Are we just that good?

[Toecutter]

On my local riders forum, there are not very many members by comparison to here, but it seems somebody downs one about every three weeks. Yesterday, a guy stuffed his ST under a stopped vehicle in the roadway. Around here, the crash reports seem few and far between by comparison. Then, if you factor out the habitual crashers (you know who you are

), the majority of us seem to be pretty safe, and deserving of lower insurance rates

.

So, are we "Better than", or is my perception just warped?

 

[FJRay]

Well there is no doubt about the warped part for you and in my own mind I am better but that isn't the most popular opinion.

 

[Pauls927]

Are you asking for crash reports??

This is the result of my get off last Sunday. Fortunately it was on my WR and not the FJR. I somehow managed to get thrown off the trail and, after slipping between two rather large trees, the front wheel hit something that did not want to move. My shoulder was introduced rather quickly to terra FIRMA. There was no other damage to me or the bike. The trip to the emergency room confirmed a broken clavicle.

I just got out of surgury Thursday and now have a plate and some pins permanently added to my bodypart list. I've been riding both dirt and street for over 20 years now and this is the first time anything this serious has occurred ( and I hope it's the last).

The pain from the surgury was way more severe than the pain that followed the actual fall, and not taking the correct amount of prescription did not help either (amount was not printed on container). That made for a sleepless and miserable first night. I got the dosage right in the morning and all is good now.

What really sucks about this is that I had just spooned on both my Azaro's last Saturday and planned on breaking them in Sunday evening. Now the FJR will be just sitting in the garage getting dusty for another 6 weeks :angry2:

 

[FJRBluesman]

I wonder how many of the thousands that are members here actually post up if they go down. Some here are comfortable sharing their get-offs, and hope to educate others. Some may not want anyone to know. Not sure, but it is an interesting observation. I agree, it's not all that often we hear of people going down; however, we have had a recent rash of forum members go down, hmmmmm.....

Sticking to Sport Touring (I would think Sport bikes go down more frequently IMO due to the aggressive riding style of many) bikes, it would be interesting to get the number of sport touring bikes on the road by make/model, to the crash percentage. That would keep it more even, Vs total number of accidents by make/model from a statistical stand point.

 

[markjenn]

Hard to draw much comparing forums on their crash stats. Too many variables. A local forum will tend to have members more likely to talk about incidents as compared to a national audience. And sport-touring bikes have better crash stats than sportbikes or smaller hooligan bikes.

My experience is that the FJR is a somewhat higher than normal crash frequency bike within its genre. Its relatively low price and value attracts a lot of relatively novice riders and the weight, smooth power and deceptive speed draws folks in over their head pretty easily. And if you do overcook a corner, it doesn't have a surplus of cornering clearance to bail you out. But I readily admit I don't have any hard data and could be completely wrong. The insurance companies are probably the only ones with such data.

- Mark

 

[MCML]

So, are we "Better than", or is my perception just warped?

I will let this one pass as I have had experience with the wisdom contained in the old adage that Those Whom The Gods Would Humble They First Make Proud.

 

[Toecutter]

I will let this one pass as I have had experience with the wisdom contained in the old adage that Those Whom The Gods Would Humble They First Make Proud.

Yeah, that's part of my whole "video game" mentality, not unlike making it to the next level on Mario Brothers.

Who was it that famously said "Bring 'em on"? His name escapes me....

 

[SockMonkey]

Based on casual observation and anecdotal evidence from this forum and a few others, I'd venture that sport-touring riders on the whole are a safer, more aware rider group than many others thus putting them statistically on the very low end of the # of crashes per '000 bikes.

As an aside, here are some interesting statistics on motorcycle-related fatalities and injuries: Click!. In my opinion, 1 death for every 1,378 motorcycles on the road (as @ 2007) - or an .07% fatality rate, is surprisingly low all things considered (notwithstanding that any motorcycle-related death is tragic).

