Yeah, Like dying alone in your bed at an extreme old age and thinking.... I shoulda' done this, or I shoulda' done that.

 

What is life without a little excitement! If I wanted to be safe every second of the day I would become bubble boy!

 

You're getting real world advise from all the above. Bottom line? The risks are worth the rewards. Bide your time learning and accumulating experience. You will become quit comfortable with your bike and your confidence will soar. Just don't become overconfident. Ride like you're invisible. You'll wind up having more skill than a typical car driver and you will be a superior driver overall as well. Bike riders have a far keener sense of control and road conditions than the average cager. But every ride is another learning experience, so NEVER stop paying attention. Ride safe.

 

First of all, I'm not a daredevil or have a death wish, but I'm a 25-year retired police officer who, for about 12 years, was a motor officer. Being an officer is bad enough, but you haven't lived until you've wheeled a motorcycle (Harley, of course) at twice the speed limit, with lights and siren, blowing red lights in the rain. you wanna see people drive stupid? They hear the siren, but they don't see the bike, so they slam on their brakes, change 3 lanes of traffic at once, just REALLY crazy stuff! Funny thing was, of that 12 years, I fell off the scoot 3 times (yes, FELL off!) and never had a crash. Hit an acorn pulling out of the station, forgot to put the jiffy stand down rolling up on a bad accident, and hit some sand making a slow u-turn.

I learned, as many others have already said, to WATCH everybody like a hawk, and expect they're gonna pull into your path or rear-end you. You don't have to be paranoid,watching people willcome naturally after riding a little while. Two things I always do. First, watch the driver and see if they're looking at YOU. If they are, then they've probably seen you. Second, watch the FRONT WHEELS of a car ready to pull out. It's a lot easier to see if that car is moving/creeping forward by watching the front wheels than it is just eyeballing the car. You'll see any movement of the car.

If you see somebody coming up behind you like they don't see you, the bike lets you get out of the way. Split the lane, ride down the shoulder, whatever it takes to move out of that lane. Very easy, but you have to pay attention and see them coming.

I'm still riding ('02 R/K), so it couldn't have been that bad! (plus, nobody's shooting at me any more......yes, it happened!)

 

Being aware of the how unprotected you are if you are involved in an accident is a good thing............so you drive very defensively at all times. When I am riding in towns with lots of intersections and limited visiblilty I am on the highest attention level cover your brakes and every car is pulling out in front of you. When you get out more open spaces where you have a greater margin then you can relax. At on time I thought that back country roads were the safiest place to be but all the blind turns you never know what is around the bend could be half a gravel driveway on the road, animal, slow moving farm equipment...just never know. You get on the highway and you don't have to worry lots of visibility and a merge lane not someone pulling out in front of you. Just ride your ride and be alert you will be alright.

 

I once heard this comedian, the topic was "you're gonna die anyways". : The most anyone can ever hope for is to die healthy. So smoke a cigarette, have a drink, f***k a stranger. And ride a motorcycle! You're gonna die anyway.
Amen.