73 year-old American motorbike driver injured by hanging communication wires

[Lucky Bones]

On 6/25/2022 at 2:43 PM, Lacessit said:

I liked riding a scooter here so much I bought one when I went back to Australia. It was not a big mistake financially, but riding conditions were entirely different.

For one thing, I could not ride it in the emergency lane of any freeway, nanny state regulation. I'm supposed to run it at 110 km/hr to keep up with freeway traffic.

 

It's very rare in Thailand to have a crosswind of more than 20 km/hr. On the foreshore of Port Philip Bay, a crosswind of 60 - 80 km/hr adds a new dimension to controlling anything on two wheels.

Yes. Riding the Great Ocean road in Victoria 40 years ago  on the Honda 400CB Super Sports was something special.

Reminds me of the "Stone" movie.

[jacko45k]

14 hours ago, Noah K said:

So, unless they outlaw motorcycles, or take away my drivers license, I will ride until the very end, whatever age that may be.

Really ... I think I might have the ability and common sense to limit riding to within my abilities. Hopefully I will recognize my faculties are waning and draw a line under bike days. Enough damned fools on the roads out there without the damned old fools. 

[Lee4Life]

On 6/24/2022 at 8:43 PM, steven100 said:

73 years old and riding a motorbike in Thailand .....   what could possibly go wrong   !!

One of the things I love about Thailand is their great respect for the elderly.

[Rimmer]

More off topic posts removed

[richard_smith237]

On 6/25/2022 at 7:23 PM, RobU said:

There are a lot of 'victim shaming' posts on this topic

i.e. he deserved to be pulled off his motorbike by a dangerous hanging wire because

1. He is old (irrelevant)

2. He wasnt wearing a helmet (also Irrelevant)

I wish some people would grow up and stop trolling and actually discuss the topic rather than just finding unneccesary fault with the rider

The wire was a danger to the public and the people you should be shaming are the ones who left it like that

While I haven’t & don’t want to victim blame, that it appears the ‘victim’ was not wearing a helmet alludes to his attitude towards safety, possibly even how careful he was… would another more safety conscious rider have spotted & avoided the cable ???

 

I think that’s the point some are making.

 

Regardless, not wearing a helmet is stupid & led to worse injury which is the victims fault.  
 

Of course the wire is not. 

[richard_smith237]

On 6/25/2022 at 7:23 PM, RobU said:

i.e. he deserved to be pulled off his motorbike by a dangerous hanging wire because

1. He is old (irrelevant)

2. He wasnt wearing a helmet (also Irrelevant)

Of course he didn’t deserve it…

but…

1. Age - may be a factor - eye sight & reaction. 
2. No helmet - worse injuries. 
 

 

 

[Eaglekott]

On 6/24/2022 at 8:43 PM, steven100 said:

73 years old and riding a motorbike in Thailand .....   what could possibly go wrong   !!

My cousins dad drove my cousins Hayabusa until he was way over 80 years old. Ok, Not in Thailand but anyway.

[richard_smith237]

19 hours ago, Noah K said:

I'm 65 years old and I have been riding since I was 14 years old. So, unless they outlaw motorcycles, or take away my drivers license, I will ride until the very end, whatever age that may be. You can get injured at 73 in a car accident as well, but by the looks of the photos, a helmet and other protective riding gear was not being used. That I have an issue with.

You can’t ‘wobble & fall off’ a car… 

 

The difference is vast…  at some point we all lose vital skills and function.

 
The sensible posters are highlighting how they hope they will recognise when it’s time to hang up their helmet. 

 

[richard_smith237]

7 minutes ago, Eaglekott said:

My cousins dad drove my cousins Hayabusa until he was way over 80 years old. Ok, Not in Thailand but anyway.

That’s awesome….. But I doubt it was as a regular commute & only in perfect weather on quiet roads etc

 

The main issue with riding in Thailand is responding to the silly stuff going on around us……. 
 

Anyone on a Hyabusa in Bangkok traffic (or any town in Thailand) is going to find that trickier than on a scooter, and an 80 year old even more so. 

[Eaglekott]

On 6/25/2022 at 9:17 AM, Bangkok Barry said:

The 19 yr old would probably be going 50km an hour faster, so probably not :)

And would probably answer some messages on his smartphone while driving.

[richard_smith237]

On 6/25/2022 at 7:24 PM, EricTh said:

There's nothing wrong with an elderly guy riding a bike if he drives slowly.

I think you are quite right when regarding risk to others.

 

However, when regarding risk to oneself, riding too slowly or over cautiously places you at risk from the utter tools around you.
It’s perhaps safer to be going with the flow of traffic. 
 

