After one year of riding...

[PorradaVFR]

You will die. I will die. It's an absolutely certainty. So, between now and then why chase a fictional security instead of a known joy?

It's not about being callous or blasé about the risks of riding. It's about acknowledging them, mitigating them with judgement, skill and gear and then choosing to do something you love while you can.

What the other option? Lay in bed, under the covers where it's safe?

My kids will grow up to (hopefully) have their own passions, be they music, sports, art, riding or whatever. I want them to feel encouraged and supported to LIVE life, not exist in it.

 

[Mad Gnome]

And that would make my K1200R what, exactly??? :rofl

That makes your bike heavy:teeth

 

[Cincinnatus]

Yours is 432 dry, mine is 465. Not that much difference, plus mine has a mere 163 bhp, 80 ft/lb torque, an 11K redline, a 0-60 in 2.63 sec (attainable just in 1st gear, BTW), and mine is comfortable for more than 45 minutes...

Oh, and a 13:1 compression. And a mineral-oil lubricated clutch that won't foam or absorb water...

And an octane sensor in the fuel pump that senses how much octane is in the fuel and sets the timing to get the best compression/timing for the engine...

Yeah, BMW didn't think this one through at all... :rofl

 

[BaYSLap]

The Only time i time quit ridiing, is when im sitting on the couch with ice on me healing up from a wreck. You can die anywhere at anytime, in a car, a plane crash or walking down the street.....Id rather go out in style though..and having fun.:thumbup

 

[cmetzenberg]

The Only time i time quit ridiing, is when im sitting on the couch with ice on me healing up from a wreck. You can die anywhere at anytime, in a car, a plane crash or walking down the street.....Id rather go out in style though..and having fun.:thumbup

Fuck yes!. Live, live for this!

 

[JLHayesR6]

You will die. I will die. It's an absolutely certainty. So, between now and then why chase a fictional security instead of a known joy?

It's not about being callous or blasé about the risks of riding. It's about acknowledging them, mitigating them with judgement, skill and gear and then choosing to do something you love while you can.

What the other option? Lay in bed, under the covers where it's safe?

My kids will grow up to (hopefully) have their own passions, be they music, sports, art, riding or whatever. I want them to feel encouraged and supported to LIVE life, not exist in it.

Could not have said it any better than this :thumbup

 

[DataDan]

PorradaVFR wrote: You will die. I will die. It's an absolutely certainty. So, between now and then why chase a fictional security instead of a known joy?

JLHayesR6 wrote: Could not have said it any better than this

BaYSLa wrote: The Only time i time quit ridiing, is when im sitting on the couch with ice on me healing up from a wreck. You can die anywhere at anytime, in a car, a plane crash or walking down the street.....Id rather go out in style though..and having fun

cmetzenberg wrote: Fuck yes!. Live, live for this!

OK, you all want to ride. Now, what are you doing to improve your chances of riding for many years to come?

It's easy enough to achieve your motorcycling goal if all you care about is going as fast as you can as often as you can, and you really don't care if you live to see next week. The hard part comes when you find that you enjoy it enough that you want to ride for a long time, but you aren't willing to give up the other joys in your life. That requires tradeoffs to mitigate risks.

What tradeoffs have you adopted to keep motorcycling risk down to an acceptable level while still having a shitload of fun?

 

[eelash]

I'm just reflecting on riding one year since i've started last year.
something happened and got me thinking if its really worth it...
I was posting on another forum cuz I'm getting a new car. And this guy was like, buy my blue s2000. Then he died this afternoon from a fatal crash. Its unknown who is at fault, the lady is like over 80 yrs old so i'm pretty sure its his fault.

Have you ever thought about quitting?

I started riding almost a year ago as well and got blindsided by a santa cruz tweaker who made a sudden left across a double yellow on my 7th day of riding, police report blamed the cager 100% so I didnt have to pay a thing. And that taught me the hard way to NEVER ride in anything less than full leathers, I had some roadrash from the crash but would have been completely unscathed if I had leather pants on (just had a jacket gloves and helmet at the time).

Everyone in my life who doesnt ride told me to stop riding after the crash, but now that I have a few track days under my belt I cant imaging what I would have missed by giving up riding last year when I had only just begun and I dont think I could ever give up riding in the future either. We all know there is obviously a risk involved in riding, so ride safely and defensively, wear gear, save the racing for the track and you will be just fine :thumbup:ride

 

[Jcrocker]

Have you ever thought about quitting?

that's just silly

 

[osaka ryder]

:thumbup

that's just silly

 

[DataDan]

AkatomboR6 wrote: Have you ever thought about quitting?

