Why not be a power ranger ?

i will never ride a bike for the simple reason you have too little control of your own safety

You can be the best rider in the world, wearing bright hi vis clothing with your lights on, but still some muppet can pull out in front of you from a junction.

This happens in a car ? ouch, new car time. In a bike ? very very different story. Its not you that you have to worry about on a bike, its the other road users. At least a cars nice re-inforced safey shell provides some protection against them. Bikes dont.
 
Sagalout said:
Statistics mean nothing unless you're one of them.
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Except in this case they mean you are far more likely to end up dead or seriously hurt riding a bike than driving a car. Your attitude makes no sense as they is a good chance you will have no say in the incident that makes you one of those statistics.

My take on it is in the decade or so I've been driving I have made a few mistakes behind the wheel and been on the recieving end of a shunt from a woman in a volvo. My total injury count so far none, the same incidents on bikes would have certainly resulted in some broken bones and the volvo woman would probably have killed me.
 
Ooh, another reason is that I live at the base of the A537 "Cat & Fiddle", and as such see the utter pain that bikers cause on a daily basis.

Not to mention I can outpace the lot of them in my car ;)
 
A lot of people are mentioning how impractical they are, but wouldn't you just like one as a toy for the occasional weekend run or trackday? Thats how I use my bike and wouldn't fancy commuting on it.

Your average modern sportsbike takes one hell of a car to beat it for performance, fun and cost.
 
a1ex2001 said:
Your attitude makes no sense as they is a good chance you will have no say in the incident that makes you one of those statistics.
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I'm saying that you shouldn't live your life by statistics.

126 deaths/serious accidents in 100 million kilometers. Its still extremely unlikely that you will die on a bike.

....although its 100% certain that you will eventually die anyway.

Edit - My dad rode bikes from the 50's until last year. Never had an accident, never mind a serious one.
 
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Flukester said:
hah, very true, though you need a pretty good car to keep up with a bike even on corners, come the straight bit you're not gonna pass though unless you recently won the pools :)

bikers needs balls of steel for the twisties, something I don't have and never will.. have been left by plenty of 'sheds' including a old style mini cooper, he had some proper skills in that thing, he left my 2001 R1 for dead..
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If you teach me to wheelie ill teach you twisties :p
 
I'd eventually get killed. Only requires someone to pull out at a junction (happens every day and not just to bikers) and it's likely I'd get very seriously messed up or die as a result of some idiot not looking where he is going!
 
touge said:
A lot of people are mentioning how impractical they are, but wouldn't you just like one as a toy for the occasional weekend run or trackday? Thats how I use my bike and wouldn't fancy commuting on it.

Your average modern sportsbike takes one hell of a car to beat it for performance, fun and cost.
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I'd rather have a caterham/westfield/seven clone.
 
rsatd said:
When people mention lack of self control, surely if you have that in a car you shouldn't be driving, endangering yourself and mainly other road users doesn't seem to me to be the best of ideas...
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Speaking for myself, of course I mean't when it's only safe to do so without endangering other road users. I would have thought that was obvious.
 
Sagalout said:
It made me chuckle when I took my daughter on the back of my bike to her horse riding lesson. The mums were looking at me as if I was a child killer, yet she was statistically at far more risk on the actual riding lesson (as horse riding accounts for far more serious accidents per person than bikes do)
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so true, i watched horizen the other day and the worst killer of all... falling over, slipping up, yet I still walk all over the place, what a nutter :)
 
DreXeL said:
Speaking for myself, of course I mean't when it's only safe to do so without endangering other road users. I would have thought that was obvious.
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So how will that be different in a bike, you generally go through a DAS and there you get it drilled into you not to be a "hero". I just don't quiet understand the logic here "A car is safer so I can pull off silly things, but a motorbike is less safe so I will try to pull off the same things, but because it has faster acceleration I would try to pull off more silly things"? Sorry, but I really do not follow that trail of thought, it is not like bikes are unstable, or suddenly collapse...

Same thing happens if you misuse and don't look after your car... Generally for me it seems that it is mostly the fair weather riders that are more in danger then those who ride all the time. But I would imagine they are the same in cars anyway...
 
