Have you ever laid a riding buddy to rest?

[AJAY]

Sorry for this grim poll, but I was reading the thread https://www.hayabusa.org/forum/random-thoughts/96069-pix-sportbiker-funeral.html and it kind of bummed me out.

I've carried coffins for 3 buddies, all while I was in college and grad school. Can't imagine doing it in biker gear. Maybe good for that poor fellow's riding buds, but I wonder what the parents of that poor soul thought of it.

Don't get me wrong. I would rather die doing something I loved than to die old wishing I had done something that I always wanted to do but never did. The trick to me is to manage some of these riskier situations so you're around to enjoy them for a long time. That's not to say that it's all in our hands, luck, or God, sometimes makes that choice for us.

Ride safe. And Peace be with you my Brothers and Sisters.

Peace be with you.

 

[ibified]

It seems like around here we get to do it every year. Usually more than once.

 

[rubber2burn]

I had 4 friends past last year it was really bad in fact I really thought long and hard about selling the bike because of it but I had to stop and think about the joy that it brings me

 

[Mr Bogus]

after 40 years of riding I found that the crowd I ride with has great bearing on "funerals"

I started NOT riding with <25 crowd or so and things got a lot better.. Not saying that they are reckless but they are more prone to getting into bad situations and I got really tired of the carnage.. I rode alone for a lot of years just because I did not cope well with the whole "died doing what they love" thing..

I raced boats and cars and a few bikes as well.. another fine place to get KO'd and that was bad enough but the odds of surviving were a lot better.. (Time and place thing)

My Dad told me if I was going to race or fly airplanes, I was going to always know someone that died.. I did both and he was right.. They are just activities not very forgiving of lapses of concentration.. He should have added "Street riding" as well..

Lean on your younger friends to use their heads when on the street.. peer pressure works better than tickets.. can not count the times I was way at the back of the pack on a group ride.. (yea they will gang up on you)

Really such a waste of good bikes.... if you are loosing a good number of friends every year that you actually "ride" with.. you may want to take an objective view of your own riding style and make sure it is appropriate for conditions...

 

[Rayabusa0818]

Thankfully, I never have had to deal with this.

 

[ibified]

after 40 years of riding I found that the crowd I ride with has great bearing on "funerals"

I started NOT riding with <25 crowd or so and things got a lot better.. Not saying that they are reckless but they are more prone to getting into bad situations and I got really tired of the carnage.. I rode alone for a lot of years just because I did not cope well with the whole "died doing what they love" thing..

I raced boats and cars and a few bikes as well.. another fine place to get KO'd and that was bad enough but the odds of surviving were a lot better.. (Time and place thing)

My Dad told me if I was going to race or fly airplanes, I was going to always know someone that died.. I did both and he was right.. They are just activities not very forgiving of lapses of concentration.. He should have added "Street riding" as well..

Lean on your younger friends to use their heads when on the street.. peer pressure works better than tickets.. can not count the times I was way at the back of the pack on a group ride.. (yea they will gang up on you)

Really such a waste of good bikes.... if you are loosing a good number of friends every year that you actually "ride" with.. you may want to take an objective view of your own riding style and make sure it is appropriate for conditions...

+1 on that, mr bogus. I think that generally this board is a good influence on people. I've always heard everyone here tell people to be careful, err on the side of caution, etc.

The problem i run into every year is that most people I know who are looking at bikes KNOW I have been riding for a long time, and they always come to me asking what I think they should get for a first bike. I'm sure a lot of folks here can relate to that. I always try to steer them into something a little older and a little beat up so that they can get their feet wet on something that they wont feel too bad over dropping.

However, you always find the younger guys who HAVE to have that brand new (insert bike here) and wind up getting WAY more bike than they can handle. They go one of three ways: 1) they lay it down early, but arent hurt too bad, but immediately get respect for the bike and become good riders. 2) they are careful from the beginning and mature about it, then they lay it down early and have even more respect for the bike. 3) they lay it down early, and dont learn sh*t, and keep on doing the same stupid stuff that had them lay it down in the first place. These are the ones that I hope have their organ donor cards filled out. I usually dont even try too hard to stay friends with them because I know how the story is gonna end.

People ask me what I started out on, and I tell them that I got my start on a Honda Hurricane 1000. They immediately think that since i started on a 1000, they should too. Then I explain to them that the hurricane had 112 hp and weighed 596 lbs. I think all of your 600cc bikes today will esaily eclipse that number, and are almost half the weight.

Generally the people who will listen to the voice of experience are gonna come out okay, because they have the maturity to get it.

 

[AJAY]

after 40 years of riding I found that the crowd I ride with has great bearing on "funerals"

I started NOT riding with <25 crowd or so and things got a lot better.. Not saying that they are reckless but they are more prone to getting into bad situations and I got really tired of the carnage.. I rode alone for a lot of years just because I did not cope well with the whole "died doing what they love" thing..

I raced boats and cars and a few bikes as well.. another fine place to get KO'd and that was bad enough but the odds of surviving were a lot better.. (Time and place thing)

My Dad told me if I was going to race or fly airplanes, I was going to always know someone that died.. I did both and he was right.. They are just activities not very forgiving of lapses of concentration.. He should have added "Street riding" as well..

Lean on your younger friends to use their heads when on the street.. peer pressure works better than tickets.. can not count the times I was way at the back of the pack on a group ride.. (yea they will gang up on you)

Really such a waste of good bikes.... if you are loosing a good number of friends every year that you actually "ride" with.. you may want to take an objective view of your own riding style and make sure it is appropriate for conditions...

