I rode trail bikes from 13 years old and stacked it heaps of times but no major injuries. On the road from 17 -22 and then the week before my 23rd birthday I got hit by a car and lost my left leg below the knee. Now 63 and still riding. If it’s in your blood you find a way to get back on the bike. I’ve had heaps more crashes on mountain bikes but just not as serious. Just ride within your limits as that’s all you can control. You can either spend your time worrying about ‘what if’ or go riding. I know what I’m doing….
One way i deal with that fear is also cataloging the contributing factors and realizing that most of them are in my control. Sure, I'm not in control of drivers that don't see me, or freak accidents. But i am in control of: Speed Alcohol Wearing great gear Training Road skills and strategies Riding unfamiliar bikes My ego Riding to the conditions Scanning the road ahead Lane position Cornering Bike maintenance I focus on what i can control and stay ready and aware of the things i cannot, and then i choose to enjoy my ride Take care everyone
I had an injury crash (broken wrist) on my first motorcycle in 1974. That kept me off riding for 24 years! In the interim I took up cycling. Over the years I've unfortunately experienced 3 crashes resulting in injuries ranging from road rash, concussions and broken ribs. Most recently I crashed in 2020 and woke up to discover EMT putting me on a stretcher and an ambulance ride to the ER. I always got back on my bike within a few days and at 72 I'm still an avid cyclist. I started back on motorcycles in 1998 and haven't looked back. In retrospect my first crash was entirely my fault. I didn't know how to ride. Even though I've never taken any riding class I've developed my defensive and awareness skills to the point that now I ride around 10,000 miles a year in confidence. I plan on riding into my 80's. If I do in a motorcycle crash at 82 years old, it beats dying in a nursing home.
YES! My sentiments exactly. I told my daughter I'll never go to a care home or rely on her to care for me in my dotage, as I'm not afraid of death. Brings to mind the lyrics of Jethro Tull's 'Too Old to Rock 'n Roll, Too Young to Die", although it'd be tragic to destroy a great bike in the process.
I crashed several times, every time I got back on, every time I repaired my bike. I am riding for more than fifty years and I am not stopping yet. I now own 8 bikes down from 10, maybe 9 tomorrow or 7, who knows. I have no reason to stop, still love it.
Congrats on your decision! I crashed and broke both my wrists on my motorcycle about 7 years ago. Dr. Told me I could not work with my hands the same way and I did have to decide whether or not to get back on the bike. One day I said to myself: today is the motorcycle, what else will it be tomorrow? Am I going to stop doing things I love because of an incident? No, you get back on the horse. Took by bike piece by piece and put it back together. That was part of the PT my hands needed and really that my soul needed too. Btw, I continued working with my hands. Pd. I live in Seattle and ride a Triumph too. Let me know if you wanna ride some day.
Just took my bike license and purchased a Scrambler. I`ve been driving for 20 years this year (I'm 39) and I'm starting to ride small distances to lose my fear and get the grip and the feels of a motorbike. The fear is bigger than I thought, though - and so is the joy. It seems I become more alive when I'm riding.
I took up motorcycling in my early 40's. Because I had a young family, there were a number of voices trying to talk me out of it. I went ahead, but promised myself that if I had a crash (and survived it), I would quit and accept it was a mistake. Well, 12 years later, I did have a crash. I sustained a couple of minor injuries, and a lot of damage to my bike. But I got straight back on my bike and rode the 60 miles back to my home, went ahead and got my bike repaired, and carried on riding. That was 15 years and four bikes ago. I guess my point is that you don't know for sure how you will respond until it actually happens.
Been riding since 1986. About a year or so into it I was on my first Harley, blissfully riding behind another rider, when a nice little old lady with glaucoma in the oncoming lane turned left in front of me like I wasn't even there. The classic motorcycle accident, which probably should have killed me. Thankfully I stood up on the footpegs at just the right moment of impact, which launched me up and over her Ford Taurus. The crash totaled both the Taurus and the Harley. When approaching touch down on the other side of her car I reached out my right hand to break my fall. In the process I broke my right wrist. Got some nice scrapes on my legs when they went through the fairing and some road rash in several other spots as I skidded to a stop, but was otherwise okay. The funny thing is I really never felt afraid. I knew it was going to hurt and I'd be out of commission for a while, but I was able to compartmentalize it as a learning experience before I hit the ground. The thing that motivated my thoughts, and sort of made me angry, was that I knew it wasn't my fault. She just wasn't paying attention. Knowing that, I became determined to say she wasn't going to stop me from doing something I had grown to love. Forty-nine US states, all nine Canadian provinces and two territories, one little town in Mexico, and one circumnavigation of the coast of Ireland later, I've never looked back.
The choice is STILL YOURS! If you love it hold on to it! Do your due diligence. Keep your bike in good condition. Be aware of your surroundings. Watch out for pedestrians on the road. Maintain a safe distance from other vehicles. Anticipate the actions of other drivers. Use turn signals to alert other drivers of your movement. Check your blind spots before changing lanes or making turns. And my favorite, REMEMBER. . . EVERY INTERSECTION IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR AN ACCIDENT!
LOL! F*ck what my family thinks. My mother has a big scar on her leg from when she wrecked her Harley in the '60s, but the rest of them can go to hell as far as I'm concerned.
Our bikes and generally our vehicles/modes of transport have a lot of sentiment to us and a deeper significance to man in general, And is indeed not a new concept- as there is nothing new under the sun. 11:41 And he said: “Embark therein! In the name of God be her passage and her anchorage.1 My Lord is forgiving and merciful.” وَقَالَ ٱرْكَبُوا۟ فِيهَا بِسْمِ ٱللَّـهِ مَجْر۪ىٰهَا وَمُرْسَىٰهَآ إِنَّ رَبِّى لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ لِتَسْتَوُۥا۟ عَلَىٰ ظُهُورِهِۦ ثُمَّ تَذْكُرُوا۟ نِعْمَةَ رَبِّكُمْ إِذَا ٱسْتَوَيْتُمْ عَلَيْهِ وَتَقُولُوا۟ سُبْحَـٰنَ ٱلَّذِى سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَـٰذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُۥ مُقْرِنِينَ 43:13 That you might settle yourselves upon their backs; then remember the favour of your Lord when you have settled yourselves thereon, and say: “Glory1 be to Him who made this subject for us when we were not equal to it!
This video resonates so much for me. 9 months ago we lost our 17yr old son on his motorbike to a drunk driver and then 4 weeks ago I crashed on my triumph tiger on a gravel patch. My broken bones mend. But in my mind I would like to maybe ride again. But will I be able to get past it psychologically. I don't know.
I sure liked your video. Your message crosses my mind from time to time, but the peace, the absolute freedom and the life perspective it brings to me is more than a fair trade for the risk of accident. I t-boned a car that pulled out in front of me back in 2012. Totaled the bike. Deer charged me and almost took me off my bagger a few years ago. I broke my wrist racing motocross years before that. Motorcycles have been in my blood longer than I can remember. I think my life would have a gaping void in it if I had left the riding business after these accidents(near misses) when I was given several second chances. I watch friends, coworkers and others die at their desks or leave us for other reasons beyond their control well before their prime. If my ticket gets punched on a bike, at least I departed doing something I truly loved. No regrets, no looking back and no fear... I wish and pray for your peace of mind in all your two wheeled travels.
I've crashed twice in my life. Hit gravel in a curve one time and went down pretty hard. A group of Harley dudes saw it and pulled in behind me as I was getting up and brushing myself off. They picked my bike up for me and said, "Keep 'er sunny side up brother" and rode off. I got on the bike and rode it home 50 miles with bent bars and headlight and turn signals hanging by the wiring. The only thing I could think of all the way back is how long will it take me to get my bike fixed. I guess I just love motorcycling!
I’ve been riding since ‘71. Been down lightly 3 times. Nothing major except separated shoulder on the second time. But following the event, I always tried to think about what contributed to the incident. If you look at what you could have done or where you might have spaced your self then it’s easy to see how you could change a practice that may avoid that situation in the future. Remember you can’t fix the stupidity of others but you can anticipate it and take control of your actions to avoid it. If you think about it most incidents occur whit bad results when you didn’t anticipate them. You got into it before you had time to avoid it. So ride a little slower, anticipate the failure of others to see you and always expect the possible worst outcome if an incident were to happen. Take a little responsibility for the naivety of others as self protection for yourself. Keep on, keepin on! 😍🤟
We all know, fears come from the unknown. While knowing that, we still have our personal fears and as you pointed out, we are human. The beauty of being human is when we talk out loud or talk to someone about what our fears are and we listen to our self's, we normally come up with the answers. Then our fears go away. When I was young and learning how to ride a bicycle, I fell a lot and had some pretty bad crashes. My dad told me to get back on the horse that bucked me off. I am glad I listened to him and because of that I loved my bike. Now I ride a motorcycle and it is my prozac. It is a catalyst for my life and I believe it is for many other people that ride motorcycles. Thank you for sharing and go moto-camping. Ride safely.
Man, you've got some nice roads out there! Great content brother. I've actually been meaning to make a video about the time I got hit during Covid. It was during the height of the pandemic, the roads were basically empty and people were driving like Fury Road, I was going through an intersection when an oncoming car decided to turn left, no signal, didn't slow down, and plowed right into me. Long story short, I kept remembering that saying "fall off horse seven times, get back on eight" and as soon as I was healed I was back on a motorcycle. Also funny story, I recently dropped my bike also haha. I was doing some burnouts in some gravel and I lost my balance, also broke the tip of my brake lever!
@@BugMotoChannel Just a few scratches on the foot pegs is all! I figure it was bound to happen one day or another and the scratches just give it a little character haha
I think the one common denominator in many of our YT vids is training and practice because those are the things you can control and we all know that when something happens your mind and body will react without too much thinking. Like when you missed the deer. Then ride and enjoy, and keep learning and practicing. I’m 70 now and I’ve been riding since I was about 14. I had several accidents and in all of them I’ve thought about what happened and focused on keeping those situations from recurring. Believe in yourself and don’t worry about what might happen. There are many things around most of us that are dangerous and we have to constantly be situationally aware of everything around us and immerse ourselves in whatever makes us happy.
