Crashing; The Hows and Whys Part Two With Phil Hall
Last time we looked at the issue of crashing we looked at most of the basic reasons why riders crash. But the article was getting a bit long and consequently indigestible so I decided to break it up in to two articles in the hope that it would help. Herewith, then, is part two.
In the last article we looked at crashes involving a vehicle that is either in front of you or behind you. We looked at the classic “U turn in front of the bike” scenario, at how traffic lights are dangerous places and about crashes involving a rider’s inability to negotiate a corner (right or left hand).
While it is fair to say that the majority of motorcycle crashes ARE avoidable, there are degrees of avoidability within that scenario that are many and varied. So let’s move on to some other single vehicle crashes involving motorcycles.
Debris on road. Our roads are used by thousands of vehicles of all sizes and configurations. As well, they are subject to extremes of weather conditions and a myriad of external factors that affect their suitability for riding motorcycles. Riding in wet weather is a topic all in itself, but it is obvious that, if you have to ride when the roads are wet and/or it is raining, your chances of crashing increase markedly. Moderate your speed, be smooth and keep the bike upright as much as you can. Avoid riding and braking down the middle of the lane in suburban areas as this is where cars and trucks deposit oil and diesel while under acceleration and braking. Increase the buffer zones between the vehicles around you and yourself and be aware that the common scenario is that drivers drive faster and more erratically in the wet than they do in the dry.
Debris can be something as simple as a small patch of diesel to a branch that has just blown off a tree and landed in your path. It can be something that has fallen off a tradesman’s ute or a patch of road that has just experienced a hail storm. The fact is that you simply can’t counter for all of the eventualities. The best you can do is be as well prepared for an emergency as you can be. Adjust your speed to the prevailing conditions, constantly scan the traffic and road conditions around you and always have an escape clause to use if you need it. That said, all of us have had an “off” due to a patch of gravel in the middle of the intersection, a pothole in the middle of a corner or some example of wildlife that has just strayed into our path. Anticipate, anticipate, anticipate.
Some crashes occur due to mechanical issues. If the chain on your bike breaks while you are riding, like as not it may end up bringing you down. Brake failure likewise. It’s fair to say that modern bikes, while often soulless, are vastly more mechanically reliable than what they used to be so this scenario is not as common as it was. A sudden loss of air in a tyre (especially the front one – incidentally, have you ever wondered why it is that the majority of punctures due to nails and other debris on the road, happen in the BACK tyre rather than the front one?) can bring you unglued in a heartbeat and that is, again, almost completely unavoidable.
Regular inspection and maintenance will reduce the likelihood of this type of crash even more and should be a part of every rider’s approach to riding.
But, getting back to crashes that involve other vehicles as well, there is the ever-present SMIDSY crash. “Sorry, Mate I Didn’t See You” are the words that are most uttered by other vehicle operators who are involved in an accident involving a motorcycle. And the unfortunate fact is that, in most cases, that is exactly what has happened. Car drivers just don’t see us. Why? The theories are as numerous as the crashes themselves. But there is increasing evidence that, along with inattention, mobile phone use, distractions within the car and carelessness, the actual DESIGN of a motorcycle contributes significantly to its not being noticed by car and other vehicle drivers. Increasingly it is being thought that a bike, which is narrow and tall in profile is not a shape for which drivers are looking. Cars are low and wide, bikes are narrow and high; could it BE that simple? And, if bikes ARE different to the majority of the other vehicles on the road should not that contribute to them being MORE visible rather than less? You would think so, but it seems that it may not be the case.
It was thought, many years ago, that having motorcycles have their headlights on all the time would make them more visible, but motorist’s familiarity with that idea soon saw them blending into the background again. The same will happen if the proposed hi-vis clothing idea gets up. It will work for a while and then its effectiveness will wear off as motorists stop looking for it.
Short of standing up on the footpegs at every intersection and waving a flag so that they can see you are there, there does not appear to be much that WE can do to alleviate this situation. Making eye contact with other drivers was touted as being a solution, but there is more than enough anecdotal evidence of this method having little or no affect at all (having said that, I still make it a practice to do so when riding in town.)
The answer is to be found in DRIVER EDUCATION; getting drivers to look out for US, and it is pleasing to note that most state authorities are introducing advertising campaigns that encourage people to look out for bikes. Perhaps we can also catch a hold of the shirt tails of the bicycle fraternity which is also benefitting from increased advertising in this area.
In the mean time, increased vigilance on the part of the rider is the only defence. That and the usual caveats of riding to the conditions and spatial awareness at all times.
So far the crashes that we have dealt with all can be tied to an external condition of some sort; rider tiredness or lack of skill, speed, inattention, carelessness, road conditions and so forth. But I’d like to conclude by looking at two aspects that have nothing to do with any of that but go back to the mental aspect of the rider him/her self. And, because they cannot be linked to an external cause, they tend to be overlooked when statistics about crashes are compiled.
The first crash cause that probably is responsible for far more crashes than we believe, is overconfidence. It is not coincidental that young males are over-represented in crash statistics. The introduction of lower powered bikes in the LAMS schemes has not, and cannot, address the problem that an inexperienced rider can still out-accelerate most cars on the road from a standing start or in a roll-on situation. With that knowledge in mind, how do we not expect these riders to USE the potential when they get out on the road. The problem is that, knowing that you can DO these things is one thing, being able to ACCOMPLISH them safely is quite another.
I am sure that instructors remind new riders on a regular basis about the dangers of over-confidence. But all of that probably goes out the window the first time the young rider’s macho-ness is challenged in the real world. That rush of acceleration is addictive, but the sudden stop straight after can be fatal.
Again, education is the answer, but how do you overcome that burst of testosterone?
Lastly, I just want to touch on a subject that is becoming increasingly worrying in connection with motorcycle crashes. Road rage. It’s always been there but it’s getting worse, as road get more crowded, people are more stressed and dash-cams can show it to us in all its glory.
It’s pretty simple, really. Yes, you can beat any car on the road on even a moderately powered bike. But you are also ridiculously vulnerable compared to your fellow road users and your chances of winning decrease dramatically in any hot-tempered exchange with another motorist. What’s the point of being in the right if you are dead?
Crashes, we all have them and they are, to a greater or lesser extent unavoidable. If you ride you increase your chances of having one and the more you ride, the more that probability increases. Our job, as riders, is to recognise WHY they happen and ride in such a way that we minimise the possibility. It sounds easy, but it’s not. But even just THINKING about it is a start and it could save your life.