Jcrocker wrote: that's just silly

osaka ryder wrote: :thumbup

I understand that not everyone has the same kind of life or values. Riders who place a very high value on the enjoyment of motorcycling in relation to other aspects of their lives may not understand the decisions others have to make when riding conflicts with their family, career, or community obligations. But you still have to make tradeoffs. So I ask the same question to you that I asked before:

It's easy enough to achieve your motorcycling goal if all you care about is going as fast as you can as often as you can, and you really don't care if you live to see next week. The hard part comes when you find that you enjoy it enough that you want to ride for a long time, but you aren't willing to give up the other joys in your life. That requires tradeoffs to mitigate risks.

What tradeoffs have you adopted to keep motorcycling risk down to an acceptable level while still having a shitload of fun?​

 

[gabeschine]

I was thinking about this exact same question yesterday after leaving the scene of a fatal intersection crash in SF. Going fast is fun, taking turns leaned hard is also very fun.

I think the biggest trade-off that I am realizing is that EVERY moment on my bike does not have to be filled with that sensation of joy you get when you are opening up or leaning hard. Many moments are relatively "dull", in that all you're doing is trying to maximize safety, keep your awareness about you, pay attention and ride reasonably. This is boring. But it is necessary, and the patience you need to do it requires the understanding that the fun moments WILL arrive, and they will do so in a safe way, if you just WAIT for them. It might be tomorrow, or next weekend, but you must let those moments arrive when they do and not try to force them to into existence when other factors make them dangerous.

 

[DataDan]

I think the biggest trade-off that I am realizing is that EVERY moment on my bike does not have to be filled with that sensation of joy you get when you are opening up or leaning hard. Many moments are relatively "dull", in that all you're doing is trying to maximize safety, keep your awareness about you, pay attention and ride reasonably. This is boring. But it is necessary, and the patience you need to do it requires the understanding that the fun moments WILL arrive, and they will do so in a safe way, if you just WAIT for them. It might be tomorrow, or next weekend, but you must let those moments arrive when they do and not try to force them to into existence when other factors make them dangerous.

Really well put. Thank you.

If the danger in wicking it up is high but the return in fun is merely mediocre, why bother? To borrow the ten-buck analogy from Keith Code, you've got $10 worth of risk that you're willing to spend. Make it count by getting the best return possible.

 

[kojakbloke]

It sounds like you expect to get out of this alive.

Everyone dies.

But not everyone lives.

Peace.

 

[DataDan]

It sounds like you expect to get out of this alive.

Everyone dies.

But not everyone lives.

It sounds like you completely missed the point of the many thoughtful posts in this thread.

One reason why riders die or are forced to quit before they have enjoyed the many extraordinary experiences motorcycling has to offer is because they're unable to see beyond today's experience.

If you ride like there's no tomorrow, there just might not be.

If you're able to understand the risks, weigh them against the rewards, and make riding decisions accordingly, you can enjoy motorcycling for many years to come.

 

[osaka ryder]

I understand that not everyone has the same kind of life or values. Riders who place a very high value on the enjoyment of motorcycling in relation to other aspects of their lives may not understand the decisions others have to make when riding conflicts with their family, career, or community obligations. But you still have to make tradeoffs. So I ask the same question to you that I asked before:

It's easy enough to achieve your motorcycling goal if all you care about is going as fast as you can as often as you can, and you really don't care if you live to see next week. The hard part comes when you find that you enjoy it enough that you want to ride for a long time, but you aren't willing to give up the other joys in your life. That requires tradeoffs to mitigate risks.

What tradeoffs have you adopted to keep motorcycling risk down to an acceptable level while still having a shitload of fun?​

well said

 

[kojakbloke]

It sounds like you completely missed the point of the many thoughtful posts in this thread.

One reason why riders die or are forced to quit before they have enjoyed the many extraordinary experiences motorcycling has to offer is because they're unable to see beyond today's experience.

If you ride like there's no tomorrow, there just might not be.

If you're able to understand the risks, weigh them against the rewards, and make riding decisions accordingly, you can enjoy motorcycling for many years to come.

I think you completely missed the point of my remark. The obvious conflict to which you refer, is in my opinion "living." Not to have this kind of reckoning in life is in its own way a form of death.

Or to put it another way...only a biker knows why a dog sticks his head out of a car window.