As you said, we all have fears. Each time you confront and push through a fear, you will feel better about yourself. I learned aerobatics in an open cockpit biplane. As tight as I had the belts, I still fell out a few inches the first time we flew upside down. I have never been so terrified in all my life. The instructor rolled us back upright. "Do you want to do it again?" I considered my goals, and said yes. After many more lessons, I was comfortable upside down, straight up, straight down, and around and around. I was glad I didn't give up. I have crashed my bikes a few times. The last time, I fractured both legs, a rib, snapped off my collar bone, and banged my head enough to get vertigo. I was 62 years old. I decided, if I am to quit, I will do it on my own terms. As soon as I could walk, I repaired the bike until it looked like new, and got back on it. Rather than be forced out by the circumstance at hand, I work to put myself in a position to continue, and then walk away if that's what I want at that time. It's how I walked away from flying. I'm 75, but I am still riding. This year, I rode on the track again on my ZX10. While I have done 19 track days, there have been fears to overcome anytime I have gone. It's how you improve. You have to push through that voice in your head screaming, "You're going to die!!" I would hear that each time I charged toward turn one at full throttle until the last split second. A few years ago, I saw 158 MPH on three different laps. That was the limit of what I could look at before going to maximum braking to get down to about 95 to make the corner. I wanted to see 160, but it is not likely that I will return to the track to see that now, so I will have to let it go. If you give in to fear, at some point you will be afraid to leave the house. Reach a little deeper, and push through.
@BugMoto Motorcycles I faced this exact situation five months ago. I hit some "kitty litter" oil absorbent from someone else's accident when coming through a turn and low-sided. I had on gear but still broke my wrist and banged up my knee. I'm 46. The bike was mostly ok, just cosmetic damage. I had to have surgery and four months of physical therapy, this week is my final appointment. I've been back on the bikes for the last two months. I couldn't wait to get back on despite the injuries. And yeah, when I first got back on I was SCARED. It was very much like when I had first started riding, all over again (I've been riding for 2+ years and close to 20,000 miles under me). And man did I ride super carefully. Fast forward two months of riding several times every week and I've rediscovered my confidence and even more love for the machine than ever.
I had a similar event in Colorado last year, tooling along about 60mph on my t120 and from the left came a deer, ar a full run, headed right across my path. No time to brake, just enough time to gasp. The deer skidded to a halt b4 crossing my lane, but it was just So Close...scared the crap outa me. It kinda soured my whole trip, id planned on visiting several parks in utah, and i headed back after a couple of days in Moab. Im still riding, of course, but I still see that deer, and shiver at how close it was.
I’ve been riding for about four years now, still fairly a newbie. Actually wrecked pretty bad in the first six months of riding, but I just got banged up and damaged my bike pretty bad. Yeah, it scared me, but not my new-founded passion for riding. So I repaired my bike and got back to riding, I don’t regret coming into hot on the turn, in fact, I’m glad it happened. I learned what I did wrong and I learned how aggressive I can be when I want to ride. It builds character to go through a tactical error.
That fear is the motivation to prepare for any situation that might befall a person. I have crashed. I have broke down. These incidents have thankfully been very few have made be a better rider and more prepared.
Generally I find the first thing to do after picking yourself up is to quickly understand What just happend. If there was some way I could have avoided the Situation & What would have been the Alternative Outcome. Recognise & Ride Within You Own Limits & you'll mostly be fine ! 😊 Great video Bug.
It’s strange, but I’ve never experienced that particular fear. I crashed a couple of time in my teens and tore holes in the knees of my jeans, long before it was fashionable to have torn jeans. Skinned my knees too, but they healed ok. So nothing serious and it never crossed my mind that I wouldn’t get back on my motorbike. Twenty years ago, I took advanced training and that helped enormously with my frustration that I wasn’t naturally good at riding a bike. I wasn’t dangerous; I just wasn’t any good at it. Many years ago, a famous motorsport commentator in the uk, who had a collection of motorbikes that he loved, described the day that he looked at his collection and realised that he would never ride them again. Old age had overtaken him. That became my great fear for the future. That day I realise I won’t ride my motorcycle again - I dread it. Today, I’m in my mid seventies and just recovering from the second bout of covid in 18 months. The first bout left me feeling low for a long time, and I’m worried I might not pick myself up from this episode. But sitting here, it’s 9 a.m., and I’ve made myself a promise to go outside, take the covers off my motorbike (a BMW R1200S), and check it over to make sure it’s ready for its next ride - with me onboard.
If it hasn't happened yet it doesn't exist. Sure, plan for contingencies but don't let something that doesn't exist rule you. If it has happened then there is no changing that fact. Accept , learn and grow. Move forward from it. Love the brake lever pendant.
I am 76 and a disabled vet with PTSD. I haven't riden in about 15y. So. While i was considering purchasing another bike i fell While trying to move a tree out of my driveway. One year after surgery they did another surgery to remove the screws from my right hip. So about two months later i purchased a bike. STAND BY!! My experience had been on crushers ect., but i decided i do something different. I purchased a 2022 Suzuki HAYABUSA!! Yes oh Shit. I was get ready by buy riding and preparing mentally to ride that missile. But while unhitching my trailer i had been working on. I FELL AND BROKE MY RIGHT HIP. I just couldn't believe it. What are the odds. So know that bike sits on the trailer staring at me. My wife is constantly warning me Not to get on that bike or your going to kill yourself. 🙄 I want to ride that dam thing but seem to be losing my nerve. I have Never riden a sport bike which doesn't help my confidence. I am a little intimidated but determined. I live in north Ga and want to ride the western Nc mountains real bad. Wish me LUCK!!
My first crash on two wheels was at age 2,5 in 1974. My father taught me to ride, he walked along supporting my pedalling by holding the saddle. I was busy so I didn't took notice when he let go. I remember looking over my shoulder, losing balance and falling because he shouted "You ride solo!". He rushed to help, put me back on the saddle pushing me and made me pedal again. After that I crashed almost every day, was sort of part my jobdescription as a kid. Fast forward to 2003. I just made my license for a motorcycle, my first bike was a Yamaha XV 1000 (aka TR-1). My still today good friend made join him on a trip to the austrian alps (Tirol) just 2 weeks after passing the exam. After a long but reeal awseome day, I didn't notice that I was fatigued. On the way back to the hotel, I made a mistke (took a corner way to far on the inside rather than perparing it from the outside), and this mistake accumulated to a point where I ran out of road. The frontweel slipped away, i did a somesault and ended like a helpless ladybug on my back. I checked for serious pain or damage, luckily I was fine. Eventually my friend returned to the scene after (felt) ages. He checked on me, helped me back on my feet. We checked the bike, it sled head on into a tree stump that lay at the side of the road. No way to ride it home. He forced me on the backseat and the very next day he forced me riding his bike to get spare parts. I was soo scared to crash his bike too. If I would, we'd be stuck in the alps. I told him about my fear. He seriously yelled at me to get the f*k on his bike to get the parts, because if I didn't we'd stuck there anyways. Besides, he'd be the "mechanic" not me. So I had to, I had no choice. What have those two stories in common? There was someone who did not allow my fear to take grip. Both yelled louder and more convincing that my fear could in that second (beause it was still "small"). Both men made sure, that I got back onto the saddle. To this day, I am grateful for this. I think that if you crash and you are lucky enough to be able to get onto the bike almost immeadiatly, you rrreeaaly should. Do not hesistate, do not think. If there is no friend to do the yelling, yell to yourself. It is the kid inside that's scared, not the adult. Buy you inner kid an ice cone later, but get him onto the bike immeadiatly. Otherwise, the fear might take grip. If one has bad luck and hurt oneself seriously - the older one gets, the more difficult it may be, because the physical healing takes longer as it used to. That's a differrent ball game. I think, one should use intense selftalk and visualisation techniques to get onto the bike. Start over just like you did when you where a learning rider. Work yoursef back on the bike (becaus it IS work). If the love and passion is just big enough, chances are quite good that fear will be outnumbered by your love, passion and - foremost - determination to ride again. Have I crashed since then? No, but just a couple of weeks I had a pretty close call. We were in the austrian alps again. Today, I ride a 1994 Suzuki VX800. There was a handfull of sand waiting for me in a hairpin serpentina which I have overseen. It nastily sat in my breaking point. My bike shook, I slammed my right foot on the ground while pulling the clutch and let go of the throttle. My bike did the rest to save us. Such a great gal ;) My foot hurt and I was in a shock. I thought of stopping, but - hey - we are taling about narrow and steep roads in the alps. No Chance of pulling over for a couple of miles. So once again: no choice but serious selfcare and selftalk to keep going all the way back to the hotel. So, bottom line: my Guess is that in any case you should never feel too confident in your riding skills. Chances are that you miss something in your attenion or on the road. If you do, you make mistakes that might end you up like a ladybug on your back or slamming your foot on the Ground. That's how I think on can prepare. And if you crash, it's a Question of if your love and Passion is strong enought to support your hard selfcare work to get back on. As we say in Germany: "Bleib oben!" (Stay on top, don't crash)
I wrecked my '98 Fat Boy on a wet interstate in northern Florida. The insurance company totaled it due to a crack in the frame. I drove myself to the emergency room once some fellow riders and their wives with trailers in tow got us all back home. I drove myself to the emergency room to get checked out. Fortunately, after a full body xray, no broken bones were found, just some cuts and bruises, and the feeling that I was beaten half to death by someone with a crowbar. The next day, after the pain meds wore off, and I could focus, I got on the internet, diligently looking for my next bike. I found one, and in two weeks I was on a 4 year old, 2002 Harley Road King classic. It's now 18 years later, and I am still ridiing my 22 year old bike, solo. I will be 69 September 01, 2024!
I crashed on the freeway 2 years ago at age 69. Got distracted for a second. Got slowed to 40 mph before impact. Full gear.... Bruised groin and ego. Got another bike within 2 weeks and still having fun. These things can happen to anyone. Its just how a person responds afterwards. If your scared or terrified about riding again I would suggest you dont or wait a while. Im so glad I wasnt seriously injured and able to ride again. Nobody in my family suggested I stop riding. They know better. I do avoid freeways more often and got a smaller bike. Just my experience. Good video
Kind of 15 year ago, I had a accident and I´ve lot my bike (HD883) back there ... I stayed maybe 1 month thiking about it and jumped back to a BMW GS800 and from there, to a GS1200 ..... After this last one, I stayed 12 years from biking .... not because I was afraid of them, but for personal and financial reasons ... I recently (6 months ago) bought a T120 and all I think now is " damn, I´ve lost 12 years of bike riding" (laughs) ... Biking calms me, stops me thinking about mundane problems and it´s a miracle for taking the stress out of my mind and body ... So, I intend to never walk away from bikes as long as I´m healthy enough for riding them ... cheers.
