Motorcycle Facts

Motorcycles make up for five percent of total highway accidents, according to MotorcycleInsurance.com. The website states that the most common causes of accidents are speeding, failure to practice defensive driving, lack of riding skills, failure to know the motorcycle, and lack of riding precautions. Practicing basic safety skills will greatly reduce the chances of a motorcycle accident.

Wear the Right Gear

• Always wear a helmet to protect from head injuries, the leading cause of death in motorcycle accidents. The helmet should be snug and have chin straps.
• Wear goggles or a helmet with a visor for eye protection. This will protect the eyes from debris and wind, keeping eyes focused, clear, and on the road.
• Non-slip gloves allow for a steady grip on the handlebars.
• Pants should be thick and protective.
• Motorcycle boots offer protection for the feet, ankles, and calves. They will protect skin from burns and the fragile bones from breaks.
• Wear bright colored clothing to be more visible to other motorists.

Before Riding

• Test all lights, signals, and brakes just as you would any other vehicle. Be sure all are in proper working order.
• Position mirrors for a clear view all around.
• Be familiar with the motorcycle and read the owner’s manual. This will ensure proper operation.
• Refresh skills by taking a riding class or practicing off the streets if your skills are a little rusty. It is important to recognize your own skill level.

While on the Road

Wearing the right motorcycle safety gear will, literally, save your skin

• Be alert at intersections. This is where most motorcycle accidents happen. Other motorists may not see you coming or may misjudge your speed and distance.
• Follow the speed limit. Fast driving may cause loss of control, inability to stop, and reduced reaction times.
• Apply both the front and back brakes at the same time to avoid locking the brakes.
• Lean into each turn while keeping grip on the handlebars. This keeps center of gravity consistent and prevents tipping.
• Do not ride on the lines, between lanes, or on the shoulder.
• Avoid tailgating by keeping a safe distance. This allows proper reaction and stopping time if the vehicle in from stops suddenly.
• Be aware and watch for other drivers who may not see you. Motorcycles can be hard to see and not every driver is on the lookout for them.

Indian motorcycles were manufactured from 1901 to 1953 by a company in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, initially known as the Hendee Manufacturing Company but which was renamed the Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company in 1928. The Indian factory team took the first three places in the 1911 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy. During the 1910s Indian became the largest manufacturer of motorcycles in the world. Indian’s most popular models were the Scout, made from 1920 to 1946, and the Chief, made from 1922 to 1953. The Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company went bankrupt in 1953. A number of successor organizations have perpetuated the name in subsequent years, including the current company which has been manufacturing Indian motorcycles since 2006.

Early years – Hendee and Hedström

The “Indian Motocycle Co.” was originally founded as the Hendee Manufacturing Company by George M. Hendee in 1897 to manufacture bicycles. These were initially badged as “Silver King” and “Silver Queen” brands but the name “American Indian”, very quickly reduced to simply “Indian”, was adopted by Hendee from 1898 onwards because it gave better product recognition in export markets. Carl Oscar Hedström joined in 1900. Both Hendee and Hedström were former bicycle racers and manufacturers, and they teamed up to produce a motorcycle with a 1.75 bhp, single-cylinder engine in Hendee’s home town of Springfield. The bike was successful and sales increased dramatically during the next decade.

In 1901, a prototype and two production units of the diamond framed Indian Single were successfully designed, built and tested. The first Indian motorcycles, featuring chain drives and streamlined styling, were sold to the public in 1902. In 1903, Indian’s co-founder and chief engineer Oscar Hedström set the world motorcycle speed record (56 mph). In 1904 the company introduced the deep red color that would become Indian’s trademark. Production of Indian motorcycles then exceeded 500 bikes annually, rising to a peak of 32,000 in 1913. The engines of the Indian Single were built by the Aurora Firm in Illinois under license from the Hendee Mfg. Co. until 1906.

Competitive successes

Indian 1911

In 1905, Indian built its first V-twin factory racer, and in following years made a strong showing in racing and record-breaking. In 1907 the company introduced the first street version V-twin and a roadster styled after the factory racer. The roadster can be distinguished from the racers by the presence of twist grip linkages. One of the firm’s most famous riders was Erwin “Cannonball” Baker, who set many long-distance records. In 1914, he rode an Indian across America, from San Diego to New York, in a record 11 days, 12 hours and ten minutes. Baker’s mount in subsequent years was the Powerplus, a side-valve V-twin, which was introduced in 1916. Its 61ci (1000 cc), 42 degree V-twin engine was more powerful and quieter than previous designs, giving a top speed of 60 mph (96 km/h). The Powerplus was highly successful, both as a roadster and as the basis for racing bikes. It remained in production with few changes until 1924.

