States Study Regulations for Aging Bikers..

[IGBT]

Text


...But as they hit the road in record numbers, riders 40 and older also have been getting killed more often than their younger counterparts. That's spurred state governments to re-examine their motorcycle regulations.

The effort is in its infancy, but officials from the Washington State Patrol and the Department of Licensing are already discussing refresher training courses for experienced riders and a requirements to show a motorcycle license before buying a bike.

"What we think is happening with this older group is that they rode a motorcycle when they were 18-20 years old, then they hit their 40s and realized, 'Hey, I can afford a bigger, better bike,'" said Gigi Zenk, a licensing spokeswoman.

Statistics show state motorcycle fatalities on the rise, with most involving riders 40 and older on bikes with the largest engines.

 

[Cattlegod]

"Statistics show state motorcycle fatalities on the rise, with most involving riders 40 and older on bikes with the largest engines. "

That person is a dummy. People 18-20 buy sportbikes which are WAAAAY faster than anything someone 40+ will buy. Cruisers and hogs are super heavy and handle like garbage, that is why they get killed.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: Cattlegod
"Statistics show state motorcycle fatalities on the rise, with most involving riders 40 and older on bikes with the largest engines. "

That person is a dummy. People 18-20 buy sportbikes which are WAAAAY faster than anything someone 40+ will buy. Cruisers and hogs are super heavy and handle like garbage, that is why they get killed.

I've ridden crotch rockets for nearly 20 years. This year, I bought a Harley.

I am MUCH safer on the Harley than I ever was on the crotch rocket. Why? I ride slower and much more defensive. I'm not tempted to push the bike to it's limit like I was with the sport bike.

This has nothing to do with the bikes, and everything to do with inexperience, slower reaction times and arrogance.

 

[Perknose]

Still etched vividly in my mind after all these years is a scene from the great small motorcycle rental craze of the mid '60's music: First gear, it's alright / Second gear, hang on tight :music. My friend and I were under legal age punks renting bikes from successive places on his older brother's purloined license.

As this middle age woman, a first time motorcycle rider, was poised to leave the lot onto the busy highway, she turned and asked the manager, "Btw, where is reverse?"

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by: Cattlegod
"Statistics show state motorcycle fatalities on the rise, with most involving riders 40 and older on bikes with the largest engines. "

That person is a dummy. People 18-20 buy sportbikes which are WAAAAY faster than anything someone 40+ will buy. Cruisers and hogs are super heavy and handle like garbage, that is why they get killed.

No they get killed because there are more of them on the road now for fscktards in cages to pick off.

 

[Pliablemoose]

LOL, who would have guessed all those oldsters buying Harleys couldn't ride & they're old enough to not tolerate the massive trauma a motorcycle crash involves.

NOTHING will be done, it's the same age group that allowed mandatory helmet laws to go away and they'll give up their Harley youth machines/penis extensions when they're dead or too old to hoist one off the sidestand.

 

[halik]

Originally posted by: Cattlegod
"Statistics show state motorcycle fatalities on the rise, with most involving riders 40 and older on bikes with the largest engines. "

That person is a dummy. People 18-20 buy sportbikes which are WAAAAY faster than anything someone 40+ will buy. Cruisers and hogs are super heavy and handle like garbage, that is why they get killed.

Exactly,
Guy in a 1600cc Goldwing is lot better off than me on my cbr 600. That article doesn't make much sense, you'd have to try hard to do something stupid on an 800lb harley... on my bike it takes virtually zero effort to end up riding on one wheel (front or rear for that matter) .

If anything it's the late mid-life crisis people that go out and buy brand new hogs and have absolutely no experience riding motorcycles.

 

[Pliablemoose]

What should be done is mandatory graduated experience/cc regulations, mandatory helmet laws, and mandatory training of all riders.

(and all cars should be banned, that way I'd start riding again )

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by: Pliablemoose
LOL, who would have guessed all those oldsters buying Harleys couldn't ride & they're old enough to not tolerate the massive trauma a motorcycle crash involves.

I don't know what is funny about it (I guess it's ER Nurse Humor) but the later part is true. I saw a guy in his late 50's early 60's get hit by some dumb little teenage bitch in a car right in front of my house (He was no noob as he was an HA). He was helmeted and wearing full leathers and had no signs of traumatic external injuries. In fact while laying on the ground he was joking with us and the cops. Later that week I heard he died because of heart failure brought on by the accident. Yeah he was fat and probably lived a hard life due to his associations. Getting slammed on the asphalt doing even 20 miles an hour is very traumatic and the older and less in shape you are the harder it is on your body.


That said I would never ride a bike here in Boston. Besides the worse drivers I have ever encountered the roads are sh!tty due to the harsh weather

 

[Captante]

I'm 41 & have been riding for 20+ years without a long break between owning bikes... I currently have a 1200cc Sport-touring bike & compared to to bikes I used to own its incredibly fast & good handeling, but I think the real key is that I never really took a long break from riding, plus I'm in decent physical shape & not 50lbs overweight like 3/4ths of the older guys I see on bikes.
I'm sure the majority of the 40+ riders that die are jumping back on bikes after years of not riding & also that large numbers of them arn't wearing helmets when they go down.. (in fact based on what I see here in Connecticut, most are likely wearing shorts, a T-shirt & sneakers!) ..some may well get killed with protective gear too because riding IS dangerous, but the key is inexperience or being out of practice combined with being less resistant to injury, not age by itself.

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: Pliablemoose
LOL, who would have guessed all those oldsters buying Harleys couldn't ride & they're old enough to not tolerate the massive trauma a motorcycle crash involves.

NOTHING will be done, it's the same age group that allowed mandatory helmet laws to go away and they'll give up their Harley youth machines/penis extensions when they're dead or too old to hoist one off the sidestand.

Helmet laws and seatbelt laws are absurd anyhow. I don't need nor want the government to mother me.

And the fact of the matter is, this article and the stats behind it are silly. More 40+ bikers are getting killed because there are more 40+ bikers. This whole thing is based on raw numbers, not per capita. In raw numbers, OF COURSE more 40+ bikers will be getting killed when the number of 40+ bikers increases.

And this is even pointed out in the article:

"When the fatality numbers come out each year ... special interest groups tend to react to that and speculate on solutions without having anything more than data," said American Motorcyclist Association spokesman Tom Lindsay.

Tim Bouche, president of the cycle manufacturers' Motorcycle Safety Foundation, said officials should consider that older riders are the largest group of riders, not just the largest group of fatal crashes.

"It's not really saying there's a cause and effect there, or that it's a key factor," Bouche said. "It's simply that the average rider is older and they're on larger bikes."

There you have it. folks. 3/4 of the way through the article is posted the anti-hype. This is simply a case of changing demographics. Of COURSE the average age of fatalities will rise if the average age of riders rises.

Fscking activist idiots and their safety police agendas. :roll: