Safer Times To Ride?

[brinksta]

I used to have 250 and I am about to buy another one. Is it safer to ride when it's late when there are less cars out? Or like during the day during the week? I have a car also, so I can ride, or drive when I want too.

[csmith12]

Sure there are safer times to ride. The perfect time is when your the only one on the roads. Since since that will not happen, pick and choose your battles wisely.

The only time I will NOT ride is 3-4pm. That is the time they dismiss the local high school. Nothing like 100 teens on the road while texting and goofing around with a carload of friends.

I try to avoid rush hours too but I work at home and have that luxury.

[Darling Ninja]

When I first learned to ride on the street, I only wanted to ride at night because I felt like I didn't draw as much as attention and there were less cars out. Now, I can ride during the day time and not be so intimidated, it just takes time and practice. I still try to avoid rush hour, but I've been caught in it and have been fine. L.A. rush hour on major freeways can be pretty scary for a beginner, even for someone who's been riding for a long time.

Ride at whatever time you feel comfortable, eventually you'll have enough experience riding that the time of day won't be as much of an issue.

[JeffM]

Best time not to ride - when the bars get out.

[Sigma.40]

Originally Posted by JeffM

Best time not to ride - when the bars get out.

Originally Posted by csmith12

The only time I will NOT ride is 3-4pm. That is the time they dismiss the local high school. Nothing like 100 teens on the road while texting and goofing around with a carload of friends.

^+1^ to both

I started out at night and gradually worked my way into more and more traffic until I felt comfortable at any time. My first time out on the road though, was on a busy 5 lane highway during rush hour when I needed my bike to take the skills test . Rush hour isn't that bad actually. In my area traffic moves fairly slow, so as long as your good and comfortable with taking off, its ok.

[Boom King]

If you choose to ride at night, preferably pick well lit roads and wear visible/reflective gear. Also don't out ride your headlights. Try to avoid riding during twilight hours as this is the time when visibility is at its lowest for drivers. Whatever you do, find your comfort zone and grow from there.

[blink]

Every time has pros and cons.

Morning----> Tired drivers who don't pay attention
Afternoon----> Traffic and school kids
Late afternoon------> Rush hour
Evening-----> People are in a hurry to get where ever since they are late (after work dates...kids to and from sports....etc)
Night------> Reduced visibility

[n4mwd]

I've heard night is the best time, but I don't agree with that. At night, you are more likely to be seen by cagers, but also more likely to overrun your headlights and get into a wreck all by yourself.

Personally, it seems that when there are a lot of people on the road, they tend to look where they are going more. I don't usually have an issue with crowded roads. I've even seen some cagers act as though they were trying to protect me.

I personally think the worst time to ride is during rain or other bad weather. Wet roads combined with gusty 50 mph winds could potentially knock you off the bike. Possibly blowing you into the path of a cager. I've never had that happen, but I'm always worried about it.

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by trixter

personal experience 20-30mph gusts is enough to blow the bike around, especially when its wet. If you graze 'botz dots' (the road reflectors between lanes) your tire will slide a bit as well. I was going home one evening and had to stop for 30 minutes or so to let the winds calm down because I was either going to be blown into the oncoming traffic lane or drop the bike. When its dry its easier to deal with those exact same winds but when its wet its not as easy (or fun).

On dry pavement, gusty winds aren't all that bad. Going faster actually increases your gyroscopic stability. Not good in the rain though. I remember from my MSF class that we should avoid the reflectors, paint and the center of the lane (the grease strip) when its raining. So far I have been pretty lucky following that advice. I've heard several people tell me they found out the hard way how slick those areas are.

I can't imaging how difficult it must be to ride on snow and ice. Glad we don't have to worry about that down here.

[n4mwd]

Originally Posted by trixter

Thick mud is similar in that regard, and the ninja wants to slip out from under me on mud (I have 1 dirt road to my house). My dirt bike with its knobbies has 0 problems with the same mud its just the slicker tires on the ninja.

Same here. I live on a short dirt road and a friend of mine nearby does too. I'm usually riding slow with both feet dragging the ground through that stuff. Not fun at all. Sugar sand is bad too. Fortunately, the road is good 95% of the year.

[CC Cowboy]

Best and safest time to ride is any trackday you can get in to.

