James Caviezel hurt in morotcycle accident in Washington

I feel really bad for James Caviezel. He was injured in a motorcycle accident, that never should have happened.

It seems that he was in Washington State, and while driving down a road a man threw a bicycle out in front of his Harley. Not your normal motorcycle accident. Not even by a long shot.

Thankfully he had a helmet on, which inevitably helped him survive the incident. But it does remind me that the dangers on a motorcycle are normally not the road or the driver.

In most every case of a motorcycle accident, with an experienced driver, I have noticed that some outside force is involved. Not to say that motorcycle drivers don't just have accidents. But it is to say that most bikers are far more cautious and aware of the road than the average driver in a car.

Still I can't imagine anything preparing someone for what happened here. The big question has to be why? That question has not been answered yet. But the initial reports are saying that the unidentified man may have had mental issues. No surprise there.

I am glad to hear that Caviezel will be ok. There have been just too many sudden deaths of entertainers recently. We can all do with a bit of time before another pops up.

Get the basics for your motorcycle ride

In the beginning of 2008, as gasoline prices jumped to $4 a gallon or more across the nation, tons of people gave up their SUV and bought motorcycles. People who never considered life on 2 wheels ran out to get a fuel-efficient chromed out bike. And most of these new riders had no idea what they were doing.

Now there is nothing wrong with owning a motorcycle. I rode for many years, and only had one accident - a drunk driver hitting me on a L.A. street. I loved the feel of the air on my face. The ability to see the road I was on. The rush of my bike (a 1972 Honda) as it thumped away as I started it up.

Riding a motorcycle is a freedom that many have learned is unlike any other means of transportation. And there are more than a few that understand this as a way of life. Just go to Sturgis and you will see what I mean.

But now there are drivers out there that are a danger to themselves and others on the road. They think it's about speed, or doing stupid tricks. They think they have to impress somebody just because they are on 2 wheels. Honestly they have just watched too many movies and cheap music videos.

What these new motorcycle converts need are lessons in driving. Take the extra money that is being saved from gas (even at these far lower prices now) and use it at a place like Skip Barber Superbike School Powered by KTM at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. That is, when they open in 2009.

Why a school that is geared towards motorcycle racing? Well in my opinion it gets all that need for speed drivel out of their heads. You want to go fast, do it on a road built just for that. This way if you drop you don't take out school kids and crossing guards.

More importantly all these newbies will get to learn how to respect their bikes. They will learn to handle their bike, and how to pay attention to what is happening on the road.

Jeff Haney says it far better than me when he describes what he will be doing as instructor at Superbike School

"Even if it's not your goal to be a World Champion or race motorcycles, the understanding that allows World Champions to become consistent and successful (without falling down) is priceless to everyone who aspires to become a better, smarter and safer rider."

Now newbie riders don't need to go to Skip Barber. That's just an example I wanted to point out. The big picture is that as part of a far larger community of motorcycle riders there are things you need to know. For your safety and our own. And so we all can enjoy the ride.

I know too many riders that have been annoyed with the newbies already. I can only imagine what will happen when the economy improves again and oil surges back to far loftier prices again. So do everyone a favor, go to school. And for those that really need to do the dumb people tricks on their bike, read up on these items that you will likely need more than the rest of us - Motorcycle Airbags

Electric motorcycles - a good idea or just an eco-dream

With gasoline prices still high, and crude oil prices still fluctuating everyone is looking to motorcycles for greater fuel efficiency. Not my top reason to own a motorcycle but a reason none the less. But there are some eco-fanatical people that think this is not enough. Thus the idea of electric motorcycles was born.

News is out that Honda is looking to create a line of hybrid motorcycles that will be available by 2011 or so. The issue is creating engines that will fit the frame of a motorcycle. Honda believe it can miniaturize the engines used in cars, and create an even more efficient motorcycle.

Interesting but I have to wonder, how will it look and will it be able to ride?

Well that meant I wanted to go out to Youtube,and Google, to see if anyone had made electric or hybrid motorcycles yet. And I found several. Here is one that can do 75 miles an hour.



