Dilemma.

[pete1781]

So yesterday a guy I knew and used to work with died following a collision with a van, he was on his way to poole. He was a far more experienced rider than me, I also knew better and worked with more recently his brother, he left behind his wife and son.
Aside from the obvious, I cant stop thinking it could just as easily have been me, I have a wife and 2 young children and put myself at unnecessary risk everytime I get on the storm, im just about ready to sell the lot and never ride on the road again, it seems a lot different when its someone you know, can anyone offer some perspective, I feel at a bit of a loss, I love riding but I love my family so much more.

[darkember]

Look if you think like that you will never do anything & that is far more destructive, trust me on that one. You will end up at home mopping around, soon the bickering starts & before you know it divorce will be on the cards, kids will blame you ect ect, I believe I have painted the picture. You only have one life & you need to live it to the full. Tomorrow you could have a heart attack or be run over by a bus, who knows, that's life.

[tony.mon]

Could have been you, Pete, but then it could have been anyone else, too.
Look at the odds, the day this biker died, so did several others, you just didn't know them, or hear about it, that's all.
You can be killed tripping over your own trousers in a public toilet; I know the we all have to go sometime, but the important thing is the quality of life you lead, not the duration.

Up to you, but if you avoid all possibly risky things, life is long, but jesus, it's boring.....

[edds11]

sleep on it, give it a few days,

[carmanbikes]

So yesterday a guy I knew and used to work with died following a collision with a van, he was on his way to poole. He was a far more experienced rider than me, I also knew better and worked with more recently his brother, he left behind his wife and son.
Aside from the obvious, I cant stop thinking it could just as easily have been me, I have a wife and 2 young children and put myself at unnecessary risk everytime I get on the storm, im just about ready to sell the lot and never ride on the road again, it seems a lot different when its someone you know, can anyone offer some perspective, I feel at a bit of a loss, I love riding but I love my family so much more.

Pete
I watched a programme on tv keeping Briton alive there was a man who had been paralysed from the neck down, He could do very little for himself and was learning to redo things which he had been doing all his life, When I saw this the first thing I thought was bike a bike accident but all it was he had fallen down stairs, so its not just bikes mate

[VTRDark]

Sorry to hear of your loss Pete and I'm not surprised it makes one think. But I do agree it is about quality of life and anyone of us could get run over by a bus, have a heart attack, aneurysm or whatever. Your just on a bit of a downer because of what's happened. I prescribe a night down the pub and have a good drink in honour of your friend.

(:-})

[Hairy biker]

Up to you, but if you avoid all possibly risky things, life is long, but jesus, it's boring.....

That says it all, my dad died when I was 17 i was living with him at the time I took him a brew one morning, that was it, died in his sleep. He had just turned 50. It took me a while to deal with it but taught me a lot as well, if you love doing something, then bloody well do it!

[agentpineapple]

chin up pete, give it some time, you wouldn't want to sell up and then find out a few months down the line that you miss it to much. have you thought about doing some novice/intermidiate trackdays, much safer than road riding. there are even bike days solely for road bike, so you don't get to many wannabee rossi's and alike.
whatever you do, take your time and weigh it all up...

[Virt]

Sorry for your loss.. I don't really have anything to add, it's all been said here already. But it reinforces how unpredictable life is. I'd rather die in a bike accident doing something that I absolutely love, than living until triple digits and not having rid a bike onwards from today. Life is what you make of it, and if you want to be deep about it.. People don't die so easily, they always live on inside the memories of those they touched and shared a life with.

Don't rush into anything, give yourself a week or two to think about it. If possible don't so much as touch or look at your bike for this time, you'll see how much you'll miss it. Or you can flip a coin, it sounds rubbish but it's one of the best ways to find out what you want. That split moment before it lands you'll realise which you'd prefer it to be, something which you are less likely to realise if you sit on the sofa for a few hours and ponder deeply about it.

Best wishes, whatever happens
Virt

[macdee]

Pete if you are meant to be hung they you will not died from a gun shot

[benny hedges]

well on monday we said goodbye to a good friend and awesome rider - he was due to wed vtwin goody's daughter zoe in august.
miss the fker already
tragic circumstances and cant say much as there are still a lot of questions to be answered.
I know goody and his family are destroyed over their loss. myself and a few other close mates have been hit really hard also, you wouldnt have expected it at all. totally in shock.
some people you can say yeh, only a matter of time - but not Sean. jeez ive ridden all over the place with him and hes always been rubbing on my wheel, never seen him make a bad move.

rest in peace Sean mate - very sad tragic loss of a good friend.

[pete1781]

I can see everyones point, I really can, and im not talking about ditching bikes forever, I just see more and more deaths on the roads these days, maybe I just want to get my kicks in a slightly safer environment, ive always fancied moto x or maybe I could turn the storm into a track bike. My son has a quad and I encourage him to use it, this wont change, I want him to love bikes like I do. I think any one of us would be lieing if we didnt say riding on the road is becoming more dangerous, people just dont look for bikes, the awareness isnt there, even with a bright yellow bike with a vtwin and stubby exhausts people look straight through me.

[benny hedges]

I'd rather die in a bike accident doing something that I absolutely love, than living until triple digits and not having rid a bike onwards from today.

i get where youre coming from with that, but think about this - i had a good mate years ago diagnosed with lymphoma and tbh it was too late to do much for him.
he spoke about the same thing, just riding beyond and going out blazing, but on reflection decided that as biking was his love, he didnt want his mates having that on their mind when they were riding and so fought to his last breath and rode until he could barely stand.

and again, seeing the grief i've witnessed these last 2 weeks, i want to die of old age, after everyone else has already gone.
i dont want to be thinking about the devastation it leaves behind when a loved one goes before their time.

[Tekram La]

Sorry to hear about your loss mate and totally understand your troubled thoughts,
I gave bikes up after a near miss and the death of a friend, couple of reasons really, pressure from the missus re family etc, and not enjoying riding the same, was always expecting the worst to happpen.
Anyways ten years on and back on a bike not realised how much I'd missed the whole biking thing but my circumstances are totally different now.
Dont envy you making a decision and you have my sympathy.

[Miztaziggy]

Totally understand where you're coming from mate, but my point of view is this:

We are all going to die of something. We only get this one life, and fcuk me it's way too short. I'm 30 now and starting to feel old. I am potentially half way through my active life, and there is so much I still want to do. So how do you prolong your life?

Heart attack: don't eat red meat.
Liver / bowel cancer: don't drink.
Lung cancer: don't smoke.
Plane crash: don't fly.
Bike crash: don't ride.
Car crash: don't drive.

So what do you do? Because one day we will be laid on our deathbed dying of nothing.