SPONSORED CONTENT | ACC MOTORCYCLE AWARENESS MONTH
Spring means more motorcycles are returning to New Zealand roads – but after a quieter winter, riders and drivers alike may need a little time to get used to sharing the road again.
September is Motorcycle Awareness Month, and with warmer weather arriving, increasing numbers of riders will be getting their bikes out of the garage and heading back onto the road.
For other road users, that means motorcycles are about to become a much more common sight again. After several months with fewer bikes around, it’s a timely reminder to look twice at intersections and when changing lanes, and to be aware that a motorcycle can be easy to miss.
There’s a message for riders, too. Other motorists may not be as accustomed to looking for motorcycles as they will be later in summer, so giving yourself a little extra space and expecting the unexpected makes sense.
And, as Nigel discovered, no matter how experienced you are or how good the conditions might seem, you never really know what a ride has in store.
“It was a sweltering hot day back in ’99. One of those stinking hot, dry, New Zealand summers. Perfect day for a ride.
Not exactly the perfect day for a big, heavy, black Kevlar jacket. But, boy, I’m glad I decided to chuck it on and not go for the breezy option.
Because that was the day I low-sided it on my old Kawasaki ZX-6 into a power pole.
I spent weeks and weeks in intensive care. Multiple surgeries. I’ve got a massive zipper scar that I’ve had for 23 years now (it’s just getting wider as I get wider), and high blood pressure from losing half a kidney. Who knows what will happen with that? Maybe one day dialysis.
“Because you just don’t know what will happen on any given day.”
But I think of myself as lucky.
Lucky I was wearing the right stuff. Imagine how bad it would’ve been if I hadn’t chucked my gear on. I’d be dead. Or paralysed. No doubt about it.
That’s why I always have, and always will, ride with my boots, gloves, helmet (of course), and full protective pants and jacket.
Because you just don’t know what will happen on any given day.”
Nigel
Always, always, wear the gear.