[leed]

If you ask me, the best time to ride anywhere is during a workday and during work hours. Avoid lunch, avoid 5 o'clock and avoid 6-8 o'clock. 8-11, 1-4. If you live near roads set away from school districts, 1-4 is okay. Anything after that and you have people who are tired and want to get home, likely more enraged than in morning, etc etc. Otherwise, just take note of high traffic roads, the lesser traveled roads are not hard to find.

[etiainen]

Night time also means deer depending on your area.

[Firehorse]

Since my driveway is pretty much on a freeway, I started riding at night after the bars have been closed for a while.
On the bad side is that no one can see you but on the good side you can see them a mile away and turn down a side street and check that one out.

Dawn and dusk are when critters are out - need to be extra vigilant with your scanning of the sides of the road.

Tuesdays and Wednesdays in the morning - not a payday, not a monday and that time before lunch is quite blissful.

I still prefer to ride at night just because it's more beautiful and quiet. I know where the really active deer areas are and if I want to go fast, I stick to the long lighted stretches. Long country meanders at night are nice but again, no one expects you to be there so you have to watch for people taking drunken joyrides or pulling over in the weirdest places to get some lovin'.

Sometimes really busy rush hours can be okay because everyone is going at a snail's pace - great for practicing clutch work and really slow riding.

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by brinksta

.....Is it safer to ride when it's late when there are less cars out?.........

Tanner,

An empty public road is a rare thing in this overpopulated world; that only happens in my area in the very early morning of Sundays.

However, safeness is not related to time or traffic density, but to rider awareness and skill.

You can perfectly hurt yourself and your bike in an empty road.

[gfloyd2002]

@brinksta, this is discussed in a very detailed study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study of motorcycle accidents, which you can find attached to my blog. Weekend evenings are the worst. Personally, I don't go out on the motorcycle Friday and Saturday nights - this is made worse because Barbados does not have drunk driving laws. As you look at the charts below, you will note that the numbers are roughly equal between nights and weekends, and between day and night. But that actually means that daytime, weekday riding is safest. Here is why:

1. There are more weekdays than weekends, about 1.6 times more (giving Friday afternoon and Sunday afternoon to the weekend). So while the total number of accidents in the sample reviewed are roughly equal on weekend vs. weekday, the fact that weekends get to that number in significantly less time means the accident rate is higher. There is a 1.6 times greater risk of crash during the weekend.

2. On day vs. night riding, the overall numbers are also roughly equal in terms of total crashes - with a slightly lower total number at nights. However, the volume of riders during the daytime hours of 6 a.m. -6 p.m. is 15-20 times the number of riders from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. For roughly the same number of crashes to happen with 15 to 20 times fewer bikes on the road means that the accident rates during the day is higher. The risk of accident for driving at night is about 15 to 20 times greater. This makes total sense to me. Visibility is a key factor in motorcycle accidents. Add to that more drunk drivers, and more speeders, and you get significantly more risk.





All of that said, I agree with @Motofool. The best way to increase your safety is not by choosing when you ride but to be very aware of how you ride. Most accidents can be avoided with appropriate precaution, regardless of time of day. Do not drink and ride. Be aware of your surroundings and do not speed. However, if you are doing all that property, you can further reduce your risks by avoiding riding on weekend evenings.

[etiainen]

Originally Posted by trixter

They come out during the day here. It was raining so its hard to see clearly, there were 4 fauns (never saw mamma)

Link to original page on YouTube.

There are a ton of em too, at least a dozen that regularly walk on my property and 30 more on nearby properties (no its not the same ones).

Wow....

I try to avoid heavy deer areas if I can...but sometimes I just can't.:/

[flurbadurba]

4-6am.

[burningscooter]

Originally Posted by csmith12

Sure there are safer times to ride. The perfect time is when your the only one on the roads. Since since that will not happen, pick and choose your battles wisely.

The only time I will NOT ride is 3-4pm. That is the time they dismiss the local high school. Nothing like 100 teens on the road while texting and goofing around with a carload of friends.

I try to avoid rush hours too but I work at home and have that luxury.

This right here. I live right next to a high school and already, both my friend and I were almost wiped out by some chic in her dads explorer. She was laughing after the near miss. I was so pissed.