Lol! This one made me laugh! I agree completely with your fears and trepidations Bug but I also completely agree with your conclusion. With my last bike I ended up on my fourth clutch lever and like you, I put them in my pocket after each incident, red faced with embarrassment at my own stupidity but I never thought about turning them into a necklace. Genius idea. But yes, just get on and ride again. I've fallen off loads of times over the years and have the scars to prove it but I'm less inclined to do so these days and ride accordingly. However just last weekend I screwed up while turning around in a narrow country road with a weird camber and my brand new Honda NC750X began to topple over to the right as I attempted the last point of the turn. But instead of just giving up and jumping clear, accepting the inevitable clang of a broken handlebar lever, I managed to lower it gently to the ground, legs trembling and muscles shaking, so that it ended up without a mark on it. Phew! No new clutch or brake lever this time! As I strained to return the bike to an upright position, a car came briskly around the corner and caught me in the act. I'm so glad he managed to stop in time! The point is, if you worry about riding every time you go out, or carry lots of safety aids and dress in hi-viz clothing, like BMW riders seem to do (joke!) then you'll end up so timid you'll feel afraid of doing anything. This stuff is character building and it has positive effects in many other areas of your life. Getting on a motorcycle is a risk - but just go and do it anyway. Dust yourself and get back in the saddle in.
I appreciate what you're saying. From my own experience I'll offer that some people have PTSD after a traumatic incident and some don't. And you won't know how you will react until it happens. Anything before that is just a guess no matter what your life experience has been. You feel the same feeling you had when you had the accident. I get that still. I went down on a BMW in a low speed intersection crash. A twisted my right knee very badly and took a 6-month recovery and it is still weak 10 years later. I would lay in bed watching bike videos and whenever someone would lean into a curve I would get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach, the same feeling I had as I was going down. I sold my bike while still recovering. I regret that. But I also haven't riden since. I still get a little bit of that queasy feeling if I think of laying it over. It's not a fear of death or even really a fear of injury though it was a real hard time in recovery, a lot of pain and a lot of work. I'm still thinking about riding again. Still thinking.
I haven't crashed on 2 wheels since it was a 21 speed in college. I had a car crash 15 years ago, and it was hard to get back in and drive, even a car. Not sure about a motorcycle. But I'd try, I may fail... It wouldn't be the first time. 😂
On a beautiful October morning in 1982 I was knocked off my '82 Yahama 750 out into a freshly plowed field in West Texas. The telephone company van had stopped and I relaxed, you know the feeling. Then here it came, just like I wasn't there! Later I was told I landed 150 ft from the impact. I remember flipping head, feet, head, feet until I stopped. After three days in intensive care I was moved to a room. Over the next fifteen days I lost count of the well-wishers who commented, after an accident like that I'd probably never ride again." I loved riding. I'd started on a 60cc Yamaha at 16 and already had half a dozen motorcycles before the 750. I began to wonder, should I , could I. I was finally released and sent home with a cast from hip to foot after a total hospital stay of 18 days. My first day home, after my wife went to work, I went out into the garage and looked at her 650 Yamaha. I raised the door rolled it out, laid my cast over the tank, started it up and drove around the block! Well, I know someone reading this is saying, "how stupid," and you may be right, but I'm still riding! Last summer my wife and I did 5596 miles in 39 days and 7 states from Texas to Wyoming on our '02 Goldwing that has 200,000 miles on it and "We Ain't Done!" flic.kr/s/aHBqjB5fbT
I have some kind of nylons and screws in my right arm in order to make it work, injuries in the neck and back, and of course I fear a crash and that my arm won't work again but the bike is so good for me, so I just try to minimize the risk and be glad to get home every time. The risk is there always, but the fear... just sometimes.
2017 riding over the lawn at work fell over. Leaves, acorns recently watered the BMW FELL ON my Right foot. $78000 later, with BC/BS and AFLAC My mind said NO. IT took 2 years to get mentally over my fear and hesitation. Don't let fear beat you. In the new testament it says do not be afraid about 500 times
Bug, I just try to be safe as best I can. ATGATT I've been riding since 1985. I've had a few accidents. Most have happened in the last ten years. Neither one was my fault (CT seems to have cornered the market on bad drivers). The first one happened on my 2009 Triumph Tiger 1050. I was stopped at a light, in the right lane of two, with no one in the left lane, but cars in front and in back of me in both lanes. A young driver in one of the oncoming two lanes, seeing the gap in traffic, gunned her car to go in a business driveway. Cutting through two lanes of traffic, just as the light changed, and we started moving. The result was a totaled motorcycle, a broken left shoulder, broken left hip, cracked pelvis, a few surgeries, a month in rehab, PT and a lost riding season. I replaced that motorcycle with a 2004 BMW R1150R, the next year. I rode that a few years, along with a 2009 Triumph Speed Triple. The next accident happened when a bicyclist took a left out of a side street, right in front of the BMW. I hit his back tire (That's how close he was), and went down. The cyclist wasn't hurt, but I slid the motorcycle. I ended up with a broken left wrist and six compound broken ribs, more PT and another lost season. Now I'm riding a 1979 Kawasaki KZ400b, a Vespa ET4, a 2023 Vespa GTS 300, a 2010 Triumph Speed Triple, and I still have the BMW. I turned 70 years old this year, and I don't know how many more years I can ride, but I enjoy it so much. I just might not rip around back roads with the guys like I used to. Enjoy your ride, and don't stress about what might happen. Be safe and enjoy the ride!
Loved your video. Definitely makes you think about what if I was in a crash…what would I do after I’ve healed. Well, I’m living that right now after a year of recovery. I had a Triumph XC 800, Beta 300, Vespa and a fat tire bike. Jan 8,2023 I was coming home after an e- bike ride and was two streets away from my house in a residential area and a pick up truck ran a stop sign doing about 35 and hit me throwing me about 40 feet, I ended up with a shattered tibia, broken pelvis, three broken ribs and a concussion. I woke up in the trauma unit and had already had three operations. I had an excellent trauma Doctor who put me back together. It’s been a year of PT going from I wheelchair, then a walker and now I’m walking well and I’ve started riding a new fat tire E bike as of a week ago. I’m grateful to be alive and I take one day at a time. My plan is to start riding the Vespa, and see how that goes. Not sure if I will get back on the motorcycle , as I still have some fears around that. I Am 69 and I have been riding since I was a teenager so it’s really hard to think about giving up riding totally. My wife was a huge help in my recovery and my champion in helping me get through this difficult time. She’s not real keen on me getting back on a motorcycle. This whole experience has made me grateful for each day and for the many blessings I have. Ride Safe!
30 years ago I ran a stop sign I didn’t see. T-boned a car, wrote off my Z750 and broke my leg. It healed fine. I went back to the site of the accident and figured out why it happened, lessons learned. But we had just migrated from UK to Australia, and had to promise my wife not to get another bike. 30 years later, just got divorced. Visited some dealers, rode a few bikes, and now have a new Triumph on order. I missed the joy of riding, but at least I kept my promise. On the test ride the trepidation about riding went away almost immediately, and when I got back to the shop I couldn’t stop grinning.
Well, sadly, I've already had to work through this. The experience will be different for everyone but let me share $10 worth of free advice...there is simply nothing to be gained by focusing on "what if". The reality of such an event will never match any preconceived notion or fear you may have. You don't know what you don't know. I rode for 39 years without a scratch, all kinds of bikes and all kinds of places...what happened to me was, for all practical purposes, unavoidable. A careless, aggressive and very reckless driver was the bullet that had my name on it. Broken leg, ankle, back (not paralyzed thank God), rib, foot, cuts....the whole nine yards. But you know what, those problems heal. It was the days, weeks and months after the crash that changed riding for me. Initially, laying in the ICU after a ride in a helicopter, I wasn't even thinking of motorcycles, riding or really anything except my family. Later, as is the norm, I swore off of riding...and that lasted about 2 weeks. Then the "I can't let this stop me" mentality set in....and so on. This persisted for months as my body healed. In the end, insurance replaced the bike and the real challenges began. Can I do this? Will riding ever be the same? Is this fair to my family or am I being selfish? Everyone has to work through this in their own way and at their own pace. There's no shame in hanging up your spurs and swearing off riding. Equally there's nothing wrong with getting back on the horse and putting the past behind you. It's a deeply personal decision. Eventually, I climbed back on and slowly began riding again, but not without some bumps in the road. Hideous loops of anxiety were in play, especially at first. Crippling anxiety. The initial rides were anything but the fun and enjoyable experiences I once took for granted. As time went on the unreasonable fears abated and the joy slowly returned. But I'll be the first to admit, it's not the same. That's not to say it's bad either, just different. Again, I thank God every day for all that I have. And in many ways this has made riding, and life in general even better because now I know, not think or imagine, but know how precious it all really is.
Thank you for sharing this. This is exactly the kind of story I was hoping to hear. Any situation in life that challenges your very existence is sure to change your attitude about life as a whole. I have some experience with this - not motorcycle-related - but reading your words, I can see now how my experience changed me, and how, instead of just giving up on things, I doubled down. I'll remember that now.
I appreciate the subject. I have crashed three times on the racetrack. Two low sides, one high side all at over 105 MPH. The high side was the worst. 140 MPH, airlifted to a trauma center. Knocked out my front teeth. You wear your broken lever end around your neck. I refused to fix my teeth as a reminder of my mistake until my dentist insisted. Never gave not riding a second thought back then. Stopped riding for a decade, then bought my Multistrada. On my first trip I tipped over three times in less than a mile. Never had a bike with luggage and never ridden with luggage. Was concerned that if I tipped over and no one would help me, could I lift the bike by myself? So I bought an Eastmont bike jack to carry. I do think about how I’d now react if I crashed. I try my best to not think about it and live by a Japanese saying since I’m a Japanese American. “Fall down seven, get up eight.” I wear a hat with that written in Kanji to remind myself to be brave and endure. Am I embarrassed about any of my crashes or tip-overs? Nope. Do I worry? Sometimes yes.
A few days ago a friend of mine was in an accident on his bike. He was rear-ended by a fellow biker. He received minor injuries and possibly the bike will be totaled. It could’ve been much worse. That got me to thinking heavily on this exact issue since her told me about it: if it happened to me, would I get back on and ride? We know the risk. That might be part of the reason we ride. But if the risk comes down upon me, what would I do “after the crash”? Excellent timing of sharing this message. Thank you.
