09-15-2005, 12:34 PM | #1 (permalink) |
hoarding all the big girl panties since 2005
Location: North side
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Why do some motorcyclists drive like they're insane?
Last night, Martel and I were driving home about 9pm, across the big four lane bridge that goes over the French Broad River here in Asheville. We're doing about... 60mph (96kph) when this guy on a motorcycle zooms past us.. he had to be doing about 80mph(128kph). Mind you, this is in the dark, with moderate traffic, going over a bridge (if he got hit and flew off the bike there's a good chance he'd fall 60 feet into the river), and he's weaving in and out like a total idiot.
Now, I know that there's tons of people who ride motorcycles and handle them better than some people with cars, but there are also a lot of people around here that drive like crazed, drunken prison escapees. Why? Perhaps some of you with motorcycles can help me to understand the appeal of dying....
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Sage knows our mythic history, King Arthur's and Sir Caradoc's She answers hard acrostics, has a pretty taste for paradox She quotes in elegiacs all the crimes of Heliogabalus In conics she can floor peculiarities parabolous -C'hi
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09-15-2005, 12:40 PM | #2 (permalink) |
Getting it.
Super Moderator
Location: Lion City
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Because they like driving their "donor cycles" very fast.
Anyone on a bike at that speed, if they crash, is paste. No two ways about it. The emergency doctor's I used to work with always told me stories of motocycle crashes... then I saw one. Not going to forget that too soon.
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09-15-2005, 12:46 PM | #3 (permalink) |
Registered User
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I've seen one first hand.. a buddy of mine.. is no more if you know what I mean.
I ride like sometimes..but it's usually when it's out of the way of other traffic/people. Sometimes you just want to feel the adrenaline. Is there any specific reason? nope. |
09-15-2005, 12:52 PM | #5 (permalink) |
©
Location: Colorado
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The performance of an average motorcycle is on par with a Ferrari or Lamborgini. Toss an aggressive, inexperienced driver onto a crotch rocket and you have an accident waiting to happen.
I drive my motorcycle fairly fast, I also do it where there is minimal traffic. I'm a complete and total wimp while driving through city traffic. I know that everyone is out to get me. Weaving in and out of traffic is a sure way to die. On the open road, it's a different story. You'd have to ride a bike to fully understand the the feeling of power and control that you have while riding one. I'm perfectly comfortable passing cars at 80+. I'll only do it where it is safe to do so. |
09-15-2005, 02:06 PM | #6 (permalink) | |
Une petite chou
Location: With All Your Base
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It's the rush. It's hitting the Dames Point Bridge at 140 mph, soaring down the other side. It's the rumble of a Haybusa engine. It's the sublime pleasure of having that sexy man in leathers between your knees. It's the exhilaration of putting your life entirely in someone else's competent, experienced hands and just being. And holding on.
That's why I loved my former life as a pillion.
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Here's how life works: you either get to ask for an apology or you get to shoot people. Not both. House Quote:
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09-15-2005, 03:44 PM | #7 (permalink) |
is a tiger
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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I remember going 150km/h on the 404 thinking I was nuts until I saw to motorcyclists fly by me. I bet they were going at least 200km/h.
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09-15-2005, 06:09 PM | #8 (permalink) |
Junkie
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Honestly I think you have to be at least mildly unbalanced to ride one of those things, so it goes with the territory. I know a couple of my friends who have hit around 140 on them, which is ok when you're surrounded by 1500+ lbs of metal, but seems a little nuts when you're just sitting on about 200lbs of plastic.
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09-15-2005, 06:17 PM | #9 (permalink) | |
©
Location: Colorado
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In fairness, the bike was in perfect mechanical condition, the pavement was smooth and clean (I checked it), no traffic, no wind, and I'm an experienced rider. I backed off when my helmet started giving me problems. |
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09-15-2005, 06:28 PM | #10 (permalink) | |
Insensative Fuck.
Location: Boon towns of Ohio
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I've had my 600 XR-6R up to about 150mph a couple times.
