From: randy@ninja.megatek.uucp (Randy Davis)
Subject: Re: riding clothes choices
Reply-To: megatek!randy@uunet.uu.net
Organization: Megatek Corporation, San Diego, California
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1992 04:28:30 GMT

In article <2.2AA39EFD@kennel.FIDONET.ORG> john@kennel.FIDONET.ORG (John Hamilton) writes:
|The only difference from before is they wear the helmet. So now the sight
|of a 130+ mph machine being ridden by a naked squid is all the more ridiculous.

  Definitely...  It does *look* that way...

|They say you can't legislate morality. It appears you also cannot cure
|idiocy with legislation, as well.

  As I'm sure you will agree, you can do very little with legislation
designed to protect us from ourselves.  Last I checked, the original
purpose of the government in the USA wasn't to be the babysitter our so-wise
legislators have tried to turn it into (and have succeeded in many ways).

|In the neighborhood I live in, there are about half a dozen such creatures.
|They ride FZRs and GSXRs, wearing at best tie-dyed baggy cotton pants, sneakers
|without socks, and baggy sleeveless mesh t-shirts. Oh, and helmets. Everytime
|I see them, the scar on my leg aches, and I wonder how many milliseconds the
|cotton will hold before it shreds.
[...]

  Their thin cotton will last almost as long as your denim jeans, according
to tests, and JUST as long as that shirt you are wearing without your heavy
leather jacket.  Even denim can't take more than a second or so of concrete
abrasion.  Admittedly, the thin cotton self-destructs almost immediately,
but denim doesn't last *that* much longer.  Ever left your jacket at
home and worn just a T-shirt or any type of normal shirt?  Ever worn dress
slacks on your bike?  Either are JUST as thin as the attire you describe.

  So, if you ever ride without your *heavy* leathers, you are just as guilty.

   *Just because your clothes aren't neon doesn't make them any safer.*

|Of course, we hardly ever see such a creature up at Alice's, nor have I ever
|been passed by one in a canyon, though I've been passed by just about every-
|thing else. Which leaves me to assume these are grocery store vehicles.

  Bad assumption, perhaps.  Although I very rarely ride with anything less
than heavy denim on my legs (the exception being dress slacks), but its more
for comfort than any false beleive that it is going to save me my skin in
an accident (and I have the scar on my knee to prove that denim isn't worth
shit in a 20 mph accident).  I do agree, as I cringe every time I see someone
wearing shorts riding, but jeans aren't a hell of a lot better.  I *have*
been known to ride in areas I know very well without a helmet when it was
legal.  To me, it is part of the enjoyment of motorcycling, and thus worth
*some* risk.

  When canyon riding, I wear full protective gear including heavy leather.
Although I might not be able to pass you in a canyon (I have no idea),
there *are* a couple of people that have been lost behind me in the
twisties - since I won't race on public roads, anyone that pushes me gets
waved by, if they can stay with me.  I know of some pretty amazing riders
that will consider a helmet optional under certain circumstances.

  Canyon riding skill often has nothing to do with agreeing with your sense
concerning what constitutes appropriate riding attire.  In fact, many very
skilled canyon riders have a bad rep anyway because of unsafe passing and
clearly too-high speeds for the conditions on twisty public roads - the
kinds of speeds that cause single motorcycle accidents (and I think a lot
of are familiar with those).  I know a couple that could blow most people
away, and am surprised that they are still alive.  But, oh, do they have
some skill..  No judgement, but skill...

  Be careful with your generalizations.  Perhaps *I* am a squid (those that
have ridden with me might be a better judge), but you can't judge a squid
just by his attire - its the riding style that makes more of a difference.

Randy Davis                             UUCP: randy@megatek.com
("A notch above STUPID fast") ZX-11 Pilot     megatek!randy@uunet.uu.net
DoD #0013                                     ucsd!megatek!randy