 

[Crash Cash]

What really sucks about this is that I had just spooned on both my Azaro's last Saturday and planned on breaking them in Sunday evening. Now the FJR will be just sitting in the garage getting dusty for another 6 weeks :angry2:

Hm. I was only off my FJR for 4 days, as I was rather hungry by then.

My crash was at about 1mph. It was the classic "just rained after 2 months of drought, and slick as hell", however I was a) too stupid to wait an hour, and B) too stupid to take the FJR with ABS instead of the SV-650 with crap BT-021s.

So I came up to the 4-way stop and WHAM and I was on my shoulder. No warning whatsoever. The bike didn't even slide, and I didn't even hit my helmet. The sucky part was after a bystander picked the bike up (I instantly knew my collarbone was broken) and I had to ride it another 2 blocks to work. That... was... rather.... PAINFUL.

Unfortunately here in Florida, the doctors aren't good enough to be able to do surgery, so it's healed rather fucked up. If you're ever injured in Florida, go to some 3rd world country like Somalia. The medical care will be better. I swear, the doctors here are total crap.

I have honestly had one of the morons tell me I had a broken ankle when I had a broken clavicle, and insist I was wrong when I argued with him. That's not a joke.

 

[stealth1]

What really sucks about this is that I had just spooned on both my Azaro's last Saturday and planned on breaking them in Sunday evening. Now the FJR will be just sitting in the garage getting dusty for another 6 weeks :angry2:

Hm. I was only off my FJR for 4 days, as I was rather hungry by then.

Unfortunately here in Florida, the doctors aren't good enough to be able to do surgery, so it's healed rather fucked up. If you're ever injured in Florida, go to some 3rd world country like Somalia. The medical care will be better. I swear, the doctors here are total crap.

I have honestly had one of the morons tell me I had a broken ankle when I had a broken clavicle, and insist I was wrong when I argued with him. That's not a joke.

Don't they all specialize in geriatrics in Fla?

:lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[fjrboomer]

I suspect that we do have a better than average safety record as I seem to recall that the average age of sport touring riders is in the 50's. Most of us have had a lot of riding experience in which to learn how to survive. I could be wrong but that is JMO.

 

[Silver Penguin]

I read the posts from the linked forum, and was glad to hear that the downed rider is basically OK. This paragraph seemed a bit odd though;

I didn't think I was going too fast and I was traveling with the flow of traffic. I just happened to be in the front of that flow. It was also in an area where I would never expect to find a car stopped in the road. Do your best to expect the unexpected.

The rider was setting the pace for the flow of traffic, since he was at the front. Didn't think he was going too fast yet he was unable to stop in the distance that he could clearly see ahead of him. It is my understanding that the correct entry speed for a blind turn is such speed that allows you to stop for an unexpected obstacle. While the ST is no FJR, it is a capable machine with good tires and brakes that should be able to come to a stop without having to be 'laid down'.

I do agree with his suggestion to expect the unexpected, and wish him a speedy recovery.

 

[airboss]

I'd like to think so, but maybe as a whole we're just older and slower.

https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php?showtopic=116797

 

[Toecutter]

This paragraph seemed a bit odd though;
I didn't think I was going too fast and I was traveling with the flow of traffic. I just happened to be in the front of that flow. It was also in an area where I would never expect to find a car stopped in the road. Do your best to expect the unexpected.

The rider was setting the pace for the flow of traffic, since he was at the front. Didn't think he was going too fast yet he was unable to stop in the distance that he could clearly see ahead of him. It is my understanding that the correct entry speed for a blind turn is such speed that allows you to stop for an unexpected obstacle. While the ST is no FJR, it is a capable machine with good tires and brakes that should be able to come to a stop without having to be 'laid down'.

He rear-ended a car that was waiting to make a left turn. That doesn't exactly fit my definition of "Unexpected". I hate to bust on a guy who just wadded it up, but I think the CHP is going to find him at fault.

Outriding your sight lines is not a long-term survival technique....

 

[Silver Penguin]

He rear-ended a car that was waiting to make a left turn. That doesn't exactly fit my definition of "Unexpected". I hate to bust on a guy who just wadded it up, but I think the CHP is going to find him at fault.
Outriding your sight lines is not a long-term survival technique....