Competition success played a big part in Indian’s rapid growth and spurred technical innovation, as well. One of the American firm’s best early results came in the Isle of Man TT in 1911, when Indian riders Oliver Cyril Godfrey, Franklin and Moorehouse finished first, second and third. Indian star Jake DeRosier set several speed records both in America and at Brooklands in England, and won an estimated 900 races on dirt and board track racing. He left Indian for Excelsior and died in 1913, aged 33, of injuries sustained in a board track race crash with Charles “Fearless” Balke, who later became Indian’s top rider. Work at the Indian factory was stopped while DeRosier’s funeral procession passed.

Oscar Hedstrom left Indian in 1913 after disagreements with the Board of Directors regarding dubious practices to inflate the company’s stock values. George Hendee resigned in 1916.

World War I

As the US entered World War I, Indian unnecessarily sold most of its Powerplus line in 1917 and 1918 to the United States government, starving its network of dealers. This blow to domestic availability of the motorcycles led to a loss of dealers from which Indian never quite recovered. While the motorcycles were popular in the military, post-war demand was then taken up by other manufacturers to whom many of the previously loyal Indian dealers turned. While Indian shared in the business boom of the 1920s, it had lost its Number One position in the US market to Harley-Davidson.

Inter-war era – Scouts, Chiefs, and Fours

The Scout and Chief V-twins, introduced in the early 1920s, became the Springfield firm’s most successful models. Designed by Charles B. Franklin, the middleweight Scout and larger Chief shared a 42-degree V-twin engine layout. Both models gained a reputation for strength and reliability.

In 1930, Indian merged with DuPont Motors Company. DuPont Motors founder E. Paul DuPont ceased production of duPont automobiles and concentrated the company’s resources on Indian. DuPont’s paint industry connections resulted in no fewer than 24 color options being offered in 1934. Models of that era featured Indian’s famous head-dress logo on the gas tank. Indian’s huge Springfield factory was known as the Wigwam, and native American imagery was much used in advertising.

In 1940, Indian sold nearly as many motorcycles as its major rival, Harley-Davidson. At the time, Indian represented the only true American-made heavyweight cruiser alternative to Harley-Davidson. During this time, the company also manufactured other products such as aircraft engines, bicycles, boat motors and air conditioners.

Indian Chief

The first 1922 model Chief had a 1,000 cc (61 cubic inches) engine based on that of the Powerplus; a year later the engine was enlarged to 1,200 cc (73 cubic inches). Numerous improvements were made over the years, including adoption of a front brake in 1928.

In 1940, all models were fitted with the large skirted fenders that became an Indian trademark, and the Chief gained a new sprung frame that was superior to rival Harley’s unsprung rear end. The 1940s Chiefs were handsome and comfortable machines, capable of 85 mph (137 km/h) in standard form and over 100 mph (160 km/h) when tuned, although their increased weight hampered acceleration.

The 1948 Chief had a 74 cubic inch engine, hand shift and foot clutch. While one handlebar grip controlled the throttle the other was a manual spark advance.

In 1950, the V-twin engine was enlarged to 1,300 cc (79 cubic inches) and telescopic forks were adopted. But Indian’s financial problems meant that few bikes were built. Production of the Chief ended in 1953.

Indian Four

Indian purchased the ownership of the name, rights, and production facilities of the Ace Motor Corporation in 1927. Production was moved to Springfield and the motorcycle was marketed as the Indian Ace for one year.

In 1928, the Indian Ace was replaced by the Indian 401, a development of the Ace designed by Arthur O. Lemon, former Chief Engineer at Ace, who was employed by Indian when they bought Ace. The Ace’s leading-link forks and central coil spring were replaced by Indian’s trailing-link forks and quarter-elliptic leaf spring.

By 1929, the Indian 402 would have a stronger twin-downtube frame based on that of the 101 Scout and a sturdier five-bearing crankshaft than the Ace, which had a three-bearing crankshaft.

