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Rick Masters wrote:One can make a comparison between the conditions of instability a soaring parachutist is willing to fly in and the displacement of the motorcycle a rider is willing to drive.
The fatality rate goes up dramatically for soaring parachutists who dare instable conditions as does the rate for motorcyclists on more powerful bikes.
It is clear that in each sport, there is a subset of participants who represent the likeliest casualties.
In motorcycling, the distinction is made obvious to each rider by the stepped liability insurance rates based on displacement.
However, in freeflight, there is no distinction made at all. Liability insurance is the same, regardless of the type of aircraft, areas or conditions flown.
This allows some proponents to claim that their segment of the sport is safer than it actually is by averaging in safer segments often unrelated by wing type or level of risk.
http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/810606.pdf
See page 19
Sorry, I don't consider motorcycling a sport. I ride a Kawasaki Concours 14 (1400 CC), a big a** bike. I feel safer on that than a smaller bike, cause where I live, small bikes get blown off the road by wind and collisions with wildlife. My understanding is that more smaller sport bikes (crotch rockets) get wiped out over bigger bikes from lack of rider/driver training. I get certified every year whether I need to or not. It's cheap and fun refresher training. I don't see how hang gliding or paragliding can be even remotely compared to motorcycling.
The other problem we have here is the danger from uneducated car drivers. Wyoming has one of the highest risk factors for teenage drivers. I'm living proof of that. A few weeks ago, an 18 year old girl in a rush to pick up her kid, risked everything to cross heavy traffic during rush hour. Her lack of skills and judgement resulted in her stomping the gas pedal to cross the street at the wrong time, meeting me. All I saw was a blur, then three airbags going off in my face because the collision system in my car detected the crash before I did. I had just enough time to hit the brakes out of instinct. Had I not hit my brakes, I'd be dead now. My car was totaled and I suffered minor head injuries. Now, had I been on any size motorcycle when that happened, I would have been flattened for sure.
Point is, the chart doesn't show what size bike, what driver training, weather conditions, etc. are responsible for those deaths. So many variables, not enough info in my opinion. Here in Wyoming, many deaths are attributed to drivers falling asleep at the wheel, and many more unexplained. Many head-ons from drifting over the line into another lane, cars and motorcycles.
In all my years of flying hang gliders, I always felt safer flying in my glider than driving my car or motorcycle.
