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By Michael Dapper
VRA Page Webmaster
To be honest, an obituary or tribute article is among the easiest articles to write for a newspaper, magazine or website.
That’s because the reading audience is sympathetic toward the deceased subject and their heartstrings are easily plucked by an earnest tribute.
However, such a story is also the least fun to write, especially when the deceased person is too young or died from a cause that could have been avoided.
On that cheery note, we’re here to say that May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, and if we all ride a little smarter, we can do our best to avoid obit/tributes following the deaths of Victory Riders.
If a Victory Rider dies at age 115 after a weekend of riding, bungee-jumping, parachuting, and living large with a loved one at a luxury resort, well, all right, that rider probably led a full-enough life and could leave this veil of tears with minimal regrets.
But to learn of the death of a Victory Rider who is younger, in the prime of life, with a loving family and rewarding job is heartbreaking.
So let’s all do our best to keep ourselves alive to enjoy several more years of great riding as part of our rich, full lives.
Start by knowing how to ride smart. A great source of information about safe, smart riding is the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF). Visit the MSF website for riding advice and accident statistical data that can keep you hyper-alert to the most hazardous situations.
MSF RiderCourses
The MSF website also tells you where MSF RiderCourses are taught in your area. The MSF Basic RiderCourse for new or returning riders is fantastic. Along with some classroom instruction, you get riding experience on small-displacement bikes that are incredibly easy to handle. A new rider gets to practice riding maneuvers on a closed course on a lightweight bike, all under the watchful eyes of MSF riding coaches.
The MSF also offers the Experienced RiderCourse (ERC) for riders who have rolled up some miles but who want to sharpen their skills with more-advanced exercises. You take this course on your own bike, and it, too, is an instructive, rewarding experience.
No matter how good a rider you think you are, it’s a safe bet you’ll be challenged and will learn more about how to ride in the ERC.
Enlighten Your Friends
The MSF website also has information about motorcycles that you should pass along to your friends and family members, especially if they are not riders.
The 10 Things All Car, Truck, and Bus Drivers Should Know About Motorcycles alert these motorists to situations where motorists all-too-often don’t yield the right of way to motorcyclists and accidents occur.
Get informed, ride smart, wear the right gear and make the motorists in your lives aware of motorcycles.
If we can go the rest of the year without writing another Victory Rider’s obit, we’ll be delighted.
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