Despite the low demand for luxury motorcycles during the Great Depression, Indian not only continued production of the Four, but continued to develop the motorcycle. One of the less popular versions of the Four was the “upside down” engine on the 1936-1937 models. While earlier (and later) Fours had inlet-over-exhaust (IOE) cylinder heads with overhead inlet valves and side exhaust valves, the 1936-1937 Indian Four had a unique EOI cylinder head, with the positions reversed. In theory, this would improve fuel vaporization, and the new engine was more powerful. However, the new system made the cylinder head, and the rider’s inseam, very hot. This, along with an exhaust valvetrain that required frequent adjustment, caused sales to drop. The addition of dual carburetors in 1937 did not revive interest. The design was returned to the original configuration in 1938.

Like the Chief, the Four was given large, skirted fenders and plunger rear suspension in 1940. In 1941, the 18-inch wheels of previous models were replaced with 16-inch wheels with balloon tires.

The Indian Four was discontinued in 1942. Recognition of the historical significance of the 1940 four-cylinder model was made with an August 2006 United States Postal Service 39-cent stamp issue, part of a four panel set entitled American Motorcycles.

World War II

Chiefs, Scouts, and Junior Scouts in small numbers were all used for various purposes by the United States Army in World War II. However, none of these could unseat the Harley-Davidson WLA as the motorcycle mainly used by the Army. The early version was based on the 750 cc (46 cu in) Scout 640 compared directly with Harley’s offer, the WLA, but was either too expensive or heavy, or a combination of both. Indians eventual offer, the 500 cc (31 cu in) 741, was underpowered and could not compete with the WLA. Indian also offered a version based on the 1,200 cc (73 cu in) Chief, the 344. Approximately 1,000 experimental versions mounting the 750 cc motor sideways and utilising shaft drive, as on a modern Moto Guzzi, the 841, was also tried.

Indian 841

During World War II, the US Army requested experimental motorcycle designs suitable for desert fighting. In response to this request, Indian designed and built the 841. Approximately 1,000 841 models were built.

The Indian 841 was heavily inspired by the BMW R71 motorcycle used by the German Army at the time, as was its competitor, the Harley-Davidson XA. However, unlike the XA, the 841 was not a copy of the R71. Although its tubular frame, plunger rear suspension, and shaft drive were similar to the BMW’s, the 841 was different from the BMW in several aspects, most noticeably so with its 90-degree longitudinal-crankshaft V-twin engine and girder fork.

The Indian 841 and the Harley-Davidson XA were both tested by the Army, but neither motorcycle was adopted for wider military use. It was determined that the Jeep was more suitable for the roles and missions for which these motorcycles had been intended.

Post-war decline and demise

In 1945, a group headed by Ralph B. Rogers purchased a controlling interest of the company. On November 1, 1945, duPont formally turned the operations of Indian over to Rogers.

Under Rogers’ control, Indian discontinued the Scout and began to manufacture lightweight motorcycles such as the 149 Arrow, the Super Scout 249, both introduced in 1949, and the 250 Warrior, introduced in 1950. These bikes suffered from poor quality and a lack of development. Production of traditional Indians was extremely limited in 1949, and no 1949 Chiefs are known to exist. Manufacture of all products was halted in 1953.

Rebadged imported products

Brockhouse Engineering acquired the rights to the Indian name after it went under in 1953. They imported Royal Enfield motorcycles from England, mildly customized them in the US depending on the model and sold them as Indians from 1955 to 1960. Almost all Royal Enfield models had a corresponding Indian model in the USA. The models were Indian Chief, Trailblazer, Apache (all three were 700 twins), Tomahawk (500 twin), Woodsman (500 single), Westerner (500 single), Hounds Arrow (250 single), Fire Arrow (250 single), Lance (150 2-stroke single) and a 3-wheeled Patrol Car (350 cc single).

In 1960, the Indian name was bought by AMC of England. Royal Enfield being their competition, they abruptly stopped all Enfield-based Indian models except the 700 cc Chief. Their plan was to sell Matchless and AJS motorcycles badged as Indians. However, the venture ended when AMC itself went into liquidation in 1962.

