From the Washington Post:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...l?hpid=topnews


"Citing research showing that fatal motorcycle accidents could be reduced by more than a third, an insurance industry group has asked for a federal mandate to require anti-lock brakes on all new motorcycles."

I'm a big fan of ABS, but I don't like this. If you follow the logic that ABS should be mandated because it's safer, next will come full face helmets, then mandated body armor, and then some genius will decide that motorcycles are still too dangerous, and we should just outlaw them.

 

"Insurance institute researchers found that motorcycles with anti-lock brakes were 37 percent less likely to be involved in fatal crashes. Another study determined that motorcycles with anti-lock brakes had 22 percent fewer claims for crash damage per insured vehicle year than the same models without them. "

I would be curious how they did their calculations. Part of what I do for a living involves statistical analysis, and you can definitely shade numbers when you start playing with statistics.

Were the findings that anti-lock brakes were 37% less likely to be involved in fatal crashes because there aren't many bikes out there with anti-lock brakes? Were the 22% fewer claims per crash for the same model because (use an Ultra as an example) fewer people opt to buy an Ultra with ABS?

Did they look at this by bike category...i.e. touring bike classes, sport bikes, etc? Did they do paired comparisons or just take the numbers as a whole? When you have populations of disproportional sizes, you really have to show a rational sampling plan that accounts for different population sizes, i.e. you can't rely on an analysis done on "all bikes with ABS" vs. "all bikes without ABS." Did this include accidents where the biker was 50 feet from an intersection at 40 mph and had the oncoming car hook a left in front of him? Sorry...don't care what kind of brakes you have...you are history in that circumstance, unless you can pull off a swerve or other evasive action.

Generalized statements as quoted above unfortuately are often regarded as enough reason to jump on a bandwagon and start a crusade, and often times when you unravel the numbers and analyze them correctly, you see an entirely different story. Examples of "mathematical lies" include the use of averages without stating the variation around the average (we have an expression in six sigma "Averages lie, and liars average). Remember on average a man with his feet in the freezer and his head in the oven is comfortable, or as is used above, proportions, which require HUGE amounts of data to be statistically correct.

Don't get me wrong...I have ABS...and I like it...but the trick is using the brakes hard enough to hit just below the limit of when ABS engages, other wise you are extending your braking distances when ABS kicks in. There really isn't much that aggravates me more than the misuse of mathematics to present a case for change. Unfortunately there are some who think that ABS is going to make a huge difference in the accident rates for motorcyclists...and I don't think that is the case at all. If you want to reduce accidents, then put the money into rider education i.e. ERC or something of the like.

 

I'm a huge fan of ABS, but the last thing I want to see is a mandate for them.

 

I'm not a fan, either of ABS or mandatory anything from Washington.

 

I don't remember them mandating them on cars. If the insurance companies think they are so much better than normal brakes they should do what they do for cars, provide a discount for that safety feature.

 

Let's not kid ourselves...this is all about the insurance companies trying to save money. They don't give a sh** about our safety.

 

Hmmmm.....................Do ya think the premiums for MCs will go down if they are so much "safer" with the required ABS? Sure....When pigs FLY !!!! It's about them "MAKING" more money.

 

Well, can you get a car anymore without it?
I figured it would happen soon enough,,, heck I guess Gold Wings come with Air bags,,, how in the hell does that work? LOL

 

Dunno....but they probably are needed as it would be distracting trying to get all this to work while riding. (I can't find the cappuccino machine!) I am waiting for next year's model with the back up camera before I buy.

 

Damn off topic but that console with all those gages and switches looks like a nightmare... I thought my glide had a crap load of chit on it when I first bought it.