Motorcycle News
"Born to be wild, bikers play it safe" By Steve Marshall, USA Today (View full article here)
STERLING, Va. On a recent Sunday in a college parking lot, students zigzag motorcycles through maneuvers that could one day save their lives. Before the class, many had never straddled a motorcycle. Now, on rain-slicked asphalt, they perform low-speed turns, swerve to avoid imaginary hazards and can stop quickly without losing control.
During the final exam for a 15 hour Basic Rider Course, the students are soaked by rain, but most couldn't be happier. They're among the lucky ones who managed to get a spot for such a class. In many states, especially on the East Coast, where weather isn't always favorable, the waiting list can be six months. When Andrea Courson, 52, of Leesburg, Va., signed up for the class in December, she was told the earliest slot available was in June.
"(Class) capacity is the No.1 issue," said Dean Thompson, spokesman for the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF), an industry group that has trained more than 4.1 million riders since 1973. "If you can't get training, you might just go out there without the proper training, and that would be an issue." Motorcycle sales have been rising steadily over the past 14 years. In 2006, nearly 1.2 million motorcycles were sold, about 9,000 more than in 2005, according to the Motorcycle Industry Council.
"Rising fuel prices, increasing highway congestion and parking woes have given more people reason to trade four wheels for two," MSF President Tim Buche said. And increasing sales means more demand for training. Nearly 400,000 students took training in 2006, up from the previous year by more than 18,000, Thompson said. Demand for the classes was so high last year that 40% of applicants didn't get slots, according to MSF estimates.
California added training sites to accommodate demand, said Rob Gladden, project manager for the California Motorcyclist Safety Program. Training sites in California have increased to 102 in 2006 from 63 in 2004, said Ty van Hooydonk, spokesman for Discover Today's Motorcycling, the media and consumer outreach program of the Motorcycle Industry Council.
Since more people are on bikes, fatalities are also up. There were 525 more motorcycle fatalities in 2005 than in 2004, bringing the toll to 4,553, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Ten years ago, the NHTSA counted 2,116 motorcycle deaths. In the incidents in 2005, nearly one in four riders were operating with invalid licenses, the safety administration says.
This makes the riding classes all the more important. "The best first ride is at a training course," Buche said. The class at Northern Virginia Community College is similar to those at more than 1,900 sites across the USA. Class began with 24 students. There were men and women, teens to fifty-somethings. Many had never ridden before; some were taking a refresher course.
Kim Brown, 19, took the class with her father, a self-taught but experienced rider. Training has come a long way since Dave Brown, 56, got his motorcycle endorsement by circling the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles parking lot twice in the mid-1980s. "When Kim decided she wanted to try it, I thought I would kill two birds with one stone: do something with her and have something to back up years of informal training," Brown says.
After four hours of classroom time on the first day, students started riding at 7:15 a.m. the next day. The instructors pulled no punches. Safe cornering was emphasized because many crashes occur on curves. Still, students should "have fun and be safe at the same time," said Terry Hillerich, one of four instructors in Sterling.
Mishaps do happen. Two riders decided to withdraw from class after a slow-speed crash and a dropped bike. Confidence might have been rattled, but no bones were broken.
The average pass rate of classes nationwide is about 85%, Buche says. Instructor Laura Falconer, a 25-year rider, told her Virginia students, "I want to see all you guys pass with big smiles." Kim and Dave Brown were among those who did.
Gear and Apparel
Now that you are thinking about riding, you'll need gear. Though we do not endorse any one outfitter over another, the links below are from places we've purchased our riding gear and apparel:
Motorcycle Accessory Warehouse
Finding the Right Motorcycle
When you think you are ready to purchase a motorcycle, there are a whole lot of variables to consider including pricing, size, cruiser or sport bike, etc. My first bike, for example was a Buell Blast which I decided to go with mainly for size - it is small and doesn't weigh a whole lot. Ultimately, the decision of which bike is best for you comes down to what you feel comfortable with. This list by no means includes every bike type out there, but hopefully it will help you make the big decision of which bike is best for you:
Safe Riding Tips from MSF
*Be Visible
Dress for Safety
*Apply Effective Mental Strategies (such as SEE)
*Know your Bike and How to Use it
*Give yourself Space
