[sm=outcold.gif]!IT SUCKS AND IT HURTS

 

I can certainly tell you how the frequency of my accidents have been avoided.
19 years ago I quit drinking.

 

An accident consists of three things. It is unintentional. It is unavoidable and it is unexpected. All accidents are not avoidable. I spent 32 years of my life investigating them and know of what I speak.

 

I've been in two accidents. One there was already an accident in the center lane, and as I was going around it, a van with no back windows decided it was the perfect chance for him to have the lane I was in and he took me out. A little road rash and a busted up helmet and a totaled bike was the end result of that one. I wasn't really too happy at the end of the day.

My other one I was going to make a left hand turn at a signal. The road looked wet, but I went through it like I do on every other wet road. Come to find out a road crew had just laid fresh tar in the intersection. The bike responded like it was on ice. Luckily, I was only going about 8 miles an hour so I was able to just stand up as the bike low-sided. I was able to ride the bike home. Insurance was a 500 deductible, total damage $3500. Another day of being upset. Now I definetley do a double check to see if the road is actually wet, or if a road crew decided to do some road work without any signs or notifications.

 

I have been riding 750cc or bigger street bikes since 1980, having bought my first brand new bike in 1981. I never even got my car license until I was about 30 years old, because I only road bikes and never owned a car. With this in mind you have to remember that I am originally from New York City, ans now I live only two miles from mid-town Manhattan right through the Lincoln Tunnel in NJ.
Now also I have done, I would say 99% of all my street riding here in the NY/NJ metro area, and for anyone who rides these streets or has at one time ridden them knows its VERY bad out there...VERY VERY bad. Ones peripheral vision becomes so acute, I know I can now see around corners with ease. I worked a year or two as a motorcycle messenger back in the days before the FAX machine just about killed that job. The rest of the time I was working in several motorcycle dealer service Dept's (all jap joints) as a mechanic (not a tech....thats way too new a word to describe me). So I guess you could say I spent a lot of hours on, in and around motorcycles.
Now to answer your question about accidents. Well if Donald Trump was standing in front of me with his check book open and pen in hand, and asked me to tell him the exact amount of times thatI was involved in a accident on a motorcycle....either MC vs: car, or MC vs: immovable object, or just MC vs: the pavement.....and he would cut me a check for 1 mil. I could not come up with a answer that would be even remotely close to accurate. I am just very thankful that I was never "real seriously" hurt. I did spend 6 months in the hospital once....and another time I spent over a year in a body cast...at home in a hospital bed that was on loan from the township. None of my limbs are straight any more, and my left leg is about a half inch shorter than my right....and I do walk with a limp by the end of the day when I am getting tired. I do have a bunch of scars either from surgeries or from lacerations and road rash.
I just thank God I was never hurt bad or hurt anyone else either on my bike, or in/on another vehicle.
If you want to hear about on accident in particulay.....well one time I was rushing through NYC traffic as usual. I seen a helmet up ahead, and thought I would speed up to see what kind of bike it was. Well a bit too much speed, and a bit too little concentration, and the next thing I knew was that there was one of those Honda scooters...you know the all plastic looking ones that are about 50cc's like 2 feet in front of me. Let me tell you this.....when a Kz1000 traveling at speed hits the *** end of one of those scooters, it looks like a plastic factory just exploded. No one hurt.....Kz was fine and ridden away....scooter was in a thousand pieces. I didn't hang around to wait for the cops.....just grabbed the clutch of the still runningKz and picked it up....then road away.

 

I agree thatmost accidents can't be avoided, but some can. For example, riding home in rush hour traffic the other day I caught myself riding in a bad position in the center lane of a three lane highway. I realized that if traffic slowed in the right hand lane, thekid to the right of mein thehotrod rice burner that was tailgating thecar in front ofhimwas likely to cut me off. I backed off a bit and lo and behold, two milliseconds later the bastard suddenly changed lanes into the spot I was occupyinga few seconds earlier. If I had not been paying attention to my position in traffic, I most likely would've been hit. So that was an "accident" that was avoided.

 

43 years riding; down bad one time. Low sided my Buell Cyclone on "dead mans` curve."
Too fast in corner. Three broken ribs.

 

Actually, gotta side with ol' Huck on this one. ALL accidents are avoidable (perhaps preventable is a better word). Maybe not by the motorcycle, though. The heart attack victim could have known his physical condition via check ups, not smoking, etc. The drunk driver could have stayed sober. ALL accidents are avoidable if you go to the orginal cause. That said, I don't think it's reasonable to expect them all to be avoided. I just agree that they CAN be.

 

I've been riding 40 years and have never had an accident. I have about 3 or 4 close calls or near death experiences a month. So far so good, but I take nothing for granted.

 

Just a note for all non-NC riders... the police, sherrifs, and especially HP do not pull off the road any longer and intentionally block the lane - even on 2 lane hwys - to protect the LEO from being run down. When you think about the man/woman risking their life on the side of the road, its more understandable, but a royal pain in the a$$ for other drivers. if you fail to slow and move to the other lane or stop and wait to procede its a $350 fine for you.