Floyd Clymer imports, 1963-1977

From the 1960s, entrepreneur Floyd Clymer began using the Indian name, apparently without purchasing it from the last known legitimate trademark holder. He attached it to imported motorcycles, commissioned to Italian ex-pilot and engineer Leopoldo Tartarini, owner of Italjet Moto, to manufacture Minarelli-engined 50 cc minibikes under the Indian Papoose name. These were so successful that Clymer also commissioned Tartarini to build full-size Indian motorcycles based on the Italjet Grifon design, but fitted firstly with Royal Enfield Interceptor 750 cc parallel-twin engines, then with Velocette 500 cc single-cylinder Thruxton engines.

After Clymer’s death in 1970 his widow sold the alleged Indian trademark to Los Angeles attorney Alan Newman, who continued to import minicycles made by ItalJet, and later manufactured in a wholly owned assembly plant located in Taipei (Taiwan). Several models with engine displacement between 50 cc and 175 cc were produced, mostly fitted with Italian two-stroke engines made either by Italjet or Franco Morini, but the fortunes of this venture didn’t last long. By 1975, sales were dwindling, and in January 1977, the company was declared bankrupt. The right to the brand name passed through a succession of owners and became a subject of competing claims in the 1980s, finally decided in December 1998 by a Federal bankruptcy court in Denver, Colorado.

Indian Motorcycle Company of America (1999–2003)

The Indian Motorcycle Company of America was formed from the merger of nine companies, including manufacturer California Motorcycle Company (CMC) and IMCOA Licensing America Inc., which was awarded the Indian trademark by the Federal District Court of Colorado in 1998. The new company began manufacturing motorcycles in 1999 at the former CMC’s facilities in Gilroy, California. The first “Gilroy Indian” model was a new design called the Chief. Scout and Spirit models were also manufactured from 2001. These bikes were initially made with off-the-shelf S&S engines, but used the 100-cubic-inch (1,600 cc) Powerplus engine design from 2002 to 2003. The Indian Motorcycle Corporation went into bankruptcy and ceased all production operations in Gilroy on September 19, 2003.

Indian Motorcycle Company since 2006

On July 20, 2006, the newly formed Indian Motorcycle Company, owned largely by Stellican Limited, a London-based private equity firm, announced its new home in Kings Mountain, North Carolina, where it has restarted the Indian motorcycle brand, manufacturing Indian Chief motorcycles in limited numbers, with a focus on exclusivity rather than performance, like a ‘luxury’ watch. Starting out exactly where the defunct Gilroy IMC operation left off in 2003 all of the new models are continuation models based on the new series of motorcycles developed in 1999.

The 2009 Indian Chief incorporated a redesigned 105-cubic-inch (1,720 cc) Powerplus V-twin powertrain with electronic closed-loop sequential-port fuel injection, and a charging system providing increased capacity for the electronic fuel injection.

In April 2011, Polaris Industries, the off-road and leisure vehicle maker and parent-company of Victory motorcycles, announced its intention to acquiring Indian Motorcycle. Indian’s production facilities were moved to Spirit Lake, Iowa, and production began there on August 5, 2011.

A variety of subcultures and lifestyles have been built up around motorcycling.

Robert M. Pirsig’s book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (1974) was a paean celebrating motorcycling. Pirsig contrasted the sense of connection experienced by motorcyclists with the isolation of drivers who are “always in a compartment”, passively observing the passing landscape. In contrast, Pirsig argues that a motorcyclist is “completely in contact with it all… in the scene.” The process and experience of motorcycling forces the rider into the present. The environment of the road engulfs the senses, and the need for constant awareness fills the mind. The total involvement in motorcycling leaves little room for worrying about tomorrow, or second-guessing yesterday.

Many motorcyclists ride as a way to relieve stress, to “clear the mind.” Despite the fact that Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance speaks very little about motorcycle maintenance, or Zen, some enthusiasts believe the link to be a natural one. Zen is a branch of Mahayana Buddhism which strongly emphasizes the practice of moment-by-moment awareness and of “seeing deeply into the nature of things by direct experience.” Motorcycling demands moment-by-moment awareness and, unlike driving, rewards the rider with direct experience.

Hunter S. Thompson’s book Hell’s Angels includes an ode to the joys of pushing a motorcycle to its limits on the open road: he states that “with the throttle screwed on there is only the barest margin, and no room at all for mistakes… that’s when the strange music starts, [and]… fear becomes exhilaration [and the]… only sounds are the wind and a dull roar floating back from the mufflers. Similarly, T. E. Lawrence wrote of the “lustfulness of moving swiftly” and the “pleasure of speeding on the road” on a motorcycle, which he compared to the sensation of “feel[ing] the earth moulding herself under me”, coming alive, and “heaving and tossing on each side like a sea.”

Milan Kundera also noted that “speed is the form of ecstasy the technical revolution has bestowed on man”; unlike a runner, “when man delegates the faculty of speed to a machine” such as a motorbike, “from then on, his own body is outside the process, and he gives over to a speed that is noncorporeal, nonmaterial, pure speed, speed itself, ecstasy speed.” Not all motorcyclists have a “need for speed”, but many do. Speed draws many people to motorcycling, because the power-to-weight ratios of even low-power motorcycles rivals that of an expensive sports car. The power-to-weight ratio of many modestly priced sport bikes is well beyond any mass-production automobile and rivals many supercars, for a fraction of the price.

High speeds on a motorcycle can also be more exhilarating than high speeds in an automobile. Not only is the sensation of speed greater since the rider is not separated from the environment of the road, but motorcycles negotiate turns by leaning. And the greater the speed, the greater the lean, sometimes to the point of scraping parts of the motorcycle on the road. Some riders will point proudly to the worn-away parts of their motorcycle, proof that they take turns so fast that they must lean the motorcycle over to the limits of its capabilities.

Motorcycling is a more dangerous means of transport than other road alternatives: the relative risk of a motorcycle rider being killed or seriously injured per kilometre travelled was around 54 times higher in Great Britain in 2006 than for car drivers.[6] However, motorcycling is less dangerous than many other popular outdoor recreational activities, including horseback riding.

To address motorcycle safety issues, motorcycle-specific training and personal protective equipment is important for motorcyclists’ survival on the road, and mandated in many countries and several U.S. states and counties.

Motorcycle subcultures

These range from mainstream motorcycle clubs, which include long-distance riding clubs, adventurer touring, amateur racers, and trail riders to those involved with motorcycling’s “extreme sports” motocross riding, drag racing, and trick stunt enthusiasts.

The motorcycling lifestyle spans across different motorcycling groups but transcends many countries and cultures.

Repairing

Motorcyclists will refer to maintenance or repair of a motorcycle as wrenching, as in “turning a wrench.” UK motorcyclists refer to a wrench as a “spanner”, and the activity of working on the bike is similarly known as “spannering”. Melissa Holbrook Pierson points out that the do-it-yourself self sufficiency is “part of bikes’ allure in an increasingly monolithic, unfixable world.” She also claims that motorcyclists “become a member of a community, linked first and foremost to anyone who rides; when another bike passes, you… wave, and perhaps a thumbs-up.”

Historically, motorcycle maintenance was a necessary skill for riders, since the materials and technology used in motorcycles often meant that repairs had to be done on the road-side miles from home. Modern motorcycles are as reliable as automobiles, but the feeling that many riders have that their motorcycle is more than just a means of transportation leads them to want to do any wrenching on the bike themselves. This drive to wrench reaches its zenith with rat bikes. Riders of rats often eschew paying anyone else to work on their motorcycles on principle, and therefore do all their own maintenance.

according to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2006, 13.10 cars out of 100,000 ended up in fatal crashes. The rate for motorcycles is 72.34 per 100,000 registered motorcycles. Motorcycles also have a higher fatality rate per unit of distance travelled when compared with automobiles. Per vehicle mile traveled, motorcyclists’ risk of a fatal crash is 35 times greater than a passenger car. In 2004, figures from the UK Department for Transport indicated that motorcycles have 16 times the rate of serious injuries per 100 million vehicle kilometers compared to cars, and double the rate of bicycles.
A national study by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATS) found that:

Motorcycle rider death rates increased among all rider age groups between 1998 and 2000

Motorcycle rider deaths were nearly 30 times more than drivers of other vehicles

Motorcycle riders aged below 40 are 36 times more likely to be killed than other vehicle operators of the same age.

Motorcycle riders aged 40 years and over are around 20 times more likely to be killed than other drivers of that same age.

According to 2005 data from the NHTSA, 4,008 motorcycle occupants were killed on United States roads in 2004, an 8% increase from 2003.