The only problem with the question you're asking is that it's about maybe 2% of the population or riders, I'm sure almost all riders do some high speed shit. But the kind of rider you're talking about, is a rare breed of fool.
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09-15-2005, 07:37 PM | #11 (permalink) |
Functionally Appropriate
Location: Toronto
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I once had a guy fly by me at 110kph(70mph) in busy traffic on the Gardiner expressway, and then pop a few wheelies! I slowed down and hoped to hell I wouldn't have to witness his crash and dismemberment up ahead.
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09-15-2005, 07:54 PM | #12 (permalink) |
Junkie
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Stupid? Yes.
Fun as shit? Hell yes. Everybody dies one day. Might as well make it an awesome death.
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09-15-2005, 08:13 PM | #13 (permalink) | |
Functionally Appropriate
Location: Toronto
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Building an artificial intelligence that appreciates Mozart is easy. Building an A.I. that appreciates a theme restaurant is the real challenge - Kit Roebuck - Nine Planets Without Intelligent Life |
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09-15-2005, 08:26 PM | #14 (permalink) | |
Tilted
Location: Inside an econobox
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Really, it's just like any other potentially deadly form of entertainment. Gun owners, parachute jumpers, etc. take a lot of similar risks for the payoff of a rush of some kind. A lot of responsible people have fun times riding motorcylces, while a select few folks end up as visual aids in a driving class.
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09-15-2005, 11:12 PM | #15 (permalink) |
Insane
Location: Austin, TX
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A few weeks ago I saw a motorcycle rider on the highway using his cell phone. It's bad enough when people do that in cars, but on a motorcycle? And of course, since he was on the phone, he wasn't wearing a helmet. But could he even hear anything at that speed? And did the person on teh other end just hear wind? Must've been one very important conversation.
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09-15-2005, 11:35 PM | #16 (permalink) | |
Young Crumudgeon
Location: Canada
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Everybody wants to be James Bond and do the sort of crazy shit they see in the movies. The catch is that in real life there is no second take. On a bike if you fuck up, you get hurt. You die, even, much easier than you would in a car. And there's enough inconsiderate drivers out there that I don't need to take unnecessary risks. It all comes down to the 'sure, but that won't happen to me' syndrome, ultimately. People who haven't faced their own mortality will do things that those of us who realize how fragile we really are consider absolutely insane.
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I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said - Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame |
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09-16-2005, 01:27 AM | #17 (permalink) | |
Insensative Fuck.
Location: Boon towns of Ohio
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I don't think it has anything to do with stupidity, or facing your own mortality.
It's what extreme sport enthusiasts like to do. Fourwheeling wakeboarding motorcycle riding/stunting. All things that I take to the highest level of performance that I can. If you don't do it, you can't talk about how stupid someone is who takes it to a certain level. Legal or not.
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09-16-2005, 04:34 AM | #19 (permalink) |
Addict
Location: Hoosier State
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I saw one weaving in and out of traffic at excess of 80+ miles per hour the other day. I was keeping up at about 70 mph when this loud buzzer came out of nowhere, no helmet (not required by law in Indy). As many 18 wheelers as there are on the I69 & 465, I thought he was suicidal. Just plain idiotic.
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09-16-2005, 07:26 AM | #22 (permalink) |
Darth Papa
Location: Yonder
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I think motorcycles tend to attract the more *ahem* adventurous drivers. Those knuckleheads probably drive like that in cars too.
I'm probably going to get a motorcycle sometime in the next year, and I'm an extremely safe driver. I admit, I drive faster than many people, but I get passed my share on the freeway, and I'm as careful and paranoid on the road as anyone I know. I haven't ever been in an accident that was my fault, and the one fender-bender I was in, I was 16 years old and had just gotten my license and didn't yet understand all the ways people can drive like idiots. I treat everyone on the road as if they're psychotic and potentially homicidal. It'll be even more so when I don't have any side impact zones to cushion my fragile bones. |
09-16-2005, 09:04 AM | #23 (permalink) |
wouldn't mind being a ninja.
Location: Maine, the Other White State.
