Anti-Squid Rant

[PDBusa]

Okay, I'm going to go off. I need to vent and no one here wants to hear it so I'll just bang away at my keyboard.
The community I work lost a 20 year old last weekend due to a fatal bike wreck. I had met the kid on a call of bikes stunting in a parking lot a few weeks ago. Seemed like a nice enough kid. Young and reckless, but nice enough.

Seems he was doing about 70mph at a 11:00 position at night and a cage didn't see him and turned left in front of him.  Did I mention it was dark out and he was on a very busy road? Guess invisibility doubles when your light is skyward. Of course the friends and family say it was all the cages fault for failing to yield. Other than the plastics on the gixxer (unk size) the front was undamaged. The undercarriage was destroyed and the swingarm just about removed from impact. I'm not a detective but it would seem the front somehow missed the brunt of the impact... At any rate, the poor woman in cage has been getting death threats on a daily basis from the "friends" of victim. Nice.
Here's what really gets me. Every night they have had a "vigil" at the intersection. Did I mention it's a busy road? 4 lanes with a turning lane in center through a retail area. So every night we have 60-100 people (kids) drinking on the roadway shoulder "mourning" the lose. Every night we have to go down and throw these kids out because they start tossing beer bottles into the street at cars, wandering around almost getting hit, fighting with each other, etc.. Never understood this form of mourning, but I guess it is prevelant in certain age groups? Of course we are the bad people who don't understand that they are just dealing with grief...
Then the squids show up and start thier antics. Just doesn't make sense that these idiots are mourning the death of a friend and doing EXACTLY the same thing that caused his demise. Actually had one brain surgeon throw a lid on, (unstrapped so he could exit parking lot quickly) and take off down road on one wheel. Need I say that he wasn't wearing much else other than the lid? He was riding a pretty unique colored bike and when we see him next he will watch it leave on a PD wrecker enroute to impound. It just really bothers me that these morons ride like this and have no respect for much of anything. They don't care about the other people who are affected by the stupidity they exhibit. They are all around 19-23 years old and I guess know all about everything. We are smart enough to know that to chase is fruitless and we will speak with him when he is sitting in a parking lot.
Is there something that happened in the last 20 years to motorcycling that I have missed? Is it me? My job that has made me this way? I was really angry and would have had a tough time not "displaying" it if I had "encountered" this squid last night.

Needless to say there was NOT one Busa around as Busa owners seem to have a brain. Thanks for letting me rant.
Ride Safe.

 

[Youkai]

Well I am 21 years old, but I totally understand where you are coming from. It seems me and my brother are the only ones aware of the dangers from riding, so we always wear Jackets, Gloves, Helmets, and Shoes (still looking for good riding pants but heavy denim jeans for now). But just last night when I took my first ride on my busa, a kid pulls up to us in a white T-shirt, jeans, tennis shoes, no gloves, and a Helmet. Looked about 19-22 on a older CBR prolly 929. He took one look at us (on a busy 3-4 lane road), and bolted at least 60-70 on a 45 street in a contruction zone. Squids, I don't know I just wish they all would get a clue.

 

[Busa_05]

Of course we are the bad people who don't understand that they are just dealing with grief...
Then the squids show up and start thier antics. Just doesn't make sense that these idiots are mourning the death of a friend and doing EXACTLY the same thing that caused his demise. Actually had one brain surgeon throw a lid on, (unstrapped so he could exit parking lot quickly) and take off down road on one wheel. Need I say that he wasn't wearing much else other than the lid? He was riding a pretty unique colored bike and when we see him next he will watch it leave on a PD wrecker enroute to impound. It just really bothers me that these morons ride like this and have no respect for much of anything. They don't care about the other people who are affected by the stupidity they exhibit. They are all around 19-23 years old and I guess know all about everything. We are smart enough to know that to chase is fruitless and we will speak with him when he is sitting in a parking lot.

+1

 

[Busa_05]

Well I am 21 years old, but I totally understand where you are coming from.  It seems me and my brother are the only ones aware of the dangers from riding, so we always wear Jackets, Gloves, Helmets, and Shoes (still looking for good riding pants but heavy denim jeans for now).  But just last night when I took my first ride on my busa, a kid pulls up to us in a white T-shirt, jeans, tennis shoes, no gloves, and a Helmet.  Looked about 19-22 on a older CBR prolly 929.  He took one look at us (on a busy 3-4 lane road), and bolted at least 60-70 on a 45 street in a contruction zone.  Squids, I don't know I just wish they all would get a clue.

Good for you, dude. Very mature, very sensible. One of the few, "young guys" like that, I might say.

 

[expat]

Needless to say there was NOT one Busa around as Busa owners seem to have a brain. Thanks for letting me rant.
Ride Safe.

Well, there are to every rule...

--Steve

 

[shenoyp]

You gotta be mature... if you wanna ride a busa and live!! Maybe thats why you didnt see any busas in their "unique" mourning group!!

