Bandit Alley
GENERAL MOTORCYCLE FORUMS => GENERAL MOTORCYCLE => Topic started by: 06 Greyhound on February 22, 2007, 10:19:35 PM
-
Back on Feb 1st I reported on seeing an idiot on GSXR riding into the teeth of blizzard on a freeway.
Well – Tonight , on my way home once again, with several days of advanced warning of the snow that fell starting at noon today, I noticed a gentleman riding along on a bright shiny red BANDIT, and heading for that same freeway – all be it – not that free at rush hour and going the opposite direction. Why, I wonder, does a person choose to ride when they know full well that there is a snow storm coming, and in February when one might well expect snow and icy roads. Had he chosen to ride the day before when the temperature was above freezing, I could applaud making the effort to get out and ride.
I hope that the use of the term gentleman in reference to a Bandit rider, rather than “idiot” in reference to the GSXR rider is appreciated.
-
These type folks you can't even warn as their stubborn anticipation overrides all reason and accountability. Learning only with broken bones and the revaluation of near death. At which point they blame everything and everyone for the accident. Hopefully, swear off ever riding again, selling whats remains of their new bike for a song, and trying ever after to convince every new biker of the same narcissism.
-
Hey take it easy on us poor snow bound, ride deprived, denial ridden Cyclists who venture out in the face of horrendous weather reports while telling ourselves that those weathermen don't know what they're talking about. Then we get to work, look in horror out the window at the falling snow, jump out of our chairs and try to ride home before it get's too bad. Um, that's what a friend of mine told me anyway, yeah, that's it.
-
Well I'm really not referring to the seasoned and well prepared adventurist or worker. But more the newbies who have no experience and won't listen to sound advice. You see them in every climate. In the desert they wear shorts, tank tops, and flip flops with a passenger wearing a bikini. In the city they ride in heavy traffic with permits in the busiest lanes of traffic with no insurance wear garden gloves and a dirt bike helmet. Anyway they are the ones who have almost no experience riding a motorcycle but are out to prove a point, drunk or mentally too un-developed to give wisdom or reason consideration.
-
Maybe he had no choice? Now, we didn't have any snow in our forecast, but it has been chilly, windy and rainy lately - and there's been a chance of snow in the wee hours and occasional hail storms. One guy rode his bike in yesterday because some douchebag stole his car, so his bike was his only way to get to work.
-
CW,
I wholeheartedly agree. My own brother regularly rides in shorts, t-shirt and sneakers, regardless of how much I yell at him. I just pray he doesn't have to learn the hard way. I've been down enough times in my riding career to realize the importance of wearing protective clothing. Maybe you have to lose some skin before it becomes real.
-
Maybe he had no choice? Now, we didn't have any snow in our forecast, but it has been chilly, windy and rainy lately - and there's been a chance of snow in the wee hours and occasional hail storms. One guy rode his bike in yesterday because some douchebag stole his car, so his bike was his only way to get to work.
I lost the fuel pump in my truck on Monday and although the thought of riding to work was more than temping. I spent the $40 for the wife and I and we rode the Cochrane Polluter (bus) into the big city. It’s neither cheap nor fun but it’s February and it is just not worth taking the chance. We are lucky to have a choice where we live, just as anyone in the city does.
The truth is that I don’t want to be the one following the rider when they go down. It takes forever to wash all the blood off the bumper, to say nothing of pulling the handle bars out of the radiator.
-
One has to assume first that the rider is incapable of riding in the snow. For the most part, it's a reasonable assumption.
As I mentioned in the previous post, I've witnessed riders who have learned, probably the hard way, to ride in snowstorms, and I mean SNOW-STORMS. I'm forever amazed at this ability, and wished there was a way to learn it without too much risk.
They do it out of necessity of earning a living, for they are the messengers of New York City who ferry documents to and from various businesses here in Manhattan. Although a lot of them ride scooters, I've seen some on dirtbikes and, for some unknown reason, Ninjas.
