"OMG getting a bike is dangerous, dont do it!"

[hybridxx]

Everybody knows that motorcycles are more dangerous then cars. I'm also sure that everyone in this forum know this and accepts the risks they take when they get on the 250, 600, 1000 whatever ur riding on etc...

I have to deal with these types on comments all the time and im sure everybody on here does to. How do u guys respond to these people =/. I know they are just looking out for us, but cmon u know?

I can even discuss the word motorcycle with my mom, because she goes all crazy..

[Nemy]

I always say the experience outweighs the risk. Motorcyclists aren't naive to the risks but (the smart ones atleast) we take precautions to minimize it. Same as ski diving, surfing, or anything else that people usually do for fun.

But in reality most people won't understand or will have to try it to see first-hand.

The other option that works well on some people is to shrug your shoulders. After a while, they'll give up lol

[Angel-be-Good]

Fortunately for me, both of my parents used to ride (my dad still has a dirt bike, my mom is thinking of getting an enduro) so neither of them crapped their pants when I told them I was getting into motorcycling. For me it's usually coworkers that say something about the craziness of it.

We accept risk in a lot of things we do. No one talks about how risky just driving is, but it's one of the riskiest activities everyone does, without even thinking about it. And I think that nonchalance exacerbates the risk--with motorcycles, I know how risky it is and I make constant efforts to reduce the risk. Whatever risk is left...it's just worth it. Riding is the best thing in the world.

[Viper-Byte]

There was a similar thread on this not so long ago...

The people who ask are people who have not, do not and quite probably will not ride a bike. I tell them that when riding I feel more freedom than driving a car and the experience of riding is so great.

Some people I will say that the fun one can experience while riding a bike through a nice set of twisties at a fast pace is more than some people will experience in a life time. This is something I truely believe as a lot of people live scared of doing something, so do not live to the full.

[ninjabrewer]

I don't remember what I posted on the previous post, and I am too lazy to look it up, BUT. One the guys that I worked with here and back in VA rides and had an accident and messed up his shoulder. I mentioned to him that I can't believe that he went and got another bike. His words.."you can always tell when someone doesn't ride"

I haven't had a serious accident and I don't know if I would get back up and re mount my bike or another one, but that pretty much summed it up. I didn't understand what he was talking about till I started riding.

You could always tell them "If you have to ask, you wouldn't understand"

nb

Also , several years ago, during a phone conversation with my mother, I was talking about several things that I wanted to do. Her response to all was you might get hurt. My response, if I didn't do something just because I might get hurt, I might as well stay in bed, alone.

[Alex]

Here's a link to that thread that covered a similar topic...

[Broom]

Track Bikes Save Lives

[ninjabrewer]

Originally Posted by Broom

Track Bikes Save Lives

I wish we had a track here in Hawaii, I think there used to be one but it is now closed

nb

[OldGuy]

Originally Posted by hybridxx

I can even discuss the word motorcycle with my mom, because she goes all crazy..

I would hope that when this thread is done you will print it out, put it in an envelope marked "OPEN WHEN I HAVE MY FIRST CHILD" and read it again.

Now that said, I know what you are saying and I can understand how frustrating this has got to be for you.

Question op - since you are new to the forum I have no idea about you; how old, still at home, siblings, on your own, HS grad, college, job, etc.

How long have you been talking to your Mom about getting a motorcycle? What have you done to prepare yourself to be the safest you can be.

Telling your Mom you are going to get a motorcycle without any preparation or understanding is like telling her you are going to go jump out of a plane without a parachute.

Give us some background so we can help you turn the tide.

[Broom]

good point(s) don.

i bought my first race bike (ysr50) and started racing when my son was just a couple months old. try validating that to your parents and everyone else! its even harder to explain to people that its actually Safer to ride on the track than on the street. then try to explain to them that you're doing it on a kids bike .... what a mess of a conversation that was... haha

[hybridxx]

thanks for all the replies guys.

