Riding vs Flying -- How many here ride?

Kyle Boatright wrote:

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
oups.com...

Having just returned from a 3-day motorcycle camping trip, the riding
experience is once again fresh in my mind. (Alas, I don't get to ride
much nowadays; but there was a time when Mary and I rode
coast-to-coast...)

I'm always struck by the similarities between riding and flying.
Basically, riding is 2-dimensional flying, with similar handling
characteristics and risk factors. The geometry of banking into turns
is identical, and the camaraderie with fellow riders is very similar to
that seen among pilots.

And, of course, the risk of instant death caused by someone else's (or
your own) stupidity is always present. That heightened sense of "being
alive" is something both riders and flyers seem to crave.

It used to be that most pilots I knew rode motorcycles, but that seems
to be less of a correlation lately. Wot say the group -- do you
currently ride a motorcycle? Did you in the past?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"


Riding looks and sounds like such fun - probably as much as flying. BUT, in
flying, the "other" guy only causes a very small percentage of the
accidents. In riding bikes, the "other guy" causes what, 50% of the
accidents? I have a very hard time putting my life in the "other guy's"
hands. Especially when s/he isn't paying attention, is talking on a cell
phone, isn't looking for motorcycles sharing the road, etc.

I don't know the stats for sure, but, yes, it is the cage drivers I
worry about most when riding. I've been lucky in that I've ridden on
the street for nearly 30 years with nary a misshap. A few close calls,
but nothing that scared me off. My only serious motor vehicle accident
occurred last December when a drunk pulled out in front of my son and me
and totaled our minivan. Things like that are just really hard to
avoid. However, life has risk and I prefer to accept those risks to do
what I enjoy. Living a dull life has its own risk.

Matt

("Jay Honeck" wrote)
The ONLY unprotected part of me was my wrist, between my glove and my
sleeve -- and it looked like hamburger when I got up.


I used soft leather, rust colored, welding gloves. They kept the wind from
going up my wrists.


Montblack

Matt Whiting wrote:
2) Scrambled brains from no helmet

Easily remedied as I always wear a helmet.


South Carolina doesn't require it. I always look hard at the motorcyclist if he
doesn't have a helmet so I can recognize him when he's assigned to me later.
G

Is the suffering any less than for people injured in airplane accidents,
car accidents, fires, falls, skiing accidents, etc.?


I got broken up pretty bad in an airplane accident and it hurt like hell.
However, I did not have road rash. Nor were my brains scrambled... I've always
been this way. G


The reality is that many people simply have an irrational bias against
motorcycles. I'm not sure why, but I come across it all the time. And
the really strange part is that many of these folks fly, downhill ski,
rock climb, chain smoke, drink like fiends, etc. I consider downhill
skiing much more risky than motorcycling. I personally know many more
people who have incurred severe injuries from skiing than from
motorcycle. And these injuries often never heal well (knees in particular).



I don't have a bias against motorcyclists but I'll share the lecture I give to
those who get hurt badly (from any cause): Now you know lightning doesn't
always strike the other guy. This doesn't mean you have to become afraid to
come out from under the covers or stop living. What it should mean is that you
should evaluate your risk with more thought than you have in the past. I know
every man, particularly young man, is afflicted with the sense of his own
invulnerbility. But now you know you can be hurt and hurt badly. So, after you
heal, just give some thought to what you want to do. I'll be willing to bet
there will be some things that no longer seem worth taking the chance. Five
years from now this experience won't seem like it was so bad. But I really
doubt you'd want to repeat it.

That's my philosophy, anyway. I gave up banging other men's wives, I no longer
skydive, I don't dive deep or fly low any more. But I didn't stop having fun.
I just stopped the suicidal stuff.



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN

VE

Mortimer Schnerd, RN wrote:

That's my philosophy, anyway. I gave up banging other men's wives, I no longer
skydive, I don't dive deep or fly low any more. But I didn't stop having fun.
I just stopped the suicidal stuff.

The trouble is your definition of suicidal might not be mine.

Matt

"Steve Foley" wrote in message

I bought a Honda CB650 ten years ago. I stopped riding it three years ago
when the float valve stuck and it poured a gallon of gasonline on my leg
on the way to work.

Wouldn't it have been easier, simpler, and more sensible to simply fix the
float valve?

Matt Whiting wrote:
My only serious motor vehicle accident
occurred last December when a drunk pulled out in front of my son and me
and totaled our minivan. Things like that are just really hard to
avoid. However, life has risk and I prefer to accept those risks to do
what I enjoy. Living a dull life has its own risk.