My only fear watching your extraordinary videos is guessing if the library music it’s going to be acceptable or a complete nightmare. Yup. You guess it. Said that, scratches are beautiful. Means lived motorcycles, not just immaculate exhibition beauties , like a girl with a bad tattoo that burps louder than you but kisses like no other. I loooooove your content. Give me more! 👍👍👍
When I was a youth, I regularly came off my old Bonnie. I was never taught to ride....I mean it's just a self-powered bicycle isn't it?🤣🙄 The thought of not getting back on was unthinkable as most of my friends were bikers. But I did sell up when I became a dad. Now I've returned after 40 years, I'm more cautious and wary of situations. In no time my confidence returned, until the day the roads in my area had new gravel laid on them for resurfacing. Even at the obligatory 20mph whilst it beds in, it felt like I was riding over marbles as my rear wheel skittered sideways. That terror of dropping the bike set me back some but as I'm ¾ of the way thru my life, do you think I'll give up and sink into a comfy chair with a book? Hell no!! I'm getting booked onto an advanced riders course with the local police, and will repeat that every few years until they tell me to hang my helmet up 👍
After about 35 years of riding last year a tire blowout finally took me down at 70mph. I had decent riding gear so no road rash to speak of but the handlebar caught me in the chest causing some significant damage. Doc said if I hit any harder I would have died on the side of the road. Spent some time in the hospital and about 5 months recovering. I repaired the bike before I even recovered from my injuries. Spent a couple hrs on the floor after replacing the wheel because I realized I was to badly hurt to get back up. Lol I am back to riding regularly but I tend to take the bike with tubeless tires because the spoked wheels are more prone to catastrophic blowouts. Plus I think twice about the interstate and sustained high speed travel. I still get on the interstate but always with a nagging thought of what happened. I assume I will get passed it someday.
I went down a couple times early in my career, early '60s. Does it bother me that I could go down again? A little. But I worry more that I wouldn't be able to get up again to enjoy riding. Then again worry never solved anything.
It's not the finances, or the fear, that scares the crap out of me... it's the entire loss of my life, or losing the use of multiple limbs, or living in a wheelchair, or losing my sight, or having a traumatic brain injury that leaves my mother to look after me. I wasn't given the most capable body physically, I have a bad right ankle that causes me pain rather constantly, and I can't seem to eat anything without bloating. But at least I am able-bodied. Having some kind of serious physical or mental injury could be catastrophic to my future, or my family's future. And losing my life altogether would crush my mother and my girlfriend and my brothers and sisters. It's why I don't ride anymore. Because I've seen too many instances of death on motorcycles caused by the strangest of occurrences. It doesn't take much on a bike to cause something like this, even with good gear on. It's just not worth it for me. I had one crash, and I walked away from it. But the next one maybe I don't. So I stopped. Not immediately after. I got back on when my bike was fixed, but a few years later. Something suddenly took the desire away. And I can live with that. Yes, I miss the pleasures, but living able-bodied is also a pleasure. Living itself is a pleasure. And I don't have to live at max volume to enjoy living. I can enjoy just living.
I totally respect that. I'm at the point where, while I know I COULD live without riding, it would hurt me too much mentally. But things change over time...
Probably a fear that gets mostly road bike riders, I'm glad I had 45+ years riding farm bikes and dirt bikes before I ever bought a bike for the road, falling off is just something that happens on a regular basis offroad, you expect it and it doesn't bother you when it happens, you get used to bent stuff , broken stuff, including collarbones in my case, so it's not something I give any thought to even on road.
I stopped counting after 15 on-pavement crashes. Retired club racer; lifelong canyon carver; long distance commuter; dirt / trials rider as well. Retired only two helmets due to impact. In other cases, the helmet did not hit appreciably or at all. Almost all of those crashes happened 20+ years ago. Walked away in all cases. I've hurt myself worse on bicycles than motorcycles. Fear is life-sapping bullshit. Don't be a soy boy; full speed ahead. If you happen to check out before you're drooling and soiling a diaper, consider that a win.
The short answer is no. Motorcycling is the only thing I truly enjoy. After 38 years of riding thousands of miles and a few bumps, broken bones and bruises along the way; There is nothing that will stop me from riding. At least until I'm six feet under. It's mind over matter...I don't mind, because it doesn't matter. 😎
The old Norse believed that you could not change your path or your destiny. It was a mindset that allowed them to not sweat about what may happen. I think about how much we worry about "what may happen" and realize it usually doesn't. Don't sweat the what ifs.
Fear (and worry) are based in lack of faith. After seeing a motorcycle accident that a little boy (~10) shouldn't have seen, I didn't ride until learning at 72. Thinking of all the situations during which God had protected me and remembering Jesus urging Peter to get out of the boat and walk on the water, I realized that lacking faith was like a slap in the face of God. I made up a short prayer which I say before EACH ride, then thank God profusely upon HIS returning me safely and unhurt. I ride in F A I T H ... When God decides to 'recall' me, I hope that HE does so in some other way. 😋
I came off a couple of times in London (no deer). I live in rural France now (plenty of deer). My fear is of crashing my Triumph Speedmaster or breaking down on some little country lane (or even just getting a puncture) and having to call my French Triumph dealer or my French insurance company's emergency helpline (There is no Automobile Association here). Will they speak English? Why should they speak English? Can I speak enough French? Probably not. Why not? (I'm learning. I'm trying). I have a panic sheet in my panniers with all the numbers and a script. Will there be a mobile phone signal? For me the only real attraction of a BMW is that little red emergency button. More bikes should have them.
#1. Are those the stock handlebars or aftermarket, they seem to have more of a sweep, they seem taller and closer to the rider. #2. Here I am breaking my head trying to figure out who you sounds like, there is another TH-camr that has a similar voice and narrates just like you do. Last but not least I try not to think of the worst, just enjoy it while you still can!
I am signed up to train to go back motorbiking. I am 61. I do not remember this level of danger and I’m getting spooked. Could it be the case that the accident rates are a lot higher in the United States than in Europe? No offence intended!
I've had two accidents, neither my fault legally. But I've come to understand outside a one-of-a-billion chance, we/I are/am at fault. We need to obey the laws and never expect them to. Ride as if THEY want to kill you. I always hyper-attract attention to myself (Bike). I weave, play with the headlight if I feel it's necessary, and give them a thank you wave as I pass for not killing me. How did I get over it? The first I was a passenger on the bike I wanted to buy and I was going to have that bike regardless. The second, a lady ran a redlight, I saw her coming and with a young entitled mind I refused to budge. Guess who lost? The first, I never let on to my parents, got a loan and bought the bike. The second, I parked the bike, went to class (college) couldn't play football but I could damn sure ride a bike. Never let bs steal your love.
Loved your video. Definitely makes you think about what if I was in a crash… Well, I’m living that right now after a year of recovery. I had a Triumph XC 800, Beta 300, Vespa and a fat tire bike. Jan 8,2023 I was coming home after an e- bike ride and was two streets away from my house in a residential area and a pick up truck ran a stop sign doing about 35 and hit me throwing me about 40 feet, I ended up with a shattered tibia, broken pelvis, three broken ribs and a concussion. I woke up in the trauma unit and had already had three operations. I had an excellent trauma Doctor who put me back together. It’s been a year of PT going from I wheelchair, then a walker and now I’m walking well and I’ve started riding a new fat tire E bike as of a week ago. I’m grateful to be alive and I take one day at a time. My plan is to start riding the Vespa, and see how that goes. Not sure if I will get back on the motorcycle , as I still have some fears around that. I Am 69 and I have been riding since I was a teenager so it’s really hard to think about giving up riding totally. My wife was a huge help in my recovery and my champion in helping me get through this difficult time. She’s not real keen on me getting back on a motorcycle. This whole experience has made me grateful for each day and for the many blessings I have. Ride Safe!
Yikes. Glad you made it through that... I find it interesting that you're gonna give the Vespa a go and not the motorcycle for now... I feel 'safer' on my Vespa as well, but in reality, they probably carry about the same risk, no? Perhaps the Vespa isn't as fast... I dunno. Thoughts?
@@BugMotoChannel the problem for me is the seat height on the Beta 300 is 35 inches. With the pelvic injury, it’s hard for me to get my leg over it. The Vespa is much easier as it is a through. I’m actually thinking about the Triumph 900 scrambler possibly because it’s got a lower seat height and easier to swing my leg over.
Let’s Face it, Riding a motorcycle is dangerous 😮 You got Two wheels and when your coming off your coming off Hard !! You hope and maybe it’s Fate, that you don’t hit anything Solid on the road or a car that stops you dead. Sliding down the road with full gear is no problem, bruised but you still have your skin, and you’ll walk away. It’s when you hit hard, the road or barrier or worse a tree or windscreen of a 🚗 😢, that’s when you gonna hurt yourself. You can still walk away, but your gonna be sore, I think you should be aware that you can come off at any time, but this doubt, may also keep you safe, the over take you should not do, the car driver who does not see and will never see you coming, so on the breaks, anticipate these muppets. Top quality gear, no shorts 🩳 T-shirt 👕 ever. I could go on 😊 its freedom beyond compare and you should learn and be as safe as you can be in this bonkers world full of deer and loony drivers, slippy roads with oil and holes you can swim in 😂 it’s motorcycling what are you gonna do 😊
![🔴 ฟุตบอลแชมป์กีฬา 7HD แชมเปียน คัพ 2024 [รอบรองชนะเลิศ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/zPm8ClLVhoE/mqdefault.jpg)
I rode trail bikes from 13 years old and stacked it heaps of times but no major injuries. On the road from 17 -22 and then the week before my 23rd birthday I got hit by a car and lost my left leg below the knee. Now 63 and still riding. If it’s in your blood you find a way to get back on the bike. I’ve had heaps more crashes on mountain bikes but just not as serious. Just ride within your limits as that’s all you can control. You can either spend your time worrying about ‘what if’ or go riding. I know what I’m doing….
One way i deal with that fear is also cataloging the contributing factors and realizing that most of them are in my control.
Sure, I'm not in control of drivers that don't see me, or freak accidents.
But i am in control of:
Speed
Alcohol
Wearing great gear
Training
Road skills and strategies
Riding unfamiliar bikes
My ego
Riding to the conditions
Scanning the road ahead
Lane position
Cornering
Bike maintenance
I focus on what i can control and stay ready and aware of the things i cannot, and then i choose to enjoy my ride
Take care everyone
I had an injury crash (broken wrist) on my first motorcycle in 1974. That kept me off riding for 24 years! In the interim I took up cycling. Over the years I've unfortunately experienced 3 crashes resulting in injuries ranging from road rash, concussions and broken ribs. Most recently I crashed in 2020 and woke up to discover EMT putting me on a stretcher and an ambulance ride to the ER. I always got back on my bike within a few days and at 72 I'm still an avid cyclist. I started back on motorcycles in 1998 and haven't looked back. In retrospect my first crash was entirely my fault. I didn't know how to ride. Even though I've never taken any riding class I've developed my defensive and awareness skills to the point that now I ride around 10,000 miles a year in confidence. I plan on riding into my 80's. If I do in a motorcycle crash at 82 years old, it beats dying in a nursing home.