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How fast and dangerously I drive is directly proportional to how easily I can kill myself in the vehicle I'm driving. For example: if I'm driving my 93 Buick that goes 0-60 in, oh say... 3 days, then I'm a very safe driver.
If I'm driving a smaller, faster car, my speed goes up. It just sort of happens. I can't wait to see what I'm like on a fast bike. They drive like that because it's fun. Pure and simple. If I'm going 150 mph and not wearing a helmet and I die, well, at least I won't have to make any more payments on the Ducati I just crashed. (You know, hypothetically) |
09-16-2005, 10:18 AM | #24 (permalink) | |
Young Crumudgeon
Location: Canada
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Or look at it this way. You wipe out at 80kph, you get a nasty road rash. You wipe out at 180 kph and they identify you with your teeth. You're going to drop the bike sooner or later, so when you do which outcome would you prefer?
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I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said - Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame |
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09-16-2005, 11:50 AM | #25 (permalink) | |
Crazy
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He likes thrills and most illegal things he can do. Me, I'm safe and sold my motorbike without ever going more than 60 mph! Wretched coward that I am!
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09-16-2005, 11:58 AM | #26 (permalink) |
Easy Rider
Location: Moscow on the Ohio
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Like others have said, motorcycles tend to attract more risk takers, and therefore more speeders.
Myself, I am happiest going about 10 over on my big twin far away from traffic on the country roads. Gotta watch out for the deer and critters though. |
09-16-2005, 01:14 PM | #27 (permalink) |
Insane
Location: Vegas!!
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...
Oooh I love motorcycles. My friend owns a Harley Davidson shop. She has two bules (Girly Bike with a Harley engine) We had so much fun on those! Anyway, it's fun to ride around (acting sane) but after a while just going the speed limit can get pretty boring. You start going a little faster, a little more.... and before you know it you're weaving in and out of traffic acting like an idiot. It's a great rush. Defying death.
I've heard people call insane riders organ donors. I don't understand why though because if you fly off the bike when you're acting insane- internal injuries are guaranteed.
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09-16-2005, 02:47 PM | #29 (permalink) | ||
Insensative Fuck.
Location: Boon towns of Ohio
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What's the point if you're 100% sure you can do it? I'd rather push to do things I'm only 50% sure I can do. That's where the real rush is.
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09-16-2005, 07:03 PM | #30 (permalink) | ||
The sky calls to us ...
Super Moderator
Location: CT
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Last edited by MSD; 09-16-2005 at 07:07 PM.. |
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09-17-2005, 01:08 PM | #31 (permalink) |
Quadrature Amplitude Modulator
Location: Denver
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On Labor Day, I was driving in Colorado from Nederland to Estes Park up in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. The road is essentially a mountain pass: steep, long, winding, with rocks on one side and valleys on the other. It was a beautiful sunny dry Colorado day and I enjoyed the sights. And so were many other people on the road. But I saw more than a few bikers who weaved in and out at 60mph on these roads, even if they couldn't see more than about 1/4th of a mile ahead of them. What the hell were they thinking??
Most of them weren't wearing helmets either. Seriously, that is just lame. When I'm on my bicycle, I always wear a helmet. It's saved my head a few times too (although I can't say the same for the scars I have in various places).
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09-18-2005, 06:44 AM | #33 (permalink) | |
Submit to me, you know you want to
Location: Lilburn, Ga
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really? they must all live around atlanta then, because I see them every single solitary day driving around 285 I75 and I85
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09-18-2005, 07:35 AM | #34 (permalink) | |
Une petite chou
Location: With All Your Base
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A big group of those "rare breed of fools" live in Jacksonville. They disbanded their group for numerous reasons, but one of those being that the 5-0 had a task force out for them. My ex-'busa boy got his up to 210 mph on I95 outside of some eeney weeney towns in Georgia. The whole group of them got busted in the same area a few months later... he got a ticket for 145 in a 55. Heh. I laughed. But it's a daily occurence around here.
