Watching videos of motorcycle crashes...

[Bminder]

Does anyone else watch youtube videos of compilations of motorcycle crashes? I do it from time to time to watch and learn.  It's interesting how many times the biker is doing something really stupid, like going way faster than the flow of traffic, passing on the right shoulder, passing stopped traffic on the left and have someone turn in front of them, obviously not knowing how to counter-steer, and on and on.
It's amazing how many of the crashes could have been avoided if the biker would have slowed down, obeyed traffic laws, uses some common sense, and rode defensively.
Anyhow, I watch to learn from the mistakes of others in hopes I can be a better, safer rider.

[Capn Ron]

Yes....I have a collection of motorcycle crash videos from a dozen years ago.  I watch them from time to time...There are some good reminders in there and some cringe-worthy moments as well!

[Bminder]

Here's one compilation that you can learn a lot from. Holy cows how stupid can some people be???
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCGfyZihRSI

[Dan Filetti]

The vast majority of those were cagers making left turn in front of bikes...  Worth pointing out...

Dan

[Bminder]

The vast majority of those were cagers making left turn in front of bikes...  Worth pointing out...

Dan

That and the bikers going way too fast.

[JoBrCo]

Here's one compilation that you can learn a lot from. Holy cows how stupid can some people be???
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCGfyZihRSI

Not to be mean or prejudice, but I believe all of those crashes were in countries other than the USA.  It looked like both Russia and the orient.  The point is that I don't know how stringent the laws are over there, i.e., the intellect that goes into their laws on motor vehicle transportation/safety.  Or whether they even provide such a class as offered by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation in the USA.  I really think it would be hard to create such a video comprised of all USA motorcycle crashes, where the motorcyclist was obviously at fault.  Not to say we don't have any dunderheads here.

Of course I'm almost never casual about motor vehicle transportation, taking it very seriously, especially on a motorcycle, because no matter whose fault it is, I'm the one at serious risk.

To tell you the truth, I don't believe that a motorcyclist should just drive defensively.  Sure that's first and foremost, but he should meld that with driving aggressively.  So I drive aggressively defensive.  And see that all motorcyclists should pick the size bike that allows them to brake/accelerate/steer out of harms way at a moments notice, always scanning for such need; to expect the unexpected! 

[skymasteres]

I actually find myself solidly in JoBrCo's camp with respect to aggressive defensive riding.  But most importantly you need to be away of your surroundings at ALL times in traffic. It doesn't take much of a lapse for your clearance to go to zero. 

In the caught most of the crashes seem like they could have been avoided if the motorcyclist had been more conservative with closure rates.   The one crash that really caught my attention was the one where the guy split the cars then the fellow to his led DELIBERATELY came up and hit him. That's the stuff that really gives me the willies and why, especially when I'm splitting lanes, I like to have a positive rate of gain on traffic. 

[faser41]

The vast majority of those were cagers making left turn in front of bikes...  Worth pointing out...

Dan

That and the bikers going way too fast.

Or like that very last video the rider obviously being very much drunk.......

[Bminder]

I agree with all of your comments, but look how many times a rider was doing something stupid and shared a lot of the blame for the crash.
That's what I'm learning from.

[FJ_Hooligan]

I agree with all of your comments, but look how many times a rider was doing something stupid and shared a lot of the blame for the crash.
That's what I'm learning from.

Just a little chlorine for the gene pool.  Do we really want these guys to reproduce?  I think not!

[skymasteres]

You know, I actually really enjoy scrutinizing videos of riders crashing on the track, or other performance riding. It's interesting to see if you can find the moment where everything went wrong and try to imagine what was going on in the rider's head when it started to happen. (Of course with my own crash videos it's easier.)

[Bminder]

You know, I actually really enjoy scrutinizing videos of riders crashing on the track, or other performance riding. It's interesting to see if you can find the moment where everything went wrong and try to imagine what was going on in the rider's head when it started to happen. (Of course with my own crash videos it's easier.)

That's what I mean about the crashes on the street too.
It's worthwhile to watch the crash unfold and figure out what if anything the rider could have done to avoid it.
For starters on many of them, how about not passing cars 40 mph faster than they are going?

[ribbert]

I thought it was just me but I have a strange addiction to watching these. My favourites are the single vehicle accidents. They usually involve the greatest level of stupidity and incompetence that leaves you shaking your head in disbelief.

Someone mentioned recently that some countries seem over represented in the clips. I believe ( I saw it on TV) that it has more to do with the popularity of dash cams than it does accident rates. Russia, for example, is obsessed with them.

Noel

[skymasteres]

I think the thing I find most unsettling about a lot of the street crashes is the fact that, if you look a them critically,  you realize that the rider put himself into the crash before he even realized he was in trouble.  What I mean is, if you have a 40+ mph speed delta passing a vehicle and can't see all the way through your braking distance, you've already crashed. You might not because there isn't really an obstacle or you might be able to weave around it.

Hell, in my last off, I was down before I even executed the turn because I had more energy than I had cornering force available to handle. Basically sealed my fate the instant I let off of the brakes. No amount of available lean, throttle, or body position was going to allow me to make that turn. Because I failed to properly set up the turn I put myself into a no win situation without even realizing it.  

Don't put yourself in no win situations guys. These bikes are fast and kinetic energy is (1/2)M*V^2. (Half of your mass times velocity squared) So with your mass being constant your energy with speed grows exponentially.  Your energy at 60mph is four times what it is at 30.  At 90 your energy is 2.25 times what it is at 60 and 9 times what it is at 30. It sneaks up on you fast. It is really REALLY easy to underestimate how much braking you have to do to dump that energy. You could find yourself in a situation where you've brought more energy than you can handle.

[Bminder]

I think the thing I find most unsettling about a lot of the street crashes is the fact that, if you look a them critically,  you realize that the rider put himself into the crash before he even realized he was in trouble.  What I mean is, if you have a 40+ mph speed delta passing a vehicle and can't see all the way through your braking distance, you've already crashed. You might not because there isn't really an obstacle or you might be able to weave around it.

Hell, in my last off, I was down before I even executed the turn because I had more energy than I had cornering force available to handle. Basically sealed my fate the instant I let off of the brakes. No amount of available lean, throttle, or body position was going to allow me to make that turn. Because I failed to properly set up the turn I put myself into a no win situation without even realizing it.  

Don't put yourself in no win situations guys. These bikes are fast and kinetic energy is (1/2)M*V^2. (Half of your mass times velocity squared) So with your mass being constant your energy with speed grows exponentially.  Your energy at 60mph is four times what it is at 30.  At 90 your energy is 2.25 times what it is at 60 and 9 times what it is at 30. It sneaks up on you fast. It is really REALLY easy to underestimate how much braking you have to do to dump that energy. You could find yourself in a situation where you've brought more energy than you can handle.

That's my point exactly.
I think we can learn a lot from the mistakes of others.
Vicarious learning can save you from a lot of self-inflicted pain.
"A smart leader learns from his mistakes.  A wise leader learns from the mistakes of others."

After watching these videos and seeing the stupid moves some of these bikers make, I think about it when I'm riding in traffic.
I think it helps.