It looks like a bike, and seems to ride like one as well. Though it sounds like a child’s wind-up toy or a remote controlled toy. And the sound is part of the pleasure of riding a motorcycle. Of course the joy of a motorcycle is not part of the reason why some are looking for electric or hybrid motorcycles.

So what are the pros and cons of this new development?

Pros include:

• Significantly lower cost to run than gasoline. It is estimated it cost ¼ the cost of gasoline to run.
  
• Very quiet
  
• No exhaust fumes since there is not combustion parts (electric only)
  
• You can charge up at home
  
• Reduced or remove the need for oil changes and similar forms of maintenance
  
• Can drive in enclosed spaces without danger from emissions
  

Cons include:

• Very quiet (hey I like the way motorcycles sound)
  
• Short range compared to gasoline
  
• Extended recharge time
  
• Top speed is massively reduced
  
• Battery power fluctuates based on weather (less power in cold weather as an example)
  
• If you run out of power you may not be able to recharge the engine (notice there aren’t too many outlets in the middle of any downtown area)
  

That all says nothing of things like if you are driving, and other cars and trucks can’t hear you on the road and they don’t see you, well you can imagine what they will do. Or the fact that to buy an electric motorcycle is far more than the equivalent power regular motorcycle. And the question of parts is unknown. Where to get them, cost to install (and ease of installation), time to get the parts, ect.

I look at the video, and I see how an electric motorcycle could look like a bike. In the video I see how it could drive like a bike. Mostly. But I’m not sure it has the feel of a bike. And that makes me hesitant.

I want to hear and feel my bike. I want to be sure I have the extra power I might need on a bike. I don’t want to have to constantly be working out the math on how far I can go, based on what speed I am at. I don’t want to be stuck somewhere, push the bike 1 or 2 or 5 miles to a station and realize I can’t recharge it. I don’t want to have to wait an hour, or longer, as the bike recharges in potentially a bad place or during an emergency.

The concept is interesting. The reality is questionable to me. But in a mere couple of years reality will be in showrooms and on the streets.

But if you have an electric motorcycle now, I’d love to hear what you think of it.

The real charity and freedom of motorcycle riding

In the past the image of a motorcycle rider was an image of a Hell’s Angel – long beards, and wild hair on an imposing frame as wild as their chopper bikes. It’s an image immortalized in movies and television. But that is a past image and it doesn’t tell the full story.

That 1970’s image of a biker changed as did the bikes, with the growth of Harley Davidson and hordes of baby boomers hitting the roads in the late 80’s and 90’s. By the mid-90’s teens and young adults took up the 2-wheel freedom of biking, and as social networking sites became popular so did the dumb (but difficult) tricks these kids would perform. And that is really not the full story.

Now with the cost of crude oil pushing gasoline prices to levels never imagined during the Oil Embargo Crisis, sales of motorcycles are racing higher and women (who look great on a bike) are gaining licenses faster than ever before. The concept of motorcycles is at a level never before seen in this nation. And almost all of these new or young riders fail to really understand what it’s all about.

One of the things I’ve always been upset with are reports on bike clubs (or gangs if you prefer) and stupid people tricks in the major media. Its a fact that the news rarely discusses the positives of the culture in motorcycle riding that is as important as the road itself. When was the last time you heard a national news organization discuss a positive about motorcycles besides the fact they save gas?

As an example there is this item from Southington about the eighth annual Multiple Sclerosis Motorcycle Ride provided by Myrecordjournal.com. Roughly 900 motorcycle enthusiasts got together and rode 50 miles in an effort to raise money for MS research and aid. Think about that and consider this, many of those riders don’t even know anyone with MS.

And that isn’t a fluke. This is the 8th time that the National Multiple Sclerosis Society has done this run, hopefully raising some $50,000 this year. And the bikers did it just because it might help someone. Which is hardly uncommon.

Of course many have heard of the Love Ride. This is the 25th year of the Love Ride and it will include performances by the Foo Fighters and ZZ-Top and Jay Leno as it’s Grand Marshall. The Love Ride has over 25,000 riders that come to help raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Yet that is not the only charitable event bikers are involved with. There is Bikers Against Drunk Driving, Bikers 4 Kids (missing children), Bikers Against Diabetes, Bikers Against Child Abuse, and the list goes on. And that’s just a few of the well known events.

