“Proficient Motorcycling: the Ultimate
Guide to Riding Well.” Motorcyclist and author David Hough
(rhymes with “tough”) wrote a book by this title that was published in 2000. It
is the best book I have ever read on motorcycle operation—eminently readable,
well illustrated with photographs and drawings, and full of good information
for those of us who wish to survive our riding passions. You can order this
book for 20% off from the Barnes &
Noble or the Border's
web sites.
Riding is dangerous. When they
observe that I am a motorcyclist, acquaintances and complete strangers tell me
that riding is very dangerous. The truth is, every activity—and inactivity—
is dangerous. Lying in bed is dangerous to a degree. It is what degree
of danger each of us finds acceptable that is important. For example, data
shows that for every 350 hours of horseback riding, a rider visits a hospital
emergency room. That means that riding a horse is twenty times(!) more
dangerous than riding a motorcycle. Yet, how often do we see unhelmeted teenage
girls riding about the countryside on horses?
Accept the risk! In accepting the
risk we face, intelligent motorcyclists resolve to deal with it intelligently.
They understand their limits as riders, understand the limits of any motorcycle
and their motorcycles in particular, focus 100% on their riding environments,
and ride accordingly. They also know that no matter how skilled and focused a
rider is, he-or-she still is very vulnerable. A fraction of a second's
inattention can result in death. On occasion, a focused and skilled rider can
still be injured or killed by an unanticipated occurrence.
Heedless Riders. Alas, the
highways and byways of America are awash with motorcyclists that doctors and
nurses call “organ donors.” How can you identify such riders? Here are some
keys:
- The rider who is not wearing
a serious, DOT-approved motorcycle helmet. In states with mandatory helmet
laws, such riders wear "German" looking so-called novelty
helmets that have as much chance of meeting the DOT helmet standards as a
knit watch cap.
- The rider who is not wearing
at least minimal protective gear, such as a jacket, full-finger gloves
without knuckle holes, long pants without knee holes, sturdy shoes, and
real eye protection.
- The rider who is dressed in a
fashionable black shirt or jacket and a black helmet, and makes no attempt
to make himself or herself visible to other roadway users. Two-thirds
of multi-vehicle motorcycle accidents occur when the driver of a car or
truck failed to see the motorcycle and its rider!
- The rider who has modified
his or her motorcycle in absurd ways, such as too-high handlebars or
removal of the front brake.
- The rider who thinks he or
she knows all he or she needs to know about riding a motorcycle.
- The rider who rides
continuously in one wheel track, seemingly oblivious to what is going on
around him or her.
When you see such riders, you know that they have not
thought seriously about what they are doing or how they are doing it. Either
they have not thought about it or may be incapable of thinking about it. Some
are overcome by peer pressure to be black-leather-clad “individualists” and lose
their individuality as well as their smarts.
What is Intelligent
Motorcycling?
“Most riders think
they are both safer and more skilful than the average rider — but we cannot all
be right. In more than 90% of traffic accidents, human error is the cause; accidents
do not just happen by chance. They are the consequence of unsafe riding
practices. Riding safety cannot be thought of as an add-on extra. It has to be
built into the way you ride.” — Motorcycle Roadcraft: the Police Rider's
Handbook (1996).
Riding a motorcycle is at least 90% mental. The
physical part, the riding skill, must be practiced until it is second
nature. When you need to apply maximum braking without loss of traction or
swerve quickly to miss something in your way, you must be able to do so
unthinkingly—automatically. Most of the time if you focus 100% and apply mental
strategies you will not need to test how well practiced your skills are. The
thoughtful and focused motorcycle rider can defuse most hazardous situations in
advance.
Intelligent riding involves the
entire gamut of motorcycling. It starts before you mount your motorcycle and
even before you buy one. It covers the weather, what you wear, where you go,
how you ride, and what you ride.
How you ride.
I will touch here on only a small
segment of the intelligent-riding universe. Those street survivors reading this
can certainly add their own points to this list.