YES! My sentiments exactly. I told my daughter I'll never go to a care home or rely on her to care for me in my dotage, as I'm not afraid of death. Brings to mind the lyrics of Jethro Tull's 'Too Old to Rock 'n Roll, Too Young to Die", although it'd be tragic to destroy a great bike in the process.
I crashed several times, every time I got back on, every time I repaired my bike. I am riding for more than fifty years and I am not stopping yet. I now own 8 bikes down from 10, maybe 9 tomorrow or 7, who knows. I have no reason to stop, still love it.
Congrats on your decision!
I crashed and broke both my wrists on my motorcycle about 7 years ago. Dr. Told me I could not work with my hands the same way and I did have to decide whether or not to get back on the bike.
One day I said to myself: today is the motorcycle, what else will it be tomorrow? Am I going to stop doing things I love because of an incident? No, you get back on the horse.
Took by bike piece by piece and put it back together. That was part of the PT my hands needed and really that my soul needed too.
Btw, I continued working with my hands.
Pd. I live in Seattle and ride a Triumph too. Let me know if you wanna ride some day.
Just took my bike license and purchased a Scrambler. I`ve been driving for 20 years this year (I'm 39) and I'm starting to ride small distances to lose my fear and get the grip and the feels of a motorbike. The fear is bigger than I thought, though - and so is the joy. It seems I become more alive when I'm riding.
I took up motorcycling in my early 40's. Because I had a young family, there were a number of voices trying to talk me out of it. I went ahead, but promised myself that if I had a crash (and survived it), I would quit and accept it was a mistake. Well, 12 years later, I did have a crash. I sustained a couple of minor injuries, and a lot of damage to my bike. But I got straight back on my bike and rode the 60 miles back to my home, went ahead and got my bike repaired, and carried on riding. That was 15 years and four bikes ago. I guess my point is that you don't know for sure how you will respond until it actually happens.
Been riding since 1986. About a year or so into it I was on my first Harley, blissfully riding behind another rider, when a nice little old lady with glaucoma in the oncoming lane turned left in front of me like I wasn't even there. The classic motorcycle accident, which probably should have killed me. Thankfully I stood up on the footpegs at just the right moment of impact, which launched me up and over her Ford Taurus. The crash totaled both the Taurus and the Harley. When approaching touch down on the other side of her car I reached out my right hand to break my fall. In the process I broke my right wrist. Got some nice scrapes on my legs when they went through the fairing and some road rash in several other spots as I skidded to a stop, but was otherwise okay. The funny thing is I really never felt afraid. I knew it was going to hurt and I'd be out of commission for a while, but I was able to compartmentalize it as a learning experience before I hit the ground. The thing that motivated my thoughts, and sort of made me angry, was that I knew it wasn't my fault. She just wasn't paying attention. Knowing that, I became determined to say she wasn't going to stop me from doing something I had grown to love. Forty-nine US states, all nine Canadian provinces and two territories, one little town in Mexico, and one circumnavigation of the coast of Ireland later, I've never looked back.
Great topic. One fear I have is that I will be injured in a crash and confirm the negative perception that many family members have.
That's a really good point. I hadn't thought of things that way...
The choice is STILL YOURS! If you love it hold on to it! Do your due diligence.
Keep your bike in good condition.
Be aware of your surroundings.
Watch out for pedestrians on the road.
Maintain a safe distance from other vehicles.
Anticipate the actions of other drivers.
Use turn signals to alert other drivers of your movement.
Check your blind spots before changing lanes or making turns.
And my favorite,
REMEMBER. . .
EVERY INTERSECTION IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR AN ACCIDENT!
LOL! F*ck what my family thinks. My mother has a big scar on her leg from when she wrecked her Harley in the '60s, but the rest of them can go to hell as far as I'm concerned.
May God keep you upright on your bike and both of you safe 🙌🏾
Our bikes and generally our vehicles/modes of transport have a lot of sentiment to us and a deeper significance to man in general, And is indeed not a new concept- as there is nothing new under the sun.
11:41 And he said: “Embark therein! In the name of God be her passage and her anchorage.1 My Lord is forgiving and merciful.”
وَقَالَ ٱرْكَبُوا۟ فِيهَا بِسْمِ ٱللَّـهِ مَجْر۪ىٰهَا وَمُرْسَىٰهَآ إِنَّ رَبِّى لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
لِتَسْتَوُۥا۟ عَلَىٰ ظُهُورِهِۦ ثُمَّ تَذْكُرُوا۟ نِعْمَةَ رَبِّكُمْ إِذَا ٱسْتَوَيْتُمْ عَلَيْهِ وَتَقُولُوا۟ سُبْحَـٰنَ ٱلَّذِى سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَـٰذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُۥ مُقْرِنِينَ
43:13 That you might settle yourselves upon their backs; then remember the favour of your Lord when you have settled yourselves thereon, and say: “Glory1 be to Him who made this subject for us when we were not equal to it!
This video resonates so much for me. 9 months ago we lost our 17yr old son on his motorbike to a drunk driver and then 4 weeks ago I crashed on my triumph tiger on a gravel patch. My broken bones mend. But in my mind I would like to maybe ride again. But will I be able to get past it psychologically. I don't know.
I sure liked your video. Your message crosses my mind from time to time, but the peace, the absolute freedom and the life perspective it brings to me is more than a fair trade for the risk of accident. I t-boned a car that pulled out in front of me back in 2012. Totaled the bike. Deer charged me and almost took me off my bagger a few years ago. I broke my wrist racing motocross years before that. Motorcycles have been in my blood longer than I can remember. I think my life would have a gaping void in it if I had left the riding business after these accidents(near misses) when I was given several second chances. I watch friends, coworkers and others die at their desks or leave us for other reasons beyond their control well before their prime. If my ticket gets punched on a bike, at least I departed doing something I truly loved. No regrets, no looking back and no fear... I wish and pray for your peace of mind in all your two wheeled travels.
I've crashed twice in my life. Hit gravel in a curve one time and went down pretty hard. A group of Harley dudes saw it and pulled in behind me as I was getting up and brushing myself off. They picked my bike up for me and said, "Keep 'er sunny side up brother" and rode off. I got on the bike and rode it home 50 miles with bent bars and headlight and turn signals hanging by the wiring. The only thing I could think of all the way back is how long will it take me to get my bike fixed. I guess I just love motorcycling!
I’ve been riding since ‘71. Been down lightly 3 times. Nothing major except separated shoulder on the second time. But following the event, I always tried to think about what contributed to the incident. If you look at what you could have done or where you might have spaced your self then it’s easy to see how you could change a practice that may avoid that situation in the future. Remember you can’t fix the stupidity of others but you can anticipate it and take control of your actions to avoid it. If you think about it most incidents occur whit bad results when you didn’t anticipate them. You got into it before you had time to avoid it. So ride a little slower, anticipate the failure of others to see you and always expect the possible worst outcome if an incident were to happen. Take a little responsibility for the naivety of others as self protection for yourself. Keep on, keepin on! 😍🤟
Fear is good. It's our defence mechanism to ensure we ride safely
We all know, fears come from the unknown. While knowing that, we still have our personal fears and as you pointed out, we are human. The beauty of being human is when we talk out loud or talk to someone about what our fears are and we listen to our self's, we normally come up with the answers. Then our fears go away. When I was young and learning how to ride a bicycle, I fell a lot and had some pretty bad crashes. My dad told me to get back on the horse that bucked me off. I am glad I listened to him and because of that I loved my bike. Now I ride a motorcycle and it is my prozac. It is a catalyst for my life and I believe it is for many other people that ride motorcycles. Thank you for sharing and go moto-camping. Ride safely.
Thank you for this.
Man, you've got some nice roads out there! Great content brother. I've actually been meaning to make a video about the time I got hit during Covid. It was during the height of the pandemic, the roads were basically empty and people were driving like Fury Road, I was going through an intersection when an oncoming car decided to turn left, no signal, didn't slow down, and plowed right into me. Long story short, I kept remembering that saying "fall off horse seven times, get back on eight" and as soon as I was healed I was back on a motorcycle.
Also funny story, I recently dropped my bike also haha. I was doing some burnouts in some gravel and I lost my balance, also broke the tip of my brake lever!
HA! Did you have any other damage? Aside from a scratched exhaust pipe cover, I had nothing! I couldn't believe it.
@@BugMotoChannel Just a few scratches on the foot pegs is all! I figure it was bound to happen one day or another and the scratches just give it a little character haha
I think the one common denominator in many of our YT vids is training and practice because those are the things you can control and we all know that when something happens your mind and body will react without too much thinking. Like when you missed the deer. Then ride and enjoy, and keep learning and practicing. I’m 70 now and I’ve been riding since I was about 14. I had several accidents and in all of them I’ve thought about what happened and focused on keeping those situations from recurring. Believe in yourself and don’t worry about what might happen. There are many things around most of us that are dangerous and we have to constantly be situationally aware of everything around us and immerse ourselves in whatever makes us happy.
One of the best videos I've seen in a long time. Honest and heartfelt. Well done.
Tinnitus forced me to stop riding. Even with years of custom earplugs, at 64 I just couldn't see me enabling future hearing loss. Ride on.
Greg - I have tinnitus as well. The combination of custom earplugs and a Goldwing seems to work for me.
As you said, we all have fears. Each time you confront and push through a fear, you will feel better about yourself.
I learned aerobatics in an open cockpit biplane. As tight as I had the belts, I still fell out a few inches the first time we flew upside down. I have never been so terrified in all my life. The instructor rolled us back upright. "Do you want to do it again?" I considered my goals, and said yes. After many more lessons, I was comfortable upside down, straight up, straight down, and around and around. I was glad I didn't give up.
I have crashed my bikes a few times. The last time, I fractured both legs, a rib, snapped off my collar bone, and banged my head enough to get vertigo. I was 62 years old. I decided, if I am to quit, I will do it on my own terms. As soon as I could walk, I repaired the bike until it looked like new, and got back on it. Rather than be forced out by the circumstance at hand, I work to put myself in a position to continue, and then walk away if that's what I want at that time. It's how I walked away from flying.
