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"I expect to be riding as long as I can get on a bike but I do NOT expect to die on a bike."

You're exactly right.

Back in 2003...? 2004...? my friend Dave took off on his bike and rode to Acadia National Park in Maine; while there he met a guy from Germany, Franz, an older gentleman, 70-something, who had brought his BMW to the States to do some riding. Dave and Franz hit it off, hung out and camped overnight in the park. The next morning they decided to ride into town and get breakfast, with Dave in the lead.

On the way, Dave noticed that Franz had fallen behind, so he waited for him for a bit, but Franz never showed. Concerned, he went back to look for him and found Franz dead in a field. No crash, no skid marks, nothing to indicate what killed him.

I was working in news at the time, and had heard Dave had run into a problem in Maine, so I called the Bar Harbor police to see if he was okay and they put me in touch with Dave, who was sticking around while the police corroborated his story. Dave related it to me, and he has never spoken of it since. Subsequent investigation and autopsy revealed Franz had suffered a heart attack on the bike and simply rode off the road. Dave told me his widow, who flew in from Germany, said at least he had died doing what he loved, motorcycling.

A grim story to be sure, but I don't think Franz - or Dave - expected that either.

There's a difference between dying doing something you love and dying because of what you are doing.

Franz could just as easily have died while driving a car.

That's True! But my point is, none of us are promised tomorrow. I personally don't Dwell on it, I just Respect it. Just as you mentioned in your post, be prudent/responsible when you ride, it helps keep Bad Things From Happening.

I mean, down here, Famous Last Words are usually preceded by "Here, Hold My Beer."

I turn 66 in a couple weeks. My body is half or less what I think it used to be. Per wife’s orders I sold 5 of my bikes this year. although I did buy another new used one. Take that honey. And I pulled my 75 wing out today
to go fill the tank and enjoy the experience. For the first time in my life I took the 35 mph side roads
to stay off I90 and the 80 mph 300-400 hp cars people drive today. It was just as fun. Took a bit longer.

I stopped on my bike to visit a sick friend, his last words to me were "ride safe, but ride".

I know, right...? Motorcycling has changed my life for the better ever since I started some 20-odd years ago; I can't imagine my life without my bike. Or 'bikes', as the case may be...

I've been riding a bike of one kind or another, since I was 13......I'm now 76.....I can't imagine my life without a bike.....or two. They have allowed me to see places I might not have seen without them. And meet some of the nicest, and most interesting people in the world