The death of an 18 year old Fanshawe student because of a motorcycle crash this week made me very sad.
Witnesses to the crash say the young man was weaving in and out of traffic at a high rate of speed and struck a car as it made a turn. If there’s anything I’ve learned in the short time I’ve been a rider it’s this: you have a responsibility to everyone out there to drive safely and well. This guy was on a speedy sport bike, taking chances and doing the kinds of things that make car drivers nervous to be around bikes. Who can blame them? If something quick, nimble and unpredictable is trying to share your road space, well, that’s cause for concern. Sure, car drivers are just as likely to be the cause of a motorcycle fatality and that’s why bike riders have to be extra vigilant and not take chances. It’s not worth increasing the odds you’ll get into a mishap.
There’s also a reason why the fastest growing biking population is people in their 30’s and older. We’re over a lot of the recklesses of youth and we’ve come to understand the fragility of life. It chips away at my heart when a young person’s moment of foolishness ends with such finality, for them and their families. And having been 18 and foolish once myself, I have to count my blessings that I was lucky enough to get through that phase without a tragic life lesson of my own.