It's a double edged sword..

They do give you the ultimate thrill IME, since I couldn't afford a stupidly quick car, I got into bikes, and I always remember my first go on a 600cc sports bike, tootling along to a straight bit of road, and opening it up in 2nd gear for the first time.. I think I did actually have to back off due to being overwhelmed as it felt like being strapped to a rocket..

But on the other side, they are amazingly difficult to ride quickly, and even minor mistakes are potential life threateners..

I'd rather have a caterham/westfield/seven clone.
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I've thought about this a few times, since I sold my 1000, I miss the thrill aspect, and the kit cars would seem to provide some of that.. however, I actually think I'd be safer on a bike then a caterham after I had a go in an R300 (I (quite scary)
1. Being so low, the view is somewhat restricted, and when you are pressing on really quickly, you don't get half the information you do from being on a bike
2. Being quite wide, you don't get a 1/4 of the overtaking oppertunities you do on the bike, and often get stuck behind people bimbling along
3. They are expensive to buy (a quick one), and depending on example, may need some tinkering.. I've never lost more then £1.5K over 3 years on any bike I've owned.
4. Cornering and throttle control satisfaction is as high as the bike, but even the R300 felt pretty weedy when blatting between corners, not once did I feel I was getting overwhelmed and consequently adrenaline levels are lower.

Horses for courses of course..
 
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Sagalout said:
I'm saying that you shouldn't live your life by statistics.

126 deaths/serious accidents in 100 million kilometers. Its still extremely unlikely that you will die on a bike.

....although its 100% certain that you will eventually die anyway.

Edit - My dad rode bikes from the 50's until last year. Never had an accident, never mind a serious one.
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Unlikely, but you vastly increase your chances of dying by getting on a bike as opposed to taking the car.

I lost a good friend who was 23 to a motorbike crash, and know of several others (friends of friends) who have also died in the past 3 years due to motorbike accidents.
 
I lost a good friend who was 23 to a motorbike crash, and know of several others (friends of friends) who have also died in the past 3 years due to motorbike accidents.
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Please do not think I am downplaying your loss in any way, but for your close group of friends to have been that unlucky, it means there are many many many other individuals and groups that have had not even the slightest problem. That's statistics for you.
 
Phoen1x said:
Please do not think I am downplaying your loss in any way, but for your close group of friends to have been that unlucky, it means there are many many many other individuals and groups that have had not even the slightest problem. That's statistics for you.
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True, but the original question was referring to "why not get a motorbike" - that is my reasoning; I could get a bike, ride it every day and be safe - however I don't want to take the chance - to me it is dangerous. I've no problem with what others choose to do, but it isn't for me.
 
I do not like the idea of having a few square inches of tyre attaching me to the road.

In the winter months just one slighty icey/slippy patch or a nice puddle of spilled diesel and you fall off, along with a broken leg, or two, or perhaps a broken hip.

I imagine motorbikes are huge fun at a low price compared to cars, but with a car I get hit I need a new door panel or may be a new car at the worst. On a motorbike I would have zero protection and am lucky if I am not dead.

My idea of a motorbike though is a nice chuggy one for cruising round in the evening of the summer in a hot country.

Seeing people on scooters in Spain with no shirt on and no helmet is just insane......
Seeing motorbikes in the UK doing dangerous overtakes or going between lanes in slow traffic also seems equally as crazy. Do some people WANT to die?
 
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Saw a good banner when I was out on the roads around Abergavenny last weekend -"Don't aim to be the fastest biker, aim to be the oldest".

To be honest, you'd still never get me on a bike. I would kill myself.
 
Fireskull said:
If you teach me to wheelie ill teach you twisties :p
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hah, it's a deal.. but my wheelie skills are way rusty also as scared to keep it up after reading of recent insta bans if caught

man i think im getting old, anyone wanna trade me a goldwing ? :p



not trying to change anyones mind in this thread, was genuinely interested why more people don't go with two wheels. can see how everyones thinking though.. and it's the sensible choice to go with a car.
 
Goldwing is pretty much a car, not sure if real, but think it even has a crash bag thing. At least some images seem to indicate that. Maybe a joke though.
 
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