GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, as more riders hit the road now that the colder months are behind us. Steve Lick has been riding motorcycles for quite some time.
"The Beatles were really popular back when I got my first bike," he said.
In those decades of riding, Lick gained safety knowledge that he now teaches to others. In his safety courses, one of the first things he stresses is your clothing choice.
"Put away the cool factor for the safe factor," he warned.
While all black gear tends to be the most popular amongst riders, he says a simple color change can save your life.
"A white helmet is 68% more visible than a black helmet at, like, 100 yards," said Lick.
As for wearing proper safety gear, Lyle Streeter wishes he had done so on a ride last year.
"I sustained a broken bone in my wrist, a fractured orbital bone right here up on my eye and a fractured cheek bone," recalled Streeter.
He decided not to throw on his leather safety gear for a short ride last summer, and ended up hitting a deer. Streeter was thrown several hundred feet from the bike and his skin was shredded almost to the bone in places.
"I think the shirt I had on lasted about maybe six inches and in half a second it was gone," said Streeter.
Now, while teaching riders with Lick, he stresses wearing protective clothing like a leather jacket and gloves.
"You want to dress for the slide not the ride," he said. "You don't want any exposed skin out there."
Like Streeter's accident, the Michigan Secretary of State's office says 84% of motorcycle accidents happen not on the highway, but on city streets.
"Motorcycle-involved crashes are usually happening near intersections where people pull out in front of the motorcycle," said Lick.
Lick says it's important for drivers to take motorcycles seriously when they see them.
"If I'm driving a garbage truck, they're going to look out for me," he said. "But a small motorcycle? They'll think, well, I'll just pull out and they can get around me."
And for riders, he says nothing is more important than the proper education.
"The real truth is that 94% of the people involved in crashes have not taken a safety class," said Lick.
Lick teaches classes throughout West Michigan as part of the motorcycle safety program at Grand Rapids Community College. You can find more information on classes by clicking here.
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