If a riders ability has diminished such that he feels the need to ride a lot more slowly than the surrounding vehicles, then it perhaps time to consider 4 wheels for his own safety. 

[Ralf001]

Was it last week a the service providers were in Khao Noi pulling down all the wires from over head ?..

 

Little wonder someone got injured as there was wire everywhere for many days.

[RobU]

4 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

Of course he didn’t deserve it…

but…

1. Age - may be a factor - eye sight & reaction. 
2. No helmet - worse injuries. 
 

 

 

1. Age MAY be a factor but is probably not since there are many reports of younger people being brought off motorbikes in similar circumstances 2 at least reported on this forum within the past 2 months

2. Reading other reports the wire caught round his throat, a helmet would have made no difference since it protects the skull not the throat. He has no head injuries if you look at the photos. The test he is having is a precautionary measure to check for brain swelling due to the whiplash effect of being dragged by the neck off his bike and possible damage to the carotid arteries that supply blood to the the brain. These kind of injuries only become apparent days after the incident if he had an injury from hitting his skull he would have been give the tests immediately.

[richard_smith237]

10 minutes ago, RobU said:

1. Age MAY be a factor but is probably not since there are many reports of younger people being brought off motorbikes in similar circumstances 2 at least reported on this forum within the past 2 months

And another one today [kind hearted ‘win’ rider...]....    Age, may be, may not be a factor.

But if someone has poor eyesight.... poor reactions etc... there is a greater probability of age being a factor in any accident. In this case, its likely any rider would have been garrotted, but who knows....

 

10 minutes ago, RobU said:

2. Reading other reports the wire caught round his throat, a helmet would have made no difference since it protects the skull not the throat. He has no head injuries if you look at the photos. The test he is having is a precautionary measure to check for brain swelling due to the whiplash effect of being dragged by the neck off his bike and possible damage to the carotid arteries that supply blood to the the brain

What photos did you look at ??? 

 

Not wearing a helmet definitely made a difference, look at the photo in the main article. 

The injured party was also only wearing flipflops and not wearing gloves...  

- The very minimum I ride in (when nipping to a 7-11) is solid footwear (trainers), gloves and helmet. 

- The injured party would have suffered far less injury with some very very basic precautions (trainers, gloves, and helmet). 

 

 

 

 

[RobU]

19 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

And another one today [kind hearted ‘win’ rider...]....    Age, may be, may not be a factor.

But if someone has poor eyesight.... poor reactions etc... there is a greater probability of age being a factor in any accident. In this case, its likely any rider would have been garrotted, but who knows....

 

What photos did you look at ??? 

 

Not wearing a helmet definitely made a difference, look at the photo in the main article. 

The injured party was also only wearing flipflops and not wearing gloves...  

- The very minimum I ride in (when nipping to a 7-11) is solid footwear (trainers), gloves and helmet. 

- The injured party would have suffered far less injury with some very very basic precautions (trainers, gloves, and helmet). 

 

 

 

 

And I repeadt if there was traumatic head injury he would have had the test immediately

[richard_smith237]

20 minutes ago, RobU said:

And I repeadt if there was traumatic head injury he would have had the test immediately

You can repeat it as many times as you like. He wasn’t wearing a helmet... and that is relevant because his injuries were worse as a result, his injuries ‘could’ have easily been fatal simply because he wasn’t wearing a helmet. 

 

 

Any ’tests’ he is having is due to both the initial cause (getting caught by the wire, the whiplash as you call it) and his head impacting the ground (worsened by not wearing a helmet)....  

 

 

[Sydebolle]

How many such incidents happen to Thais which will go unreported? 

If that would ever happen to me, I would sue the whole lot; this manure has to stop! Pure laziness and terrible execution of a most likely overpaid public tender of wiring ...... just look at the electricity posts all over town. If my toddler grandchild would be given toothpicks to be put into a chocolate cake, more picks would be straight up than what these goons purposely and brainlessly achieve! 

[Noah K]

7 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

You can’t ‘wobble & fall off’ a car… 

 

The difference is vast…  at some point we all lose vital skills and function.

 
The sensible posters are highlighting how they hope they will recognise when it’s time to hang up their helmet. 

 

You can get drunk, wobble, and drive off a cliff in a car. Why don't you tell us all that things can be dangerous without telling us. And I'm sure all sensible car drivers recognize when it's time to stop driving cars.

[Noah K]

12 hours ago, jacko45k said:

Really ... I think I might have the ability and common sense to limit riding to within my abilities. Hopefully I will recognize my faculties are waning and draw a line under bike days. Enough damned fools on the roads out there without the damned old fools. 

yeah, the first thing old folks recognize is when it's time to hang up the keys (motorbike or car).

