On The Road Again: Safety Tips For Conscientious Motorcyclists.
January 16, 2017 by Staff
Filed under Health, Money/Business, Weekly Columns
(Akiit.com) Not much beats soaring down the road, wind rushing through your hair without a care in the world. But, unfortunately, dangerous roads mean that you do have to have a care. In fact, you have to be very careful when riding a motorbike. Most riders want to keep themselves safe. But, this means putting in some work. So, to help you out, this post will go through some crucial safety considerations any good motorcyclist should take.
In most countries, you are required to wear a helmet when riding a motorbike. Of course, there are a few exceptions. But you should be wearing a helmet wherever you ride. Helmets provide a good level of protection to the most important part of your body; your head. Without one, it’s much easier for head injuries to be serious. Helmets can genuinely save lives, so it’s worth thinking about the one that you wear before you buy it.
As stated above, you need to wear your helmet whenever you ride. Of course, sometimes other parts of life get in the way of this. For instance, if you’re a Sikh male, you may have to keep a turban on. But, in the interest of safety, it’s better to either ignore tradition or don’t ride at all. Without a helmet, you also put others at risk. If 
someone were to hit you, the impact on them is much more severe if your injuries are fatal, so be careful. Remember safety first comes first, or one could be looking to hire a motorcycle accident lawyer sooner than later. If you’re riding along the scenic roads of Colorado, for example, although you may be enjoying the natural beauty, you’re still not immune to becoming involved in a serious incident. This is something you’ll want to avoid, but being prepared, should something happen, and knowing where to look for legal help in the area, perhaps in the great city of Denver if you’re driving through, is just logical. For these reasons, you need to choose a helmet that is comfortable. You need it for long rides, as well as the shorter ones. So, it has to be able to be worn for long bursts.
In most countries, helmets will be rated by government bodies. These organisations will give different helmets varying standards. These standards are based on how well the helmet protects you head. The cheapest helmets will offer the lowest level of protection. But, this doesn’t mean that you have to get the most expensive. By just going up a couple of price brackets, you’ll find that better helmets don’t have to cost loads more.
This isn’t where you have to stop with your gear, though. Other parts of the body are vulnerable, as well. If you are to come off of a motorbike at speed, you will usually travel some distance before stopping. This means that you will slide on the road. If you’re not protected properly, this can result in friction burns known as gravel rash. To cut a long story short, gravel rash removes a few layers of skin. And, of course, there are loads of other injuries that can be sustained, without the right gear.
Ideally, as much of your skin should be covered as possible. This limits the damage that the road surface can do to you if you fall off. But, normal light fabrics aren’t strong enough. You need something specialised. Most riders will either wear leather or synthetic materials to protect themselves. Of course, leather will be more appealing to a lot of riders, but it can be much more expensive. Synthetic options are usually better for all-weather riding, too. As they will have layers, that can be removed or added to suit the climate.
Some of the more vulnerable areas of your body are the large joints. Your knees and elbows can be shattered with a large enough impact. And, in accidents, you’re likely to get impacts like this. Having pads on will make these joints significantly stronger. It will also inhibit the ability of things to puncture your joints, as well. These sorts of pads are best if you have synthetic gear. There will usually be pockets for it, already in the sleeves. Of course, some leather suits do come with pads built in, too. A lot of gear will also allow you to insert other pieces of protective armour. Doing this you can increase protection for almost your entire body. One of the key pieces of armour that a rider should use is back protection.
Once you’ve got all the gear, you’re not quite all the way there. You may also have to make some changes to your driving. A lot of riders will be quite aggressive on the road. And, it makes sense. Most motorbikes can pull away a lot faster than a car. And, this doesn’t stop at higher speeds, either. It can be easy to get into your own little race on the way home. But, on a bike, you’re always at risk. The best way to protect yourself is through defensive driving. This sort of driving involves a lot of observation. Always be ready to avoid a car. As is often the case, cars will struggle to see motorcyclists from a distance. This leads to a lot of accidents. But, as you approach, simply slowing and being ready for them to pull out is a great way to avoid some pain.
The law is very important when it comes to safety. Most of the laws that we have to dictate how people use the roads are in place with safety in mind. So, it’s worth obeying them. Otherwise, you could find yourself having to deal with motorcycle accident attorneys to get you out of jams that could easily be avoided. If you struggle to understand the law of the road, it could even be worth talking to one of these people before you ride. This will give you a chance to make sure that you are protected from the start. Of course, the law is different in every country. So, it’s important that you do your own research and make sure that you know everything you have to. Most governments will offer free advice online if you can find it.
Hopefully, this will give you a good idea of how important it is to protect yourself on the road. Unlike a car driver, you don’t have much protection. If you fall off; you have to make sure that you’re safe. But, in a car, most accidents are fairly injury free. Be careful and ride safe; the roads can be very dangerous.
Staff Writer; Karl Hall