Matt

What would have been the end result if you and your son had been on a
motorcycle when the drunk pulled out in front of you?

"Jay Honeck" wrote in news:1151757324.076849.205190
@p79g2000cwp.googlegroups.com:

Snipola
do you currently ride a motorcycle?
Snipola

I've been riding for almost 20 years, but haven't got my
wings yet.

However, I want to address all the naysayers and negative
attitude towards safety on a bike.

Yes, it does come with more risks, which I like to sum up
as, "there's no such things as a fender bender on a bike".

Now, of those 20 years of riding, 19 have been in Orange
and LA counties. It's dangerous, and I nearly gave it up
when I was having more close calls than I could deal with.
I was on the verge of going postal on somebody, and some
did lose their mirrors or get dented doors.

But I then thought hard about it and realized, either I
give up the bike, or change the way I ride. I could not
continue with the way things were.

I chose to change the way I ride.

I now take active, positive, and if necessary, aggressive
control of my driving situation. If I sense even the
slightest hint of danger (the list of hints is huge),
then I do something to remove that danger from my presense.
I now have the attitude on the road that I *DO* own it
and to hell with everybody else and to hell with the
laws. I liken it to combat at zero AGL where everyone else
is out to kill you kamikaze style, and you have no weapons
to defend yourself. But that's an extreme. I don't always
have to be hell bent for leather. pardon the pun

I could probably write a book on what I've learned and why
I think it works, and I'm sure I could get into some mighty
flame wars over it if I were to discuss it here. All I know
is that what I'm doing now DOES work, and every time I try
to change it, I have more problems.

I guess my point is, because hardly anyone drives properly
anymore, you can't just sit back and expect things to be
hunkey dory. Too many people get behind the wheel and just
'zone' from point A to point B. Helmets, leathers, and all
that are just icing on the cake. They do nothing to protect
you from getting into a situation to begin with. For that,
you have to use your number one weapon, and that's the grey
stuff between your ears.

Riding a motorcycle isn't for everybody, just like flying.
Some people can do it better than others. Some are really
bad at it, and it's better that they don't.

BTW, I have an '86 Harley Sportster 883.

ps. I have had one minor accident on the bike, not my fault,
uninjured. But I learned a lot that day.

Brian
--
http://www.skywise711.com - Lasers, Seismology, Astronomy, Skepticism
Seismic FAQ: http://www.skywise711.com/SeismicFAQ/SeismicFAQ.html
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Sed quis custodiet ipsos Custodes?

On Sat, 01 Jul 2006 17:39:33 +0000, Matt Whiting wrote:

True, but it is still more dangerous than walking or staying home.

Dunno. I get pretty irritable if I've not flown recently. And it would
be a long walk to the airport. Safer to spend less time exposed to
meteorites by driving as quickly as I can to the airport.

- Andrew

RomeoMike wrote:


Matt Whiting wrote:
My only serious motor vehicle accident

occurred last December when a drunk pulled out in front of my son and
me and totaled our minivan. Things like that are just really hard to
avoid. However, life has risk and I prefer to accept those risks to
do what I enjoy. Living a dull life has its own risk.

Matt


What would have been the end result if you and your son had been on a
motorcycle when the drunk pulled out in front of you?

No way to know. I'd have been going a lot slower at impact as the
brakes on minivans aren't anything to write home about. I also might
have been able to avoid the collision, but there is simply no way to be
sure.

In any event, it doesn't matter. Life has risks and I accept that.
Some folks can handle that and some sit on the couch and watch TV ...
and die of hardening of the arteries. I'd rather go out with a bang.


Matt

It used to be that most pilots I knew rode motorcycles, but that seems
to be less of a correlation lately. Wot say the group -- do you
currently ride a motorcycle? Did you in the past?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Reading about the other guys' bikes brought back fond memories. I've been riding since about 9 years old.

I've owned:
Bridgestone 7 (anyone remember those)?
(2) Honda 90's (one was the 5 hp model with the long carb slide. It was cut down to size).
Honda SL350 I was 14 and thought this thing was a power house).
AMC Harley 125 (piece of crap)!
Suzuki 185 (Highly modified. Started racing motocross and hare & hound races with this one).
Suzuki RM 125 motocrosser (also highly modified).
Kawasaki KX 250 dirt bike.
Suzuki RM 465 motocrosser
Suzuki GS 1100 street bike (in the barn awaiting restoration).

Not currently riding. Almost had a mid life crisis and bought a Goldwing a couple of years ago. The wife said no!

Joe Schneider
N8437R



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