I'm 18 full time college student with part time job, dont got bills to pay..just got money lying around that ive been saving up for a bike =/. always wanted to ride a motorcycle since i can remember, but since my mom was never with the idea of me doing it I obviously couldn't do it on my own, until now after a job and saving up some money I finally have enough to be able to try this out. I actually only got on for the first time on a bike about a week ago in my MSF class. Took the course and everything. I had ton of fun, I don't know how far I am going to take this, but I would really love to try it. I've only been on a bike during my class which means i can't say much, besides the fact that i had a lot of fun and want to get on a bike again... All I need is the green light from my mom. I have enough money..all i need to do is convince my mom.


oh yea. she doesnt know i took the class =/..ima just wait till i get the license in the mail to tell her lol.
Hopefully she'll be more understandable after i told her i passed the class.

[komohana]

are you living under mom's roof?...only reason i'm asking is cuz you'll probably get the "my roof my rules" trump it all declaration if thats the case. i'm a father of 3 and a grand-pappy to boot and well...i've used that one when the occasion called for it...

that said...my mom was concerned when i got my first cycle...concerned for about a month or so when she realized i wasnt gonna kill myself right off the bat. heck she got me a bike cover after that...a new riding jacket and riding boots this xmas. my mom was ok with it after awhile, maybe yourz will to iffn you're mature about your riding.

as far as what do i say to 'why ride?'
i ask if they've ever ridden...and take it from there

aloha

[athimmel]

Man, I got a lot of those statements. "Do you want to die or something?" "Aren't you too old? (45!!)" "Ah, so you're now an organ donor."

I got so sick of it. I just tell people that you have to be careful, watch out for idiots, avoid being an idiot yourself, and enjoy the ride. I wish I had a better answer, but I never do.

[Realirony]

when I turned 16 I wanted a moto so bad, but I got that whole deal "as long as you live in my house, you cant have one" from my mom (my father has been a bike lover since he was in high school). My dad wanted one, and wanted me to have one too, but I had to wait. When I finally moved out and had my own funds and place i bought one. My mom was nervous at 1st, but I showed her all the gear I wear, and she got a little better.

I never really have anyone tell me that what I love is dangerous. They just tell me to "watch out for the other maniacs out there." I just nod at em and keep goin

[Syphen]

Well... I think you went about it the wrong way lol. When I was first getting into riding, I was 18, living at home with my mom. I told my mom I was interested in motorcycles and that was it. Few weeks later I told her I had signed up for the motorcycle rider training course. They provided the bike and everything. My mom thought it was cool but she would still never let me ride my own bike. Another month passes, I did my course and found an old 1991 CBR600F2 for cheap. I bought it and brought it home. I convinced my mom that it was a friends old junker bike and he was letting me borrow it for a little while. I kept up the charade for about a month. When she finally found out, she was pissed off at me for owning a bike, for riding, maybe a little for lying. Whatever, I had a motorcycle lol. She was a heck of a lot angrier that winter when I smuggled the bike indoors and stored it inside the spare bedroom of the house. She didn't find it for a month! I was a crazy 18 year old lol.

Zoom ahead several years, I'm going on 24 now and a home owner. Getting married next summer.. I think I can see where your mom is coming from. I would have a hard time if I had a child dealing with all the things my parents put up with. Tattoos, motorbikes, boozing etc. I was a sh*t. lol

[Viper-Byte]

Hybrid, I am/was really in the same boat as you. I have wanted a bike for a long time and my Mum said when I have my full car licence, I can get my bike licence. Got full car licence, can I get my bike licence now? NO! not till you can afford your own bike. Much to my disgust I let it go. Then last year I had pleanty saved to get my licence and get a bike. Told Mum, she was not happy at first, but has come around. She knows that I am carefull, always wear the gear and not ride like an idiot and most of all it makes me happy!

[py2e]

I told my parents, and my mother said that I should sell the bike if I don't think I'm capable of riding it. My father thinks it's kinda cool.

[kazam58]

This is interesting stuff to read. I never actually really had to convince my mother. She wasn't happy about it, but after going through last summer without any incidents or close calls (knock on wood) then she lightened up and doesn't care much now, and even tells me to go for a ride when I'm in a bad mood. I paid for everything and figured it all out on my own. It also helped that my dad loves motorcycles and almost wanted me to get one. He's never owned one himself and is now thinking of perhaps getting one. I guess it really depends on the parents, but over the years I have proved to them that I'm responsible and wouldn't do anything stupid. I always kept myself at the top of my class in school, figured out any issues on my own, and never pulled any fast ones on them, so when the time came that I wanted bike there really wasn't much of a dispute.
When someone tells me that bikes are dangerous, etc blah blah then I give them the thumbs up and nod. There is no explaining to those who don't understand.

