Hey, a new opportunity for me to be both argumentative and
opinionated............:-)
"Loud pipes save lives"? How on earth did the H.O.G. and A.B.A.T.E. people
manage to brainwash someone who is sensible enough to drive an MGB
(defensively and with its lights on, no less)?
I ride motorcycles (off-road occasionally, on road quite frequently) and
drive an MGB as my everyday car. My road motorcycle is a 1990 Honda CBR600
which, when I bought it, had a sporty exhaust system on it. I removed it,
not because it was too loud but because it sounded so racy the temptation
was ever-present to drive the bike way too fast and foolishly! That "loud
pipe" would more likely have lost my life than saved it!
I have friends who have Harleys (Yup, I even ride with them sometimes!).
Their loud pipes don't save anything - they just irritate the heck out of
motorists they go within a half-mile of. (I've seen the grimaces and
expressions of annoyance.) The theory that you can be heard before you can
be seen makes no sense because the noise - even of the loudest bikes -
doesn't really precede the bike, it follows it. (When I ride, I seldom worry
about being hit by the car that pulls out into my lane after I've gone
by.................) And, the idiot motorists who cause accidents by pulling
into the path of motorcycles are unlikely to be deterred by an oncoming
blast of sound. If they are so stupid that they cannot see a 600-pound
behemoth with its headlight on, even when they look right at it, a bit of
noise isn't going to make them become good drivers!
The key, as you said earlier in your note, Jason, is always to drive (and
ride) defensively. If you assume that every one else can barely see you
(even if you have your lights on), cannot calculate how fast you are going,
and has no idea how to drive with consideration of anyone else, then you
will always be ready to avoid the accident that's lurking out there for you.
On the other hand, if you drive your LBC as if you are on a race-track and
expect that everyone else will get out of your way when they see you coming,
you'll soon be on the list looking for new body panels for your car!
I have raced and rallied cars, I have ridden motorcycles for years. My last
collision with another vehicle (I was in a sports car) was in 1966 - and, I
admit, I was driving as if I was on a race-track. I've never come close to
hitting anything on my motorcycle - though I've, many times, actually made
eye-contact with motorists in side roads who then pulled out in front of me!
So, drive defensively, assume everyone else is an idiot, and don't believe
that hogwash about noise scaring people into driving sensibly!
Lawrie
-----Original Message-----
From: Jason Dutt <jason@markerman.com>
To: Neil_Oldfield@nag.national.com.au <Neil_Oldfield@nag.national.com.au>;
mgs@autox.team.net <mgs@autox.team.net>
Date: Friday, May 28, 1999 8:05 AM
Subject: RE: Oh No Not Again
>I can fully relate. My B had it's nose smushed in by some (explicatives
>deleted) in a parking lot. Apparently they thought they could back out of
>the space...OVER my MGB. They didn't even leave a number.
>
>I also drive with my lights on, but people still tend to miss the little
>blue car. The general rule with LBC's, in my experience, is DRIVE
>DEFENSIVELY, and give people LOTS OF ROOM. People are ignorant on the road
>as it is, and it's even worse when your car isn't as big as a boat. I
can't
>imagine how people stay alive on motorcycles. As annoying as it is, I can
>see why "Loud pipes save lives."
>
>Best Regards,
>
>=J=
>
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