hokey Ric)
I did about 250mi. worth of livin' yesterday crossy.gif

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Re: Risky Business!

#24

Post by salukispeed »

I did about 250mi. worth of livin' yesterday crossy.gif

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Re: Risky Business!

#25

Post by CBX-tras »

Be the bobble head and be cautious of younger people on their phone.
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Re: Risky Business!

#26

Post by Rat »

Cell phones while driving is against the law here .... so .... the new traffic hazard ? The light turns green and nobody moves .... all checking their phones for texts .... :IDTS:

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Re: Risky Business!

#27

Post by salukispeed »

I'm with Rat. My wife gets upset when I assume the reason we never move or only two cars get thru on a light change and It irritates me so then you come across one of the slow people and they are still looking at their phones and driving 30 in a 45. But I am wrong?? Phones are great tool but the people are the problem. "Ok I'm done ranting" Sorry
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Re: Risky Business!

#28

Post by 5speed »

I wouldn't consider riding in the winter for a few reasons.
They put salt on the roads here like MacDonalds puts it on their fries and I hate rust
No one around here is expecting to see a motorcycle on the road in the winter..I don't want to tempt fate.
The weather can change in minutes..from a nice day to a snow storm..
Plus I'm sure members of the local constabulary would be stopping me with great regularity to see if I'm drunk. :mrgreen:
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Re: Risky Business!

#29

Post by Sidecar Bob »

I've been driving bikes in winter for over 30 years and have seldom been stopped by the police. Like anything else you just have to prepare the machine to suit the use, the first step (unless you are completely nuts) being to attach a sidecar and learn how to drive it before the roads are bad. There are a number of oil spray products available (I'm partial to RustCheck's system) that can prevent most of the rust but its really better to have a "winter beater" and expect to have to spend part of the summer undoing what winter did to it. And handlebar heaters & snowmobile gear make a huge difference too.

I've only had 1 accident in all that time, which is a lot less than most car drivers I know, so I wouldn't exactly classify it as extremely dangerous. A lot of that it is due to the fact that my steering is connected directly to the wheel without any linkages, gearboxes, power assist &c so I know right away when I drive onto a slippery road and can react appropriately (in a car/truck you find out when you try to steer or brake and then its too late) but part of it is that it is something unusual so other drivers notice it.
Mr. Honda ('83 GL1100/Dnepr) summer How a motorcycle evolves thread
The Famous Eccles ('84 CX650EI/VeloUral) winter Never Ending Build (CX500forum)
Click: Colour schematics for all GL1000 & GL1100 and GL1200 standard models plus instructions on how to download the full size version
"A guy with two sidecars can't be all bad." - Cookie
Another guy with two sidecars..... Hmmmm... must be something to that....
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Re: Risky Business!

#30

Post by Rat »

I try and pick my days .... I'm never too far from home in the winter .... and I hate subways ....

Gord :cry:
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‘14 KLR650 ... not a rat ... yet
‘84 GL1200i ‘R2B6' (Rat to Be 6, the last, adopted by twowings)
My Original 'RAT' was a hybrid '82 CB900/1100F
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