All sizes of trucks as
well as motor homes, vans, etc. Stay away from these vehicles, most
especially uncovered trucks—including pickup trucks. They block your view
of the roadway and other vehicles. Detritus can fly off them or up from under
them right into your face. Their drivers often cannot see you. If you have to
follow them for a distance, give them at least four seconds in following
distance, twice the recommended normal two-second distance. When you pass large
trucks and motor homes, do not do it slowly. Pass them quickly. Get past
them as fast as you can to minimize your exposure!
Sitting-duck riders.
That is what I call riders who ride along for long periods in the same wheel
track, usually the left one. Clearly, they are oblivious to the hazards all
around them. They are fixated on one wheel track—period. They can be picked off
at almost any time by drivers heading toward them, especially left turners.
When riding, continuously maintain as large a space cushion around you
as possible. Often that means weaving thoughtfully from wheel track to wheel
track when riding two-way roads in order to keep as much distance as possible
between you and approaching traffic. It certainly means never riding
side-by-side with a another motorcyclist or riding in tightly packed groups of
riders (I avoid group riding for this reason).
Riding multilane highways with three or more lanes going
in one direction presents a special problem in keeping your distance from other
vehicles. Riding in the left lane can be a problem because drivers going faster
than you come up on you. Riding in the right lane poses problems because of
entering and exiting drivers and slower traffic found there. Riding in the
middle lane means you are vulnerable from both sides. Often, I find that the
safest place is the left lane, when you avoid dangerous entry and exit traffic
as well as double-sided vulnerability. However, conditions change constantly,
so no single lane can be called the best.
Maintaining as large a space cushion around me as
possible is one of my most critical riding strategies. I work at that
constantly whenever I ride. My space cushion is in front of me, on both sides, and
to the rear. If they cannot reach me, they cannot hurt me. I keep my
distance. You should, too.
Blind spots.
Another critical riding strategy is the avoidance of blind spots. That refers
to areas around another vehicle where you as a motorcyclist are invisible to
the other driver. Trucks have enormous blind spots—no, they have blind acres.
If a driver cannot see you, he can hurt you. It has happened many times. Pass
through blind spots no less quickly than passing a big truck. Never, never ride
in another vehicle's blind spot. Your survival depends on it. Your strategy
should be to ride from visible spot to visible spot efficiently
and without delay.
Riding without
practicing. The old saying goes, “Practice makes perfect.” This is
very true for motorcycle riders. Many riders do not practice their riding
skills regularly; some do. The latter are more likely the survivors. We all
should practice critical hazard-avoidance skills routinely. These include
maximum straight-line braking, braking in a curve, and swerving. These skills
can save us, but not if we do not have them right at hand when we need them. In
1999 a west-coast state motor cop died when his motorcycle collided with
another vehicle. Accident reconstruction showed that he failed to use his
front brake at all, and that had he done so he would have stopped short of
the vehicle he hit (the front brake contains perhaps 80% of our stopping
capacity). We should practice critical skills so routinely than they can come
into play when needed automatically. How can you practice? When you are riding
on a deserted road, stop as quickly as you safely can. Repeat that several
times to improve your skill, each time stopping a shorter distance. Remember: the
key is squeezing ever more firmly on the front brake to the point of impending
front-wheel skid, while simultaneously easing up on the rear brake pedal to
prevent a rear-wheel skid. On that same road, practice swerving, starting
slowly and increasing your speed to highway speeds. Swerve by pressing forward
on alternate handgrips, or by counter steering—that is the most powerful way to
change the path of a motorcycle. Swerve as firmly as you safely can around
imagined hazards.
“Inattentiveness is a
major cause of accidents.” — Motorcycle Roadcraft: the Police Rider's
Handbook.
“Inattention
Blindness” or “IB” is a new field of research with
important ramifications for all riders. We all know about this: “Gee, officer,
I'm so sorry; I didn't see the motorcycle before I cut in front of it!” For background on this area of
research, click here. It could save your life!
Failure to focus on
riding. You have all seen cars with drivers talking on cell phones.