[Apex]

My mom was strict on not letting me have a bike. I grew highly interested in them when I was a teen. I had magazines, posters, brochures, etc. She still would not let me ride.

So when I left home when I was 18, I did some school, and saved up some money. I purchased a '97 GS500 brand new from the dealer. I cruised all around on that thing. My mom did not have a clue until I was done with school. I had a moving company deliver my bike to my mom's house. She ran it every two weeks for about 5 minutes while I was gone (told her how to start it, and it just idled). Once I got back home I had my bike again. Where I decided to move to was about 200 miles away from home. It got old riding my bike for that long in southern heat. So I got a car. I was about 20, and that was the last I saw of a bike until the beginning of this year.

I still hear my mom telling me how much she hates bikes (this is 10 years later mind you), but she has accepted that I will do what I want to. It's just how it is.

[hybridxx]

thanks for all the replies once again..

but yea i do live with my mom. At first it was "wait till uve had ur driving license for a while" then it became "u dont have any money, and im not gonna pitch in for it" then "ask ur dad". Ive been able to go past all these obstacles alrdy. and she still isnt budging. she doesnt know that im getting serious about this, i kinda just discuss it about her as an idea and then she goes crazy lol.

the reason i didnt tell her i took the class was because she was gonna be worried throughout the whole process of me waiting for the class day..then taking the actusal class, then waiting on the license and dmv stuff..i dont know if this is gonna be any better but ima just tell her all at once.. and hopefullly she thinks a lil diff after i tell her that im serious about it and took the class and all that neat stuff.

[TrueFaith]

I just let them think I'm crazy. Especially after dumping my first 250R last June, the "organ donor" comments doubled in freaquency. The fact that I replaced the bike and started riding again as soon as I was able took a lot of the wind out of their sails. Now they only half-heartedly say I'm nuts to ride a bike. I think it's because they now realize that there must be something really special about riding a motorcycle if a person is willing to risk injury to experience it, even after an accident. They don't know what to make of that kind of commitment, so I just keep my mouth shut and let them mull it over in their own minds.

[noche_caliente]

Hybrid - I'm getting closer to 30 every day, and it was several weeks after I got my bike that I told my mom about it - when she called to tell me that her store was closing and she wouldn't have a job after Thanksgiving, I told her no worries, I had a bigger thing for her to worry about *blush* It was a good tactic though, as she couldn't get too upset over it because she was already worked up, and it diverted her from freaking out about her job That said, I wouldn't recommend it! She still does not know that I wrecked, but my Dad knows, as he went down the week after I did, so I felt like I needed to fess up to him

[Verus Cidere]

Whoo boy, this is a touchy subject. I get all the crappy comments too, but more than that I have a lot of people telling me to "just be careful." That's all the people are really thinking about when they tell you stuff like that. Or, they're just trying to find a way to invalidate your passion so they can make themselves feel better.

As to the Mom thing, I gotta say it was hard for me to pull it off too. I guess you could say that, at 17, I got lucky! The thing I had to do was prove in small steps that I was responsible enough to handle it. I only managed to pull it off with my dad's help though. I agree with the fact that it does depend on the parents, but I'd suggest making sure she understands that not only do you understand the risks vs. rewards argument, you're doing everything in your power to make the ride as safe as possible. Good gear, MSF course, and a major lack of stupidity while driving or riding is always a good start. Just don't give up. Riding is way too much fun to let go that easily.

[Purspeed]

Disagreeing with their views that motorcycle riding is dangerous never works. Why? Because it attacks their pride. The best approach is to agree that it is dangerous.

Magically, they will come to your defense and say something like, "but, I know that you are going to ride safely." And you will respond, "yes, I will." Again, agreeing with their feelings.

[tlhamon]

I was lucky in that my Dad grew up on a farm so he taught me to drive a tractor when I was little and told me to by a motorcycle when I was 13 because I needed to learn. Having said that, part of the allure of a motorcycle is the danger. We all know that it's much safer in a car, but that is part of what makes a motorcycle so fun to ride. Like going on a rollercoaster. No one would go to Cedar Point for the food. It's the whole idea that you could die on the ride.