 

[DataDan]

I think you completely missed the point of my remark.

No, I've seen the same point made many times on motorcycle forums over the years.

It sounds like you expect to get out of this alive.

"Because death is inevitable, there's no point in adopting strategies that reduce the risk of dying on a motorcycle."​

Everyone dies. But not everyone lives.

"To get the full measure of life, you can't worry about safety."​

You romanticize the idea of dying on a motorcycle all out of proportion to reality. In fact, riders seldom die heroically. They're not stretching the edge of the machine's performance envelope or honing Rossi-like skills. Rather, they're often inexperienced and ignorant of the danger that's about to take their life. Or they're terminally brave and stupid, doing something they would regret if they had given it even a moment's thought.

• At 80 in a 25mph residential neighborhood, a rider runs a stop sign and T-bones a crossing car.
  
  
• In a full crouch and pushing a buck-and-a-half on the freeway late at night, a rider rear-ends a car merging at normal speed.
  
  
• Rounding a blind right-hand bend, a rider isn't able to deal with the turn's decreasing radius, runs wide, and centerpunches an oncoming SUV.

A primary aim of 1Rider is to promote good attitudes about riding. And one essential attitude is acknowledging the dangers of street riding and making adjustments to reduce them so you can ride again tomorrow. On the street, roads hide unpleasant surprises, drivers fuck up at the most inconvenient times, and a motorcycle's capability can tempt a rider into situations that his skills can't bail him out of. Compromises that accommodate these undeniable realities may diminish your motorcycling experience in small ways. But the much greater payoff is enabling you to enjoy the sport for many years to come.

 

[kojakbloke]

No, I've seen the same point made many times on motorcycle forums over the years.

"Because death is inevitable, there's no point in adopting strategies that reduce the risk of dying on a motorcycle."​

"To get the full measure of life, you can't worry about safety."​

You romanticize the idea of dying on a motorcycle all out of proportion to reality. In fact, riders seldom die heroically. They're not stretching the edge of the machine's performance envelope or honing Rossi-like skills. Rather, they're often inexperienced and ignorant of the danger that's about to take their life. Or they're terminally brave and stupid, doing something they would regret if they had given it even a moment's thought.

• At 80 in a 25mph residential neighborhood, a rider runs a stop sign and T-bones a crossing car.
  
  
• In a full crouch and pushing a buck-and-a-half on the freeway late at night, a rider rear-ends a car merging at normal speed.
  
  
• Rounding a blind right-hand bend, a rider isn't able to deal with the turn's decreasing radius, runs wide, and centerpunches an oncoming SUV.

A primary aim of 1Rider is to promote good attitudes about riding. And one essential attitude is acknowledging the dangers of street riding and making adjustments to reduce them so you can ride again tomorrow. On the street, roads hide unpleasant surprises, drivers fuck up at the most inconvenient times, and a motorcycle's capability can tempt a rider into situations that his skills can't bail him out of. Compromises that accommodate these undeniable realities may diminish your motorcycling experience in small ways. But the much greater payoff is enabling you to enjoy the sport for many years to come.

Actually DataDan...I am agreeing with you that 1Rider is to promote good attitudes about riding.

"It sounds like you expect to get out of this alive..."

I am not speaking about motorcycle riding specifically...I am talking about life in general. I'm talking about the fact that people believe that they are indeed immortal...(obviously not true.)

I'm certainly not talking about taking stupid risks or glorifying death.

I'm saying you come this way once (until proved otherwise). I am agreeing with Milan Kundera...embracing his idea that each of us only have one life to live, and what happens once will never occur again*.

Therefore enjoy it and yes be careful and understand that if you decide to ride...ride with measure not with abandon.

And yes, know the dangers of riding...but don't become paralyzed by the fear of them...

Also, when I state..."Everyone dies. not everyone lives."

Here I am merely referring to the consideration of riding as a risky yet enjoyable practice. If you ride, statistically you have a greater chance of serious harm but isn't some of the risk the price of enjoyment?

*worthy of another discussion.

(By the way...this is almost as much fun as riding.):teeth

 

[nebulous]

I'm not so sure why the author of this thread is so sure the 80 old woman didn't cause the fatal accident. 6 months or so ago there was a fatality at Foothill and PageMill where, I believe, a 92 yo driver was involved. Bet I know who turned left into oncoming traffic against the light...

as for quitting, I think about it almost every time I hear "an accident involving a motorcycle" on the radio; which is almost every day - for about 2 seconds.

"Did you want to live forever?"