CRAZY
and
DEVASTATING
MOTORCYCLE WRECKS

I've often heard that you can tell by the way a biker drives how many motorcycle wrecks he's had. The biker that has had his share of motorcycle crashes is the one with the DOT helmet, heavy leather motorcycle boots and all the other motorcycle safety gear that he can put between himself and the asphalt. This guy knows that it's no fun to bounce on the pavement and wants all the safety gear he can get!
The most mundane crash is no fun and it’s hard to escape some kind of injury as the result of one. But this article is not about the wrecks themselves, it’s about the filming of the wrecks.

When you're cruising down the highway you see your share of both stupid and exciting motorcycle wrecks.

The difference in your average motorcycle crash versus car wrecks would be that in the most devastating car crashes the driver generally stays put unless he was stupid and wasn't wearing a safety belt in which case he might go flying out the windshield or through the door. In videos of motorcycle crashes the rider and his vehicle nearly always part ways.

Most of my nearest and dearest friends and family members enjoy riding motorcycles, going to their favorite motorcycle rally and participating in the occasional burnouts and other bike games so pardon me if I don't think there's anything funny about motorcycle wrecks and motorcycle crash videos illustrate that very well. It’s amazing to me that there are people who are constantly searching for what they perceive to be awesome, funny or even fatal videos of motorcycle catastrophes.

How on earth anybody manages to film movies of spontaneous motorcycle crashes is puzzling to me. I can hardly manage to get home videos of the kids doing cool stuff in the house! It would be rare indeed to be lucky enough to have a camcorder powered on, focused and ready to shoot in the middle of heavy traffic to catch film footage of some of the world's worst motorcycle crashes that happen in a split second.

The Internet has lots of movies involving horrendous motorcycle mishaps so I know there are people in cars with a recorder at the ready just in case there is a pile up with lots of casualties they want to get pictures of. Is this a weird hobby or what? What would make people so obsessed with fatalities, injuries, blood, guts and gore that they spend their spare time out hunting for it. Never mind that they are getting their jollies by watching these motorcycle accident video clips at the expense of the misery or even deaths of other human beings?

The only way that I can get on board with the publicizing of gory motorcycle wrecks and crashes would be to educate the public on how to avoid stupid mistakes. If videos of motorcycle crashes help to save one life I suppose they are not an extreme waste of time or tape. While I question whether the people who actually chase after painful motorcycle crash ups are insane or not the educational factor would be some justification for their crazy and sick motorcycle crash movies. If I am being unfair to the producers of videos of motorcycle wrecks then I welcome their comments and am willing to be open minded. Until that time I choose to look at motorcycle crash videos as educational tools and one more weapon in our arsenal of rider safety tools.