So sportbike riders wear more gear......

[ReconRat]

The AMA has pointed out that the traffic density on the roadways has doubled in that same time frame. A contributing factor.

[ReconRat]

When trying to find some more recent data, I stumbled across this article. As mentioned above, I was surprised to find 56% of fatalities were in the age group above 40. 

On a good note, the overall motorcycle fatalities each year appear to be decreasing. 

 

http://www.iii.org/issue-update/motorcycle-crashes

 

I also see it says the doubled supersports are the ones capable of up to 190 mph, and the average age of fatality for that is 27. Insurance claims for supersports are three times more likely than the other bikes.

 

Both older riders and younger riders seem to lack experience. Basically not enough time on the bike to learn it well.

 

edit: and a one third reduction overall for bikes with ABS braking systems. Noted...

Edited May 23, 2015 by ReconRat

[ReconRat]

But wait... ""It is interesting to note, in 1995 the average miles ridden per registered motorcycle was 2,514. In 2004, it was 1,738 miles."

 

wut? - That's no experience at all. I'm done...

[blue03636]

I read that on ORl the time man.

 

I must have missed these posts. The small majority that come out definitely don't represent the majority of ass hats that ride sportbikes.

[Tonik]

You hurt my feelings and don't even have the decency to recall the topic? You are one evil sonuvabitch.

Now I'm bummed. Hurting you feelings is a memory I should have cherished.

[zx3vfr]

I have met two OR groups at bike nights. They were all sport bikes, all drinking.

I'll have an ocassional beer or 2 at bike nites. Only if I am well hydrated to begin with, I don't have a passenger and I'm planning on spending at least 1 hour per drink at the location.

[zx3vfr]

Another statistic source that differs, the NHTSA shows data for the same time frame, based on vehicle miles driven. Still an increase, but shows 44%. Not 100%.

edit: on the other hand, it shows nearly doubled for the time frame 1995 to 2005.

edit: here's the NHTSA summary, edited to be brief (I put in the bold):

• An increase in the number of registered motorcycles.
• An increase in motorcycle ownership in the 40 and above age group.
• An increased number of motorcycle rider fatalities involve a motorcycle with a larger engine size.
• An increased number of motorcycle rider fatalities in the 40 and above age group on rural roadways.
• Undivided roadways accounted for a majority of motorcycle rider fatalities.
• Speeding under the age of 30.
• blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 g/dL or higher continue to be a major problem.
• Helmet use among fatally injured motorcycle riders has remained constant
• About two-thirds (66%) of the fatally injured motorcycles riders in States without universal helmet laws in 2004 were not wearing helmets compared to 15 percent in States with universal helmet laws.
• Among all riders, motorcycle operator fatalities under the age of 20 had larger percentages of improperly licensed riders.

Draw you own conclusions. Most will be correct. Lots of possibilities.

So taking out being above legal intoxication levels, speed, unlicensed riders and those not wearing helmets, what is the fatality rate?

[Tonik]

So taking out being above legal intoxication levels, speed, unlicensed riders and those not wearing helmets, what is the fatality rate?

 

Now that sir is a damn good question.  What are our chances if we follow 'best practices'.

[ReconRat]

So taking out being above legal intoxication levels, speed, unlicensed riders and those not wearing helmets, what is the fatality rate?

Let's try a different approach to the (2005) data. It's 4,008 fatalities per 10,048,000,000 miles traveled. Or roughly one in 250 million road miles. Let's look at one of the largest categories. Something like 48% were vehicle collisions of which something like 38% were vehicles turning left in front of the bike. And perhaps one third of those were no braking or maneuver before the collision. That's probably the largest category, and probably disregards rider good behavior of sober-helmet-not speeding-etc.

 

All causes for an average 10,000 miles per riding season, would be one in 25,000 chance or 0.0004% per year in general.

Vehicle collision would be about half that, for one in 52000 or 0.0000192% per year.

Left turns make it one in 137,061 or 0.000007296% per year.

Actually braking or maneuvering would lower that to one in 207,668 or 0.000000481536% per year.

I just wanted to show how absurdly low the numbers actually are.

 

And experience from riding 10,000 miles per year make it even lower. From experience gained.

 

So from experience (sic), I'll say that learning and maintaining your bike, learning your roads, staying hydrated, and being careful when tired and of course sober-helmet-not speeding-etc... would put a rider in a rather safe place to be.

 

For comparison, the odds of being struck by lightning in a year is one in 500,000.

A one to twenty ratio compared with all motorcycle fatalities (of 10,000 miles per year).

So theoretically, riding only 500 miles a year is the same risk as a lightning strike.

Edited May 24, 2015 by ReconRat

[ReconRat]

Another way of looking at it, is that the odds of an injury or fatality in a car or truck is exactly the same. Given the big difference of the number of average miles traveled per year between a motorcycle and a car/truck. Yes, I actually found that data. (edit: ok, the injuries on a bike were a bit higher...)

 

But I'm going to insist that mileage on a motorcycle decreases risk. From the experience gained. I base that on comparison with hours of flight in aircraft as pilot. It seems to be true for that.

Edited May 24, 2015 by ReconRat

[Gixxus Christ!]

I'll have an ocassional beer or 2 at bike nites. Only if I am well hydrated to begin with, I don't have a passenger and I'm planning on spending at least 1 hour per drink at the location.

I'll hop on the bike after a beer or two Over a reasonable amount of time. I used to ride shit face drunk in my 20's but those days are long over and I was a fucking idiot back then And lucky I didn't hurt myself or someone else.

[Cdubyah]

http://ohiohighwaysafetyoffice.ohio.gov/otso_annual_crash_facts.stm

2014 stats for ohio

Section 5.08 - 5.10 list motorcycle crashes.