 

[dudewizr]

great post, go get 'em. obviously they've never seen the trauma photos that were posted on here a few weeks ago. remember the De-gloved hand on the woman, OUCH!

 

[Mr Brown]

It don't have a damn thing to do with the maturity of Busa owners. busa's are not good stunt bikes, that's why you didn't see any there PD. Hardly a day goes by without someone posting about how fast they went or how easily the front comes up etc. both of which could be considered squiddly behavior. We are not above acting silly, so let's stop pretending that just cuz we're older on the average, and ride busa's we are better.
Having got that off my chest, .......
PD here's my take on the whole thing. Many of the youg cats you are talking about aren't bad kids, they just suffer from a few common beliefs, and certain circumstances, that when all combined make for a very volatile cocktail. When I was that age, (I'm 35 now) I believed that I was invincible, was full of unbridled testosterone, didn't make the link between actions and consequences, and didn't think I was gonna live to be 25, so I didn't care about the future. The guys you are dealing with are prolly at the same stage in their lives that many of us managed to make it through, in spite of ourselves. I'm by no means condoning thier behavior, it's wrong; but looking back, how many of us have done some really stupid things that seemed like a good idea at the time?
If you combine this stage of development with the ridiculous power and ready availability of modern sportbikes, it can be deadly. If I had access to a GSXR 1000 when I was 19, instead of the Ninja 600 I rode then, I might very well not be here to talk about it. Todays 600's make almost as much power as the open class sportbikes of the late 80's. As far as the manner in which they grieve, it's unacceptable to show any kind of weakness in these situations, so the show will go on. You are seen as an enforcer of the society from which they are trying to rebel, so naturally you're the enemy. Squiddly behavior has been going on for years, it will continue, people will keep being injured and killed, and there's nothing anyone can do. Sounds to me like you've got the best attitude toward it you can, don't take it personally, it's just your job vs. their youth.......

 

[thrasherfox]

Well I am 21 years old, but I totally understand where you are coming from.  It seems me and my brother are the only ones aware of the dangers from riding, so we always wear Jackets, Gloves, Helmets, and Shoes (still looking for good riding pants but heavy denim jeans for now).  But just last night when I took my first ride on my busa, a kid pulls up to us in a white T-shirt, jeans, tennis shoes, no gloves, and a Helmet.  Looked about 19-22 on a older CBR prolly 929.  He took one look at us (on a busy 3-4 lane road), and bolted at least 60-70 on a 45 street in a contruction zone.  Squids, I don't know I just wish they all would get a clue.

Youkai -

Some advice on your Jeans..

I know leathers or any good riding gear is expensive.

So until you can get some good pants, get a heavy pair of levi's, wash them in hot water and shrink the heck out of them.


A few years back I was reading an article and they were doing tests on different materials

The test consisted of a truck doing 50mph and they had a swing arm on the back with like a sand bag or something. Think it weighed like a 100 pounds.

They attached different material to it and they would drop the swing arm and let it hit the ground.

Brand new jeans last about 2 feet before they were shredded, OLD jeans lasted about 6 feet.

The general consensus was that the old jeans had been washed, shrunk and they material had a tighter weave to it.

So a two feet distance isn’t much, but it is better than nothing.


Good riding pants (leathers) lasted about 30 – 40 feet on the slide fyi

 

[thrasherfox]

Okay, I'm going to go off. I need to vent and no one here wants to hear it so I'll just bang away at my keyboard.
The community I work lost a 20 year old last weekend due to a fatal bike wreck. I had met the kid on a call of bikes stunting in a parking lot a few weeks ago. Seemed like a nice enough kid. Young and reckless, but nice enough.

Seems he was doing about 70mph at a 11:00 position at night and a cage didn't see him and turned left in front of him.  Did I mention it was dark out and he was on a very busy road? Guess invisibility doubles when your light is skyward. Of course the friends and family say it was all the cages fault for failing to yield. Other than the plastics on the gixxer (unk size) the front was undamaged. The undercarriage was destroyed and the swingarm just about removed from impact. I'm not a detective but it would seem the front somehow missed the brunt of the impact... At any rate, the poor woman in cage has been getting death threats on a daily basis from the "friends" of victim. Nice.
Here's what really gets me. Every night they have had a "vigil" at the intersection. Did I mention it's a busy road? 4 lanes with a turning lane in center through a retail area. So every night we have 60-100 people (kids) drinking on the roadway shoulder "mourning" the lose. Every night we have to go down and throw these kids out because they start tossing beer bottles into the street at cars, wandering around almost getting hit, fighting with each other, etc.. Never understood this form of mourning, but I guess it is prevelant in certain age groups? Of course we are the bad people who don't understand that they are just dealing with grief...
Then the squids show up and start thier antics. Just doesn't make sense that these idiots are mourning the death of a friend and doing EXACTLY the same thing that caused his demise. Actually had one brain surgeon throw a lid on, (unstrapped so he could exit parking lot quickly) and take off down road on one wheel. Need I say that he wasn't wearing much else other than the lid? He was riding a pretty unique colored bike and when we see him next he will watch it leave on a PD wrecker enroute to impound. It just really bothers me that these morons ride like this and have no respect for much of anything. They don't care about the other people who are affected by the stupidity they exhibit. They are all around 19-23 years old and I guess know all about everything. We are smart enough to know that to chase is fruitless and we will speak with him when he is sitting in a parking lot.
Is there something that happened in the last 20 years to motorcycling that I have missed? Is it me? My job that has made me this way? I was really angry and would have had a tough time not "displaying" it if I had "encountered" this squid last night.