The idiot that really pissed me off was riding 45 mph looking backwards at me, waving frantically and making circles around my car trying to get my phone number because I was kind enough to change lanes and let him pass. Sheesh. We were in a school zone, for cripes sake! I love it when the guys at the stop lights gun an engine, pull a wheelie or acknowledge the hand signals when I've seen a copper out. But, man, watch out for the kids. Those are the ones that give riders a bad name. I've seen cagers on large and busy roads lately that will take out their frustration with riders that are riding responsibly, but quickly, by swerving close to them or trying to race. Two of them now have dents in their doors from a well placed, steel-toed boot. And I cheered. Hint: No matter how many mods on your Fiero, you cannot outrace a Hayabusa. Or a Vespa, for that matter.
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Here's how life works: you either get to ask for an apology or you get to shoot people. Not both. House Quote:
The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me. Ayn Rand
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09-18-2005, 08:53 AM | #35 (permalink) |
Lover - Protector - Teacher
Location: Seattle, WA
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Weight of Hayabusa: 408 lbs.
Weight of a Fiero: 2600 lbs. If a guy on a Hayabusa pissed off a Fiero enough, I doubt a steel toed boot would stop much. They'd have a dent, but it would likely be a person-shaped dent..
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09-18-2005, 02:43 PM | #36 (permalink) | |
Une petite chou
Location: With All Your Base
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Nah, it was boot-shaped. And he was about 2 miles behind the 'busa when he realized what had happened. It was pretty dang funny. One of those "Wtf?! Why I oughta... wait, where'd he go?!" moments.
Cagers rarely want to damage their own vehicles, so most will swerve closer, but not make impact to protect their pretty paint jobs. Often in hopes that the rider will swerve and lose ground, making their car look faster than the bike. At least around here.
__________________
Here's how life works: you either get to ask for an apology or you get to shoot people. Not both. House Quote:
The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me. Ayn Rand
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09-18-2005, 07:26 PM | #37 (permalink) | |
Fledgling Dead Head
Location: Clarkson U.
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On the note of bikes, while I am positive it is a thrill, I simply wont do it. In a car, I love driving fast, but I just cant imagine one little fuck up on a bike... And I do have a serious thing about taking other peoples lives in your hands unless you absolutly have to. A thrill is not absolutly have to. In traffic I drive pretty much by the rules. On a back road, you'll find me driving much faster, but I never leave my lane, and the entire time I'm looking for what could fuck me over. |
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09-18-2005, 07:53 PM | #38 (permalink) | |
Tilted
Location: Inside an econobox
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No disrespect intended toward gun owners or parachute jumpers... Those are just two things (like motorcycle riding) that popped into my head when thinking about fun things that can easily turn deadly if you're a stupid risk taker.
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I can has furburger? |
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09-18-2005, 11:15 PM | #39 (permalink) |
hoarding all the big girl panties since 2005
Location: North side
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Personally, I had always wanted a bike. I thought it would be a big thrill, you know, going fast, zooming around, that kind of thing.
What sobered me up was when I was working at the hospital here in Asheville, we got a 22 year old in the ICU from a motorcycle crash. 22 years old. My age. Broke both ankles, one kneecap, both femurs, shattered pelvis, perforated colon, internal bleeding, three broken ribs, two dislocated shoulders, broken arm, insane amounts of road rash, and brain damage. He had a wife and a 1 month old kid. Now, I know a lot of you keep to the "fuck everyone else, I'm doing what I want when I want to and none of you fuckers can stop me!" attitude. That's ok, that's your thing. But to me, when you have responsibility at home, a wife and a kid to take care of, or friends that love you, or parents that love you, well.... if you take those kinds of risks then you're being a bigger shit than you ought to be.
__________________
Sage knows our mythic history, King Arthur's and Sir Caradoc's She answers hard acrostics, has a pretty taste for paradox She quotes in elegiacs all the crimes of Heliogabalus In conics she can floor peculiarities parabolous -C'hi
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09-18-2005, 11:46 PM | #40 (permalink) |
Twitterpated
Location: My own little world (also Canada)
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The logical answer would be that they're insane motorcyclists.
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"Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from the prejudices of their social environment. Most people are even incapable of forming such opinions." - Albert Einstein "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something." - Plato |
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drive, insane, motorcyclists |
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