Motorcycle rider risk management - Engineer Safety

Engineer: The Professional Bulletin for Army Engineers, July-Sept, 2003 by Fred E. Fanning

Can risk management be the solution to everything? Maybe not, but it can go a long way toward preventing fatal motorcycle accidents. The Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) has done a great deal of work to develop training programs to provide riders with the skills necessary to prevent motorcycle accidents. Riding a motorcycle can be a very dangerous sport or activity. However, by training properly and applying risk management, riders can help prevent crashes. The Army uses the MSF curriculum for motorcycle rider training as the standard.

History

In the 25 April 2003 issue of USA Today, Jayne O'Donnell reported that motorcycle fatalities were up in 2002 for the fifth straight year.(1) She indicated that this was a 3 percent increase. Ms. O'Donnell obtained her information from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which has two very interesting reports on this subject on its Web site at <http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/>.

In an article in the April 2003 Countermeasure publication, Master Sergeant Dave Hembroff raised the issue of motorcycle riders' risk of being involved in an accident.(2) He indicated that a rider who had not taken a rider training course was nine times more likely to be involved in an injury accident. Through February of 2003, Army personnel had 18 motorcycle accidents for the fiscal year. Six soldiers died in those accidents.

Conducting Risk Management

Accidents are normally the result of a series of events or factors that lead up to the accident. By controlling or eliminating some of those factors, the risk of being involved in a motorcycle accident can be greatly reduced. This is the process outlined in Field Manual 100-14, Risk Management, that we use for military operations and should use for all aspects of our lives. There are three primary areas that should be addressed in conducting risk management for motorcycle riding: rider factors, motorcycle factors, and road and traffic factors. See Table 1 for additional information. Each of these areas contains a number of factors that determine a rider's risk of being involved in an accident.

Rider

Riders should always be prepared to ride the motorcycle. That may sound a little strange, yet it is true. The rider of a motorcycle must focus his or her attention on the task of riding the motorcycle as well as the actions of other drivers, wildlife, and the condition of the road--all at once. This is far more focus than any automobile driver puts into the task of driving.

The amount of time riders have on their motorcycles has a great impact on the potential for an accident. The more you ride, the better rider you become. As service members or Department of the Army civilian employees, motorcycle riders are required to complete a course that is offered at most installations and provides basic information about riding. But don't let this be the only course you take. The more training you get, the better rider you will become. Go to www.msf-usa.org> to get more information about motorcycle rider courses in your area.

Army Regulation 385-55, Prevention of Motor Vehicle Accidents, lists the required items of protective clothing and equipment that each rider must wear. See Table 2 for a complete list. The quality of the clothing and equipment has a direct relationship to how much risk is accepted. Riders who purchase the bare-minimum clothing will reduce their risk of being injured in a motorcycle accident. However, purchasing quality motorcycle rider gear can reduce this risk even more. Helmets are a good example. Riders on a military installation must wear at least an approved 1/2-shell helmet. However, if they were to wear an approved 3/4-shell or a full-face helmet, they could reduce their risk even more. The same thing goes for the shirt or pants. Riders can wear a regular pair of pants and a shirt with long sleeves and get by. But they would be much safer if they wore the new jackets and pants with ballistic protection sold by many manufacturers today. This ballistic protection is located in areas where the body is most likely to be injured in a crash. Using it will greatly reduce the risk of injury in an accident.

Since riding a motorcycle requires a great deal of concentration, it is surprising that many riders still drink and drive. If you plan to drink, don't drive. Your chances of having an accident are far greater if you have been drinking. Riders should make sure they don't take prescription or over-the-counter medications prior to riding. Read the label, and if it has a warning about driving or operating heavy equipment or machinery, that means you don't ride. Along with these hazards comes the risk of riding when you're tired. As you know, it is very hard to drive a car when you're tired; it is much worse trying to operate a motorcycle. You may think that you are riding fine until an emergency occurs and you can't react to it.

Motorcycle

Even though you may be prepared to ride, is your bike ready to be ridden? First, does it fit you? And secondly, is it in good working order? Is the bike the right size for you? You can tell by sitting on the seat and putting both feet flat on the ground. If you can't do this, the bike is too tall. Now try to reach all the controls. You must be able to reach the handlebars, clutch lever, brake lever and pedal, throttle, and shift lever with ease. And is your bike in good working order? How do yon know? The MSF has a preride checklist that is represented by the acronym T-CLOCS: