Hurt Report Summary

[Garandman]

The Hurt Report was the first major motorcycle accident study. More recent studies augment, but largely confirm the findings.

My wife is a new rider, and my daughter just got her license, and wanted to be sure they knew the important findings. There is a Wiki summary, but we further simplified those 55 findings down to 33.

In case you are working with a new street rider, here they are. ####

List of findings in the Hurt Report
This is the (summarized) list of Findings of the Hurt Report. Throughout the accident and exposure data there are special observations which relate to accident and injury causation and characteristics of the motorcycle accidents studied. These findings are summarized as follows:

1. Approximately three-fourths of these motorcycle accidents involved collision with another vehicle, which was most usually a passenger automobile.
2. Approximately one-fourth of these motorcycle accidents were single vehicle accidents involving the motorcycle colliding with the roadway or some fixed object in the environment.
3. In the single vehicle accidents, motorcycle rider error was present as the accident precipitating factor in about two-thirds of the cases, with the typical error being a slide-out and fall due to overbraking or running wide on a curve due to excess speed or under-cornering.
4. In the multiple vehicle accidents, the driver of the other vehicle violated the motorcycle right-of-way and caused the accident in two-thirds of those accidents.
5. The failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents. The driver of the other vehicle involved in collision with the motorcycle did not see the motorcycle before the collision.
6. The most frequent accident configuration is the motorcycle proceeding straight then the automobile makes a left turn in front of the oncoming motorcycle.
7. Intersections are the most likely place for the motorcycle accident, with the other vehicle violating the motorcycle right-of-way, and often violating traffic controls.
8. Most motorcycle accidents involve a short trip associated with shopping, errands, friends, entertainment or recreation, and the accident is likely to happen in very short time close to the trip origin.
9. The view of the motorcycle or the other vehicle involved in the accident is limited by glare or obstructed by other vehicles in almost half of the multiple vehicle accidents.
10. Conspicuity of the motorcycle is a critical factor in the multiple vehicle accidents, and accident involvement is significantly reduced by the use of motorcycle headlamps-on In daylight and the wearing of high visibility yellow, orange or bright red jackets.
11. The median pre-crash speed was 29.8 mph, and the median crash speed was 21.5 mph, and the one-in-a-thousand crash speed is approximately 86 mph-
12. Motorcycle riders between the ages of 16 and 24 are significantly Overrepresented in accidents.
13. Although the majority of the accident-involved motorcycle riders are male (96X), the female motorcycle riders are significantly overrepresented in the accident data.
14. Craftsmen, laborers and students are overrepresented in the accidents.
15. Motorcycle riders with previous recent traffic citations and accidents are overrepresented in the accident data.
16. The motorcycle riders involved in accidents are essentially without training; 92% were self-taught or learned from family or friends.
17. More than half of the accident-involved motorcycle riders had less than 5 months experience on the accident motorcycle, although the total street riding experience was almost 3 years. Motorcycle riders with dirt bike experience are significantly underrepresented in the accident data.
18. Lack of attention to the driving task is a common factor for the motorcyclist in an accident.
19. Almost half of the fatal accidents show alcohol involvement.
20. Motorcycle riders in these accidents showed significant collision avoidance problems. Most riders would overbrake and skid the rear wheel, and underbrake the front wheel greatly reducing collision avoidance deceleration. The ability to countersteer and swerve was essentially absent.
21. The typical motorcycle accident allows the motorcyclist just less than 2 seconds to complete all collision avoidance action.
22. The likelihood of injury is extremely high in these motorcycle accidents; 98% of the multiple vehicle collisions and 96% of the single vehicle accidents resulted in some kind of injury to the motorcycle rider; 45% resulted in more than a minor injury.
23. Half of the injuries to the somatic regions were to the ankle-foot, lower leg, knee, and thigh-upper leg.
24. The use of heavy boots, jacket, gloves, etc., is effective in preventing or reducing abrasions and lacerations, which are frequent but rarely severe injuries.
25. Injury severity increases with speed, alcohol involvement and motorcycle size.
26. Seventy-three percent of the accident-involved motorcycle riders used no eye protection, and it is likely that the wind on the unprotected eyes contributed an impairment of vision which delayed hazard detection.
27. Voluntary safety helmet use by those accident-involved motorcycle riders was lowest for untrained, uneducated, young motorcycle riders on hot days and short trips.
28. The most deadly Injuries to the accident victims were injuries to the chest and head.
29. The use of the safety helmet is the single critical factor in the prevention or reduction of head injury.
30. Safety helmet use caused no attenuation of critical traffic sounds, no limitation of pre-crash visual field, and no fatigue or loss of attention; no element of accident causation was related to helmet use. The increased coverage of the full facial coverage helmet increases protection, and significantly reduces face injuries.
31. There is no liability for neck injury by wearing a safety helmet; helmeted riders had fewer neck injuries than unhelmeted riders.
32. Sixty percent of the motorcyclists were not wearing safety helmets at the time of the accident.

[adouglas]

IMHO, for anyone new to the sport or re-entering after a hiatus:

- The MSF basic rider course should be considered mandatory. Understand that what's taught is baseline skill geared towards utter beginners... certain techniques are not applicable to more experienced riders who may panic (e.g. stand it up in the corner before you brake, do not cover the brake). Approach with a learner's mindset.

- David Hough's books (e.g. Proficient Motorcycling) should be required reading. They focus on street survival skills. More performance-oriented material (e.g. Twist of the Wrist II) is great but it's clearly aimed at track riders.

- Gear is always a contentious issue. Here's a thought experiment I like to use, to make the point that ATGATT should be the way you ride, every time:

Imagine you're in a van rolling down the street at about 40 mph, which is a reasonably representative speed for a motorcycle accident. Go to the side door and slide it open. Crouch down and look at the road going by. Get a good feel for the speed.

Now roll out of the door.

If you crash your bike, that's about what's going to happen to you. You'll fall a couple of feet to the pavement, slide and/or roll.

If you do not believe that what you're wearing will allow you to get up and walk away with nothing more than a bruise, you're not wearing good enough gear.

This is why I choose to wear full leathers on the street. I respect the right of people to make their own choices, but if you crash and didn't do what it takes to protect yourself, expect zero sympathy... and a lot of taunting about that painful road rash on your butt.

[theducman]

Msf is mandatory in ct

[golden chicken]

Take the course.
Wear a helmet.
Don't drink and ride.
Don't ride like an asshole.
Remember you are invisible.