Expect the Unexpected

You’ve all heard the platitude, “expect the unexpected”, and no truer sentiment can a motorcyclist hold any time they head out on the highways and byways of this beautiful country of ours.  This, and skills training may keep you alive. On a recent motorcycling vacation through upstate New York, this tired platitude served us well.

We had just traveled the length of Skaneateles Lake, one of the Finger Lakes in Upstate NY.  Of all the Finger Lakes, this is the one with the highest altitude. And indeed we were even higher still as we could view this lake from the ridge on which we rode.

After riding down from the ridge to the lake, dipping our toes in the water to cool off and meeting some great people, we headed on our way back to the ridge, around the northern tip of Skaneateles, to the northern tip of Owasco Lake. Here our lovely two lane country road ended, and we dropped into the outer fringes of the city of Auburn. This is where we met Carol by “accident”. Carol, age 76 was parked along the curb right near the clump of trees inside the blue circle of the photo below.

As we came along, Carol pulled out. No directional, no rear lights to indicate she was about to move. Andy aggressively applied the brakes, squealing tires with the effort and attempting an evasive move into the opposite lane. But Carol wasn’t just pulling away from the curb. She was attempting a U turn. With no exit Andy’s front end met her car just behind the front driver side door.  Thankfully she stopped short and Andy in a very LOUD voice told her not to move as he was now pinned between bike and car. People appeared from every doorway, helped right the bike which was leaning at an angle against the car with Andy in between. Someone called the police. All of these people were very kind and helpful.

Andy is OK, and here is where I want to do a bit of lecturing. Andy did everything right and walked away as a result. He used the brakes. ALL of them. This slowed him down from 30 MPH to whatever it was when he made impact. He did not “lay it down” as some people claim them must do. If he had, he would not have been able to slow or reduce his impact. He had on his jacket, helmet and a pair of Kevlar riding jeans. Despite the jeans he did receive a puncture wound just above the boot where his leg met the petcock. 

After exchanging information, filing police report and calling the insurance, Andy inspected the bike. The tire rim did not seem bent and the motorcycle still rode true. The headlight was broken, but he still had the two extra lights working on the light bar. (We later discovered the headlight bulb had not broken and still worked. So we covered with a plastic sheet and protected the bulb.) We pulled the fender out with a crowbar and continued on our vacation. The motorcycle looks a bit bedraggled, and yesterday we discovered that the dealer considers it totaled. That is mostly because it’s a 2004 so the book value is low compared to what the parts cost to fix it. If Andy has his way, he will get it repaired.

Andy was determined not to let this mar his vacation and we continued on to enjoy Lake Ontario, tour Fort Ontario and more great roads around upstate NY. We ended our trip in Kinston NY where our daughter was taking part in her first ever triathlon. We are proud of her and happy we were able to witness her accomplishment.

I will close with my usual lecture. If you haven’t taken the basic rider safety course, do so. It’s never too late. Or take the experience rider course. A refresher is never a bad thing. Practice your skills in parking lots, wear your gear. Your daughter might be the next one waiting for you at her first ever event.

Motorcycle Safety is Everyone's Resposbility

As mentioned in a previous post, I am now writing speeches as a member of Toastmasters International. I'm going to be giving my third speech in 2 weeks. I thought I would share the content of that speech since being an advocate of motorcyclists is what I intend to do with my speaking skills.
Here is what I plan to say. Your feedback is much appreciated.

I‘m an avid motorcyclist. Motorcycling to me is a thoroughly enjoyable pastime. My philosophy is a bike on the road is worth two in the shed. Yet when people discover that I ride a motorcycle, the first thing they say to me is “that it’s so dangerous!” I never know how to respond to this.  In part because I have no idea what they know or don’t know about motorcycling. And their experience or lack thereof is the perception of motorcycling from which they make this statement. Sometimes I’m tempted to say “sure motorcycling can be dangerous, but so is barreling down the highway at 70 mph in 2 tons of metal. Yet we do it every day.”

And that is the point really. Yes, there is risk. The reality is most things we do in our life involve risk. Skiing, swimming, and boating for example. Whether we may be consciously aware or not, each of us understands, evaluates, and try to minimize those risk for ourselves. Ultimately accepting some level of the risk involved. 

When people want to talk to me about the dangers of riding I tell them “anybody can ride a motorcycle, but not everyone should.” The first thing a person contemplating riding should ask themselves is “what kind of driver am I?” A person who has had several “close calls” or is prone to fender benders should think more than twice about riding a motorcycle. The type of driver you are doesn’t change what kind of rider you will be. And a fender bender on a motorcycle is a lot more serious than in a car.

