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This is a very good point, there is no subsitute for being defensive and evasive of hazards as much as can be done in a given situation, and still it continues to happen with such frequency, that it is alarming to say the least. On Oct. 15 '02 in NC, my uncle slammed into a dumptruck entering the road from a construction site, and was killed immediately. I've been to more funerals and or know people who are deceased from this than I have fingers on my hands, same year, my friend lost his sister, she was an avid rider, + all the scenes I've witnessed, I just can't emphasize how real these kind of accidents are, then there are those who harass bikers when on the road, it's a lot to pay attention to. My preference was to ride on country or less traveled roads, in good condtion, but used to join the traffic when riding to work. Speed is a major factor, been since '93 that both the old 650 Maxims have sat in the dry basement, after a bike related funeral, but I do recall how quickly I could stop from 55 MPH, reaction time is another issue, if you don't see something unfold like stopped traffic, a car door opening, an animal in the road etc., a bike does not offer much forgiveness. You need that reaction time to stay alive, good friend in my high school class did not see the bus in time, I saw him that morning at work, they were working on the new truss shop building at the lumber yard I worked at, nice Sat. morning, good to see someone you had'nt seen in a long time, that afternoon, right after he left, he was gone. I could mention a dozen more, have seen several dead at the scene, one particularly stands out, while on the FDR highway, on the east side of Manhattan, traveling home to Brooklyn, ( was my place during the week, went home to the country where I'm from every weekend back then ) was on my birthday, a guy on a bike slammed into a taxi cab so hard it looked like the cab backed into a utility pole at 60 MPH ! He did not make it. It's intimidating to get on the road with a bike today, you must be attentive or you become a statistic, it's that simple. I'm not sure how these guys do it in NYC, it's like driving a gauntlet, then they go between cars to get through, one wrong move and your done, really is insane what you see people doing. Did not make it out of highschool without having an incident, 2 younger kids on a TT 250 Yamaha, coming the opposite way, slammed into my '73 impala at 50-60 MPH, one went 50 feet past the car, the other hit a utility pole in mid-air, saw both of them fly over the hood, when I went to see how they were doing, both were out, appeared dead, both had one leg mangled, and shattered. The one who hit the pole was missing toes. No helmet, no lights, no insurance, no license, no nothing, and I got sued for $3 million dollars at age 17, and you realize they got paid somehow from somewhere 3-4 years later, it was a bad scene, depositions, court appearances, insurance company appointed atty's, it was a mess, I thought my wages were going to be garnished for life over it, but being young you kind of jump to conclusions, still was a real mess on both sides. No doubt, use care. PS - been thinkin about firin up one of them maxims, they were fun, damn good runners, although rice burners, I can see why HD was taking a lot of heat in the 70's and almost did not make it, the competition sure gave them trouble then. Now look at them, every store in the country has been enlarged, amazing how things change, friends family has a dealership in town, they certainly have expanded.
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