Left-turn motorcycle collisions

[Keith True]

I've ridden all my life,and I think I am going to give it up.I lost a bike in a fire and went out and bought the twin to it right off.I have ridden it 4 miles in 4 years.For some reason the close calls have been coming to mind more frequently lately.I have 5 bikes,and saw that the 71 Honda I bought new has a 78 plate on it.The 58 BSA has 1982 plate on it.The 66 Honda dream has a 1989 plate on it.My 2000 Yamaha Roadstar 1600 is currently on the road,but I'm just not using it.I'm getting the idea that maybe I'm not going to get around to riding them anymore,so I am going to get rid off them all except for a Royal Enfield 500.That's nice to putt around town with.Most of my close calls have been left turners.I mostly ride alone at night,and what scares me the most are deer,moose,and bears.

 

[Steve in VA]

My first bike was a 1947 indian scout--have had Hondas ever since

You can't go wrong,
with an Indian Scout
or it's brother, the Indian Chief.

They're built like rocks
to take hard knocks.
It's the Harleys that cause all the grief.

 

[old]

I've ridden all my life,and I think I am going to give it up.I lost a bike in a fire and went out and bought the twin to it right off.I have ridden it 4 miles in 4 years.For some reason the close calls have been coming to mind more frequently lately.I have 5 bikes,and saw that the 71 Honda I bought new has a 78 plate on it.The 58 BSA has 1982 plate on it.The 66 Honda dream has a 1989 plate on it.My 2000 Yamaha Roadstar 1600 is currently on the road,but I'm just not using it.I'm getting the idea that maybe I'm not going to get around to riding them anymore,so I am going to get rid off them all except for a Royal Enfield 500.That's nice to putt around town with.Most of my close calls have been left turners.I mostly ride alone at night,and what scares me the most are deer,moose,and bears.

I have 7 bikes on my place but none are running at this time. Oldest is a 1972 Honda CL350. I have 2 Honda CB360T. Also have 2 Yamaha XS650s and a Yamaha 750 special and a Hardly. I keep looking for the bike I want but not likely to ever find one. I want a BMW like say the R60S

 

[docmirror]

I loved riding MCs since I was about 10. Always had some kind of bike in San Diego where I grew up. Now, the distractions from phones has me scared to get back out there. I'd love to have a vintage bike for a weekend ride. I'm out in the country, so the roads aren't that busy. But it only takes one teen on their phone to wreck my day.

 

[MarkB_MI]

Diverging diamond interchange should eliminate that where installed and we are getting about 7 of them in a couple of years in Wichita. YOu can google diverging diamond for details. Basically the traffic flow switches sides prior to the interesection and reverts bak after.
View attachment 71680

We have several diverging diamond intersections near me. They're a bit confusing the first time you encounter them, but they work well. The main advantage is there are no sharp turns for semis to make. They also require a lot less real estate than a clover leaf. But they'll never be more than a small percentage of intersections.

 

[MarkB_MI]

It happens with cars and tractors too. I had a 70 Honda 450 back in the day. A helmet and face shield doesn't help with a big flying grasshopper or locust hits me in the neck at 80 mph. Having a rear tire go flat on the highway is manageable. Having a front tire go flat on a sand road is a little tougher. Mine must have had a target on the front, side, and back. I don't know how many points I was worth but it seemed like cars would go out of the way to make me take evasive action. When a car ran a red light trying to get me going through an intersection I knew my days with a motorcycle were numbered and I've been happy without it although another one is kinda tempting but not likely going to happen. Had a friend who bot a Harley in his advanced years and he tried to make a uturn in a highway and learned that turning the wheel and leaning in the right direction had to be coordinated at the same time. It didn't turn like when riding a bicycle. Anyway he ended up in the ditch with a broken leg.

Had a friend who bot a Harley in his advanced years and he tried to make a uturn in a highway and learned that turning the wheel and leaning in the right direction had to be coordinated at the same time. It didn't turn like when riding a bicycle. Anyway he ended up in the ditch with a broken leg.

Actually, bicycles and motorcycles turn in exactly the same way. But many bicycle and motorcycle riders are unaware that you actually turn the handlebars in the OPPOSITE direction you want to turn. This happens more or less instinctively, up until you're trying to make a sharp, low-speed turn on a heavy bike. If you try to turn the handlebars the direction you want to turn while leaning in the same direction the bike is going to fall over.

 

[showcrop]

I used to have a nursing home customer which was part of a chain that specialized in head-spinal cord trauma patients. A very high percentage were motorcycle crash victims. Nerve tissue doesn't heal anywhere nearly as well as bone and muscle, and then it has to be retrained. This is basically why wearing a helmet can make a difference, especially in the more common low speed traffic collisions.

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

We have several diverging diamond intersections near me. They're a bit confusing the first time you encounter them, but they work well. The main advantage is there are no sharp turns for semis to make. They also require a lot less real estate than a clover leaf. But they'll never be more than a small percentage of intersections.