All of that says nothing of the local or statewide events held for children, the disabled, the sick, and other causes. And that is really the big story.

I was told a long time ago, when I was first riding, that being on a motorcycle was not about how fast you can go, or trying to look cool. I’ve never had the need to speed and show off since. I’ve been reminded many times about how bikers will gather to donate blood in a heartbeat if another biker, that they’ve never met, is in an accident. I’ve lived through bikers I’ve never seen since or before coming to my aid because my bike broke down and I was on the side of the road.

That’s what being on a motorcycle is about. Anything else, everything else is crap and ruins what the culture is about. It’s about freedom and enjoying life, and having the charity to help others enjoy their lives as well.

So if you are getting on a bike to save a few dollars, or to try to do some trick, remember this. When you are on the side of the road, with a broken down bike or body, the people who will stop to help you out really understand what it is to be a motorcycle rider. If you can’t have respect for that, or to be that as well, ride a bicycle or just get a smaller car.

That’s my 2 cents on it.

Thought for the new motorcycle converts

With the warmer weather hitting the nation, the seasonal flux of new and occasional motorcycle riders is in stride. But in this year a new trend is also coming to fore. New motorcycle riders that converted from cars, trucks and SUV’s due to the increased cost of gas. Already record numbers of motorcycles are hitting the roads.

“Motorcycle registrations in Minnesota are at an all time high, up 89% in the last 10 years. Local instructors have had to double motorcycle training courses to accommodate the increase.”

This says nothing of places like California, Texas, the mid-west, and other locations around the nation with pleasant weather conditions and good roads. Considering that gasoline will continue higher, with some pundits targeting a top price of $7 per gallon by next year, converts to motorcycles may become a trend of unforeseen levels.

But that isn’t entirely a good thing.

As a former rider myself, one thing is consistent in every state of the nation. Drivers in cars and other 4-wheel vehicles are as much, if not more, dangerous to those on 2 wheels as every other issue combined. So for all those new motorcycle riders I want to mention a couple of things to keep in mind.

Car drivers tend to change lanes and make turns without ever using blinkers or hand signals. It’s one of the bigger problems. They just turn and assume everyone will know what they are doing. They don’t take into account the stopping distance of a motorcycle, nor the potential danger in having to serve out of the way.

Car drivers don’t look for or recognize motorcycles. It’s almost like you are invisible. I can recall a couple of times when a guy with his wife and kids drove up along side me on a highway in the same lane. I was on the left side of the lane to avoid the oil on the highway, and to allow drivers ahead of me the ability to see me in their mirror. I wasn’t turning or swerving in the lane. So he thought the extra space was just meant for him to drive along side me, maybe a foot way. My comments changed his mind, thankfully, but had anything had caused my bike to move over I’d have been the one hurt.

Infrequent rain in some areas brings up lots of oil on the road. This happens a lot in California, especially in the Los Angeles area. The first rains of the spring/summer season brings up lots of oil from the traffic and makes for slicker roads, especially if you are in the center of the lane.

Car drivers invariably never get your speed right. As such they will turn or cross in front of you, or pull out, just in time to hit you or cause you to swerve. See the change lanes section above.

So if you are a new motorcycle driver I would suggest getting lessons. Take a defensive driving course. Wear bright reflective clothing. Keep an eye out on what cars ahead of you are doing, not just the one in front of you but 2 or 3 cars up.

Given these things I’m sure you will love the freedom and virtual feeling of flying that a motorcycle provides even more than the gas you will save. Just drive safe and please don’t try to impress anyone on the road.

As I was once told by an older biker named Preacher out by Fallbrook California,

“No need to impress them. They are in the car looking up and out at us. They want to be us. So why drive faster or crazy?”

And I’m sure other experienced motorcyclists out there have a few thoughts and tips for new drivers as well. Please leave a comment to help the newbies out. It’s one road out there and we all can enjoy it together.