Had he been on a Ninja 250 - or, rather, had he been capable of restraining himself and making the smart, responsible decisions that would have led him to get a Ninja 250 - he would still be alive today.hordak wrote:I understand what your getting at and agree that you shouldn't jump on a liter bike when first starting out but taking an accedent clearly caused by rider error and blaming it on the size of bike is a bit of a stretch. You could use the same type of rational to blame the style of bike not just the displacement.
We could jump to a conclusion like
"sport bike riders like to go to fast and had he been on a cruiser he would have been riding patently while taking in the scenery and not tried to pass" or some other b.s.
The only facts from the story are that he was new, on a litter bike, and passed on a curve.
The lesson to take from this story is don't pass on blind curves. Doesn't matter how long you have been riding, or how small your bike is a head on crash will be treat you the same.
IMO, the poor decision that led directly to his death (passing on a curve) and the poor decision that indirectly led it (purchasing a 1000cc supersport bike with zero prior experience) both have the same cause - youthful bravado and arrogance (which is no doubt quite common among young professional athletes).
I also have little doubt that the situation was exacerbated, if not directly caused, by the power of the bike itself. Being in control of an incredibly fast and powerful machine, whether motorcycle or automobile, makes someone want to flex some of that muscle. Put a 21 year old professional hockey player behind the wheel of a Ferrari and they're much more likely to be going 120 mph on the interstate than if you put the same person behind the wheel of a Hyundai. Put said player on a Ninja 250 and he's much less likely to be cranking the throttle to pass cars around blind curves.
