What Does it Mean to Ride Responsibly? (Copy)
I was recently riding on another awesome Butler map route from San Bernardino to San Diego. Part of that route took me down into Warner Springs and at one point, I had pulled over to adjust my navigation and a car pulled up in front of me and the guy driving the car rolled down the window and said, “It’s so nice to see a responsible rider. Thank you. It is so rare to see riders riding responsibly.” I accepted his compliment, as it warmed my heart on one hand, but made my heart heavy on the other. He is right! It is so rare to see riders riding responsibly and with some knowledge about lane position and how to present their selves so they can see and be seen. Riding responsibly includes riding at or close to the posted speed signs which would allow riders to adjust for other roadway users, make lane adjustments and to have the time needed to see hazards and avoid them. Excessive speeds are a huge contributing factor for motorcycle crashes! As I continued to carve my way around the Mesa Grande Road, which, by the way, was very shaded and hid much of the roadway hazards like potholes and rocks and had very few speed signs to help me manage my speeds as I wondered my way down into Julian. So, I did as the Butler map suggested and that was to “..take it easy on the throttle…” However, most riders try and ride these types of roads as fast as they can because curves are one of the reasons we ride. They are super fun! However, statically speaking, most riders don’t realize they are 3800% more likely to die per mile ridden verses mile driven.* Adding excessive speed to the ride, especially in corners, is one of the main reasons that percentage is so high.
As a responsible rider and ambassador for this sport, I ride well within my skills and abilities each and every day I go for a ride. Unlike most riders, I don’t ride on the higher side of my skill set. I want to make sure that in the event something goes wrong, I have more skills available to help me get out of a sketchy situation. Most riders ride on the high side to their skill set or push the limits of traction most of the time and then they don’t have any reserve to help them get out of a sketchy situation. They are almost always pushing the speeds through corners, using up all their traction possible because they are riding so fast that it takes all their traction to keep them on the road. If they need to swerve or counter steer even more because their speeds were way too fast for a given corner, they don’t have any more traction available and that’s often when there is a crash. Many riders have ineffective counter steering abilities that contributes to the 3800% more likely to die numbers. A responsible rider always rides to the conditions of the roads and use the roadway signs to help gauge their speeds going into corners. The signs are there to help reduce incidents and to help roadway users be more safe. Can I go faster than the road sign says? Yes! But it doesn’t mean I should and as a responsible rider, I don’t! Riding responsibly also means to have the discipline to not push the limits. I am constantly asking myself, “Can I get stopped in the sight that I can SEE or can I make a lane adjustment if need be,” and if the answer is no, I slow down before I get into a corner. We, as riders, need to choose to ride responsibly to manage the high risk to motorcycle riding. I’ll say it again, “I don’t think riders realize that they are statically 3800% more likely to die per mile ridden verses mile driven.” We HAVE TO manage those risks down to an acceptable level to survive this sport. Choosing to ride within a rider’s skill set, traction limits, condition limits and the bike’s limits all play a role in managing the risks and surviving this sport.
All too often I hear of other riders, and many of them being friends, who have had some kind of crash and much of the time, they blame the bike or the conditions. Recently, a friend went down at highway speeds on the pavement going into a corner when he hit some diesel. Of course, the reason for the crash was blamed on the diesel on the road and the type of tire he was running with on the front. I don’t know if the rider considered their part they played in the crash. It’s never just one thing that causes a crash, it is usually several things. The rider’s speed and/or inattention to the roadway conditions could have played a part. It’s possible, had the rider slowed down prior to the corner he could have seen the diesel spill and could have made a better lane position choice. It is also possible had the rider slowed down prior to the corner, he wouldn’t have had to lean so much into the corner and could have possibly glided over the diesel spill in a more upright position or maybe he could have gotten stopped prior to hitting the diesel spill all together. These are just a few things to consider.
Another friend of mine went down in a corner on the dirt and had no idea what happened. A very likely reason could have been that she counter steered (like you would on the street) into the corner instead of weighting the outside of the bike so if the bike slid out, she could have been in a better position to manage the bike sliding out. As responsible riders, we need to figure out what we did wrong and fix it. Don’t keep making the same mistakes. Don’t just shrug it off because the next time you might not walk away from it. We need to understand how our inputs effect the bike’s performance in different situations, as well as the differences between riding on dirt and riding on pavement.
Another experienced rider friend bought a new bike and crashed it several times in the parking lot and while on the trail and blamed it on the bike. Instead of him taking a little time to adjust to the new bike, he was trying to ride it like he had been riding his current bike. Riders need to take responsibility for their crashes and figure out what part they played in that crash. Statistically speaking, riders are 96% more likely to be the striking vehicle. That can include striking other vehicles, trees, guardrails, and any number of other things. That should tell you, we play a huge roll in our crashes. This friend ended up selling the new bike.
I’ve also witnessed a rider friend traveling at very high speeds on less-than-ideal traction surfaces, as in a dirt road with patches of snotty mud. When riders are going 60+ MPH on dirt roads that have varied traction throughout, they really need to scrub the speed down so when they see the color changes, they are able to slow to a subtle speed for the varied and highly slippery surface. These kinds of speeds are also a bit crazy unless your view is wide open and there aren’t trees and other things blocking your view from scanning for wildlife. My friend was not able to scrub his speed down and if he did, he still crashed at a rather high speed. Fortunately, he was not injured. However, I guess because he wasn’t injured, he also did not adjust his speed for the rest of the duration of the ride. The things that make me go… hmmmmmm??
Don’t rely on PDL (Pure Dumb Luck), become a responsible rider by riding at the posted highway speeds, as well as speeds that allow you to manage varied terrain and getting stopped if need be when you’re in the backcountry. Being a responsible rider also includes continuing to learn more about this sport, practice the techniques taught in classes and know your limits, your bike’s limits, and the condition limits, so you can bring the high risks (I’ll say it yet again, riders are 3800% more likely to die per mile ridden verses mile driven) to this sport down to an acceptable level.
I share these blog posts as an on and off street instructor as well as someone who has learned the hard way and was lucky enough to survive a serious, near fatal, crash. I’m trying to share my knowledge and help YOU become a responsible, safer rider.
*Statistics used from the Beginner Rider Course for Total Control