Needless to say there was NOT one Busa around as Busa owners seem to have a brain. Thanks for letting me rant.
Ride Safe.

PDBusa -

All I can say is I feel your pain.

One of numerous problems our society has, lack of ability to accept responaability for our own actions.

I cant believe people are making death threats agaisnt the lady.

Isnt there a law stating that any parge gathering requires some kind of permit?

If everyone is being a hazard and it looks like another accident waiting to happen, fugg em. Dotn let them gather.

Plus, isnt there a law against drinking in public like that? just start hammering everyone for everything.

 

[Busa_05]

don't take it personally, it's just your job vs. their youth.......

When you are subject to sh!t like that day in, day out, it gets hard to not see things through a jaded eye.

I usually agree with your outlook on life and opinion on different subjects, Mr. B...but I disagree, albeit only slightly, with your opinion here.

It does have to do with maturity, at least in part. I agree whole heartedly with some of your comments, such as their stage in life or circumstances in life; being enshrouded within a youth subculture does require comformity with certain beliefs, but most of (at least most of the juvies I have ever dealt with) are either spoiled rotten brats that I would sometimes just rather throttle and stuff in a...*ahem*, or just plain delinquents who are so mature in some aspects of life but just don't have a damn clue in other aspects. I know exactly what you mean about conforming with your peer group, but there are kids out there who have a solid family life and a good base of peers, who act with maturity that could (and should) be reasonably expected of kids their age.

I think what PD is talking about is not a bunch of kids who are having a party in the backwoods, getting drunk, smoking some reef or popping X and engaging in promiscuity already promoted by their raging hormones. He's talking about a bunch of kids who are creating a wildly dangerous situation and, in acting out their beliefs and anger, would rather see more folks get hurt who are not part of their subculture, than conform with the laws and mores society would have the audacity to "impose" upon them. They simply want to promulgate their disgust with "The Man" and "Them" or "They." And the death of their friend gave them an excuse to do so. Yes, it may have exacerbated their existing distaste for the rest of society, yet, at least in my experience, the notion of "us and them" has always been there, and with some youth subcultures it is much worse and more dangerous than with others.

 

[mjn]

Mr. brown is right.
When I was growing up, I was invinceable. I am dam lucky to have reached my 25th b-day. I'll admit, I regularly engaged in "squidly" activity.
And yes mr brown, I love to wheelie on my bike....the difference is that I do it where the only persons I put at risk is me.
This BS of everyone standing at a busy intersection, throwing bottles and shat......I say throw all thier asses in jail!
Sounds like a bunch of wanna-be gang bangers to me.

The (one) problem with our society is that we allow crap like this to go on without any REAL consequences.
I don't envy those in our police force...to a certain extent thier hands are tied. Always worried about backlash when they DO act.
My take on this particular situation is prosecute them ALL to the fullest extent of the law. Make thier folks spend thier dough on lawyers to get them out of jail...

this kind of #### really makes my blood boil....
Our newspaper this morning had some punk gangbanger that shot at a passing car, one of the occupants shot back....and hit him! It almost seemed like the paper was feeling sorry for the punk that shot first! It's just to bad (imo) that the little #### only got hit in the leg. 25" higher would've been perfect.

One less POS in the world.

 

[PDBusa]

Mr. Brown you have a valid point. It's not the bike that makes us mature, and we aren't above doing silly things.
I'm not sitting here saying that I never let my testosterone get the best of me. That much I can understand. But when the popo was around it was yessir,nosir.
I guess what really got to me is the total disrespect for everything. Not just the popo, but everyone and everything. If we had acted as we should have we would have been fried in the local papers for being shallow, inconsiderate, and unprofessional. The deceased kids poor family was there and saw what was happening. These kids just don't give a crap.
I just don't understand what is happening to society. Respect doesn't exist. It's not taught in the home and some people think they automatically deserve it. It is our own fault. People are too busy chasing the almighty dollar to raise kids the correct way.
Okay, that's enough. I think I just need to go for a ride. Just the thought makes me feel better.
I did see a group of about 8-10 sport bikes later on last night. They were in a staggered formation, geared appropriately, and riding...reasonably. Made me feel like maybe I'm not too old for a sportbike!!