Two M.C. Fatalities on my Patch Friday

[Art FJR]

JB,

I think based on their skills, a person has a probability of having an accident on a particular trip. If a trip is longer or more challenging, perhaps this probabliity goes up. There is always a chance that a deer will run into you. There is always a chance that you will blow a tire on a turn with a deer or two standing in the road.

However, your examples of really high speed and passing at a really bad time with double yellow lines, increases the probability of an accident. I see these two examples of someone rolling ONE six side die (dice?) and hoping not to roll a one.

It would be better to roll TWO six side dice and hope not to roll snake eyes.

The people in your example might generally ride with 25 six sided dice on a normal day.

There are many on this site (regardless if they belong to the Crash Club) that have great skills and experience and they are riding down the road with 100 six sided dice hoping not to roll centipede eyes (all one's). They know the risks and they know the probability, and they want to push their skills and essentially roll the dice again. It is what they like. They wear the gear, they are riding without a passenger and they are big boys that just enjoy it. Shit happens even if you are rolling 1000 dice.

But if you are normally a 100 dice experienced driver, and you have been on the bike all day, and the sun is going down, and the wife is bitching, and there is a slow poke in front of you, or if you are driving 80 in a 30 to make time, you are rolling the dice more frequently then normal and most importantly you are rolling less dice. Essentially, you are taking chances.

Yeah, perhaps normally you are rolling 100 dice, but in the circumstances that you described above, they were rolling one. Not that you can't drive successfully at 80 in a 30, nor pass over a double yellow line, but if you want to do these things, you need to have the skills and experience and judgement to do this with a reasonable probability of success.

People are free to make all the stupid decisions that they want to on a motorcycle. And at times, they have to pay the consequences. Many are fully aware of the consequences and choose to do it anyway. Many have done it in the past without consequences, but this time is different and they didn't realize they were rolling only one die (dice?).

It is the skills that you have and the decisions that you make on a bike that determines the likelyhood of your success. You should be Ok.

Art

 

[MojaveFJR]

Those two incidents are operator error mixed with very poor judgement.

Stupid people are everywhere, cars, bicycles and other modes of transpo. Don't be so focused on the MC's.

 

[Spook]

You know I hear all the time, there are two types of riders, those who have been in accidents, and those who will be. I think this is a bunch of crap.
I see it as those who have made a mistake, and those who will. We are each in control of our actions and safety. If, a car turns left in front of me and I hit it, I am also at fault!!! I should have been aware enough to prevent the crash and had a escape route ready. If, I did not have a escape route, it was my mistake.

However, the "mistake" is unique to each of us. A couple years back I was at a stop light and somehow got my double-knotted hiking boot laced stuck on my foot peg. As the Nevada wind blew I fell right over in a zero mile per hour mistake. Over the years I have had a few mistakes, but I do my best to manage them. Many of the mistakes are easy to manage, such as not going 100mph in a 35mph zone, others are not so easy to manage. Sometimes the mistake is leaving needed gear at home, other times it involves picking a bike up off the ground due to a shoe lace.

Are we all destined to be in a crash? Nope, I don't think so. I do however this we are destined to make a mistake or two. With any luck we won't make the same mistake more then once and prevetn the big mistakes.

I do fairly well at managing my mistakes while out on the road riding. In the last 13 years I have not have a crash, and plan to keep it that way. I don't consider my encounters with the rabbits, coyotes, and other items as mistakes, as I planned for those with training and forethought. Yes, my bike needed a item or two replaced, but it was not a mistake on my part to hit the animal straight on.

Sorry but that put my BS meter through the roof. You have a long way to fall off that high horse.

 

[kulwen]

Sorry but that put my BS meter through the roof. You have a long way to fall off that high horse.

So, which part seems like BS? (That is a real question, I am not being pissy about the comment)

I really do not feel any of us are destined to be in a crash. And, if we are there is a good chance part of the blame is with the rider. Yes, it may be true someone or something might be legally at blame other then the rider. However, as a rider who is aware of the danger of riding I need to account for others making mistakes.

If, I don't account for others making mistakes and there is a crash, it is my mistake, not my destiny.

What high horse are you talking about? Am I perfect? Nope. Do I make mistakes? Yes, I do. Is there a chance I will be in a crash in the future? Yes there is!!! However, if I am in a crash I have no doubt part of the blame should lie with me, for making a mistake and not management the risk.

**Edit**

I am not sure how my comment lead you to call BS, but I am believing my explanation on the first post was lacking.

Taking the approach I do is not based on a over-inflated ego on my part. Rather, it is my strategy in an attempt to stay safe, and alive. I take ownership for my "mistakes" and the "mistakes" of others. With rare exceptions I don't believe people are out to kill us, therefore most crashes are created by a mistake by someone. Since I take ownership of both mine and others mistakes I do feel if I am in a crash it is partly my fault.

 

[Spook]

Sorry but that put my BS meter through the roof. You have a long way to fall off that high horse.

So, which part seems like BS? (That is a real question, I am not being pissy about the comment)

I really do not feel any of us are destined to be in a crash. And, if we are there is a good chance part of the blame is with the rider. Yes, it may be true someone or something might be legally at blame other then the rider. However, as a rider who is aware of the danger of riding I need to account for others making mistakes.

If, I don't account for others making mistakes and there is a crash, it is my mistake, not my destiny.

What high horse are you talking about? Am I perfect? Nope. Do I make mistakes? Yes, I do. Is there a chance I will be in a crash in the future? Yes there is!!! However, if I am in a crash I have no doubt part of the blame should lie with me, for making a mistake and not management the risk.

**Edit**

I am not sure how my comment lead you to call BS, but I am believing my explanation on the first post was lacking.

Taking the approach I do is not based on a over-inflated ego on my part. Rather, it is my strategy in an attempt to stay safe, and alive. I take ownership for my "mistakes" and the "mistakes" of others. With rare exceptions I don't believe people are out to kill us, therefore most crashes are created by a mistake by someone. Since I take ownership of both mine and others mistakes I do feel if I am in a crash it is partly my fault.

I guess if you did not ride you could not have a bike accident. I have had accidents where I was my fault, I have had times where I did not have an accident due to luck and skill and I have had a couple where I may be alive due to skill but there was no way to avoid the mutha fucker that came screaming out of the gas station after stealing gas. I was able to manage counter steering behind the truck and hitting the curb. Front wheel and a lot of plastic screwed up, Pulled muscles where I did not know I had them but as far as any thing I could have done to avoid this NO FARGING WAY. You should live in Japan where you are partially guilty of a wreck when you hire a cab because he would not be there if not for you renting the cab.