Last year the Motorcycle Safety Foundation sponsored an International Motorcycle Safety Conference titled The Human Element. It focused on human factors in motorcycle safety; nothing affects safety more than human thinking and actions.

The three-day event covered a variety of motorcycle safety issues: crash causation, accident studies, braking, protective gear, innovations, alcohol use, etc.  More than 300 experts from around the world gave presentations and took part in panels, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration-NHTSA-provided some valuable background data.

One of the more intriguing pieces of data involves motorcycle crashes at intersections: 77% of biker accidents occur at intersections-that's three out of every four.  There was another disturbing fact related to this:"Perception failure" of the drivers from the other vehicles causes 70% of motorcycle accidents.  Many drivers just don't seem to see motorcycles.

Intersections are clearly the most dangerous zone we ride in. So, what can we do about it?

One important thing to remember is that it's not necessary to ride into intersections at high speed.  Let's take, for example, a 35 mph speeed zone.  That posted speed is not a mandatory speed, it is the maximum legal speed.  If you see vehicles in or near an intersection that you are approaching, why not slow down?

Collisions come at a rider from the front-roughly from an area between 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock.  With that in mind, pay particular attention to vehicles approaching in the opposite lane that may turn left in front of you, and any others that may proceed into the intersection.

"Covering" your brakes can help reduce reaction time. Spreading your right hand over the brake lever and placing your foot over the pedal in preparation to react cuts reaction time in half.  The sooner you begin to apply maximum braking, the quicker you'll stop.

These three things, while not the only cautions, can go a long way in helping to minimize injury or save your life: slow down, scan the intersection, cover your brakes.

If you are in a situation making it necessary to brake fast, then you should use both brakes-especially the front since it supplies most of the bike's stopping power.  It's a good idea to simply brake straight ahead and don't try to swerve, which could result in high-siding and other possbily fatal results.

Helping other drivers on the road to better notice motorcyles and motorcyclists could help lessen the number of accidents.  Wearing brighter colors can make a difference.  Data presented at the conference indicates that bright colors increase conspicuity by 12%, which though only by a small amount, can lower your risk nonetheless.

The Human Element is all about thinking and performance-not the other guy's, yours!

Article borrowed from American Rider, April 2007