I'm 75, but I am still riding. This year, I rode on the track again on my ZX10. While I have done 19 track days, there have been fears to overcome anytime I have gone. It's how you improve. You have to push through that voice in your head screaming, "You're going to die!!" I would hear that each time I charged toward turn one at full throttle until the last split second. A few years ago, I saw 158 MPH on three different laps. That was the limit of what I could look at before going to maximum braking to get down to about 95 to make the corner. I wanted to see 160, but it is not likely that I will return to the track to see that now, so I will have to let it go.
If you give in to fear, at some point you will be afraid to leave the house. Reach a little deeper, and push through.
I've never had a close call with a deer in 30 years of riding.... thankfully. I have had many cars leap out in front of me though.
@BugMoto Motorcycles I faced this exact situation five months ago. I hit some "kitty litter" oil absorbent from someone else's accident when coming through a turn and low-sided. I had on gear but still broke my wrist and banged up my knee. I'm 46. The bike was mostly ok, just cosmetic damage. I had to have surgery and four months of physical therapy, this week is my final appointment.
I've been back on the bikes for the last two months. I couldn't wait to get back on despite the injuries. And yeah, when I first got back on I was SCARED. It was very much like when I had first started riding, all over again (I've been riding for 2+ years and close to 20,000 miles under me). And man did I ride super carefully. Fast forward two months of riding several times every week and I've rediscovered my confidence and even more love for the machine than ever.
I had a similar event in Colorado last year, tooling along about 60mph on my t120 and from the left came a deer, ar a full run, headed right across my path. No time to brake, just enough time to gasp. The deer skidded to a halt b4 crossing my lane, but it was just So Close...scared the crap outa me. It kinda soured my whole trip, id planned on visiting several parks in utah, and i headed back after a couple of days in Moab. Im still riding, of course, but I still see that deer, and shiver at how close it was.
Thanks for making this video.👍🏻
Good stuff. Very Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. 👍
I’ve been riding for about four years now, still fairly a newbie.
Actually wrecked pretty bad in the first six months of riding, but I just got banged up and damaged my bike pretty bad.
Yeah, it scared me, but not my new-founded passion for riding.
So I repaired my bike and got back to riding,
I don’t regret coming into hot on the turn, in fact, I’m glad it happened.
I learned what I did wrong and I learned how aggressive I can be when I want to ride.
It builds character to go through a tactical error.
That fear is the motivation to prepare for any situation that might befall a person. I have crashed. I have broke down. These incidents have thankfully been very few have made be a better rider and more prepared.
Generally I find the first thing to do after picking yourself up is to quickly understand What just happend.
If there was some way I could have avoided the Situation & What would have been the Alternative Outcome.
Recognise & Ride Within You Own Limits & you'll mostly be fine ! 😊
Great video Bug.
I went down October of 2022. I ride occasionally but nothing like before. Still haven’t fully recovered mentally. Sad because i love motorcycling.
I was in a significant motorcycle crash( on a road course) I was told by another rider, fix it and get back to riding. It was very good advice.
It’s strange, but I’ve never experienced that particular fear. I crashed a couple of time in my teens and tore holes in the knees of my jeans, long before it was fashionable to have torn jeans. Skinned my knees too, but they healed ok. So nothing serious and it never crossed my mind that I wouldn’t get back on my motorbike. Twenty years ago, I took advanced training and that helped enormously with my frustration that I wasn’t naturally good at riding a bike. I wasn’t dangerous; I just wasn’t any good at it.
Many years ago, a famous motorsport commentator in the uk, who had a collection of motorbikes that he loved, described the day that he looked at his collection and realised that he would never ride them again. Old age had overtaken him. That became my great fear for the future. That day I realise I won’t ride my motorcycle again - I dread it.
Today, I’m in my mid seventies and just recovering from the second bout of covid in 18 months. The first bout left me feeling low for a long time, and I’m worried I might not pick myself up from this episode. But sitting here, it’s 9 a.m., and I’ve made myself a promise to go outside, take the covers off my motorbike (a BMW R1200S), and check it over to make sure it’s ready for its next ride - with me onboard.
Love your content and vibe ❤
Thank you so much!
If it hasn't happened yet it doesn't exist. Sure, plan for contingencies but don't let something that doesn't exist rule you. If it has happened then there is no changing that fact. Accept , learn and grow. Move forward from it. Love the brake lever pendant.
I am 76 and a disabled vet with PTSD. I haven't riden in about 15y. So. While i was considering purchasing another bike i fell While trying to move a tree out of my driveway. One year after surgery they did another surgery to remove the screws from my right hip. So about two months later i purchased a bike. STAND BY!! My experience had been on crushers ect., but i decided i do something different. I purchased a 2022 Suzuki HAYABUSA!! Yes oh Shit. I was get ready by buy riding and preparing mentally to ride that missile. But while unhitching my trailer i had been working on. I FELL AND BROKE MY RIGHT HIP. I just couldn't believe it. What are the odds. So know that bike sits on the trailer staring at me. My wife is constantly warning me Not to get on that bike or your going to kill yourself. 🙄 I want to ride that dam thing but seem to be losing my nerve. I have Never riden a sport bike which doesn't help my confidence. I am a little intimidated but determined. I live in north Ga and want to ride the western Nc mountains real bad. Wish me LUCK!!
My first crash on two wheels was at age 2,5 in 1974. My father taught me to ride, he walked along supporting my pedalling by holding the saddle. I was busy so I didn't took notice when he let go. I remember looking over my shoulder, losing balance and falling because he shouted "You ride solo!". He rushed to help, put me back on the saddle pushing me and made me pedal again. After that I crashed almost every day, was sort of part my jobdescription as a kid.
Fast forward to 2003. I just made my license for a motorcycle, my first bike was a Yamaha XV 1000 (aka TR-1). My still today good friend made join him on a trip to the austrian alps (Tirol) just 2 weeks after passing the exam. After a long but reeal awseome day, I didn't notice that I was fatigued. On the way back to the hotel, I made a mistke (took a corner way to far on the inside rather than perparing it from the outside), and this mistake accumulated to a point where I ran out of road. The frontweel slipped away, i did a somesault and ended like a helpless ladybug on my back. I checked for serious pain or damage, luckily I was fine.
Eventually my friend returned to the scene after (felt) ages. He checked on me, helped me back on my feet. We checked the bike, it sled head on into a tree stump that lay at the side of the road. No way to ride it home. He forced me on the backseat and the very next day he forced me riding his bike to get spare parts. I was soo scared to crash his bike too. If I would, we'd be stuck in the alps.
I told him about my fear. He seriously yelled at me to get the f*k on his bike to get the parts, because if I didn't we'd stuck there anyways. Besides, he'd be the "mechanic" not me. So I had to, I had no choice.
What have those two stories in common? There was someone who did not allow my fear to take grip. Both yelled louder and more convincing that my fear could in that second (beause it was still "small"). Both men made sure, that I got back onto the saddle. To this day, I am grateful for this.
I think that if you crash and you are lucky enough to be able to get onto the bike almost immeadiatly, you rrreeaaly should. Do not hesistate, do not think. If there is no friend to do the yelling, yell to yourself. It is the kid inside that's scared, not the adult. Buy you inner kid an ice cone later, but get him onto the bike immeadiatly. Otherwise, the fear might take grip.
If one has bad luck and hurt oneself seriously - the older one gets, the more difficult it may be, because the physical healing takes longer as it used to. That's a differrent ball game. I think, one should use intense selftalk and visualisation techniques to get onto the bike. Start over just like you did when you where a learning rider. Work yoursef back on the bike (becaus it IS work). If the love and passion is just big enough, chances are quite good that fear will be outnumbered by your love, passion and - foremost - determination to ride again.
Have I crashed since then? No, but just a couple of weeks I had a pretty close call. We were in the austrian alps again. Today, I ride a 1994 Suzuki VX800. There was a handfull of sand waiting for me in a hairpin serpentina which I have overseen. It nastily sat in my breaking point. My bike shook, I slammed my right foot on the ground while pulling the clutch and let go of the throttle. My bike did the rest to save us. Such a great gal ;)
My foot hurt and I was in a shock. I thought of stopping, but - hey - we are taling about narrow and steep roads in the alps. No Chance of pulling over for a couple of miles. So once again: no choice but serious selfcare and selftalk to keep going all the way back to the hotel.
So, bottom line: my Guess is that in any case you should never feel too confident in your riding skills. Chances are that you miss something in your attenion or on the road. If you do, you make mistakes that might end you up like a ladybug on your back or slamming your foot on the Ground. That's how I think on can prepare. And if you crash, it's a Question of if your love and Passion is strong enought to support your hard selfcare work to get back on.
As we say in Germany: "Bleib oben!" (Stay on top, don't crash)
I wrecked my '98 Fat Boy on a wet interstate in northern Florida. The insurance company totaled it due to a crack in the frame. I drove myself to the emergency room once some fellow riders and their wives with trailers in tow got us all back home. I drove myself to the emergency room to get checked out. Fortunately, after a full body xray, no broken bones were found, just some cuts and bruises, and the feeling that I was beaten half to death by someone with a crowbar. The next day, after the pain meds wore off, and I could focus, I got on the internet, diligently looking for my next bike. I found one, and in two weeks I was on a 4 year old, 2002 Harley Road King classic. It's now 18 years later, and I am still ridiing my 22 year old bike, solo. I will be 69 September 01, 2024!
I crashed on the freeway 2 years ago at age 69. Got distracted for a second. Got slowed to 40 mph before impact. Full gear.... Bruised groin and ego. Got another bike within 2 weeks and still having fun. These things can happen to anyone. Its just how a person responds afterwards. If your scared or terrified about riding again I would suggest you dont or wait a while. Im so glad I wasnt seriously injured and able to ride again. Nobody in my family suggested I stop riding. They know better. I do avoid freeways more often and got a smaller bike. Just my experience. Good video
Btw, just absolutely love your new scrambler. Ride it. Enjoy it. Be concerned but don’t get overwhelmed with what ifs.
Peace brother.
Thanks! Yeah, I love it too. Like, way too much probably. :)
Just enjoy your life and God be with you 😊
Kind of 15 year ago, I had a accident and I´ve lot my bike (HD883) back there ... I stayed maybe 1 month thiking about it and jumped back to a BMW GS800 and from there, to a GS1200 ..... After this last one, I stayed 12 years from biking .... not because I was afraid of them, but for personal and financial reasons ... I recently (6 months ago) bought a T120 and all I think now is " damn, I´ve lost 12 years of bike riding" (laughs) ... Biking calms me, stops me thinking about mundane problems and it´s a miracle for taking the stress out of my mind and body ... So, I intend to never walk away from bikes as long as I´m healthy enough for riding them ... cheers.
