Motorcycles Deadlier than War
2 Comments Published by Jason October 31st, 2008 in Survival, Vehicles. Share This
It would appear that the incidence of United States Marines dying in motorcycle accidents has outpaced Marine deaths in Iraq. A problem so serious that Commandant of the US Marines, General James Conway will be meeting specifically with other members of the top brass to address it.
In the past 12 months, 25 US Marines have died in motorcycle accidents, all but one of them involving high-speed bikes that can attain speeds in excess of 100mph. Compare this to 20 deaths in Iraq, the US Marines are concerned. It would also appear other branches of the US military are seeing similar problems.
The rise in motorcycle deaths isn’t confined to Marines. The Navy says it’s had 33 deaths on motorcycles over the past 12 months — a 65 percent jump from the previous time period. And authorities say motorcycle deaths have been a problem in the civilian world, too.
Military officials say they’re not sure why the deaths are on the rise. They initially believed the accidents might involve mostly young Marines and sailors around 18 or 19 years old. But Navy statistics show that five of the victims were 25, the most prevalent of any age involved in the crashes. And two 40-year-old sailors were killed in motorcycle crashes.
Marine motorcycle deaths top their Iraq combat fatalities, CNN
Maybe the US should get us some of the “Cheap” oil that was supposed to be a by-product of the war that we’re in and then those soldiers would be able to afford to drive a car instead of a more fuel efficient bike. Of course that isn’t going to solve the problem and I am a motorcyclist and it’s a shame that these young guys (or anyone for that matter) is getting killed on motorcycles. That just goes to show you that just like the military, you should get plenty of training before you start riding and just slow it down and be safe.
Maven– I ride too and I’ve got to say the best thing I ever did for my own safety was to take the MSF class in California. Not sure if these are national or just a state program — but it really got me paying attention to the right things.
I even got rear ended at about 30mph and was able to keep the bike up, get it over to the side of the road and then yell at the driver who hit me like a mad man. Something I am sure I’d have failed at previous, dropped the bike and likely have been too hurt to yell much.