A couple weeks ago I mentioned some of the dangers we face on the roads while we’re riding.  I don’t know how many times I can stress that the most important thing we riders have to look out for are other drivers.  That point was proven yet again yesterday.  An 18 year old South Carolina guy was riding in Greenville.  He was found laying on the side of the road with his R1.  At first it didn’t appear there was anything that interfered with his riding to cause the wreck, but it was later discovered that his wreck was caused by a truck that pulled out in front of him.  The motorcyclist had no choice but to hit the brakes hard, and he lost his life because of the truck’s driver.  The driver of the truck is now facing vehicular manslaughter charges.

A majority of motorcycle accidents are caused by other drives in cars.  Why?  Because those drivers claim they “didn’t see the motorcycle”.  Just because we can’t operate the vehicles for those 4 wheeled drivers doesn’t mean we can’t take precautions to ensure a safe ride.  As always wear your riding gear.

My DH is the perfect example of what can happen if you ride without your gear even if it’s only for a short period of time.  He spent 3 weeks out of work and 6 weeks on crutches with a broken foot because he wrecked wearing tennis shoes instead of riding boots.  His tennis shoes flew off his feet when he collided with a guardrail.  If he had been wearing his riding boots, his shoes wouldn’t have came off, and he most likely would have walked away with just a few bumps and bruises.

Make sure your riding gear has reflective material on it.  Both my leather jacket as well as my textile jacket have reflective material.  If your riding gear isn’t reflective consider purchasing some reflective tape to make your own strips.  Reflective material not only makes you visible at night, but can also make you more visible during the day.  The sun reflects off your jacket, other drivers are more likely to look for the object the sun is reflecting from.

Last but definitely not least, keep your eyes peels for other vehicles at all times.   There’s a really good chance you will see other drivers before they see you.  If you see another car waiting to pull into the road, slow down.  Don’t automatically assume the other driver sees you.  Prepare yourself to stop if needed.