Honestly, I think this is a skill all riders should have, not for doing a scoot the 7-11 across town in a blizzard for a slurpee, but for times when a storm can come up on you unexpectedly, such as when riding cross-country, for instance.
I've considered discussing this with some of these riders I see and seeing if they're willing to (try and) teach me this amazing skill sometime.
-
I guess I should qualify my obvious anger over this subject. My brother in law "George" who is 15 years older them me, a great personality guy and devoted to a fault to my sister the BOSS. Decided that 1 month before he retired (year ago) he would buy a motorcycle from a friend at work an 02 Kaw 650 classic cruiser in very good condition. He never rode a motorcycle of any kind but also never likes to ask advice on anything he feels he can do alone never called me or his "motorcycle riding co-workers" for any advice on how, when, or where to ride. I found out from my frantic mother and sister that he for the first time was putting his foot down and determined to fulfill his teenage dream of riding a motorcycle. My mother who lives with my sister pleaded with him to talk to me because I had been riding and racing dirt bikes since I was 12 which also translated into allot of street experience. But George as usual, feeling he is the male matriarch of the family, will only give advice but never take it. George was so determined he could self teach himself to ride he decided he would start commuting 35 miles each way to work with only a permit and no insurance after 2 trips around the block and a visit to the DMV, riding rush hour traffic on the busiest freeway on the planet I5. All my recommendations i.e "George wait until you take a MSF course, you need to start slow with a buddy rider on weekends, You need some safe track time before hitting the fast busy freeway alone, you need protective gear not garden gloves, George if you do it this way its a certainty that you will crash soon". All the more determined he started commuting to the protest of his wife, mother-in law, even biker friends at work. He lasted 4 commutes riding the transition lane of the freeway (most dangerous) and got struck by a girl in a car trying to make her exit lane by quickly cutting from the 6 lane (safest lane) to the exit, hitting George on the way on the left rear corner throwing him and the bike to the ground at 60 MPH. In the hospital with all of his ribs broken, a major contusion to the left side of his body an blood clots in his leg he managed to give my daughter some advice who he like a lot. "I know your dad is teaching you how to ride, but if you don't want to end up like me don't do it, its not worth it, its just a death wish." I bit my lip until he recovered and in front of my daughter I told him the accident was his own fault and he had basically ruined a dream he had and to please not ruin it for others to compensate for his own self denial. Till this day he insists that experiences and judgment had nothing to do with his crash, that it's just too dangerous for anyone and should be avoided at all cost. So needless to say I'm pissed that he ruined his dream and trying to ruin it for my kids every time they visit who so far have been having a ball learning to ride off road in the desert but are a bit fearful of his death wish warnings.
-
>>So needless to say I'm pissed that he ruined his dream and trying to ruin it for my kids every time they visit who so far have been having a ball learning to ride off road in the desert but are a bit fearful of his death wish warnings.<<
You should just laugh in his face every time he says that and tell your kids, remember what he DIDN'T do boys and girls and remember to train properly so you don't have to be an idiot like him. Then turn around and laugh at him some more. Get your kids in on the action too. :lol:
-
Well, Gunner, from your description of George, he got exactly what he had coming to him....although that sounds somewhat callous when I read it. Nonetheless, he's obviously trying to cover up his bad judgement (read: bone-headedness) by lashing out about the accident, motorcycles in general, etc etc.
Too bad...but hopefully you'll soon be able to get him to come to terms with his bad judgement.....although from your description of him I probably wouldn't hold out too much hope in that regard..... :sad:
-
He's kind of a matriarch and had allot of people waring him like his wife so its apparently too much to swallow and better to blame other tings like most of us have for different reasons in our lives hopefully out grown. In the military we are thought to be compassionate but objective, especially about our own mistakes (we call learning experiences), not to invite blame but to grow and to gain loyalty. But then I was in for 30 years so I'm pretty brain washed.