Let me asking this question. How many of you would let your teenage son or daughter driver the family car without any driver training? Not many people would. Yet every day someone gets on a motorcycle without any basic rider training and don’t think twice about it.

In truth 92% of riders involved in accidents are essentially without training, are self-taught, or learned from a family or friend.  In addition these riders were significantly without motorcycle license, without any license, or have had their license revoked. Of these riders 96% are males between the ages of 16 -24. Which brings me back to question about your teen driving the family car without training.

One of the major hazards for motorcyclists are other vehicles. Statistically, people making left hand turns are the major culprits. The experts are still out on why this is so but have offered some theories on why. It may be that people look left, right and pull out without looking left again. They may misjudge the distance the bike is from them, or the speed at which it is approaching because of its smaller profile when compared to cars. Distracted driving is another cause of many accidents and not just for motorcyclist, although for us it’s more deadly. Despite new laws about cell phone use, and texting this law continues to be violated. I have a personal risk avoidance technique of my own. Whenever I see a car with a sticker that reads “baby on board” I stay well clear even when in my car. Unfortunately busy moms picking their kids up at daycare and racing home to fix the evening meal are in my experience the most distracted.

People who are close to me know that I am risk averse. How is it you might think that I even get on a motorcycle? I practice risk management. First I pay attention to the things I can control. 

1. I don’t drink and drive. Alcohol and substance abuse is a major contributor to motorcycle crashes. Nearly 50 % of all riders killed being under the influence. 50%! People don’t seem to understand statistic and use them to there benefit, which is probably why they buy a Powerball ticket which has a 1 in 292 million chance of winning.  
2.  I don’t ride when I’m fatigued or drowsy.
3.  I don’t get on the bike when I’m upset, angry, stressed or emotionally troubled.
4.  I don’t ride beyond my limits or practice aggressive riding. If you ride like there's no tomorrow - there won't be.

Next I try to minimize the risks I have no direct control over. These are my personal 4.

1. I’ve taken the basic rider training course. Taking this course has shown to reduces my risk by 25%.
2.  I practice being conspicuous. Tips on how to become more conspicuous are covered in the training.
3.  I examine the bike before each ride.
4.  I wear safety gear.

The month of May was motorcycle awareness month. I say every day is motorcycle awareness since people are riding nearly year round. Please, the next time you are tempted to remark to a rider about how dangerous motorcycling is, instead, ask this person if they’ve taken the Basic Rider training course. If not, encourage them to do so and tell them gray-haired riders don't get that way from pure luck. Then consider if we collectively are all doing everything possible to keep from being that danger. I’m pleased to report that the state of NH has added a section about motorcycle awareness to the new driver training manual. And that is good, because motorcycle safety is everyone’s responsibility.

New Hampshire History one Marker at a Time

The State of New Hampshire just made it easier for me to plan my weekends during the coming riding season. They have just revamped their Historical Highway Markers site with mobile friendly GIS technology (geographic information system). This new site is perfect for planning day and overnight adventures. Especially if you like to plan themed rides as I do. An additional plus is that the site is sectioned off into regions, has driving directions to markers, and KML file.

When selecting a region of the state to explore, the site opens to photos of the markers in that region. As you scroll each one the location is marked in text below the photo.  Beside the photo is a Google Earth view with overlays of its exact location. You can enlarge or reduce the map size to suit your preference. Each section allows you to see how many markers are in that region as well as the marker number issued by the state. One caution, some markers are out for repair, so make sure to double check the “installed” notice.

No markers in my town so I looked in the towns of my riding buddies.
Found one!

While the interactive map is great, I’m going to want these in my Garmin. If you are looking to convert KML files to GPX or GDB try using GPS Babel. Then just load it all into the GPS. Prefer your information in a different format? Not to worry. At the NH Division of Historical Resources page you can access links to a List of Markers by Town or a List of Markers by Marker Number. These are PDF files. I’m thinking of keeping a copy in my saddlebags for reference.

If you live in New Hampshire or will be visiting soon, the state has a photo sharing campaign going on right now. They are asking folks to take photos of our favorite historical places. Use the “locate me” technology on your mobile device and add the photo to the My New Hampshire website. Mark with hashtag “Marking History. They are looking to groups such as motorcyclists to help with the campaign.

I know I’m not alone is having little vacation time during the year and needing to make the most of weekend trips. I’m going to review these locations and plan some fabulous routes to see them.  I have been amazed over the years at the places I’ve never visited in my own backyard. There is a wealth of beauty and a plethora of ideas on how to enjoy the place you call home. If one just takes the time to dig.