For SoCal Riders

[alanmcorcoran]

From LA Times December 15th:

The Los Angeles Police Department is stepping up its motorcycle safety enforcement. Two or three times each month, the LAPD will dispatch additional officers to patrol areas of the city where motorcycle accidents frequently occur, said traffic grant coordinator Officer Don Inman.

Topanga Canyon, Pacific Coast Highway, Crenshaw Boulevard and the San Fernando Valley are among the areas that will be patrolled more vigorously for traffic violations made not only by motorcyclists but by drivers of other vehicles who make unsafe lane changes and turns that put motorcyclists at risk.

"The sole purpose of these details is to look for motorcycle violations or motorists doing unsafe things in front of motorcycles," Inman said of the increased patrols that will be conducted by motorcycle officers in eight-hour stints. "We’re not just going after motorcyclists. We’re trying to protect their lives."

The city is responding to statistics from the California Office of Traffic Safety, which found that state motorcycle fatalities have increased 91% from 2000 to 2008. In L.A. County, motorcycle traffic collisions have increased 62% from 2004 to 2008.

The LAPD’s increased motorcycle safety enforcement is funded with a $100,000 grant from the state Office of Traffic Safety and will run through Sept. 30, 2010.

[BusyWeb]

Thanks for the information Mr. Alan.
BTW, where have you been recently....

[alanmcorcoran]

Haven't gone anywhere. I check the unread posts pretty regular, but for the most part got nothing to say as I don't know much about fixing, modding, chinese bikes, etc.

I mostly just ride my bikes back and forth to work these days so it's not a very exciting posting topic. I did have an excellent opportunity for a longer jaunt up to Solvang (have you been up there?) a week back - I had a Christmas carol piano playing opportunity up there, but I got a cold two days prior and I took the Suburban instead. A good thing, cause it rained like some sort of tropical monsoon all the way back. I saw a guy on a Harley at the gas station that morning, and I just felt sorry for him. Windy, driving, torrential rain, with 5-6 inches of standing water on the 101. Lots of crashes - really not a good idea for bikes that day.

Still trying to sell my GZ if anybody wants it. Got some nice new saddlebags on it now and the Plexistar II. Under 4000 miles.

[Water Warrior 2]

Good for the L.A. police dept stepping up their patrols of dangerous areas. Hopefully they can correct some of the more dangerous drivers/riders out there. I may be in a minority here but I believe in a stronger police presence that might deter a lot of bad things happening. LEOs have the worlds most thankless job and we should be thankful they are there for us.

[BusyWeb]

Hi, Mr. Alan.

Have you tried put ad. on the craigslist?
Or, Oddle?
both are free to use.

Um, in the winter time, it may be little hard to sell motorcycle.
But, someone like me, use winter time for bike >> sellers might reduce prices... ha ha ha
Good luck for your gz..

[burkbuilds]

Hey Alan,
It sounds like a good effort by your local Law Enforcement to make an effort at preventing future motorcycle wrecks and fatalities. It sounds like you guys have had a significant increase in the number of motorcycle related deaths and accidents in general. How much of that increase, do you think, is a result of more riders on the road trying to reduce their fuel consumption (costs). Any stats on how many of those accidents involve less experienced riders or unlicensed riders? I've seen more bikes out being used during the week around here, apparently as commuter vehicles and not just for weekend "fun" rides. That description would also fit for me since I, like you, take my bike for transportation almost every day and rarely ride "just for fun". Although, I will say, I enjoy my ride every day, so maybe it could be said that I ride "for fun" all the time.

[Moedad]

How much of that increase, do you think, is a result of more riders on the road trying to reduce their fuel consumption (costs).

There's definitely an increase in commuting riders, but not nearly enough to get that 91% increase. I'd guess (but it's just a guess)maybe 1/3 to 1/2 of that is new commuters. My feeling is people who are just riding to save money on gas are being a little more responsible than people who commute some times but ride primarily to zoom around on weekends.

Any stats on how many of those accidents involve less experienced riders or unlicensed riders?

Again, this is a guess, but I suspect the bulk of the increase is from both of those groups, some of whom may also commute. I'd like to add what I'll call the YouTube factor too. People doing stupid things in front of video cameras.

Either way, ridership has definitely taken the winter dip here, even though our winter weather is still generally nicer than most of the weather in the country for much of the year. It's in the high 60s and low 70s here this week with a slight warming trend coming before returning to the mid 60s next week for Christmas.

[Water Warrior 2]

A large % of the accidents/fatalities has been attributed to Baby Boomers. They finally get their toys but don't know how to play safely.

[alanmcorcoran]

I don't really know why the accidents and fatalities are up so sharply. Motorcycle and bicycle death is pretty much a daily occurrence here, and the dead riders don't fit any particular profile. I tend to read most of the fatality articles and quite a few of the dead guys are older (presumably experienced, but I don't know) but there are also dead young guys on sport bikes. I do think that the spike in gas in mid 2008 prompted a lot of people to start riding for the first time, but I also think the ones that did it just to save gas are probably back in their cars. (Otherwise, I would have sold my GZ by now!)

The types of accidents I read about are the usual: Left turn into motorcycle, motorcycle left the road, failed to negotiate the turn, etc. FWIW, nearly all the dead guys out here were wearing helmets. I don't like to think about it too much, but I guess the reality is, one mistake on the bike at the wrong time and your number is up. I suppose you have to either be a little irrational or okay with the possibility of an early death to be a long term rider. Not sure which category I fall into, perhaps I'm just slow on the uptake as well.

[burkbuilds]

Alan, my guess is that you are neither irrational nor slow on the uptake but that you live your life in such a way that you can enjoy it. I think that's good. My dad was a CPA and when he died some of the people who came to his funeral told me how much they loved it when he came to their businesses to do audits because he'd come in the door and say something to the effect of "If we've got to be here doing this, we might as well have a good time while we are here" and he was able to make that time as "fun" as possible. I guess what I'm saying is that living a lot of years but not enjoying that time is not the way I want to spend my life. All of us will die eventually from something and it would seem like a wasted life if I made 100 years but hadn't done anything much along the way and hadn't enjoyed myself because I was afraid something "fun" might shorten my lifespan. I hope you enjoy riding for many years and I hope you continue to do it without getting hurt but I also hope you never stop doing something you love to do out of fear that you might die from it, cause one of these days you (and I and the rest of us) will all die from something and it would be a shame if we let fear stop us from having a good time while we were here.
"Do all the good you can, to as many people as you can as often as you can" quote from somebody. And, (I'd like to add) enjoy your life while you can. You sound like you do and I think that is great!
BTW, I'd LOVE to have temps in the 60-70 range here right now! I was riding in this morning and it was 32 degrees here in "HotLanta, Georgia", kind cool for the south.

[alanmcorcoran]

Burk,

Thanks for kind words. I think I am a little irrational, cause I'm kind of a chickenshit. For some reason, though, certain things just don't register with me as being as dangerous as they really are. Even after (immediately after in some cases!) I had the occasional whoopshit, I've forged ahead and carried on without what you'd think should be a healthy dose of fear. I am actually much more anxious about playing the piano solo in front of an audience than I am about splitting lanes in rush hour traffic. I suppose if I have an accident and eff myself up but good, I will be singing a different song (assuming I can still sing.) In the mean time, I think my life philosophy is more along the lines of "what can I do to distract myself from the ongoing decline." I don't feel so old at 70 mph on the freeway. Not yet anyway.