[CC Cowboy]

I think more accidents happen at home in the bathroom. I'm not sure if it is slip and fall in the bathtub or going blind from .....( whatever you go blind from).

[islanderman7]

Originally Posted by CC Cowboy

I think more accidents happen at home in the bathroom. I'm not sure if it is slip and fall in the bathtub or going blind from .....( whatever you go blind from).

Methanol- is extremely toxic. If ingested, as little as 10ml can cause permanent blindness and as little as 60ml can result in death.

If you were wondering.

[Sailariel]

I am 67 and have been riding since 1958. I stopped riding in 1982 because I got heavily into sailing. Got married in 1985, retired in 1991, and lived full time on our sailboat cruising the East Coast, Bahamas, and Cribbean. Laqst June I decided to get a bike. We moved ashore in 2004 and I rode road bikes (Bicycles) and opened up a shop. My wife was dead set against a motorcycle because she had a bad experience on one with her first husband. He would pop wheelies with her on the back. She is also convinced to this day that I will be killed on a motorcycle. I point to a totally clean driving record for both car and cycle. I have never had an accident since 1958 in anything. She is still unconvinced. My mother who is 96 and not senile, thinks the Ninja is great. She has been around a while and has wisdom. I guess the wife will just have to get used to it. She can always sail the boat while I ride--she is not into bicycles as well.

[Purspeed]

Originally Posted by Sailariel

I am 67 and have been riding since 1958. I stopped riding in 1982 because I got heavily into sailing. Got married in 1985, retired in 1991, and lived full time on our sailboat cruising the East Coast, Bahamas, and Cribbean. Laqst June I decided to get a bike. We moved ashore in 2004 and I rode road bikes (Bicycles) and opened up a shop. My wife was dead set against a motorcycle because she had a bad experience on one with her first husband. He would pop wheelies with her on the back. She is also convinced to this day that I will be killed on a motorcycle. I point to a totally clean driving record for both car and cycle. I have never had an accident since 1958 in anything. She is still unconvinced. My mother who is 96 and not senile, thinks the Ninja is great. She has been around a while and has wisdom. I guess the wife will just have to get used to it. She can always sail the boat while I ride--she is not into bicycles as well.

That is the most awesome story I have read in a long time.

[grandmaster]

I guess im not in the same boat as too many of you.... Neither of my parents cared if i got a motorcycle. That's not to say that my parent's don't care about me, but they know I am responsible. I have been riding motorcycles since I was 6 years old, raced my CR80 and my CR125. I have been wheelin (jeepin) since i was 15 and been driving on the street for 3 years now. (I'm 19) and i have a clean driving record, I have been pulled over 2 times on my ninjette and 13 times in my jeep without a single ticket. All i got when I said "hey, i want to get a bullet bike" was: "okay, if you can afford it and pay for insurance thats fine." and with that i started looking, 22 days later I was on my ninjette.

And that's that...i wish everything was that easy (hey mom, I want a GF....."not until your thirty"" hahahha classic

[hybridxx]

wow, thanks for all the opinions.

now ima try my mom again and this time ima be serious with her. wish me luck

[kkim]

Originally Posted by hybridxx

wow, thanks for all the opinions.

now ima try my mom again and this time ima be serious with her. wish me luck

good luck. parents like it when their kids act like adults.

[Viper-Byte]

Ha ha ha, I was talking to a friends sister, who works in a hospital (neonatal unit though, not ED ) was saying how dangerous a bike is and all that. I said to her, do you want to se my bike? So I showed her and she INSTANTLY stopped talking about that and went on to asking me how to get a licence! and how nice my bike was!

[ninjabrewer]

allllrrriiiiight, you got a convert.

[CC Cowboy]

I have two sons, They each have been riding since they were 3 years old (PW50, YSR50). One is 18 (Suzuki GSXR 750) and the other is 16 (Yamaha R6) right now. I never worry when they are out riding on motorcycles but continuously worry when they are out in the car. I trust them untill they get with others in the same vehicle.

[sisith]

All I say to people that come at me with these comments is "thanks, I appreciate the concern" and just change the subject. Usually never gets past that and they never really talk about it again.