+5 Great post.

 

[PIMPALA]

twice in my life.


i lost my best friend and riding buddy oct 6th of last year. i sold my old gsxr1000 right after it happened, and swore i was done with sportbikes forever.

then his mom told me that if it was me that had died instead of him, he would have rode his bike to my funeral, and left out of the cemetery on one wheel, and it would have all been out of love.

she said he would be pissed off if i stopped riding because of him. so after a few months, and a winter to let it cool me off... here i am on a Busa.

but i do find myself riding a LOT more careful.

 

[djsin]

lost a friend at the drag strip last year...he was on a CBR Blackbird, wheelied at the light, came down broke a clip on, rode straight into the guard rail....guard rail+1 friend 0
there was 72 bikes at his funeral...alot of people didnt even know him but came out of respect....another friend thought a good idea to wheelie his R1 @ 100 mph he went down right next to another friend of mine as he passed on by, was knocked out and stopped breathing..lucky for him he wasnt alone...(his pics are in my profile on here)....I don't ride with him anymore... any others that have died are usually the fault of some cager pulling out in front of them, but in 20 years I have known probably 5-6 people who have died on a motorcycle, both Harleys and rockets....
heres to their memories

 

[Dino]

Lost more than I would have liked to. These are pictures from a funeral we went to for a friend and great rider. Probably 150 bikes total all in a row with a riderless bike on a trailer up front. Really tough day.

 

[dadofthree]

I voted no, never, but now I remember when I was twelve a very good friend with a tremendous future died on the way home from his grandmothers. Drunk pulled out of store in front of him and he died from head trauma from memory. This was before full face helmets. 6 Years later I was riding with a Bell Full Face. His family was never the same. His mom was seriously affected. Keith was 17.

 

[Jailbait]

Once. It was about 5 years ago. On our way from AZ. to WI. we were almost there. Then it happened. I saw everything from beginning to end. I still dream of it. He was John's best friend, David. I stopped riding until last year. You couldn't get be on a bike if you paid me. We sold the gold wing, and my gear. Wanted nothing to do with any of it. The day John brought the busa home it took me a long time to even look at it. Everything is ok now. We are riding again and the busa is beautiful.

 

[mike1180]

I rode alone for a lot of years just because I did not cope well with the whole "died doing what they love" thing..

Great post.

I too can't handle the pressure of a group when I ride anymore.
It seems that some in the group will do things they never would if they were by themselves.
Wanting to show off or prove something to the rest.
I also found that I was using some of my concentration to watch them or check to see when they were passing, so as to correct my line to accommodate that.
I ride cautious and always err on the side of sanity.
The guys I rode with didn’t like me being a “dad” and telling them what they were doing that was going to get them killed.
2 of them were killed within 1 block of the bike dealership, when on test drives.
I don’t need any of that now, so I ride alone.
Still being on the right side of the grass, tells me I am doing it right.

I’m not telling anyone else that is what they should do, but the things I have seen and done, have caused me to take this position and it is lonely at times, but I avoid all the other trauma that way.

 

[Dino]

Great post.

I too can't handle the pressure of a group when I ride anymore.
It seems that some in the group will do things they never would if they were by themselves.
Wanting to show off or prove something to the rest.
I also found that I was using some of my concentration to watch them or check to see when they were passing, so as to correct my line to accommodate that.
I ride cautious and always err on the side of sanity.
The guys I rode with didn’t like me being a “dadâ€￾ and telling them what they were doing that was going to get them killed.
2 of them were killed within 1 block of the bike dealership, when on test drives.
I don’t need any of that now, so I ride alone.
Still being on the right side of the grass, tells me I am doing it right.

I’m not telling anyone else that is what they should do, but the things I have seen and done, have caused me to take this position and it is lonely at times, but I avoid all the other trauma that way.

I have to ask why? Your years of expirence are worth something. You should tell them when they are messing up. It may not help but at least you tried.

A friend of mine was killed doing just what you described, acting like a fool while riding with a couple friends. Well she was notorious for not wearing proper gear and was just recovering from an accident about 7 months before. I saw her about 2 months before she was killed out again on her GSXR1000 in a mini skirt and tank top. I sent her a couple emails about it and did what I could. I guess it did not do anything to make her think but I am glad I did it. We will all be attending funerals at some point if turn a blind eye to other riders acting like fools.

I see far to many people not wanting to set and enforce a standard. When the organization I belong to has group rides all are welcome, unless you come without gear. We have no problem asking someone to leave and come again another time.

 

[djsin]

I see far to many people not wanting to set and enforce a standard. When the organization I belong to has group rides all are welcome, unless you come without gear. We have no problem asking someone to leave and come again another time.

yeah this is a great idea, problem is they are public roads, and you cant keep someone from following/passing by you..after all you can ask all day for them to leave but they dont have to once your out on a public road.....so I guess the stops would be uncomfortable for them and they would probably be eating alone too...LOL

 

[Dino]

yeah this is a great idea, problem is they are public roads, and you cant keep someone from following/passing by you..after all you can ask all day for them to leave but they dont have to once your out on a public road.....so I guess the stops would be uncomfortable for them and they would probably be eating alone too...LOL

We ask them to leave before we start out, but to be honest I have never had to do it.

 

[scootrpig]

my younger brother:angel:

 

[SAMBUSA]

Thankfully only 1. I'm sure there will be more. We cant live forever

 

[kml]

None of my friends ride and I ride alone so I have never had the misfortune to bury a friend who was a rider.

cheers
ken

 

[twotonevert]

Dear Lord, I hope I never have too.