Data shows that such drivers are four times more likely to crash than
drivers that do not use cell phones while they are driving. Now, in-vehicle
computers and navigation systems mean that more and more drivers are driving
blindly. Riding a motorcycle is substantially more demanding than driving a
car, so distraction is potentially much more disastrous. Yet more and more
motorcycles now are equipped with GPS receivers, radios, tape decks, CD
players, and tank bags with maps folded on top of them. All of these things can
distract a rider from what he or she should be doing, which is riding
the motorcycle! I used to own a BMW K1200LT motorcycle, which came with a
three-channel radio with search/seek feature, trip computer, tape deck, tank
bag map holder, and CD player (I removed the latter to conserve luggage space).
Initially, it was fun to play with all the gadgets while riding the LT.
Eventually I realized that they can be serious distractions I often should
avoid. After a while I rarely use the radio system, except to check the weather
channels. On long trips I often refer to a tank-bag-mounted map, but I am more
careful when I glance at it. I need to focus as much as possible on the riding
task; you do too.
Keeping your distance.
Recently, I rear-ended an automobile at about 15 MPH while riding an R1100RT.
The collision was more violent than I would have thought for such a low-speed
crash. I was thrown high over the RT's windshield—completely missing it—“like a
rag doll,” according to the Kawasaki rider behind me. Except for a couple of
large, pretty purple bruises and some small scrapes, I was uninjured. My
hapless RT was the real victim. It suffered over $4,000 in damage to the front
end. The car? Completely unscratched.
Why did this happen? Two reasons.
- First, I failed to
focus completely on riding. I turned my head for just an instant to look
at something behind the RT. That was all it took. When I looked back
forward, I was on top of the car. No time, even, to touch the brakes. I
try to concentrate 100% on riding, but I do not always succeed.
- Second, I was
following too closely the car in front of me. I had allowed perhaps only
one second following distance. Stupid? Of course. Had I allowed at least
two seconds the crash might have been avoided.
Both of the things I did wrong I
teach other riders not to do. So it is good to remind you, and myself gentle
readers, how to avoid these errors.
Pay 100% attention to operating your motorcycle when you
ride. O.k., 99%, then. Force yourself to scan forward and to check your mirrors
regularly. Maintain a minimum two-second following distance at all
times. Safety experts are now recommending a three-or-four second minimum. Keep
your distance from vehicles ahead of you and behind you. If a car or truck
fills up too much of your rear-view mirror, increase your following distance
more to make up for what the driver behind you is failing to provide. If the
driver behind you gets uncomfortably close to you, pull over and let him/her
by—it's easier to do this on a motorcycle than in a car, and I do it a lot.
The basic axiom is this: keep your distance from all
other vehicles on the roadway! Whether they are in front of you, behind
you, beside you, catching up to you from behind, or approaching you from the
front, keep your distance! The Motorcycle Safety Foundation says
to maintain a “space cushion.” Whatever you call it, keep your distance.
Towing a trailer with a
motorcycle. In a word, don't do
it! No motorcycle
manufacturer recommends pulling a trailer with any of its motorcycles. I know
of a couple riding a Gold Wing who suffered a blowout of one of their trailer's
tires and the operator lost control. They both died.
Riding a motorcycle involves risk, of course. Riding
without a helmet increases your risk dramatically. Riding "invisibly"
with black jackets and black helmets increases your risk. Riding while impaired
increases your risk. Lots of choices a rider makes can increase or reduce risk.
Certainly, pulling a trailer with a motorcycle increases your risk. I believe
we should strive to manage and reduce our risk, but it certainly is each
rider's choice as to how much or how little he/she wishes to manage his/her
risk.
Personally, I will not ride impaired, I will not ride without
a helmet, I ride with brightly colored clothing to increase my conspicuity, and
I would never pull a trailer with a motorcycle. If you need to take that much
stuff with you, then I recommend putting the motorcycle on a trailer and tow it
with a car or truck.
The above article is courtesy of the
Jeff Dean click his name to visit his web site for more interesting information