They put a diverging diamond in a suburb of Rochester NY several years ago. Old men all over town ranted and raged from the time it was proposed until it was completed. Driving on the opposite side of the road was just such a foreign concept. They were convinced that nobody would ever be able to figure it out. Never occurred to them that there would be barriers, signals, signs, and lines to follow.

Really they're not confusing at all if you just follow the signs and obey the signals.

 

[jimg.allentown]

I used to have a nursing home customer which was part of a chain that specialized in head-spinal cord trauma patients. A very high percentage were motorcycle crash victims. Nerve tissue doesn't heal anywhere nearly as well as bone and muscle, and then it has to be retrained. This is basically why wearing a helmet can make a difference, especially in the more common low speed traffic collisions.

Yup. It sure does make a difference. It moves the injury from the brain to the spinal cord, so instead of getting a lobotomy (so to speak) in a collision, you just become a paraplegic or a quadraplegic. The real difference is whether you become unable to comprehend the world around you or just can now sit and think what you should have done instead of getting on that motorcycle. All that while a nurse wipes your butt for you.

In any collision on a motorcycle, chances of survival diminish with speed. After some certain speed, helmets are ineffective. I don't know what that speed is, but it certainly isn't very high.

 

[Geo-TH,In]

Yup. It sure does make a difference. It moves the injury from the brain to the spinal cord, so instead of getting a lobotomy (so to speak) in a collision, you just become a paraplegic or a quadraplegic. The real difference is whether you become unable to compregend the world around you or just can now sit and think what you should have done instead of getting on that motorcycle. All that while a nurse wipes your butt for you.

with speed. After some certain speed, helmets are ineffective. I don't know what that speed is, but it certainly isn't very high.

You are right, In any collision on a motorcycle, chances of survival diminish.
Yesterday a person on a MC ran into the back of a stopped van at an intersection.
Killed him.

 

[Crazy Horse]

Not to turn this into a helmet debate, but when I rode, I always wore a helmet. However, I personally think that helmets only have limited protection. In general, they just move the trauma just a bit farther down the spinal cord. Still, I would wear one.
But, getting on a motorcycle these days with the way people drive? Not happening. Not even remotely interested. Takes too long to heal!

Looking at coroners' reports on causes of death in motorcycle crashes, it seems the most common cause of death is blunt force trauma. No helmet will ever protect you from that.

Jim .... I'm curious where you got this info .... they just move the trauma just a bit farther down the spinal cord.

Surely not your own conclusion, there must have been a source of some kind. Just wondering ....

 

[bc]

They put a diverging diamond in a suburb of Rochester NY several years ago. Old men all over town ranted and raged from the time it was proposed until it was completed. Driving on the opposite side of the road was just such a foreign concept. They were convinced that nobody would ever be able to figure it out. Never occurred to them that there would be barriers, signals, signs, and lines to follow.

Really they're not confusing at all if you just follow the signs and obey the signals.

We went through a battle royale before we got a roundabout put in town. To me it's the greatest thing since sliced bread.

 

[jimg.allentown]

Jim .... I'm curious where you got this info .... they just move the trauma just a bit farther down the spinal cord.

Surely not your own conclusion, there must have been a source of some kind. Just wondering ....

Back when there was big debate about helmet laws, studies were done. Among others, the CDC, NHTSA, and several medical schools all had their say. The general consensus was that helmets will protect against skull fractures and some traumatic brain injuries, but the incidence of spinal cord injuries increased with the decline in brain injuries. So, instead of a cracked skull, you get a fractured neck. So, would you rather be shot or stabbed?

One thing is certain - regardless of a helmet or no helmet, if you hit the head, your brain can bounce around inside your skull and cause injury that way. My opinion is that if you have a collision at any speed over about 30 miles per hour on a motorcycle, it probably will not end well, and it will probably hurt - at least for a little while.

I used to ride. I always wore a helmet. I never had a collision. I was one of the lucky ones that stopped before I got seriously hurt.

 

[showcrop]

Department of Transportation’s Crash Outcome Data Evaluation System (CODES) in 1996 showed that “...motorcycle helmets are 35 percent effective in preventing fatality, 26 percent effective in preventing injuries at least serious enough to require transport to the hospital ED [Emergency Department], and 9 percent effective in preventing all injury.”

 

[Jim in LA]

Back when I was 15 years old I totaled a 1965 Chevy Belair due the fact the guy made a left turn right in front of me and he did so so close I hit the car center line of the front axle and the bike took out the right side of the car. I got lucky and walked away from that with a broken arm and a scare on my face. AND yes I was legal at the time to be one the road. I was riding a 1967 Honda 90

A ‘65 Chevy Belair totaled by a little ol Honda 90?! I guess the stars and planets were aligned just right that day.

 

[Bob Collins]

Best motorcycle riding advice I ever got was; Realize that you are completely INVISIBLE to all other drivers. I rode for a few years and now and then think how great it would be to get another bike, but it isn't going to happen.