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Throwing caution to the wind in 'certain situations' might be okay, but you have to keep vigilant and scan both sides of the road for potential threats at all times and do everything to avoid meeting by accident; it's your life on that bike.
When swimming in the ocean and a fin appears, do you tempt fate and stay put or get your *** out of the water?
To each his own, but there's no way I can ignore the possibility of getting hit by a deer when we're riding. Being super-watchful definitely helps minimize scary encounters, but of course nothing completely prevents a strike from the deer sent your way by fate. My strategies are about minimizing risk. With our very high deer population I avoid riding during peak movement hours and periods. My deer radar gain is set to 'high' when riding in obvious deer habitat areas....woodland, brush, old farms, etc. I ride wary but seldom worried, unless I get 'that' feeling.
I'm seeing more and more deer occupying human residential areas. These deer are extremely dangerous to riders. They have little fear of traffic. They commonly feed next to roads and casually cross them much like a neighborhood dog. They are hard to see at times due to all the visual variances common to residential areas. People often feed them, or they are there for landscape plants and bird feeders. At our last Airbnb stay in VA there were deer walking and feeding within 10 yards of me as I prepped the bike for a ride. No fear from them.
I'm surprised that this topic has persisted here for so long...
Running over a hedgehog, flying off the road, cutting a cow in half in the middle of the night, or losing an eye to a maybug, whatever..
More than half a dozen of our former friends "disintegrated" on a single country road.
30 kilometers straight ahead, along a canal, no traffic lights, full throttle, but unfortunately every now and then a driver in an old Opel Kadett would get in the way...
"Sorry, officer, I did not see the motorcycle!"
Should I mention more? The list of distant motorcycle friends would be very long, and none of you want to read that...
You do not find deer. They find you. Nothing that you can do about it. Just ride. Don't even think about it. If it happens it happens. Speaking from experience. I survived a deer strike at 40 MPH. Wearing nothing but a do rag. And. Leather jacket ,gloves and pants. Of course. Was thinking if I had took 30 seconds at that last stop. Or. That deer had nibbled that last bit of grass. For some reason that collision was meant to happen. God was taking care of me. May The Good Lord Watch Over All Riders. I do not post pics of me because I am so handsome. But. Here is a pic of my handsome mug right after that deer and myself was introduced.
ere is a pic of my handsome mug right after. I survived. The poor deer did not.
As much as I want to wear my half helmet... this photo right here is why I always end up wearing a full helmet.
Life itself is dangerous, and anyone who adds a motorcycle to the mix is teetering on the brink of death, it's that simple.
Ride an MV-Agusta, a Ducati 750/900, or even a Laverda 750 on a country road; these are not Harleys, these were and are racers, for speeding.
I have driven these machines myself, full of fear and respect, more than once.
Old and new Harleys have always been associated with "feminine" connotations, as something nice, friendly, easy to handle, something on which one felt safe, it was so simple.
It wasn't without reason that a Harley was always a "She", a feamle partner, a love, or a love-hate relationship; unfortunately, I don't remember it any other way.
In 1977 I switched from a 1000 Honda Goldwing to an HD 1200 FXE, I thought I was standing still, pathetic performance, vibrations everywhere, a single shaking and spitting, no power.
After a few beers about it with friends, I was hooked – my first Harley-Davidson, in my garage! 1977
Life itself is dangerous, and anyone who adds a motorcycle to the mix is teetering on the brink of death, it's that simple.
Ride an MV-Agusta, a Ducati 750/900, or even a Laverda 750 on a country road; these are not Harleys, these were and are racers, for speeding.
I have driven these machines myself, full of fear and respect, more than once.
Old and new Harleys have always been associated with "feminine" connotations, as something nice, friendly, easy to handle, something on which one felt safe, it was so simple.
It wasn't without reason that a Harley was always a "She", a feamle partner, a love, or a love-hate relationship; unfortunately, I don't remember it any other way.
In 1977 I switched from a 1000 Honda Goldwing to an HD 1200 FXE, I thought I was standing still, pathetic performance, vibrations everywhere, a single shaking and spitting, no power.
After a few beers about it with friends, I was hooked my first Harley-Davidson, in my garage! 1977
Mike
Um... we don't under any circumstances mention the 'H' word here...
Life itself is dangerous, and anyone who adds a motorcycle to the mix is teetering on the brink of death, it's that simple.
Ride an MV-Agusta, a Ducati 750/900, or even a Laverda 750 on a country road; these are not Harleys, these were and are racers, for speeding.
I have driven these machines myself, full of fear and respect, more than once.
Old and new Harleys have always been associated with "feminine" connotations, as something nice, friendly, easy to handle, something on which one felt safe, it was so simple.
It wasn't without reason that a Harley was always a "She", a feamle partner, a love, or a love-hate relationship; unfortunately, I don't remember it any other way.
In 1977 I switched from a 1000 Honda Goldwing to an HD 1200 FXE, I thought I was standing still, pathetic performance, vibrations everywhere, a single shaking and spitting, no power.
After a few beers about it with friends, I was hooked my first Harley-Davidson, in my garage! 1977
Mike
I'm not sure what this has to do with the topic of this thread, hitting a deer.
Hemmmmm, that there is a completely different perspective than I have ever heard, before today.... "Friendly, easy to handle"
Kind of girly bike, right? I will have to lift the skirt and take a look.
Ok. I could see that thought on a TW200 Yamaha, but a 850 lb, or more, Harley Davidson.
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Slideshow: The bar-and-shield logo shows up on far more than motorcycles, some of the company's most unexpected products have nothing to do with riding.
Slideshow: From the troubled AMF years to modern misfires, these bikes earned reputations for reliability issues, questionable engineering, or disappointing performance.
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Slideshow: The Swiss custom shop has taken a Harley Softail and stretched it into something so long and low that it looks closer to a rolling sculpture than a conventional motorcycle.
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Slideshow: A standard cruiser becomes an intricate metal canvas in the hands of a Swiss custom house known for pushing Harley-Davidson platforms far beyond their factory brief.
Slideshow: Harley-Davidson's challenges aren't abstract; they show up in dropping shipments, shrinking dealer traffic, and strategic decisions that aren't yet translating into growth.
Oh No...
"Friendly, easy to handle"
