Does anyone feel the way I do?

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blacksheep

blacksheep

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 7, 2010
Messages
956
Location
Ludowici, GA
You know, before I bought my 48 F1, all I ever did was want to get up on 2 wheels. I have been riding motorcycles for the last 35 years. I had a bike shop , and have built bikes, serviced bikes, and just in general wanted to be around nothing but bikes. Before , a 4 wheeled vehicle was just another form of transportation to me. This forum has inspired me to really get into the Rat Rods . But, I have an 06 Road King that I used to put over 15k miles a year on . Now, it sits a little more than before. Is this because of my new love for Rat Rods? Well, it is a combination of a few things. First thing is this, I have noticed the biking scene change in the last 13 years. There are definitely more bikes on the road than before. But, I have noticed something else. With the new gadgets that are coming out for us to communicate with each other comes a greater danger for us bikers out there. I don't know how many times I have seen someone driving down the road while texting. And frankly , this scares the crap outta me. It was bad enough to see someone dialing their phone while driving, but now we have to dodge those who now text while driving. And , that's all of us , not just bikers. My bike has 6 lights on the front of it so cagers can see me coming. But, if they are not even looking what good does it do? I live in Savannah , GA. It seems that spomeone is being killed on a bike almost weekly here. I know alot of that has to do with the increase of bikes on the road today, but it is still scary as he!!. And, I also know that alot of it is due to inexperienced riders feeling the need to own a Harley or a bike, and not realizing just how bad they can hurt themselves or others.

I guess what goes through my mind is , when will we realize that something needs to be done about cell phones and driving? The reason for this post is because there was an accident 3 weeks ago involving a bike and a truck. A guy on a bike was killed while his wife and daughter were following behind him to the tire shop. The driver of the truck had lacerations on his face. The cop asked how this happened. He said his cell phone cut his face. They looked at his phone and it had a partial text that had not been sent on his phone. The cop who responmded to the accident was also a biker. When he saw the family and how it affected them, he put his bike up for sale. That is just sad. I know us bikers are taking a risk because of being on two wheels. But, this problem doesn't just affect bikers. It affects all of us. Be careful out there
 
Yes I share your concerns. Not to long ago I was traveling home from work and notice and young lady fully involved in texting. I pulled up beside her, honked my horn and waved my finger at her. She just poo pooed me and carried on. Thirty seconds later she was in a panic braking situation. I wonder if she learned a lesson here. :mad: I truely believe this is going to be a bigger problem than drunk driving ever was.
 
We have the new law with a $150 fine for using handheld devices while driving,but I still see lots of people on their phones.Its like the seatbelt laws,lots of people still dont use them and how long have they been around,and fines are not high enough.But then the drinking and driving fines and following conditions are pretty severe now and there are still lots of people doing that. A lot of people will never change their behavior,no matter what the consequences,wheather its texting,drinking or eating too much,or smoking.
They know that all those things can kill you or someone else but they still do it.
When I met my wife,who is a nurse she told me she sees too many guys come in dead or very badly injured from bike accidents,and she doesnt want that to happen to me,so I sold my bike and havent been on one since.
 
i know what you mean,a few weeks ago some ass clown ran my wife an kids off the road,i guess he was involved in a important text cause she said that he never looked up from the wheel,if she wouldnt ran off road,id lost all them.
 
You've got to be kidding me! I had three instances in the last week where I was nearly run off the road or into a concrete median by total morons texting on their damn phones. It's probably a good thing I didn't had a piece in my car at the time! :mad:

Toad
 
I run a fleet service company down here. My employees know that using any hand held devices while in a company vehicle will be terminated on the spot. I can remember when my ol man got one of those mobile phones back in '78. It was one of those that you had to dial an operator and get them to dial the number. The phone was a rotary dial just like the old home phones. He almost killed us one time when he was trying to dial that crappy old rotary thing on a trip out of town. It has scared me ever since.
 
If you ride a bike like you drive a car, some idiot will probably kill you. You have to be aware of everything going on around, expect everyone in a cage to be out to kill you and always have a way out. It is a conditioned response and vital to survival.
I think there should be stiff laws that are strictly enforced against electronic gadgets in cars, even cd players. I know of several wrecks from people digging around for a cd or changing one.
 
Willowbilly3 said:
If you ride a bike like you drive a car, some idiot will probably kill you. You have to be aware of everything going on around, expect everyone in a cage to be out to kill you and always have a way out. It is a conditioned response and vital to survival.
I think there should be stiff laws that are strictly enforced against electronic gadgets in cars, even cd players. I know of several wrecks from people digging around for a cd or changing one.
Click to expand...

I have found that I drive my truck like I ride, very suspicious and always try to have a way out. But, that can't happen all the time. I think that cell phones should power down automatically when inside a vehicle, period. And, you want to see something scary, take a look at some persons car that has a lap top cradle mounted on their console in the car or truck. What is up with that? Now THAT'S scary!
 
