Riding a motorcycle safely is all about managing risk.
I would not be honest with you if I said you will never face risk if you ride a motorcycle and at the same time people who say that motorcyclists have a death wish are not being honest either or are just uninformed.
The facts are pretty simple though, riding a motorcycle carries more risk than driving a car…but it does not have to be an unreasonable risk.
Things Under my Control as a Rider
Motorcycle maintenance
There is no excuse to ride a poorly maintained motorcycle. Doing things like keeping tires in good shape and properly inflated, keeping the chain or final drive clean and adjusted, making sure the lights work and the routine maintenance on the motorcycle is up to date is all part of riding a motorcycle.
Many of these tasks can be completed yourself with just a small learning curve or if you have no desire to do maintenance you need a mechanic you can trust who will do it for you just know that your costs in riding will increase.
Not only does riding a poorly maintained motorcycle decrease the motorcycle’s lifespan…it increases your risk as a rider. There are only two small patches of rubber separating you from the pavement and it is important to keep them in good shape and everything else in between.
Riding gear
Just like motorcycle maintenance this is a decision you make before ever throwing a leg over the motorcycle. Every person needs to take an assessment and determine how much risk they are willing to take when it comes to protective gear.
In my opinion there is a rate of diminishing return when it comes to riding gear.
Motorcycle Helmet
The most important by far is a good helmet. A full face helmet offers the most protection but this is a decision that you are making for yourself, some choose to ride with an open face helmet and goggles…your choice. Just know that a full face helmet is much safer for many reasons and I have discussed that in other videos on MCrider.
Gloves
Next on that list I would say is gloves. Why gloves? Because in most crashes the first thing to hit the ground is our hands. We instinctively reach out to lesson the fall and our hands take the brunt of it. But gloves are mostly protective against abrasion, they don’t do as much for blunt impact injuries.
Jacket & Boots
Next, I guess I give a toss up between a riding jacket and over the ankle shoes or boots. Good shoes help with the motorcycle falling on your leg and with burns from the exhaust. A jacket, like gloves, helps mostly with abrasion and not as much for blunt impact injuries.
Pants
Finally riding pants. There is some armor in riding pants around the knees and hip pads but like many of the other safety gear they help mostly with abrasion.
We often use the word abrasion and think it is no big deal. Just realize that coming off a motorcycle at road speed and sliding in a t-shirt and shorts is not a simple injury. Many riders spend time in burn units, with skin grafts due to road rash injuries.
I said earlier that I think there is diminishing return on protective gear. I say that because above all other gear a helmet reigns supreme when it comes to actually saving your life. That is not to say that a jacket won’t help in a crash but it is not as important as a good quality helmet when it comes to surviving a crash.
But the level of protective gear in my opinion should be left in the hands of an informed, knowledgeable adult to make decisions based on what works for them, what type of riding they will do and level of risk they are willing to accept.
Not everyone will make the proper decisions when it comes to protective gear and some of them will pay an expensive cost for their choice.
There is a whole list of other things under my control as a rider and they make up the bulk of the hundreds of videos you can find at MCrider.com.
Other Things Under the Rider's Control
- The speed that I ride is under my control.
- The following distance between me and other cars is under my control.
- Being properly trained and maintaining those skills is under my control.
- Avoiding unnecessary risk is under my control.
- Riding sober is under my control.
- Staying focussed and asking “What if?” is under my control.
There are many more things under my control when it comes to riding safely than not under my control. The quicker we recognize the difference and handle our own business the quicker we will become proficient riders.
What are some things not under my control?
- Other drivers pulling out in front of me.
- Distracted drivers.
- Intoxicated drivers.
- Sometimes road conditions, like spills on the road, gravel, or poorly maintained roads.
- Wild animals or deer on the road.
So we mention this list of things that are not under my control and inspite of our best intentions sometimes crashes happen. But, that is the way of life, sometimes bad things happen to good people.
But, when it comes to riding a motorcycle, I do have direct control of their likely impact on me as a rider.
What do I mean by that?
You Have More Control than You Think
Let's take the example of the car pulling out in front of me.
If I train and know how to stop a motorcycle in an emergency and I am practicing good road strategy by maintaining time and space around me on the road, staying out of blind spots on the road and constantly asking what if. I then have a plan in place and the riding skills to deal with it if the car does pull out in front of me.
I have taken a situation that is seemingly out of my control (the car pulling out) but I have greatly decreased its likely impact on my safety by handling the things that ARE in my control.
We do not have to be victims on the road. If I thought there was this huge list of things that were going to kill me everytime I rode a motorcycle…I would quit riding a motorcycle.
It is the same reason why I don’t dress up in a deer costume and go running through the woods this time of year…it's just not smart.
We are at the end of January, a good portion of the viewers are still in winter hibernation. I want to encourage you to head over to MCrider.com/RoadStrategy and spend some time looking for ways to improve your mental game on a motorcycle.
Once a rider has developed a certain skill level on a motorcycle, the mental approach to riding becomes an even bigger factor. So I encourage you to be smart, ride smart and don’t be a victim.
The world has enough victims, we need more people taking control of their safety on the road and a good place to start is with MCrider.
