- Take a motorcycle safety class. Learn how to ride proficiently. You’ll even see experienced riders brushing up on their skills in the class.
Don’t let a careless driver ruin your bike or your life.
- Practice in an empty parking lot and become proficient at breaking, turning, and evading. Ride using SEE: Search, Evaluate, and Execute.
- Make sure you have a genuine DOT-approved helmet. The more coverage, the better.
- Watch out for intersections. The vast majority of all motorcycle collisions occur at intersections. The most common accident involves the at-fault driver making a left turn.
- Don’t ride in bad weather. The chances of going down go up.
- When you ride don’t consume any alcohol and be completely sober. Just make it your policy.
- Insure your bike properly. Get uninsured motorist and under-insured motorist protection. The added expense is minimal compared to the pay-off if something bad happens.
- Be conspicuous. I remember my motorcycle riding instructor saying, “Why is it that everything they make for us is black?” Wear a bright-colored coat and helmet. Black may look cool, but others won’t see you. Europeans have the right idea — they don’t think it’s “uncool” to wear a highly visible reflective vest while riding a motorcycle. If the vest is not your thing consider a reflective, bright-colored helmet. Remember the most common phrase uttered by a negligent driver: “I just didn’t see him.”
- Watch for people pulling out of side streets, driveways, business parking lots, and coming across backed up traffic lanes. These are common situations where a motorcyclist gets hit because a car driver forgot to look carefully.
