I kinda wanna buy a motorcycle but the statistics of accidents on them kinda worry me 👀

You can be the best rider in the world... but that doesn't mean other people are 🤷
As a kid, we had this family friend who loved motorcycles. He gave me rides all the time just for fun.

One day he left our house, barely turned the corner, & a Tahoe pulled out in front of him outta nowhere. He went head first into the Tahoe & ever since then he's been paralyzed from the neck down. Never rode another bike again.

Shit I've even seen a dude who's leg was hanging off by just a small piece of skin 😶 it was brutal asf. He crashed his bike & slid sideways. The road rash literally took his leg off completely & I didn't see it happen, but I saw him on the ground screaming & no ambulance was there yet. So it had just barely happened.

Shit was kinda traumatizing. Every time I tell myself to get a motorcycle, I think about that stuff & I'm like "nah... I don't trust other drivers". It seriously pisses me off when I see cars driving so close to motorcycles like they don't care. I give them sooo much space it's ridiculous. People just don't know how to drive 🤷

They say 9 out of 10 people who own motorcycles, WILL crash on it at some point in their life. That's crazy to me 👀 so there's only a 10% chance that you won't crash. Damn

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Dainbramadge · 56-60, M

Life is full of things we have to except and understand about our selves.
It makes life so much easier if you really know how you would act in real situations.
I rode for many years, til I had kids.
I rode that fucker constantly.
Rain, sleet and snow shit. True story.
I had to jump out of my lane or off the line weekly.
Oh yeah. I got a cruiser instead of the Ducati I wanted because I know I am an idiot.
If it goes 160. We will go 160.
Hell my '77 750 said it would go 160. It lied. It only went 140. LOL

So two things to take inventory of from your life and you have to be as honest with yourself about these as you can be.
Could you dodge a head on with a car and just say "dick head"?
It will get your blood pumping fucking hard when it happens and the adrenaline blast through you.
See with me I have the ADHD and my brain craves rushes like that. So I am back at it the next morning probably subconsciously hoping shit happens again. LOL
Two: Are you comfortable being a target non-stop the entire time you are riding it?
What I mean is you have to have your head on a swivel. 100% of the time. Always watching the guy coming from behind at the stop light to make sure you don't have to dart away. Always expecting that car to pull out in front of you. Non-stop.
I know it sounds like I am trying to NOT sell the experience.
Dude, you know how the dog hangs it's head out the window of the car?
That's got to be the same feeling it is for us riding bikes.
It's like flying 3 foot off the ground at 80 mph.
You fart and change lanes. Stop on a dime and pick up 9 pennies.
0 to 60 in four seconds. Without tire spin or lifting the front wheel.
20 mph corners @ 60.
It is such a free feeling man.
You can hear, if you don't have to wear a helmet, everything. Smell everything. Feel everything.
I don't do radios and windscreens and all that crap.
Just me the bike and maybe some turn signals.
It's a rush.
But you gotta be prepared to have to dodge an idiot an hour that is trying to smash your leg to the point of amputation.
Hope this helps.

ChiefJustWalks · 26-30

@Dainbramadge yeah exactly. To be a rider you have to be aware of everything at all times. Which is something I've even learned about life in general. I constantly watch my surroundings, constantly have to know who's behind me, beside me, what lies ahead. Whether I'm in car or on foot I've learned to CONSTANTLY be aware. Because you just don't know what other people are gonna do. You have to constantly envision every scenario & be prepared for anything that can go wrong. Which is why I'm always like "you can be a perfect rider, but that doesn't mean other people are". They say that on a motorcycle, you need to treat every vehicle like they're out to kill you.

I imagine on a motorcycle I'd probably be breaking my neck with how much I'd be looking around 😂 I'd maybe be a bit paranoid for a while lol.

Adrenaline rushes are definitely fun. & I KNOW I'd be the type to speed & get a bit hyped at times. Which is another reason to be even more aware.

HannibalAteMeOut · 22-25, F

Idk the statistics but if you told me it's the most common cause of death in young men I'd believe you. I mean it probably is in my country. They are pretty and can be convenient and fun but they are real killers. I've seen how they damage people and too many times it's not even the driver's fault.

ChiefJustWalks · 26-30

@HannibalAteMeOut motorcycle riders are nearly 30x more likely to die in a crash compared to enclosed vehicles. & About 90% of motorcycle owners will crash at some point in their lives. There's more stats tham that but those are the only ones I know off the top of my head.

I mean I've lived a wild life but those statistics are a bit too wild for me 😶 it's sad how often it's not the riders own fault too

HannibalAteMeOut · 22-25, F

@ChiefJustWalks it's too much. But also depends on the driving education and conscience that's common in each place. If you lived here I'd tell you don't even think about it 😬

Teggy

It’s a hell of a gamble. I ride. But I’m an adrenaline junkie and figure if it’s not on the bike it’s gonna be some other fuqed up way death will take me

ChiefJustWalks · 26-30

@Teggy I feel that 👌 tbh I still want a motorcycle but I feel like if I get one, I'd probably only ride on weekends to hang out & thats it.

But ooo that's cool you ride. You a streetbike typa guy or?

Reject · 26-30, M

That’s fair. Anyone riding a motorcycle gets to be at the bottom of the automobile food chain. Literally anything else will make a meal out of you.

ineedadrink · 51-55, M

Yep, I really don't trust my fellow members of the motoring public. I want wind in my hair, I'll roll down the window.

basilfawlty89 · 31-35, M

This might be a good read:

https://ride.vision/blog/12-most-common-motorcycle-myths/

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