One part of Top's chart I DO agree with is when speed reaches zero mph the incident of injury approaches zero.
I have to disagree with that statement. The risk of injury is NEVER zero, even if you aren't even sitting on a motorcycle.
Why an ACME anvil could fall outta the sky and squash you like Wile E Coyote or sumpthin!! :huh:
But seriously, Skooter made a very good point in differentiating the quantity of injuries vs. the severity. And guess what... that's exactly what wearing all that cumbersome, goofy lookin', Power Rangers riding gear does for you. It won't prevent a damn thing. But it will reduce the
severity of the injuries if (or when) it does happen.
I'm sorry Top_Speed, but I really fail to see any validity in your argument that it's OK to not wear the protective gear if the ride is short and it's too hot out.
That is just faulty logic. The same faulty logic that makes people believe that when they have seen a coin come up heads 4 times in a row that the odds are now much better it will come up tails the next time. It isn't. It's still 50:50.
Your odds that you will get into an accident for one minute of a ride where you are riding to pick up a loaf of bread at the corner store are pretty much identical to the odds that you will on one minute of a much longer trip. So when you accumulate all of those little trips to the corner store wearing a tee shirt and shorts, it will be equal to the longer trip in total.
If you already recognize that wearing protective gear will mitigate the extent of injuries when you do have a crash, which clearly you admit to since you wear it when you think you might crash, the why on earth would you want to take that same added risk to get a ******* loaf of bread? Is it because you are too lazy to put the gear on? Because you are vain? Is it peer pressure?
And why do you think that someone else who is UNWILLING to take that added risk, and so suits up every time, is somehow a moron? :huh: We all have our own limits and values. We all find what we think is an acceptable level of risk vs. reward in our lives. We are all risk takers in most peoples' eyes, just for straddling a murdercycle. If you opt to ride around without ATGATT, that is certainly your choice. And I wouldn't call you a
moron for doing so. You just have a different perspective on risk.
I'll let you in on a little secret: Time isn't all that precious, unless you make it so. If the few minutes it takes to put on a pair of mesh pants and jacket is too much for the trip I have in mind, I either don't make the trip or else jump in a car. I figure the time saved in not gearing up isn't worth the time potentially spent recovering from some silly 30-40 mph accident.
Like I said, we all do what we want to. That's what makes life grand. Just don't expect anyone with any level of intelligence to buy your specious, self gratifying arguments for not gearing up 'cause it's just a short ride and it's hot out.