The best thing about riding Is being in the present, not worried about what could happen or what has happened.
Lol! This one made me laugh! I agree completely with your fears and trepidations Bug but I also completely agree with your conclusion.
With my last bike I ended up on my fourth clutch lever and like you, I put them in my pocket after each incident, red faced with embarrassment at my own stupidity but I never thought about turning them into a necklace. Genius idea.
But yes, just get on and ride again. I've fallen off loads of times over the years and have the scars to prove it but I'm less inclined to do so these days and ride accordingly. However just last weekend I screwed up while turning around in a narrow country road with a weird camber and my brand new Honda NC750X began to topple over to the right as I attempted the last point of the turn. But instead of just giving up and jumping clear, accepting the inevitable clang of a broken handlebar lever, I managed to lower it gently to the ground, legs trembling and muscles shaking, so that it ended up without a mark on it. Phew! No new clutch or brake lever this time!
As I strained to return the bike to an upright position, a car came briskly around the corner and caught me in the act. I'm so glad he managed to stop in time!
The point is, if you worry about riding every time you go out, or carry lots of safety aids and dress in hi-viz clothing, like BMW riders seem to do (joke!) then you'll end up so timid you'll feel afraid of doing anything.
This stuff is character building and it has positive effects in many other areas of your life. Getting on a motorcycle is a risk - but just go and do it anyway.
Dust yourself and get back in the saddle in.
I appreciate what you're saying. From my own experience I'll offer that some people have PTSD after a traumatic incident and some don't. And you won't know how you will react until it happens. Anything before that is just a guess no matter what your life experience has been.
You feel the same feeling you had when you had the accident. I get that still. I went down on a BMW in a low speed intersection crash. A twisted my right knee very badly and took a 6-month recovery and it is still weak 10 years later.
I would lay in bed watching bike videos and whenever someone would lean into a curve I would get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach, the same feeling I had as I was going down.
I sold my bike while still recovering. I regret that.
But I also haven't riden since. I still get a little bit of that queasy feeling if I think of laying it over. It's not a fear of death or even really a fear of injury though it was a real hard time in recovery, a lot of pain and a lot of work.
I'm still thinking about riding again. Still thinking.
This is therapy
I haven't crashed on 2 wheels since it was a 21 speed in college. I had a car crash 15 years ago, and it was hard to get back in and drive, even a car. Not sure about a motorcycle. But I'd try, I may fail... It wouldn't be the first time. 😂
On a beautiful October morning in 1982 I was knocked off my '82 Yahama 750 out into a freshly plowed field in West Texas. The telephone company van had stopped and I relaxed, you know the feeling. Then here it came, just like I wasn't there! Later I was told I landed 150 ft from the impact. I remember flipping head, feet, head, feet until I stopped.
After three days in intensive care I was moved to a room. Over the next fifteen days I lost count of the well-wishers who commented, after an accident like that I'd probably never ride again."
I loved riding. I'd started on a 60cc Yamaha at 16 and already had half a dozen motorcycles before the 750.
I began to wonder, should I , could I. I was finally released and sent home with a cast from hip to foot after a total hospital stay of 18 days. My first day home, after my wife went to work, I went out into the garage and looked at her 650 Yamaha. I raised the door rolled it out, laid my cast over the tank, started it up and drove around the block! Well, I know someone reading this is saying, "how stupid," and you may be right, but I'm still riding!
Last summer my wife and I did 5596 miles in 39 days and 7 states from Texas to Wyoming on our '02 Goldwing that has 200,000 miles on it and "We Ain't Done!"
flic.kr/s/aHBqjB5fbT
I have some kind of nylons and screws in my right arm in order to make it work, injuries in the neck and back, and of course I fear a crash and that my arm won't work again but the bike is so good for me, so I just try to minimize the risk and be glad to get home every time. The risk is there always, but the fear... just sometimes.
2017 riding over the lawn at work fell over. Leaves, acorns recently watered the BMW FELL ON my Right foot. $78000 later, with BC/BS and AFLAC My mind said NO. IT took 2 years to get mentally over my fear and hesitation. Don't let fear beat you. In the new testament it says do not be afraid about 500 times
Bug, I just try to be safe as best I can. ATGATT I've been riding since 1985. I've had a few accidents. Most have happened in the last ten years. Neither one was my fault (CT seems to have cornered the market on bad drivers). The first one happened on my 2009 Triumph Tiger 1050. I was stopped at a light, in the right lane of two, with no one in the left lane, but cars in front and in back of me in both lanes. A young driver in one of the oncoming two lanes, seeing the gap in traffic, gunned her car to go in a business driveway. Cutting through two lanes of traffic, just as the light changed, and we started moving. The result was a totaled motorcycle, a broken left shoulder, broken left hip, cracked pelvis, a few surgeries, a month in rehab, PT and a lost riding season. I replaced that motorcycle with a 2004 BMW R1150R, the next year. I rode that a few years, along with a 2009 Triumph Speed Triple. The next accident happened when a bicyclist took a left out of a side street, right in front of the BMW. I hit his back tire (That's how close he was), and went down. The cyclist wasn't hurt, but I slid the motorcycle. I ended up with a broken left wrist and six compound broken ribs, more PT and another lost season. Now I'm riding a 1979 Kawasaki KZ400b, a Vespa ET4, a 2023 Vespa GTS 300, a 2010 Triumph Speed Triple, and I still have the BMW. I turned 70 years old this year, and I don't know how many more years I can ride, but I enjoy it so much. I just might not rip around back roads with the guys like I used to. Enjoy your ride, and don't stress about what might happen. Be safe and enjoy the ride!
Loved your video. Definitely makes you think about what if I was in a crash…what would I do after I’ve healed.
Well, I’m living that right now after a year of recovery. I had a Triumph XC 800, Beta 300, Vespa and a fat tire bike.
Jan 8,2023 I was coming home after an e- bike ride and was two streets away from my house in a residential area and a pick up truck ran a stop sign doing about 35 and hit me throwing me about 40 feet, I ended up with a shattered tibia, broken pelvis, three broken ribs and a concussion. I woke up in the trauma unit and had already had three operations. I had an excellent trauma Doctor who put me back together.
It’s been a year of PT going from I wheelchair, then a walker and now I’m walking well and I’ve started riding a new fat tire E bike as of a week ago.
I’m grateful to be alive and I take one day at a time.
My plan is to start riding the Vespa, and see how that goes. Not sure if I will get back on the motorcycle , as I still have some fears around that.
I Am 69 and I have been riding since I was a teenager so it’s really hard to think about giving up riding totally.
My wife was a huge help in my recovery and my champion in helping me get through this difficult time. She’s not real keen on me getting back on a motorcycle.
This whole experience has made me grateful for each day and for the many blessings I have. Ride Safe!
30 years ago I ran a stop sign I didn’t see. T-boned a car, wrote off my Z750 and broke my leg. It healed fine. I went back to the site of the accident and figured out why it happened, lessons learned. But we had just migrated from UK to Australia, and had to promise my wife not to get another bike. 30 years later, just got divorced. Visited some dealers, rode a few bikes, and now have a new Triumph on order. I missed the joy of riding, but at least I kept my promise. On the test ride the trepidation about riding went away almost immediately, and when I got back to the shop I couldn’t stop grinning.
Well, sadly, I've already had to work through this. The experience will be different for everyone but let me share $10 worth of free advice...there is simply nothing to be gained by focusing on "what if". The reality of such an event will never match any preconceived notion or fear you may have. You don't know what you don't know.
I rode for 39 years without a scratch, all kinds of bikes and all kinds of places...what happened to me was, for all practical purposes, unavoidable. A careless, aggressive and very reckless driver was the bullet that had my name on it. Broken leg, ankle, back (not paralyzed thank God), rib, foot, cuts....the whole nine yards. But you know what, those problems heal. It was the days, weeks and months after the crash that changed riding for me.
Initially, laying in the ICU after a ride in a helicopter, I wasn't even thinking of motorcycles, riding or really anything except my family. Later, as is the norm, I swore off of riding...and that lasted about 2 weeks. Then the "I can't let this stop me" mentality set in....and so on. This persisted for months as my body healed. In the end, insurance replaced the bike and the real challenges began. Can I do this? Will riding ever be the same? Is this fair to my family or am I being selfish? Everyone has to work through this in their own way and at their own pace. There's no shame in hanging up your spurs and swearing off riding. Equally there's nothing wrong with getting back on the horse and putting the past behind you. It's a deeply personal decision.
Eventually, I climbed back on and slowly began riding again, but not without some bumps in the road. Hideous loops of anxiety were in play, especially at first. Crippling anxiety. The initial rides were anything but the fun and enjoyable experiences I once took for granted. As time went on the unreasonable fears abated and the joy slowly returned. But I'll be the first to admit, it's not the same. That's not to say it's bad either, just different. Again, I thank God every day for all that I have. And in many ways this has made riding, and life in general even better because now I know, not think or imagine, but know how precious it all really is.
Thank you for sharing this. This is exactly the kind of story I was hoping to hear. Any situation in life that challenges your very existence is sure to change your attitude about life as a whole. I have some experience with this - not motorcycle-related - but reading your words, I can see now how my experience changed me, and how, instead of just giving up on things, I doubled down. I'll remember that now.
This is where I'm at with biking. There's no fun in it anymore and I'm selling up after 40 years of riding.
I appreciate the subject. I have crashed three times on the racetrack. Two low sides, one high side all at over 105 MPH. The high side was the worst. 140 MPH, airlifted to a trauma center. Knocked out my front teeth. You wear your broken lever end around your neck. I refused to fix my teeth as a reminder of my mistake until my dentist insisted. Never gave not riding a second thought back then. Stopped riding for a decade, then bought my Multistrada. On my first trip I tipped over three times in less than a mile. Never had a bike with luggage and never ridden with luggage. Was concerned that if I tipped over and no one would help me, could I lift the bike by myself? So I bought an Eastmont bike jack to carry.
I do think about how I’d now react if I crashed. I try my best to not think about it and live by a Japanese saying since I’m a Japanese American. “Fall down seven, get up eight.” I wear a hat with that written in Kanji to remind myself to be brave and endure. Am I embarrassed about any of my crashes or tip-overs? Nope. Do I worry? Sometimes yes.
Three times in less than a mile! That's gotta be some sort of record. :)
I love that saying, "Fall down seven, get up eight." Great words.
