[Cody Dawg]

Well, we lost another good friend to another motorcycle accident.

Read here.

He was obviously out there ripping around and it was his own fault, apparently. We think that maybe he thought that riding fast and ignoring stoplights at 5:30 AM was okay because it is an area where it is somewhat more rural. My husband rides a bike also, but not like recklessly, like Joe did. This is the second friend that died on a bike.

If any of you are reading this and ride motorcycles, remember the sad people you're going to leave behind if you get in an accident and die. It's not worth it. We came home last night to find his girlfriend in our driveway waiting for us to tell us the news.

Joe was a really good guy. Italian, handsome, a daredevil, but always wore a smile and was ready to help anyone in any way possible.

My husband talked to him on Monday (he was a former employee of his) because he had just moved back down to Florida from New York. He said, "Hey! How are you?" My husband said, "Who is this?" Joe answered, "Joe MAMA, boy!" His name was Joe Papa and he always said that to friends.

Joe Papa, may you rest in peace.

The rest of you bike riders, remember that you need to ride to stay alive.

[dcmacdaddy]

I feel bad for any family he might have had but look at this quote from the article. He's not a very bright guy to have done what he did.

• Records show that Papa's driving license was listed as ineligible, so he was not allowed to drive. According to Florida Department of Law Enforcement Records, he had been convicted of driving under the influence in 1997.

He was not allowed to drive because of a previous DUI and yet he was spotted earlier that morning, by a cop no less, blowing through other red lights on his bike . . . which he was not allowed to be driving in the first place.
Sounds to me like natural selection did its work right this time--Usually nut jobs like this wind up killing someone else in an accident and not themselves. Hopefully his family, if he had one, isn't dependent on him for any financial support.

[Severed Hand of Skywalker]

Shame but it is a damn good thing he didn't hurt anyone other than himself.

I hate motorcycles, they are the dumbest idea ever and if you get into a bad accident on one it really is your own fault.

[d4nth3m4n]

Originally posted by Severed Hand of Skywalker:
Shame but it is a damn good thing he didn't hurt anyone other than himself.

I hate motorcycles, they are the dumbest idea ever and if you get into a bad accident on one it really is your own fault.

you just hate them because they're so impractical in the north.

when i was in hawaii, i had a bike. i loved it. no helmet, just slippers, a t-shirt and boardshorts, that was it worked flawlessly.

[Eriamjh]

Doesn't sound like the bike was the problem, but the rider...

[Severed Hand of Skywalker]

Originally posted by d4nth3m4n:
you just hate them because they're so impractical in the north.

when i was in hawaii, i had a bike. i loved it. no helmet, just slippers, a t-shirt and boardshorts, that was it worked flawlessly.

Do you have any idea how hot it gets up here?

Anywho, I am sure it worked out great for you and it sounds like you put safety first. Problem is no matter how good of a driver you are there are plenty of people that are not. Some guy runs a red light with his car and hits you, well you have turned a medium accident into being smeared all over the road.

[d4nth3m4n]

Originally posted by Severed Hand of Skywalker:
Do you have any idea how hot it gets up here?

Anywho, I am sure it worked out great for you and it sounds like you put safety first. Problem is no matter how good of a driver you are there are plenty of people that are not. Some guy runs a red light with his car and hits you, well you have turned a medium accident into being smeared all over the road.

as hot as it gets here in upstate NY, but it only last for about a week then it goes back to the overcast, rainy marsh that i call home.

i still want my bike back. just something about it.

[Spheric Harlot]

A dear friend of mine killed himself in a bike accident a couple years back.

Not a reckless rider, not a stressful or hectic person by any standard at all. He'd just completed his theology studies and was about to be ordained a pastor.

Got carried out of a right curve onto the other lane and hit an oncoming truck which tore off his leg and killed him instantly.

I don't think I know any regular bike riders, reckless or not, who haven't been involved in an accident themselves or at least close to them.

They're hella fun, but they're an easy way to die, regardless of whether you're at fault or somebody else.

-s*

[Eug Wanker]

Originally posted by d4nth3m4n:
when i was in hawaii, i had a bike. i loved it. no helmet, just slippers, a t-shirt and boardshorts, that was it worked flawlessly.

That's just plain stupid. Your name is appropriate. That's why they're called donorcycles. (And this is coming from someone who has owned a motorocycle in the past and who would consider buying another in the future.)

[MacmanX]

Man, cycles aren't the problem. It's the riders. There is nothing like a Sunday afternoon riding through the mountains. Going into curves so banked you can see it... there's nothing like it. But, all real pleasures require risk.

Cheers!

[Severed Hand of Skywalker]

Originally posted by MacmanX:
Man, cycles aren't the problem. It's the riders. There is nothing like a Sunday afternoon riding through the mountains. Going into curves so banked you can see it... there's nothing like it. But, all real pleasures require risk.

