High viz vests, loud pipes, air horns and bright headlights do not prevent accidents; they only make you more conspicuous to drivers.

 

being more conspicuous to drivers is one thing that sometimes prevents accidents.

 

I absolutely CAN intelligently counter your points. Studies were done which lead to the USMC dropping the requirement for their personnel to wear those stupid vests/high vis gear. Aside from being a force protection measure to remove this requirement, the bottom line of the study was that wearing that crap simply doesnt help to prevent accidents.
All that aside I can STILL counter by saying that your arguement that your belief that high viz colors makes drivers notice you is based on nothing but your personal belief. Yes, my stance is mostly based on my personal opinions as well, but dont put on a faux aire of superiority and act as if anyone who doesnt share your view is unintelligent. THAT is "silly".

I think it is you who is fooling himself. But again, that's just my opinion.

 

Yeah. Sure. Because nobody ever crashes into the police cars on the side of the road with their blue lights flashing. Riiiight.

 

People subconsciously are drawn to where their eyes are looking.

When I'm in the dirt and I see a rock I want to avoid, I often hit it if I don't instead look at where I WANT to go instead of looking at where I don't want to go.

I had a lady at work tell me once that my pipes seemed annoying to her at the parking garage at work. The reason she told me that was becasue she'd come over to tell me how she was about to change lanes into the lane I was in until she heard that I was there. I had a passenger on a bike tell me once that she'd noticed me alongside a black van because of my yellow helmet, too.

I'm hoping people aren't drawn into my bike because my helmet sticks out. You never know, anymore.

I've noticed that most drivers seem to be more aware of me than they were twenty years ago. But definitely not all of them.

 

Because nobody ever avoided hitting a police car on the side of the road because they saw their blue lights flashing....

The Hurt report as well as many others (I can post them later if you like) found that riders wearing more conspicuous clothing were less likely to get into accidents.

So it's not just my common sense that tells me that being more visible helps drivers see you and avoid you, but many studies would seem to back up that common sense.

Much like a study that says water is wet, there are lots that say high visibility clothing makes you more visible, and therefore less likely to be accidently hit by a driver.

Here's another one. even a simple, 30 second google search turns up reports that back up the common sense conclusion that conspicuous clothing helps prevent MC accidents:

http://www.bmj.com/content/328/7444/857.full

Someone should tell the DOT that they are wasting money putting high viz vests on their workers.

 

I choose not to post links to studies I find with "30 second Google searches" although I'm sure I found just as many supporting my point of view. I choose to actually read them and see if they hold water. Any study or report can be skewed to support whatever viewpoint one wishes. But if you like, go ahead and believe everything you see on TV too.

BTW, the Hurt report was published in 1981. Use recent and relevant studies much?

The DOT (as well as other organizations) require those vests because (a) it relieves them of some legal liability issues and (b) some misguided soul like you probably thinks it is a magic article of clothing.
Can I see them better when they wear that stuff? Yes. Does it make me notice them any sooner? Not really.

Hey, if you want to look like Rainbow Bright when you're putting around, because your bright colors give you a false sense of security, it's a free country.

 

On two wheels, looking where you want to go counts, just as locking your eyes forward during a hard brake.
Balance and weight shift plays a huge role.

That same principal don't apply to cars. You are not leaning and weight shift don't change anything while sitting in a car.

Apples and Oranges. No comparison.

 

Here in Maryland they signed a motorcycle lighting awareness bill a couple years ago that allows for LED accent lights as far as they are not red or blue and dont strobe while you are riding. I added 152 5mm white Boogey Light LED's to the engine area and for grond effects. Also added fog lights to my 09 Street Glide. I dont make a habit of wearing a reflective vest unless I am on the interstate before dawn. I look like an alien spaceship going down the road with the glow from all the LED's, but all the lights in the world is not going to prevent a cager texting and driving from hitting you. Always leave yourself an out and say a prayer before each ride. This has kept me safe for a great many years.

 

I think that's what it really comes down to for a lot of people, and they will make anything up, even if it's completely contrary to common sense and studies that seem ridiculous because they study something that is obvious, just so that they don't feel like they are taking a higher risk by not wearing things that they think they look silly in

Myself, I wear an orange helmet, but I don't wear a high viz jacket. But I'm not going to pretend that I wouldn't be better off wearing the high viz jacket.