USAF General; clarification
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1998
From: Mike and Rebecca Stenger <mstenger@top.net>

I posted all of the generals message, so as not to take his words out of context. He makes many good points, and I'm sure his intentions are good. But it seems like a lot of people  missed the parts I took exception to:

    "Riding Motorcycles is a high risk gamble. Insurance rates support this. Even though motorcyclists make up only about 3% of highway vehicles, they account for more than 10% of the fatalities! High-powered "sport" motorcycles are even more dangerous; who really needs a vehicle that will do 150 mph?"

    Insurance rates don't mean squat! I guess my '91 Toyota pickup is twice as dangerous as my ST1100 then, as the insurance is twice as much.
    As for the "3% of vehicles, 10% of fatalities" statistic, where did these numbers come from? If your gonna quote stuff like this, you better give me the source.
    Nobody needs a vehicle that will do 150, so I guess all of the troops with Corvettes, Porsches, BMW's and any other high perf car better get rid of them.

"We discourage the use of tobacco, because of the documented risk.
Let's now do the same for motorcycles in this special way."

WHAT???!!!!  OK, if a young airman comes up to me and says "Sarge, I'm thinking of getting a motorcycle", I'm not only supposed to advise him on the risks involved and encourage use of safety gear and training (which I would do anyway), I'M SUPPOSED TO TRY TO TALK HIM OUT OF RIDING *AT ALL*!!!!!!        HOGWASH!!!!!

"For your personnel who continue to accept this unnecessary risk...." Sh*t, 90% of the things which make life worth living involve some element of "unnecessary risk".

FYI, the USAF requires you to complete a Motorcycle Safety Foundation safety course, which is offered free, in order to ride your motorcycle on base. A regulation also requires you to wear (as a minimum)  helmet, long pants, long sleeved shirt or jacket, gloves, over the ankle footwear, and eye protection. During the day, a "contrasting color" garment should be worn, and at night something with reflective material. The extent to which this reg is enforced seems to vary widely, depending on who the Wing Commander at any certain base is. The helmet part is
universal though. They can't really bust you for not complying with this when you are not on the installation, but they imply that if you don't and are in an accident, you may have to pay for your own medical care, or your life insurance may not be paid if you are killed.
    I have never heard of anyone actually being denied benefits, but we are about to find out. The latest USAF motorcycle fatality was a major who was a highly experienced rider. He allegedly lost control of his full-dress Harley -Davidson in gravel on an interstate highway and was killed. His helmet was reportedly strapped to the side of his bike, not to his head. The state he was riding in has no helmet law.


Mike STenger  HSTA #5811  STOC #372  SOHC4 #316  AMA  HRCA
Honda Sport Touring Assn. Nebraska/Dakotas Area Director
Omaha, Nebraska     mailto:mstenger@top.net
'93 ST1100  '75 CB400F  '73 CB350F  '72 CL350  http://www.ridehsta.com