During that same period, drivers of automobiles showed a 10% increase in fatalities, and cyclists showed an 8% increase in fatalities. Pedestrians also showed a 10% increase in fatalities. A total of 37,304 automobile occupants were killed on U.S. roads in 2004.
Additional data from the United States reveals that there are over four million motorcycles registered in the United States. Motorcycle fatalities represent approximately five percent of all highway fatalities each year, yet motorcycles represent just two percent of all registered vehicles in the United States. One of the main reasons motorcyclists are killed in crashes is because the motorcycle itself provides virtually no protection in a crash. For example, approximately 80 percent of reported motorcycle crashes result in injury or death; a comparable figure for automobiles is about 20 percent.

Research

Two major scientific research studies into the causes of motorcycle accidents have been conducted in North America and Europe: the Hurt Report and the MAIDS report.

Hurt Report

A major work done on this subject in the USA is the Hurt Report, published in 1981 with data collected in Los Angeles and the surrounding rural areas. There have been longstanding calls for a new safety study in the US, and Congress has provided the seed money for such a project, but as yet the remainder of the funding has not all been pledged.
The Hurt Report concluded with a list of 55 findings, as well as several major recommendations for law enforcement and legislation. Among these, 75% of motorcycle accidents involved collision with another vehicle, usually a car. In the MAIDS report, the figure is 60%.

Other notable findings in the Hurt report were:

75% of accidents were found to involve a motorcycle and a passenger vehicle, while the remaining 25% of accidents were single motorcycle accidents.

“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.”

“Almost half of the fatal accidents show alcohol involvement” and “injury severity increases with speed, alcohol involvement and motorcycle size.”

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.

The report’s additional findings show that the wearing of appropriate gear, specifically, helmets and durable garment, mitigates crash injuries substantially.

“Vehicle failure accounted for less than 3% of these motorcycle accidents, and most of those were single vehicle accidents where control was lost due to a puncture flat” and “Weather is not a factor in 98% of motorcycle accidents.”

“The failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents… 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.”

MAIDS report
The most recent large-scale study of motorcycle accidents is the MAIDS report carried out in five European countries in 1999 to 2000, using the rigorous OECD standards, including a statistically significant sample size of over 900 crash incidents and over 900 control cases.
The MAIDS report tends to support most of the Hurt Report findings, for example that “69% of the OV [other vehicle] drivers attempted no collision avoidance manoeuvre,” suggesting they did not see the motorcycle. And further that, “the largest number of PTW [powered two-wheeler] accidents is due to a perception failure on the part of the OV driver or the PTW rider.” And “The data indicates that in 68.7% of all cases, the helmet was capable of preventing or reducing the head injury sustained by the rider (i.e., 33.2% + 35.5%). In 3.6% of all cases, the helmet was found to have no effect upon head injury” and “There were no reported cases in which the helmet was identified as the contact code for a serious or maximum neck injury.”

Inconclusive findings on conspicuity
A New Zealand study supported the Hurt Report’s call for increased rider conspicuity, claiming fluorescent clothing, white or light colored helmets, and daytime headlights may reduce motorcycle injuries and death. The study found that wearing reflective or fluorescent clothing reduced the risk of a crash injury by 37%, a white helmet by 24%, and riding with headlights on by 27%.

The MAIDS report did not publish information on helmet color or the prevalence of reflective or fluorescent clothing in either the accident or control groups, or the use of lights in the control group, and therefore drew no statistical conclusions on their effectiveness, neither confirming not refuting the claims of the Wells report. In each MAIDS case, the clothing worn by the rider was photographed and evaluated.

MAIDs found that motorcycles painted white were actually over-represented in the accident sample compared to the exposure data. On clothing, MAIDs used a “purely subjective” determination of if and how the clothing worn probably affected conspicuity in the accident. The report concluded that “in 65.3% of all cases, the clothing made no contribution to the conspicuity of the rider or the PTW [powered two-wheeler, i.e. motorcycle]. There were very few cases found in which the bright clothing of the PTW rider enhanced the PTW’s overall conspicuity (46 cases). There were more cases in which the use of dark clothing decreased the conspicuity of the rider and the PTW (120 cases).” MAIDs concluded that in one case dark clothing actually increased conspicuity but reported none where bright clothing decreased it.

Attitudes about risk

Michel Foucault-inspired historian Jeremy Packer sees the approach to motorcycle safety found in mainstream sport and touring motorcycling media, supported by the MSF, and generally consistent with the advice of transport agencies, such as the US National Agenda for Motorcycle Safety, as an ideology or “discourse”, and places it as only one among multiple ideologies one may hold about motorcycling risk.

