The two most worrisome things on a motorcycle for me are wildlife in the road, which is fortunately rare in the city but a huge problem in rural areas and people intentionally trying to kill me w their motor vehicle which is also rare but can happen.

I avoid the first hazard by not riding on rural highways at night. In certain places, it is extremely dangerous, (Wyoming and Montana, other mountain states), and it’s a problem almost everywhere across the U.S.

The second danger, someone either intentionally trying to kill me or just driving in such a reckless manner that the result is the same, is something you always have to be looking out for but it falls under general situational awareness and avoiding road rage, etc. I’ve been known to chew out fellow motorists for texting while driving next to me or driving w their lights off at night and other signs of oblivion but always while stopped or crawling in freeway traffic where I can easily escape between the lanes and they cannot really catch up to me.

Every once in a while, you see someone being extremely reckless in a car, like weaving through traffic at high speed, seeming enraged, etc. I use my mirrors and always try to pay attention to what’s going on around me. I also hide between the cars most of the time and almost always on the freeway, #1 lane and lane-splitting or filtering unless traffic is really moving and sparse. If someone was really actively trying to run me down, I’d take whatever evasive maneuvers possible and just try to get away from them. If I was armed, I’d treat it exactly as though they were shooting at me. A car or PU truck is a better weapon than a gun when trying to kill a motorcyclist.

Fortunately, those two situations are rare and mostly avoidable. The road rage does seem to be worse in other states, just based on what I’ve read here. I don’t worry about anything else and feel pretty safe on a motorcycle when I am the operator. :)

Near my old place I used to regularly see guys riding around with their helmets on the back seat. I guess protecting the rear seat leather was more important to them than their brains - which is supported by the "logic" of that very decision, ironically enough!

Nothing like a perfectly good $400 helmet sitting there doing nothing for you. Yah you're cool brah... :rolleyes:

Wear your helmet, guys. After all, in the case of the opening post, it made it easier for them to find the rider's head. :rolleyes:

I balked for several months prior to ordering this $1,000 SR1 Technology bucket.
No way was I going to spend that much mullah.
Glad I did...it's everything I have ever wanted in a helmet.
Ordered a couple of pilot's skull caps to keep it from being fouled.
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Edit: Meant to say that it's so much cooler than my other helmets...here in the AZ summer heat.
Lots of front to aft and cross flowing, etc.
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http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529687425.jpg

Yes! I wear the C3 Pro. Awesome helmet. If it's super hot you can flip the visor up and use the "inner" visor (looks kinda fighter-pilot-ish too). Definitely top-of-the-line quality. Schuberth rocks!

So my question to you would be why. Why we're you rear ended 3 times in 2 years. Sounds like you made a sound choice to stop riding.

Up until last summer, I rode a motorcycle every single day in Los Angeles for the past 13 years...about 3 of those years were spent riding from home almost 50 miles one way in rush hour traffic, then spending the entire shift working/riding in downtown LA. After that I rode and worked in the San Fernando Valley, then finally the Santa Clarita Area. I lane split traffic every single day. Every single day. On the weekends I ride one of my 12 personal bikes. I go on at least a week long ride and several overnight on road, off road and adventure bike rides a year. I've spent 2 weeks riding thru the Alps....Obviously I ride a lot.....

I guess I'm lucky, but I've never been rear ended or gone down in those 13 yrs. On my personal bikes I've had a couple of minor single bike incidents and I've lowsided a time or two on the track and biffed it riding off road, but I've never been hit by another car.

In your case, I think your fear of getting hit is greater then your "love"of riding. Nothing wrong with that and based on your record, completely warranted. I doubt I'd love riding if I'd been hit 3 times in two years.

You ride/rode more than anyone I have read about. Impressive.
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Care to list your 12 bikes?
I had 15 at one time in CA...all were in-house.

My older brother just sold his 2005 Electra Glide and is now without a motorcycle. We had ridden together for years, both locally and on many long road trips. He loved every minute of it - almost as much as I do. Our wives would join us on some of our local rides, and both of them rode with us individually, as just a husband and wife pair, when we were not riding as a foursome.

Then, after my wife and I got hit five years ago, my sister-in-law decided to quit riding with my brother. I guess I could tell all along that she really only went along to get along, being his second wife, who married a motorcyclist (his first wife tragically died many years ago from a childhood disease that finally caught up with her). She used our wreck as an excuse, that and the fact that they were new grandparents.

So, five years of riding with me, with his buddies, with me and my wife, but no wife on the back of his bike. That, and undoubtedly no small amount of pressure from her to quit, and he finally did quit. It kind of pisses me off in a way, but it's really not my place to say anything. Every time we are together, though, we talk motorcycles and riding. Pretty sad. I guess it was one or the other for him, though.

Sure. 2016 BMW R1200GS, 2013 BMW HP4, 2012 BMW S1000RR(TRACKBIKE) 1971 R75/5, 3 1986 GSXR750s, one a trackbike with a 1200 bandit motor, a Ducati 998, Ducati Paul Smart. a Honda XR650R Plated, a Yamaha TW200 and a TTR125.

In the next few years, I'll be selling them all except the GS and maybe the Paul Smart. Going to be traveling around the country and they gotta go....

What do you still have?

Nice collection, there.
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I have six now...and that's enough. Too hot here in AZ to ride in the summer, so I have enough variety for how often I ride anymore.
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- 1975 Yam DT400 (572 mi., house queen)
- 1999 BMW R1100S
- 2000 Ducati MH900e (302 mi.)
- 2010 Suz DRZ400
- 2012 Ducati Hyper 1100
- 2014 Royal Enfield Cont. GT 535
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In CA I had two Yam TDR250s among my collection...never should have sold them.
If you find one (grey market) ...they're so much fun. TZR motor.
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http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1529721692.jpg

Very nice.

I'm very fortunate to have Angeles Forest/Angeles Crest a few miles out my driveway. That TDR looks like it would be a hoot up there. That's a good looking bike. I'm on the off road team at work. We ride DRZ400s. I've ridden those on probably every fire road and trail around here.