Is biking safe?

as per Sal - make yourself visible as much as you can

I wore high -vis all the way down to wales but normally don't if i'm going round local roads.

Further training is the way to go - any of them is good I'm biased as I'm an observer for IAM but I can see the difference it makes not only in my riding but others.
Rideouts with more experience people - good and bad - just make sure that you are not pushing it to keep up.

Junctions - if you means side roads joining your road - if no-one there keep your position but be ready to move is someone appears. If there is already someone there move your position to nearer the opposite white line ie if the road is on the right move in towards the kerb as you approach the junction
ALWAYS expect them to move out on you - if they do you are already prepared for it.

and so far 0 accidnets in almost 5 years of riding - a few close calls but no offs yet. i work on the assumption of it's not if I come off its when.

[hindle8907]

Its not just the cars that are out to kill you.
Its the Pedestrians too !!
My recent accident involved a young chap running out into the road I clipped him with my handle bar and it sent me off into some road side barriers and I snapped my knee cap in two and have had it wired back together.

Nothing is safe. all you can do is try to make it safer.

[Littlepeahead]

I've injured myself to the point of needing medical treatment by falling out of a window, tripping over the cat, getting my foot caught in a rabbit hole, being kicked by a very very small pony, falling head first off a kids climbing frame and accidentally spilling wood polish on the floor then slipping over on it and knocking myself unconscious.

So far on the bike I've only had a bloke pull out of a side road and clip the foot hanger leaving me with a slightly bruised foot and in far less pain than all of the above injuries.

So I reckon I'm safer on the bike!

Originally Posted by PsychoCannon

everyone comes off eventually it's simply part of the learning process.

+1...unfortunately not many get away without at least one,be it minor or major......i've had both

Originally Posted by mikky

Plain and simple question, but probably a can of worms...

I've noticed that since getting onto a bike, I become invisible to every maniac on the road, especially women taking kids to school. From reading the forum, there's quite a few people who have come off, and have done serious injury to themselves.

Basically, should I just expect to come off at some stage during my biking career? How many of you have come off, or been in an accident in the past 12 months?

The best thing you can do is arm yourself with as much training as poss and give yourself the best possible chance.

Originally Posted by jambo

stuff

Couldn't agree more

Originally Posted by Littlepeahead

I've injured myself to the point of needing medical treatment by falling out of a window, tripping over the cat, getting my foot caught in a rabbit hole, being kicked by a very very small pony, falling head first off a kids climbing frame and accidentally spilling wood polish on the floor then slipping over on it and knocking myself unconscious.

So far on the bike I've only had a bloke pull out of a side road and clip the foot hanger leaving me with a slightly bruised foot and in far less pain than all of the above injuries.

So I reckon I'm safer on the bike!

Good point! I've had more injuries from horse riding/falling off a chair (absolutely true!)/slipping off a broken crazy paving slab (broke my foot) slipped while walking on ice and injured my back/not to mention severe ill health in general! - I could go on and on but I won't bore you

Based on my own statistics I'll continue to take my chances on the bike - armed with plenty of advanced training of course!

[Red Herring]

It's all been said, get some decent training, never trust anybody else to do the "right" thing, never rely on luck. Oh and don't accept that coming off is part of motorcycling, crashing is not part of the learning curve. Riding on the road is 90% what's going on in your head, 10% what you do with the bike, but that 10% can be really good fun!

[ophic]

Originally Posted by Red Herring

Riding on the road is 90% what's going on in your head, 10% what you do with the bike, but that 10% can be really good fun!

Cruisers aren't like that. 90% in the head, 6% what you try to do with the bike, and 2% what the bike actually does. Oh and another 2% relief when it actually does it. Still fun, mind

Walking outside your front door isn't safe, it's all how you look upon it and how you ride, ride with a death wish and it'll be granted, ride like your life means something and you have a far better chance of a happy biking life.