A few days ago a friend of mine was in an accident on his bike. He was rear-ended by a fellow biker. He received minor injuries and possibly the bike will be totaled. It could’ve been much worse.
That got me to thinking heavily on this exact issue since her told me about it: if it happened to me, would I get back on and ride?
We know the risk. That might be part of the reason we ride. But if the risk comes down upon me, what would I do “after the crash”?
Excellent timing of sharing this message. Thank you.
Thanks for watching.
My only fear watching your extraordinary videos is guessing if the library music it’s going to be acceptable or a complete nightmare. Yup. You guess it. Said that, scratches are beautiful. Means lived motorcycles, not just immaculate exhibition beauties , like a girl with a bad tattoo that burps louder than you but kisses like no other. I loooooove your content. Give me more! 👍👍👍
When I was a youth, I regularly came off my old Bonnie. I was never taught to ride....I mean it's just a self-powered bicycle isn't it?🤣🙄 The thought of not getting back on was unthinkable as most of my friends were bikers. But I did sell up when I became a dad.
Now I've returned after 40 years, I'm more cautious and wary of situations. In no time my confidence returned, until the day the roads in my area had new gravel laid on them for resurfacing. Even at the obligatory 20mph whilst it beds in, it felt like I was riding over marbles as my rear wheel skittered sideways. That terror of dropping the bike set me back some but as I'm ¾ of the way thru my life, do you think I'll give up and sink into a comfy chair with a book? Hell no!! I'm getting booked onto an advanced riders course with the local police, and will repeat that every few years until they tell me to hang my helmet up 👍
After about 35 years of riding last year a tire blowout finally took me down at 70mph. I had decent riding gear so no road rash to speak of but the handlebar caught me in the chest causing some significant damage. Doc said if I hit any harder I would have died on the side of the road. Spent some time in the hospital and about 5 months recovering.
I repaired the bike before I even recovered from my injuries. Spent a couple hrs on the floor after replacing the wheel because I realized I was to badly hurt to get back up. Lol
I am back to riding regularly but I tend to take the bike with tubeless tires because the spoked wheels are more prone to catastrophic blowouts. Plus I think twice about the interstate and sustained high speed travel.
I still get on the interstate but always with a nagging thought of what happened. I assume I will get passed it someday.
I went down a couple times early in my career, early '60s. Does it bother me that I could go down again? A little. But I worry more that I wouldn't be able to get up again to enjoy riding. Then again worry never solved anything.
It's not the finances, or the fear, that scares the crap out of me... it's the entire loss of my life, or losing the use of multiple limbs, or living in a wheelchair, or losing my sight, or having a traumatic brain injury that leaves my mother to look after me. I wasn't given the most capable body physically, I have a bad right ankle that causes me pain rather constantly, and I can't seem to eat anything without bloating. But at least I am able-bodied. Having some kind of serious physical or mental injury could be catastrophic to my future, or my family's future. And losing my life altogether would crush my mother and my girlfriend and my brothers and sisters. It's why I don't ride anymore. Because I've seen too many instances of death on motorcycles caused by the strangest of occurrences. It doesn't take much on a bike to cause something like this, even with good gear on. It's just not worth it for me. I had one crash, and I walked away from it. But the next one maybe I don't. So I stopped. Not immediately after. I got back on when my bike was fixed, but a few years later. Something suddenly took the desire away. And I can live with that. Yes, I miss the pleasures, but living able-bodied is also a pleasure. Living itself is a pleasure. And I don't have to live at max volume to enjoy living. I can enjoy just living.
I totally respect that. I'm at the point where, while I know I COULD live without riding, it would hurt me too much mentally. But things change over time...
Probably a fear that gets mostly road bike riders, I'm glad I had 45+ years riding farm bikes and dirt bikes before I ever bought a bike for the road, falling off is just something that happens on a regular basis offroad, you expect it and it doesn't bother you when it happens, you get used to bent stuff , broken stuff, including collarbones in my case, so it's not something I give any thought to even on road.
I dropped my bike twice in two days right after leaving the dealer. I have the broken parts displayed as a reminder.
2 Lane roads are the worst if someone hits you from behind your going off the road or into incoming traffic. Probably why you're afraid constantly
I stopped counting after 15 on-pavement crashes. Retired club racer; lifelong canyon carver; long distance commuter; dirt / trials rider as well. Retired only two helmets due to impact. In other cases, the helmet did not hit appreciably or at all. Almost all of those crashes happened 20+ years ago. Walked away in all cases. I've hurt myself worse on bicycles than motorcycles.
Fear is life-sapping bullshit. Don't be a soy boy; full speed ahead. If you happen to check out before you're drooling and soiling a diaper, consider that a win.
The short answer is no. Motorcycling is the only thing I truly enjoy. After 38 years of riding thousands of miles and a few bumps, broken bones and bruises along the way; There is nothing that will stop me from riding. At least until I'm six feet under. It's mind over matter...I don't mind, because it doesn't matter. 😎
The old Norse believed that you could not change your path or your destiny. It was a mindset that allowed them to not sweat about what may happen. I think about how much we worry about "what may happen" and realize it usually doesn't. Don't sweat the what ifs.
No offence, but what a load of crap and a mindset like that will get you in trouble.
Fear (and worry) are based in lack of faith. After seeing a motorcycle accident that a little boy (~10) shouldn't have seen, I didn't ride until learning at 72. Thinking of all the situations during which God had protected me and remembering Jesus urging Peter to get out of the boat and walk on the water, I realized that lacking faith was like a slap in the face of God. I made up a short prayer which I say before EACH ride, then thank God profusely upon HIS returning me safely and unhurt. I ride in F A I T H ... When God decides to 'recall' me, I hope that HE does so in some other way. 😋
Just self skidded 5 hours ago, only damage is one broken brake lever
@@BIBuildy That means skid with no collision
I came off a couple of times in London (no deer). I live in rural France now (plenty of deer). My fear is of crashing my Triumph Speedmaster or breaking down on some little country lane (or even just getting a puncture) and having to call my French Triumph dealer or my French insurance company's emergency helpline (There is no Automobile Association here). Will they speak English? Why should they speak English? Can I speak enough French? Probably not. Why not? (I'm learning. I'm trying). I have a panic sheet in my panniers with all the numbers and a script. Will there be a mobile phone signal? For me the only real attraction of a BMW is that little red emergency button. More bikes should have them.
#1. Are those the stock handlebars or aftermarket, they seem to have more of a sweep, they seem taller and closer to the rider. #2. Here I am breaking my head trying to figure out who you sounds like, there is another TH-camr that has a similar voice and narrates just like you do. Last but not least I try not to think of the worst, just enjoy it while you still can!
Bound to happen usually but i know a few who rode for many years without a crash
The only cautious people are people that are over 40 😅 were all afraid to get hurt
I am signed up to train to go back motorbiking. I am 61. I do not remember this level of danger and I’m getting spooked. Could it be the case that the accident rates are a lot higher in the United States than in Europe? No offence intended!
I've had two accidents, neither my fault legally. But I've come to understand outside a one-of-a-billion chance, we/I are/am at fault. We need to obey the laws and never expect them to. Ride as if THEY want to kill you. I always hyper-attract attention to myself (Bike). I weave, play with the headlight if I feel it's necessary, and give them a thank you wave as I pass for not killing me. How did I get over it? The first I was a passenger on the bike I wanted to buy and I was going to have that bike regardless. The second, a lady ran a redlight, I saw her coming and with a young entitled mind I refused to budge. Guess who lost? The first, I never let on to my parents, got a loan and bought the bike. The second, I parked the bike, went to class (college) couldn't play football but I could damn sure ride a bike. Never let bs steal your love.
Loved your video. Definitely makes you think about what if I was in a crash…
Well, I’m living that right now after a year of recovery. I had a Triumph XC 800, Beta 300, Vespa and a fat tire bike.
Jan 8,2023 I was coming home after an e- bike ride and was two streets away from my house in a residential area and a pick up truck ran a stop sign doing about 35 and hit me throwing me about 40 feet, I ended up with a shattered tibia, broken pelvis, three broken ribs and a concussion. I woke up in the trauma unit and had already had three operations. I had an excellent trauma Doctor who put me back together.
It’s been a year of PT going from I wheelchair, then a walker and now I’m walking well and I’ve started riding a new fat tire E bike as of a week ago.
I’m grateful to be alive and I take one day at a time.
My plan is to start riding the Vespa, and see how that goes. Not sure if I will get back on the motorcycle , as I still have some fears around that.
I Am 69 and I have been riding since I was a teenager so it’s really hard to think about giving up riding totally.
My wife was a huge help in my recovery and my champion in helping me get through this difficult time. She’s not real keen on me getting back on a motorcycle.
This whole experience has made me grateful for each day and for the many blessings I have. Ride Safe!
Yikes. Glad you made it through that...
I find it interesting that you're gonna give the Vespa a go and not the motorcycle for now... I feel 'safer' on my Vespa as well, but in reality, they probably carry about the same risk, no? Perhaps the Vespa isn't as fast... I dunno. Thoughts?
@@BugMotoChannel the problem for me is the seat height on the Beta 300 is 35 inches. With the pelvic injury, it’s hard for me to get my leg over it. The Vespa is much easier as it is a through. I’m actually thinking about the Triumph 900 scrambler possibly because it’s got a lower seat height and easier to swing my leg over.
Let’s Face it, Riding a motorcycle is dangerous 😮 You got Two wheels and when your coming off your coming off Hard !! You hope and maybe it’s Fate, that you don’t hit anything Solid on the road or a car that stops you dead. Sliding down the road with full gear is no problem, bruised but you still have your skin, and you’ll walk away. It’s when you hit hard, the road or barrier or worse a tree or windscreen of a 🚗 😢, that’s when you gonna hurt yourself. You can still walk away, but your gonna be sore, I think you should be aware that you can come off at any time, but this doubt, may also keep you safe, the over take you should not do, the car driver who does not see and will never see you coming, so on the breaks, anticipate these muppets. Top quality gear, no shorts 🩳 T-shirt 👕 ever. I could go on 😊 its freedom beyond compare and you should learn and be as safe as you can be in this bonkers world full of deer and loony drivers, slippy roads with oil and holes you can swim in 😂 it’s motorcycling what are you gonna do 😊
saved the deer?
Oh good grief....
Hi there. I'm the human being behind this channel. Would you please elaborate?
@@BugMotoChannel Nope. Wouldn't make any difference, or please you or any of your subscribers. God bless.
Im afraid of jaming a broken shard of a femur up into my pelvis...thats motorcycling though folks..get over it and rid. its that simple.