50 ways to save your life (on a motorcycle)

[msquared]

http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/ho..._0608_50_ways/

For all my fellow bikers.. I thought this was a good bit of info and worth sharing. Some of it was just reminder info and some of it I hadn't considered before.

[tplyons]

Some of those are great pieces of advice, bookmarked!

[middy]

#51 Drive a car.

[A9X]

It's all just common sense.

[i_got_a_mohawk]

Originally Posted by A9X

It's all just common sense.

Unfortunatly something many people on the roads dont have, regardless of what they drive.

[Tony G]

30. Stay in your comfort zone when you’re with a group
Riding over your head is a good way to end up in the ditch. Any bunch worth riding with will have a rendezvous point where you’ll be able to link up again.

This is a big one, especially for inexperienced rookie riders. If I had understood and accepted this, it could have saved me from a lot of pain and rehabilitation.

[msquared]

Originally Posted by middy

#51 Drive a car.

One thing I've noticed since I started riding is that a lot of the awareness and defensive driving techniques you need to keep safe on a motorcycle also applies to driving four wheeled vehicles. There are some things on that list which would have kept me from getting into at least a couple minor collisions as a teenager had I known/considered them.

Nice troll though!

[NJL]

thanks for the thread!

i know i became a waaaaaaaaay better cager since i got my bike!

also, i really wish people would be ATGATT... c'mon, would you drive a cage without a seatbelt??

[Philbiker]

#1-10 should be take appropriate MSF course.

[A9X]

Originally Posted by i_got_a_mohawk

Unfortunatly something many people on the roads dont have, regardless of what they drive.

Darwin works here too.
If you don't do most of the things on the list as a rider, you won't be one long.

[JimmyTheSaint]

The main causes of avoidable accidents are the rider's ignorance of proper cornering and braking. The best thing about that "50 Ways" list is that it encourages people to use their front brake a lot more. The worst thing about that "50 Ways" list is that it doesn't tell people to use their front brake exclusively, except perhaps when stopped on a hill. Only truly knowledgable and experienced pros should use the rear brake otherwise. There's so much physics and good sense behind this that I'm already sighing for the geniuses who will weigh in here praising any use of the rear brake, and who just aren't worth debating.

I lied. The worst thing about that "50 Ways" list is that it doesn't even mention countersteering. People, even long time riders, don't know how to swerve. How many idiots have you met who have told you their heroic story of how they had to lay their bike down to avoid something worse? Just ask them: if you're going more than 10mph and a hazard suddenly comes up on your right, which way do you turn the handlebars? In fact, ask any rider this question and see how many say "left" in defiance of the laws of physics. Or they tell you some fairy tale about leaning. There's only one way to make a bike turn: when you countersteer the handlebars, the bike leans, you lean with it, and you turn in the opposite direction that you turned the handlebars. Happily all riders' bodies know this, but if their brains also knew they could train themselves out of their instinct to turn the handlebars away from a hazard when in crisis mode.

After 30 years of riding, I only give people one piece of advice with motorcycle riding: cornering and braking are counterintuitive, so you need to learn them from a qualified instructor in a controlled situation. Oh yeah, and to read the Hurt report, particularly item #28.

[Kelly Lee]

Thanks for the link!

[Philbiker]

Originally Posted by JimmyTheSaint

The main causes of avoidable accidents are the rider's ignorance of proper cornering and braking. The best thing about that "50 Ways" list is that it encourages people to use their front brake a lot more. The worst thing about that "50 Ways" list is that it doesn't tell people to use their front brake exclusively, except perhaps when stopped on a hill. Only truly knowledgable and experienced pros should use the rear brake otherwise. There's so much physics and good sense behind this that I'm already sighing for the geniuses who will weigh in here praising any use of the rear brake, and who just aren't worth debating.

Wow, amazing, potentially fatal ignorance on display here. I highly recommend some rider training from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation for anyone who considers this ill-concieved advice.

[MonetBass]

A lot of those items are good advice for car drivers as well. Nice link!

[JimmyTheSaint]

Originally Posted by Philbiker

Wow, amazing, potentially fatal ignorance on display here. I highly recommend some rider training from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation for anyone who considers this ill-concieved advice.

Sigh. And it only took a few hours for one of you to show up.

I notice you didn't quote the part where I said "cornering and braking are counterintuitive, so you need to learn them from a qualified instructor in a controlled situation." I also notice that your link doesn't say a word about braking. From what I know of MSF, though, you should take your own advice, take one of their courses, and learn cornering and braking from a qualified instructor in a controlled situation. Don't be one of the friends or family that 92% of accident victims learn how to ride from as described in the Hurt report, item #24.

[JimmyTheSaint]

Originally Posted by MonetBass

A lot of those items are good advice for car drivers as well. Nice link!

But beware: the things about cornering and braking DO NOT apply to cars, only inline two-wheeled vehicles.

[iScott]

Very cool. Good read.
Getting a bike has been on my mind a LOT lately.

[Barfly]

Not seein' "Trust your Turban" on there....

[Philbiker]

Originally Posted by JimmyTheSaint

Sigh. And it only took a few hours for one of you to show up.

I notice you didn't quote the part where I said "cornering and braking are counterintuitive, so you need to learn them from a qualified instructor in a controlled situation." I also notice that your link doesn't say a word about braking. From what I know of MSF, though, you should take your own advice, take one of their courses, and learn cornering and braking from a qualified instructor in a controlled situation. Don't be one of the friends or family that 92% of accident victims learn how to ride from as described in the Hurt report, item #24.

I have taken the MSF Experienced RiderCourse twice. Your advice regarding braking is potentially fatal. Your advice regarding countersteering is spot on.

[MonetBass]

Originally Posted by JimmyTheSaint

But beware: the things about cornering and braking DO NOT apply to cars, only inline two-wheeled vehicles.

Obviously. That's why I said "A lot" instead of "all".