Wilsons Sandbox

Glad you made it with minimal injuries Ed. I haven't yet had a serious bike accident(hope not to) but had a couple close calls that gave me the shakes (had to pull off and sit for a few before resuming the ride). I can say that in my opinion, fear is good. It can keep you alive in many situations. I say lose the shakes and hold on to the fear. And definitely don't stop talking/thinking about the accident. BTW, traffic is one of the reasons I decided on a dual sport. That way I can have my throttle cranking, heart pumping, thrill seeking, envelope pushing moments in an environment where when I do go down, I'm far less likely to find myself under the wheels of another vehicle. It also means when I go down it's most likely my fault (much easier to deal with for me than having someone else to blame - I guess I have a hard time with forgiveness...maybe I should go to church every now and again too). dat brooklyn bum _______________________________________________________ Get 100% FREE Internet Access powered by Excite Visit http://freelane.excite.com/freeisp

--- In DSN_klr650@egroups.com, Tumu Rock wrote:

> > Glad you made it with minimal injuries Ed. I haven't yet had

a serious bike accident(hope not to) but had a couple close calls that gave me the shakes (had to pull off and sit for a few before resuming the ride). I can say that in my opinion, fear is good. It can keep you alive in many situations. I say lose the shakes and hold on to the fear. And definitely don't stop talking/thinking about the accident. BTW, traffic is one of the reasons I decided on a dual sport. That way I can have my throttle cranking, heart pumping, thrill seeking, envelope pushing moments in an environment where when I do go down, I'm far less likely to find myself under the wheels of another vehicle. It also means when I go down it's most likely my fault (much easier to deal with for me than having someone else to blame - I guess I have a hard time with forgiveness...maybe I should go to church every now and again too).

> > dat brooklyn bum

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ some additional points to ponder: There are two types of riders: those who have gone down and those that haven't gone down, YET. There are two types of car drivers: those who don't see you and those who do but don't give a damn. And we can't tell the difference. Offroad riding is much safer: trees, rocks and telephone poles will only strike you in self-defense. Cars on the other hand ... RIDE SCARED!! Defensive driving isn't enough. WARNING: Living may be hazardous to your health. Life IS good, don't take it for granted. ++++++++++++ Professor '95 KLR650 Federal Way, WA [USA]

On Tue, 02 May 2000 08:16:01 -0000, Jim Hyman wrote:

> RIDE SCARED!! Defensive driving isn't enough. >

Couldn't agree more. When I bought my KLR (my first bike) there were plenty of people asking, "Aren't you scared?" My answer was always,"Hell, yeah. But that's half the fun of living ain't it?" I use fear as a guide, not a deterrent. dat brooklyn bum _______________________________________________________ Get 100% FREE Internet Access powered by Excite Visit http://freelane.excite.com/freeisp

--- In DSN_klr650@egroups.com, "Dustin McCarty" wrote:

> OK, still new to the motorcycle world: Lane splitting: This

is going between the cars on the way to a stop light to "get ahead" of the rest of the traffic or whil on the highway to pass? Is this correct? More importantly, is this a good, safe idea? I mean, I live in Oklahoma still and people here still haven't figured out how to use indoor plumbing let alone turn signals! Sounds pretty foolish in the US (IMHO, of course). 2 questions: 1) Is this actually a legal practice (not that legality reflects what is right or intelligent)? 2) Is this commonly practiced ... [snip]

> Thanks, > Dust > A14 "Rhino" > Man with BIG Grin (and the desire to live to ride another day) > Riding Level: Still in WUSS mode, but progressing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dust, Is it legal? Yes & no. It varies from state to state & even within different jurisdictions. Commonly practiced? Yes, even where it's illegal. Pardon me while I step up on the soap box. Is it smart or safe? Speaking from 30+ years of riding, NO WAY! Just read the "biker down" thread or talk to someone who has been seriously injured in a cycle accident (me, for instance). I worked in the motorcycle business for over ten years and worked as an insurance adjuster, handling auto claims & injuries. I've seen many instances when riders go hurt (not necessarily while lane splitting). The bottom line, motorcycling is an exhilarating experience with a high risk factor. Do I always obey the rules of the road? never sppeed? never pass illegally? always use common sense? OF COURSE NOT! Using common sense and defensive driving techniques is not enough. Drivers everywhere don't see us & if they do see us, they still do stupid things. I will share a lane with another rider that I know, but will not ride side by side. We will ride in a staggered formation. BTW, lane sharinging between motorcycles is illegal in some areas. I highly recommend taking the MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) rider's course. Some insurance companies give a 5-10% discount for completing the course. I rode for 29 years without needing so much as a band-aid, but that changed 2 years ago when I was broadsided by a car. 14 months after my accident, I was physically able to climb back in the saddle, but can't even think of off-road riding or even going to Moab. Someday, I will be back in the dirt & travelling cross country again. The last two lines in your message are important. Don't worry about WUSS mode. Ride to live & live to ride. RIDE SCARED. Professor Federal Way, Wa [USA]