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You likely have some idea as to how dangerous riding a motorcycle is, but do you know just how risky it is? 

There’s a harsh truth to the notion of a motorcycle being known as a “donor cycle” in the medical field. This is because motorcyclists are at a huge risk for death should they get into an accident.

According to the Gomez Firm, cars, trucks, buses, and motorcycles are “the second leading cause of unintentional fatal injuries in the United States.” Even if riding a motorcycle gets your adrenaline pumping, the fun comes at a high cost for many riders. 

Before you think about getting your motorcycle license, it’s helpful to know why a motorcycle is so hazardous to your health. We’ll go over these reasons below to help you avoid making a dangerous, life-altering decision!

Motorcycles Are Much Different Than Cars

The first thing to understand is that riding a motorcycle is drastically different than driving a car.

Four, well-spaced wheels are replaced with just two. This means that you’ll need to have excellent balance to keep a motorcycle upright.

Instead of a steering wheel, a bike has two handlebars. You’ll have to lean into your turns rather than conveniently using a wheel for it.

Then there’s the lack of protection on a motorcycle. A car places you inside a cage with a body to help absorb impacts. With a motorcycle, there is nothing that provides a barrier between you and another vehicle. 

Beyond physical differences, you need a different skill set to ride a motorcycle compared to driving a car. That’s why a motorcycle license is required before you can hit the road. 

Riding a motorcycle is not intuitive and takes dozens of practice hours to learn. Even if you feel completely comfortable, there’s still a lot that you need to experience first hand before you understand how to properly handle it. 

Road Hazards Are More Important

When you ride a motorcycle, any minor hazard on the road becomes serious. 

With a car, there’s a wider and larger body to make handling simple. Alternatively, a motorcycle is incredibly difficult to handle and requires perfect balance at all times.

Imagine hitting a pothole in the road. A car will bounce and shake, but hitting one on a motorcycle can cause you to fly off the seat or crash.

When it’s raining or snowing, it also becomes more dangerous for a motorcycle. Traction on a motorcycle is vital and a wet or slippery road makes this difficult. 

Furthermore, when there’s something unexpected in the road, like something falling off the back of a truck, it’s harder for a motorcycle to react. Cars can swerve and immediately move out of the way, but a motorcycle has a tougher time with this. 

Regardless of what the hazard is, a motorcycle is far less safe and makes handling the situation near-impossible. 

Cars Don’t Always Respect You

Another concept to keep in mind is that other cars on the road don’t always respect motorcycles

Many drivers view the road as exclusively for cars. This means that anything that isn’t a car, like a bicycle or a motorcycle, doesn’t belong.

The reason for this is because many drivers have the impression that motorcycles act like they don’t need to obey the law. They might drive in between lanes, cut cars off, speed, or even tailgate.

As a result, drivers in vehicles can be downright aggressive towards a motorcyclist. They might follow too closely, cut them off, refuse to give any space, or even try to run them off the road. 

While this behavior is certainly unwarranted, it doesn’t change the fact that it still happens. Not every motorcyclist drives like a jerk, but some do and this paints the rest of them in a poor light. 

Accidents Are Deadly

The final and most important part about riding a motorcycle is that accidents are deadly.

For reference, motorcyclists are more than 25 times more likely to die in an accident than a regular car. This statistic is surely shocking and for good reason! 

It’s not difficult to understand why motorcycles are more dangerous. For starters, they’re tougher to handle and any minor mistake can quickly result in tragedy.

Additionally, it’s pretty tempting to speed when on a motorcycle. Speeding is lethal and makes an already difficult task even harder.

The design of a motorcycle also provides you with no safety in a crash. There isn’t a seat belt on most motorcycles, not that it would help in the first place. As we mentioned above, you’re lacking the body of a car to help protect you from the impact of another car.

Instead of having a chance to survive an accident, riding a motorcycle makes it almost a certainty that a fatality occurs. When you pit a car against a human body, there’s never a scenario where a person comes out on top. 

Closing Thoughts

Even if riding a motorcycle sounds fun and exciting, it’s one of the most dangerous things that you can do on a public road.

There are several reasons why a motorcycle isn’t safe. This includes the inability to deal with road hazards, the fact that other drivers don’t respect motorcyclists, and the lack of protection when an accident happens.

Virtually every person who rides a motorcycle will get into an accident at some point in their life. If they’re lucky, then the accident will be minor and won’t involve another vehicle.

Unfortunately, it’s more likely that an accident is deadly. Because of this, you shouldn’t take the risk and avoid riding a motorcycle at all costs! If you do decide to ride, be extremely safe and drive defensively at all times!


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