Community Corner
Motorcycle Safety Should Be Top Priority, Instructor Says
Ronnie Lang, lead instructor a Harley Davidson's safety program, said the motorcycle accidents need to come to an end, and the solution is motorcycle safety training.
In more than a month, South Cobb and nearby communities have seen five motorcycle accidents, which resulted in serious injuries and death. One motorcycle enthusiast says safety should be a priority for anyone driving a motorcycle this summer.
Ronnie Lang, lead instructor of Harley Davidson’s Rider’s Edge motorcycle training, said nearly every motorcycle accident is preventable, including these incidents below:
On May 8, . He sustained serious injuries.
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On May 16, when a woman made an illegal U-turn and hit him in Mableton.
Ten days later, a as he rounded a curve and died after being thrown from the motorcycle.
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Just Wednesday, .
Lang said most motorcyclists do not have the training to know how to turn well or stop well. Many of them learned to ride their motorcycles from friends and family members who also have not had proper safety training, Lang said.
"I believe strongly in motorcycle safety because we're seeing too many accidents out there, too many people going to the hospital because they will not train themselves...How do you expect to get better if you're not willing to educate yourself?" Lang said.
Rider's Edge students are taught to SEE, which stands for Search Evaluate and Execute, to manage risks.
To satiate a need for speed, riders can pay $20 and race at the Atlanta Motor Speedway at its Friday Night Drag. Lang said the right place to race is on the track and not the highways.
If a motorcyclist is going 60 miles per hour, he or she is going 88 feet per second.
Since the average reaction time is 1.5 seconds, if a motorcyclist is following 2 seconds behind another motorists, he or she would only have 44 feet left to stop without rear-ending the vehicle, Lang explained.
Lang has been riding motorcycles for the last 38 years, and said that teaching others motorcycle safety is his passion.
“I’ve done a lot of things wrong, and I learned some things the hard way,” Lang said. He wants to pass along his wisdom to other motorcyclists so they can avoid the same hardships.
What are your top motorcycle safety tips? Leave them below in the comments section.
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