[billd766]

On 6/25/2022 at 9:59 PM, richard_smith237 said:

Its not ageism... Its just fact.... 

 

I’m suffering too.... when playing football against younger players they are sharper, faster, quicker with better reactions....    with age we slow, there is no getting away from that no matter how your emotions distort your perspective.....  With age we can’t react as quickly, we break more easily and mend more slowly.....  and as we age further our motor-functions also become impeded....

 

At some point there is a line in the sand where riding a motorcycle becomes a lot more dangerous than it was a few years before hand, that line is different for all of us, but its there...  

 

 

 

My line was 75 but I had been riding less before then.

[Jorgendk]

On 6/25/2022 at 10:06 PM, richard_smith237 said:

At 73 your reaction will not be as fast as the majority of riders on the road. 

But as you wrote, with quality training and vast wealth of experience your reaction will be better, your interpretation of events will be better....    

 

But, is your reaction better than it was 10 years ago?.... is it better than the 50 year old you? thats where age comes into and a factor one must evaluate when it comes time to hangup the helmet. 

 

Of course, safety involves much more than age... it also involves were you ride. 

There is a big difference between pottering down to the 7-11, or the beach and back vs lane-splitting and navigating Bangkok’s traffic etc... 

 

 

It would also be a fair assumption to argue that the reaction of the vast majority of ‘Western riders’ here in Thailand have a better reaction than most Thai riders because they read the road ahead and predict the unpredictability rather than make assumptions which when wrong lead to a collision. 

 

 

You are right, I am sure.
My reaction is not as good as my reaction was 10-20 years ago, but I still clame that it is better than many young drivers today.
Anyway, I do not usely drive anywhere as fast as I used to do, and I think that make up fore some of the bit slower reaction.
Anyway... I was only claiming that it is wrong to asume that you should newer drive a motorbike if over say 65 years of age.
But I agree that the only way to drive fearly safe in Thailand, is if you drive a armerd car,

[Screaming]

I have been riding motorcycles for over 50 years but I would never drive one or get on one in Thailand. It is only a matter of time before you get hurt or die no matter how good a driver you are.

[The Hammer2021]

Bike  for foreigners  should be confined top tracks  not city streets

[jacko45k]

11 hours ago, Noah K said:

yeah, the first thing old folks recognize is when it's time to hang up the keys (motorbike or car).

I think you are being cynical.... but hopefully I see the signs before something gets broken! More recently it is the state of the toads making that decision for me,

[Noah K]

2 hours ago, jacko45k said:

I think you are being cynical.... but hopefully I see the signs before something gets broken! More recently it is the state of the toads making that decision for me,

sarcasm is my middle name! I already don't drive a car, haven't owned one in more than three years, I let Grab do all the work during the rain and heavy shopping. Driving on two wheels is my definition of freedom. I am also a 100% defensive driver, and firm believer in the motorcycle safety foundation course, Which some drivers here in Thailand can desperately use.

[richard_smith237]

10 hours ago, The Hammer2021 said:

Bike  for foreigners  should be confined top tracks  not city streets

A rather strange almost ‘anti-forienger’ viewpoint.... Why ??

 

Do you think foreigners are more dangerous Than Thai’s ? (more danger to others or themselves ?).

 

What about drivers, would you ban foreign car drivers too? or just motorcyclists?

 

 

 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

17 hours ago, billd766 said:

My line was 75 but I had been riding less before then.

My line is already less....

 

Perhaps because I live in central Bangkok and riding is no fun. 

If I was out side of a city I may chose to ride for the fun of it, here its for necessity only. 

I either choose to take the car or bike - If Wife is taking the car the decision is made for me. 

If its raining or just too hot I take the car... If at night, its a grab (as I’ll likely have a beer), if its at peak traffic times I’ll either plan and avoid or take the bike. 

 

The bike is a pure convenience... but in Bangkok the speeds don’t get up to much because of the traffic.

I’ve just downgraded to scooter which is a little better for storage than a motorbike... but I can already feel that the brakes are not as good and its not as stable when I do get up to speed (14” wheels I think).

[Pattaya Spotter]

Lucky you weren't killed...buy a car (or use Grab/Bolt)...your life is worth it.

[ifmu]

On 6/25/2022 at 7:32 AM, SiSePuede419 said:

And had this gentleman been driving a car, no need for a brain x-ray, because cars protect you against this scenario.

 

The End.

 

 

and what the heck does this reply have to do with anything ?