It sure looks that way. Perhaps the saddest part is the way that the rider appears to see the scenario. At no point does he seem to assume any culpability. I'm sure the poor guy has replayed the events over and over in his head. No matter who was at fault, it must have been traumatic for him. Surely though, if you analyze the facts (as we're told what they were), he must see a twinkling of the light????

 

[Zorlac]

I just came back from the COG rally on the FJR at Deals Gap TN/NC this week.

I ran the Dragon probably 6 times (once in the rain), lots of other roads, and one especially gnarley & bumpy chip & seal road though the Nantahala national forest from the suggestion of my GPS at greater than prudent speeds on a road better suited for a dual sport.

A little more than 2K total for the trip with no crashes, problems, or performance awards, I'm happy.

On a very sad note, a man from DE lost his wife at this rally who he said was a better rider than him when she ran her cruiser off the road and died at the scene. Those roads are pretty unforgiving in spots.

 

[Spook]

Are you asking for crash reports??

This is the result of my get off last Sunday. Fortunately it was on my WR and not the FJR. I somehow managed to get thrown off the trail and, after slipping between two rather large trees, the front wheel hit something that did not want to move. My shoulder was introduced rather quickly to terra FIRMA. There was no other damage to me or the bike. The trip to the emergency room confirmed a broken clavicle.

I just got out of surgury Thursday and now have a plate and some pins permanently added to my bodypart list. I've been riding both dirt and street for over 20 years now and this is the first time anything this serious has occurred ( and I hope it's the last).

The pain from the surgury was way more severe than the pain that followed the actual fall, and not taking the correct amount of prescription did not help either (amount was not printed on container). That made for a sleepless and miserable first night. I got the dosage right in the morning and all is good now.

What really sucks about this is that I had just spooned on both my Azaro's last Saturday and planned on breaking them in Sunday evening. Now the FJR will be just sitting in the garage getting dusty for another 6 weeks :angry2:

Dirt riding don't count

 

[CRMH Eagle]

My very humble perception leads me to believe that the sport-touring crowd tends to have more ATGATT and better-maintained bikes.

Most sport-bike riders are in the ages of late teens to twenties. Usually the people in this age bracket do not have the disposable income to adequately maintain the bike and purchase top-notch safety gear. Plus, as we know cuz most of us have past that age, that most guys in that age group don't have full mental maturity. How many times have each of us witnessed a crotch-rocket rider acting like a retard on the road? I've seen an entire group of 'em pass on a double-yellow, before a curve, in a canyon with blind spots and deep drop-offs, with gravel & scree in the road and on the shoulder.

It's no secret that the majority of harley & similiar-type-bike riders wear protective equipment to fulfill the minimum law requirements. Jefferson County Colorado recently released a statement that the majority of biker deaths in Colorado occur in the county where I preside - Jefferson County. The majority of biker deaths in Jeff CO are from harley riders. Over 70% did not have a helmet on at the time of the crash, and about the same percentage were under the influence of alcohol.

A basic pyschological principal is people tend to move in groups and take on the traits of their group. From the FJR riders I know personally I have not seen them drink while riding, they wear the safety gear, and they keep their bikes properly maintained. This doesn't prevent every opportunity for a wreck but it significantly eliminates many of them.

Our FJR Forum community has a very strong influence to wear ATGATT, always be defensive, and adding safety farkles. It's my opinion that the future wrecks in our community will be strongely mitigated by the above and will produce a higher-positive result than if we were just a bunch of yahoos who rode selfishly and only wore the equipment (or the lack thereof) for the sole purpose of looking cool. This applies to past wrecks - just ask Mad Mike who crashed while riding cycleport gear. What would've been the result if he was with a harley gang and didn't have a helmet and had a few beers before heading out?

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

Dirt riding don't count

Oh good! My getoff last week resulting in a rapidly blackening lower leg and foot didn't happen! Yeah!... ahhh it's still there.