7-11

[AlphaTech]

Originally posted by dukestreet
On a lark, I went a did a little research on noise limits and found this little site which has some stuff worth looking at. It says the safe limit of exposure of 105 dB is 1 hour. Well, if you're out cruising with a group of Harleys thats going to be even louder. If you're riding alone, with your helmet on, it obviously won't be that loud, but have you ever come back from a long ride and your ears were ringing?

With the 3/4 helmet on, nope... with the 1/2 helmet and the windshield in place, nope. With the 1/2 helmet and no windshield, the wind gets a bit loud after about 55mph (and you realize how loud when you get off the motorcycle). Besides the fact that the wind gets under my sunglasses and starts to dry my eyes out (dangerous with contacts in). The 3/4 helmet covers my ears and has a flip-up face shield. I used the 1/2 helmet most (last year) when the temp reached over 85°. Below that, and the 3/4 is still ok, with it being nicer in the cold weather.

The engine noise is behind the person driving, so it doesn't get to me when I am not in a group of Harleys (and in tail position). Even bringing up the tail end of the group, with the 3/4 helmet on, the noise is still within the safe range. Most riders, myself included, carry ear plugs for those days where you are in a large group, and using the 1/2 helmet. That way, you are still (thermally) cool, but are not going to blast out your ear drums.

 

[jefhatfield]

Originally posted by AlphaTech



The engine noise is behind the person driving, so it doesn't get to me when I am not in a group of Harleys (and in tail position). Even bringing up the tail end of the group, with the 3/4 helmet on, the noise is still within the safe range. Most riders, myself included, carry ear plugs for those days where you are in a large group, and using the 1/2 helmet. That way, you are still (thermally) cool, but are not going to blast out your ear drums.

all this bike talk makes me want to buy one

but my mom's best friend lost her 32 year old son to one last month, my cousin in law died in hs on one, and my friend in 8th grade died on a moped...all these involved collisions with cars

all that death is just too close to me so i have refrained from buying a motorcycle

if i am safe, what stops car drivers from not seeing me or driving wrecklessly?

but i will still enjoy bikes the way i like airplanes, which i consider safer but a bit expensive

 

[AlphaTech]

Originally posted by jefhatfield


all this bike talk makes me want to buy one

but my mom's best friend lost her 32 year old son to one last month, my cousin in law died in hs on one, and my friend in 8th grade died on a moped...all these involved collisions with cars

all that death is just too close to me so i have refrained from buying a motorcycle

if i am safe, what stops car drivers from not seeing me or driving wrecklessly?

but i will still enjoy bikes the way i like airplanes, which i consider safer but a bit expensive

Nothing is going to stop some idiot behind the wheel from hitting you. It doesn't matter if you are on two wheels or four. At least on the motorcycle, you have a better chance to avoid people in cars that don't see you. I have avoided more then a few collisions because I was more aware, and more maneuverable, then the people inside the cars.

From what I have seen, people on the 'sport' bikes are more accident prone then people on the cruisers (like Harley's). Maybe it's because the people on the Harleys (and the clones) are a bit older, more mature, and know they are not going to live forever. That doesn't mean that they don't get into accidents, just the number of them are lower. They probably also have less fatalities, since the Harley croud don't go 100mph plus down the roads and spin out of control. Another factor could also be how much $$ people spend on their motorcycles. If you spend almost $20k on a motorcycle, I would imagine you are going to do everything you possible can to avoid the collisions, even if it means dumping the bike on the side of the road to avoid hitting that car/truck/semi. I would rather limp away with a busted leg, then plow head first into a vehicle. My insurrance will cover repairs of both the motorcycle, and me.