The question of "why" keeps coming up.
I was recently asked by another Motorcycle Safety Professional:
" I wonder if the April fatality had any bearing on the decision by
the airport owners to not allow speed trials? Sad, it was a well run
event. When Mike and Marsha promoted open road racing their events were
always a cut above. "
I responded:
We inside the sport have a little different view of
"running long" than do outsiders.
We may be hampered by our familiarity.
We can understand the "fixation,"
and the "loss of focus."
From a purely operational view, it is not always
creditable why a rider would not "shut off."
If the throttle is "stiff," just twist it closed.
All modern bikes have dual cables for just this reason.
If the bike continues to "race the engine," hit the kill button.
Cars do not have kill buttons, and really don't need them.
"stuck throttles" are WHY bikes have kill buttons in the first place.
If the throttle fails, and the kill button fails, pull in the clutch lever.
Sure it's hard to do that, and "lose" the engine to over revving,
but what's the alternative ?
What are the odds of ALL THREE safety systems failing ?
a mechanical engineer and statistician could tell us.
It would be near zero.
These needless deaths and crashes, in the face of the above,
must be telling "outsiders" that either bikes cannot be operated safely;
or we cannot police riders to do so.
In either case, these things represent unacceptable risk.
It is easy to understand an insurer or a landlord
frowning on continuing the unsafe activity.
It could be the final point in a discussion
of whether or not to renew a contract.............
Happy Fathers Day to all........
Scott