Cell phone usage and texting while driving have become a major, major problem. We are going to see lots more wrecks in the future and more legislation outlawing these practices. Even the hands free ones, while better than the other kinds, are still not as good as devoting all your attention to driving. With the amount of cars on the road today, and the way people drive (and I use the term "drive" loosely:mad:) you need all your attention directed at what is going on around you.

There isn't a little trip that I take that I don't have some idiot trying to have his car occupy the same space as my car. It is getting so I hate to even take the 15 minute trip to the shop any more.

I agree that using a cell phone and texting is as big of an problem as drinking and driving, you are equally impared and distracted.

Don
 
I can't even begin to tell you how many times I've seen cops driving along, usually fast than the traffic there in, staring at the computer screen in there car. Oh but that's ok, their cops. I think they get training or something for that. Right? :confused:
 
Last year a good friends' 16 year old niece was killed texting while driving! She had just gotten her license & was texting while driving home, crossed the center stripe & hit an 18 wheeler head on. It decapitated her & totally devastated her entire family.

Mrs Tripper & I recently saw a guy texting with both hands & steering with his knees while going over 70mph. He was swerving all over the road & I felt like calling the cops!!!

BoB
 
Realistically, we should avoid all unnecessary distractions while driving. If I was king of the world there wouldn't need to be cupholders because drinking and eating in the car would be verboten. No communication devices allowed except maybe a small light or tone to tell you that you can pull over and shut your car off to receive a call. No music either, too much of a distraction fiddling with the radio, stereo, cd changer..whatever. All of those devices could be accessed from the back seat in a car with a divider partition. Getting and keeping a drivers license would be the same process as getting a pilots license and everyone would have to ride a motorcycle for a minimum of two years before they got 4 wheels. First DUI you get to spend 30 days cleaning road ditches where everyone who knows you can drive past and see you. Second offense would be longer sentence and hard labor, third offense and you loose all your cars forever and get to spend a year on a remote penal colony.
 
roddguy1 said:
I can't even begin to tell you how many times I've seen cops driving along, usually fast than the traffic there in, staring at the computer screen in there car. Oh but that's ok, their cops. I think they get training or something for that. Right? :confused:
Click to expand...

Part of the job I expect. I drove delivery for a few years - drive as fast as you can, punch stuff into the board, reach in the rear door for the next package, and look for the next address. Trained for it, warned not to do it, expected to do it to be productive. Scratch the truck and get your butt handed to you.
 
we have cell phone laws in Ct as well as a lot of other states. I see people driving all over the road trying to text and drive at the same time. Scares the he ll out of me. I see the same police officer that pulls these people over for cell phone violations on their cell phones while driving their police cruisers. I actually called the local police dept to ask why they are using a cell phone while driving. The reply I got was, the radio was out of range in thhat area and they were using their cell phone in the line of duty! Now when does the reason you are using your cell phone while driving make a difference in whether it's safe or not. As far as I'm concerned, the law is the law...there should be no exceptions! I can't see why a cell phone works and the police radio doesn't. Especially since the cruiser was only about 6 blocks from the police station!:confused:
 
I rode motorcycles my whole life, i just sold my 2000 FLHT with 116,000 miles on it 7 really don't miss it. Kinda enjoying my old Dodge truck and the safety of the heavy metal that surrounds me protecting me from the idiot drivers here in middle Tennessee. i have traveled & lived all over the U.S. & this area is by far the worst for idiot drivers.

I've always told my friends since the first time here on a bike that if I get killed on my bike it will be in the greater Nashville area.

Gonna build me a radical rat rod bike for putting around in the country & for shows though.
 
I do not know the answer but I know I ride a lot less anymore. It seem like people have no common sense and are not responsible for there actions. The only one they care about this them. They have no clue to what is going on around them. Take rush hour. They put on there turn single and never look just move over into your lane. also if you look, over haft of them are on there phone or texting. Hell the state next to me has the no phone law and you see the cops driving around with there phone up to there ear or texting.

what really gets me is when there is a crash involving a motorcycle you always hear "I did not see them". Its like that statement make it ok. I guess then when a trucker runs them over it should be ok as long as the trucker say "I did not see them".

I guess wonder if this person does not see the motorcycle, do they see the person walking along the road or the person riding the Bicycle. To me if you say I did not see them, you should loss your driving license for a minimum 2 years and have to retest to get them back.

Like I said I ride less. I well not ride on the highways during rush hour and try to avoid riding in areas with a lot of traffic.

On last thing. Try to find a used car or truck on a new or used car lot with out a dent. What does that tell you.
 
I had a guy hit my mc twice the same night(10 point turn) @ the moose club in Fort Myers Beach then skip. After confronting him a few days later he denied hitting my bike even after being pointed out by Eye witness & the dents matched my handlebars & struts, he did a ****ty job of trying to cover the dents with paint. The adjuster said his car looked like he drove by braille.
Hid insurance paid me & canceled him for lying & non cooperation [cl
 

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