Barry G. Jackson Jr.
Dania Beach
Posted March 6 2006

I am sorry but I just had to write this letter. I am sending you this in regard to your Feb. 26 article, "Mourners hope death sends a message; motorcycling's `a dangerous hobby,' sister says."

I just want to know who that is directed to. I am a motorcycle rider who has been riding dirt bikes since I was 8 years old and I have had my motorcycle license for over 15 years now. Guess how many speeding tickets I have from riding my bike. Zero! Wanna know why? I am not an idiot who rides reckless.

How fast was the dead rider going again? 120 mph?! I can't lie, I have had a bike up to 100 mph a couple of times, but it was on open interstate highways with excellent weather conditions -- and luckily I am still around to talk about it.

Let me tell you something, 80 mph alone on a bike is a lot faster than in a car. Even to experienced riders, high speeds can be intimidating at times. I am so sick of people saying how dangerous riding motorcycles is when in fact a little bit of common sense goes a long way.

I am sorry that this man died but the blame should not be on motorcycles. What was the total number of violations he had? Oh that's right, 11 including racing and reckless driving.

Motorcycles are not dangerous, people are. Speaking of people, it's not only idiot riders but other drivers who pull out in front of riders thinking we can stop on a dime, the people who drive too close to us (beside us or behind us) and the ones who fail to see us in their mirrors.

Oh, not to mention the drivers who are afraid to use their turn signals.

And how can I forget the people who pull out onto roadways to assume riders can easily accelerate and maneuver around their ignorance.

In regard to statistics, of the 70 people who died in Broward County, how many were single-bike and speed-related accidents? To experienced riders, cars are our biggest fears. I am more afraid of inattentive drivers than myself on a bike or other riders.

And on a final note, there are motorcycle safety classes held in a variety of places such as Hollywood Dog Track on Sunday mornings. Motorcycling is not a dangerous hobby as long as one uses common sense and good judgment.