Experienced Riders Likely to Crash When Switching Bikes

MAYFIELD VILLAGE, Ohio – January 28, 2008 – Whoever coined the phrase, “it’s just like riding a bike,” probably never switched motorcycles. That’s because even experienced riders can be pretty wobbly when they hop on an unfamiliar bike, according to data from the country’s largest motorcycle insurer, Progressive.



The study of almost 2 million motorcycle policies over a five-year period finds that riders who switch bikes are nearly 70 percent more likely to crash than riders who keep the same bike.



“Most people already know that riding can be especially dangerous for new bikers,” said Rick Stern, a Progressive motorcycle product manager who is also a rider. “But our data shows that the less familiar you are with your bike, the more likely you are to be involved in a collision, regardless of your experience.”



The study also found cruiser riders who switch to sport bikes are three-and-a-half times more likely to crash. That’s more than double the risk they’d have than if they just switched to another cruiser.



Sport bikers, on the other hand, can reduce their risk by more than a third just by switching to a cruiser.



“We want experienced riders to know their risks so they can take extra precautions when they replace their bikes,” said Stern. “It’s a good idea for riders to take their new bike out for a couple of shake down cruises in a parking lot before hitting the open road.”



Even people who have been riding for years can benefit from practicing the basics on their new bike, Stern said, including low-speed riding, turning, shifting and swerving, and higher-speed panic stopping.



After all, if the goal is to keep the dirty side down and the shiny side up, there’s no substitute for experience—and not just experience on the road, but also on the bike.  

So cruiser riders are the dumbest, huh. That's the way I had it figured to.  

I find many of these types of studies to themselves be studies in nothing but motoracism.

One will crash more, one will crash less, crash crash crash - the common theme....

There are people who are going to crash, you know they type, it is not rocket science spotting them. And you can not stereotype them with flashy bikes or loud exhausts.

There are those who plan to crash, you know they type, they dress the part. Plan for the worst, hope for the best. They only annoy me if I can caught riding behind them, other than that, they are enjoyable.

And there are those that ride to park - seriously, a huge nitch, the ride2parkers. And these include sportbikes and cruisers.

Sportbikers R2P's crack me up the most, they ride hard and fast, dress to look oh so cool (in a Liberache kind of a way), but every 10-15 minutes, they pull over and urgently check their cell phones for text messages and then after 10-15 minutes of texting or chatting, talk amongst themselves about their greatness and then pull yet another 10-15 minute power run -

They're crashers, generally due to a road hazard (they were on the road....)

Cruiser R2Pers are the ride to the bar or coffee shop or motorcycle shop or anywhere that they can P&P (Park and Profile).

The had a plan, sometimes as grandiose as riding all the way across town before finding the ideal parking place to showcase their motorcycle in front of the local bar.

Then they go in and much like the Sportbiker R2Per's, boast about their greatness, tell huge tall tales about their bikes performance (where the Sportbiker R2Per's actually have honest stories to tell...), pound back a drink or three then ride home -

They're crashers, never their fault....

Anyone else want to chime in here?  
Steve

Ride for one - Ride for all