Cheers!

That is almost as good as that "guns don't shoot people" line.

[Eug Wanker]

Originally posted by MacmanX:
Man, cycles aren't the problem. It's the riders. There is nothing like a Sunday afternoon riding through the mountains. Going into curves so banked you can see it... there's nothing like it. But, all real pleasures require risk.

Not just the riders, but car drivers too. Either way, whoever's fault an accident is, going without a helmet and the proper clothing is very ill-advised.

[RobOnTheCape]

I love bikes. My wife on the other hand is a nurse in the ER nearby, and she says they all call the bikers - organ donors or something. Continually coming in in the summer in practically in pieces. She gets plenty of car accidents, but the damage done in a car is nothing in comparison to the bike wrecks. I still love em.

[d4nth3m4n]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
That's just plain stupid. Your name is appropriate. That's why they're called donorcycles. (And this is coming from someone who has owned a motorocycle in the past and who would consider buying another in the future.)

my name?

[Rev-O]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
Not just the riders, but car drivers too. Either way, whoever's fault an accident is, going without a helmet and the proper clothing is very ill-advised.

Old saying: "only leave the skin exposed you can afford to replace."
Many riders seem to go sans gear in favor of looking cool and being seen. They seem to forget that in the morgue, you're always cool.
Wear gear and increase your chances.

And rubber side down!

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by d4nth3m4n:
my name?

I think he thought you were deathman

[Eug Wanker]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
I think he thought you were deathman

Yep. Ooops.

[G4ME]

Organ donors as i like to call them

[d4nth3m4n]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
I think he thought you were deathman

o

[Corintheus]

One thing I can't understand is that in some states in the US it is legal to ride without a helmet. I'd like to know the reason behind that.

Same with being allowed to not wear seat belts. But I guess it's your "right" to die a painful death.

Defies logic.

[Rev-O]

Originally posted by Corintheus:
One thing I can't understand is that in some states in the US it is legal to ride without a helmet. I'd like to know the reason behind that.

Same with being allowed to not wear seat belts. But I guess it's your "right" to die a painful death.

Defies logic.

Helmet laws and seat belt laws in the states were largely enacted at the urging of insurance companies to keep costs from 'spiralling out of control'. So laws get passed to save lives and keep expenses down for the poor insurance companies. Result: insurance rates continue to escalate, and any financial savings from fewer medical bills were passed along to the insurance companies pockets.

That being said, I always wear a helmet (as well as full gear) on my momo, and wear a seat belt in cars. It's just sensible.

Couple of years ago, a local fella spikes a motorcycle into the side of a car after getting liquored up at a strip joint. Not a bad accident, but bad enough. No helmet, of course (no helmet law in Colorado). Head trauma, mild brain damage, but he survives. According to doctors & police, probably would've walked away if he was wearing a helmet. So the fella is in the hospital, recovering and rehabing and learning to cope with his new disability. The fella's pals put together a benefit ride to come up with some money to help pay for the medical bills. After much riding around, they pull up to the hospital en masse to show their support. And of course, 95% of them aren't wearing helmets. Idiots.

[Cody Dawg]

Old saying: "only leave the skin exposed you can afford to replace."
Many riders seem to go sans gear in favor of looking cool and being seen. They seem to forget that in the morgue, you're always cool.
Wear gear and increase your chances.

And rubber side down!

No helmets required law passed here in Florida last year, I believe, unfortunately.

[D'Espice]

I feel sorry for every single dead biker - whether self-inflicted or not. I am a biker myself and I simply love riding my bike. And the problem is not always the driver but also other cars who simply drive recklessly hence endanger others. I myself witnessed a fatal motorcycle accident few weeks ago when I was driving home from France. A Yamaha FZ6 (and few mintes later what used to be a Yamaha FZ6) overtook me in the Swiss Alps. I myself was only going around 80 km/h, the other one was probably going around 110. Few seconds later I heard a loud crash and instantly stopped to see what happened. All I could see was what used to be an FZ6, a car that had said FZ6 up its hood and a young man in said car in shock.
Turns out, that guy was passing another car in a curve himself, the biker had no chance to survive. What shocked me most was the fact that it would have been me if not for that other biker - I would've been the one in the body bag

So yes, it is definitely dangerous. Which is why I never drive without protective gear and a helmet (the helmet is required by law, the protective gear is not) when leaving town. When going to college, I prefer jeans and my HELD Jacket with protectors all over it. But even the best protective gear could not have saved this driver, there was absolutely nothing he could have done. But as long as you're careful, pay attention and understand that you're the weakest one on the streets, you can live a long and healthy life without ever getting into an accident. But one can never guess what others will do and how others will behave.