Packer has suggested four categories to describe the different approaches to the risks of motorcycling. The first and fourth categories take opposite views of motorcycling, but share a fatalistic notion that to motorcycle is to tempt fate. The second and third categories differ in the degree of emphasis they place on measures to limit the risk of riding, but share the view that riders have some degree of control and are not victims of fate.

Quit riding. Or ban motorcycling; this is the belief that motorcycling is too dangerous. Some former motorcyclists had an epiphany due to an accident involving themselves or a person they know, which permanently upends their view of motorcycling. Some are adamant in their opposition to motorcycling, unwilling to consider the merits or pleasures of riding due to their horror at the danger and physical carnage of motorcycle accidents. Agony aunt Claire Rayner, in her review of Melissa Holbrook Pierson’s motorcycling book The Perfect Vehicle, admits her prejudice that nothing Pierson writes could change her attitude about motorcycling because, “I used to be hospital casualty nurse and spent so much time dealing with bikers who were scraped off the road like so much raspberry jam after accidents that I became an implacable hater of the machine… The danger to which bikers constantly put themselves, however well-wrapped in their urban armour of studded leather, and however horrendously helmeted, seems to me a reason for banning the infernal machines. …a smell of blood and smashed muscle and bone mixed with engine oil. That is what motor cycle means to me. And, I’m afraid, always will.” Some safety experts have advocated banning motorcycling altogether as being untenably dangerous.

Hyperreflective self-disciplinary. This attitude to risk consists of self-criticism, constant vigilance, perpetual training and practice, and continual upgrading of safety equipment. It is sometimes a reaction to an epiphany. David Edwards of Cycle World wrote, “Here’s the thing: motorcycles are not dangerous,” saying that if a rider has a license, attends riding schools, wears all the gear all the time, and develops an accident avoidance sixth sense, motorcycling can become safe… do all of these things, become really serious about your roadcraft, and you’ll be so under-represented in accident statistics as to become almost bulletproof.” An advertisement appeared on the opposite page of Edwards’ editorial, for FirstGear brand riding gear for leather and textile riding suits and jackets. There are many examples of riding advice which enumerate strategies for avoiding danger while riding, but they de-emphasize the rider accepting inherent risk as part of riding, instead emphasizing the rider’s agency, based on his education and practice, in determining whether he will crash or not, and the utility of the correct safety gear in whether or not he will be injured in a crash.

Risk Valorization.This is the acceptance that risk is unavoidable but can be embraced by making certain choices, whereby motorcyclists, “reappropriate risk and motorcycling as something which can’t be measured only according to utility and efficiency… This discourse doesn’t eschew safety in absolute terms, but neither does it maintain the validity of safety as the be-all and end-all for riding.”Motorcycling advocate and writer Wendy Moon said that one of the reasons she relaxed her insistence on always wearing a helmet while riding was that she no longer considered it worth “the mental effort required to maintain that protective attitude. I am not free to live in the now because I’m enslaved to the future ‘what if.’ …So we gradually distance ourselves from experiencing a full and free life and we don’t even know it. As a society, we’re like kids so bundled up against the snow we cannot move at all…. Embracing that risk rejuvenates the soul and empowers one to live the rest of her life as she wants.”

Flaunting risk. Hunter S. Thompson’s passages in his book Hell’s Angels have been quoted by Packer and others as perhaps the best illustrations of the devil-may-care approach of a sizable group motorcyclists: “They shun even the minimum safety measures that most cyclists take for granted. You will never see a Hell’s Angel wearing a crash helmet. Nor do they wear Brando-Dylan-style ‘silver-studded phantom’ leather jackets,” and “anything safe, they want no part of”, and “The Angels don’t want anybody to think they’re hedging their bets.”In his essay Song of the Sausage Creature, Thompson wrote, “It is an atavistic mentality, a peculiar mix of low style, high speed, pure dumbness, and overweening commitment to the Cafe Life and all its dangerous pleasures.” Packer calls it, “a fate driven sensibility.”

While giving respect to the first two discourses, Packer himself is sympathetic to the third approach and disdainful of the fourth. Packer’s analysis of the second category, what he calls the hyperreflective self-disciplinary camp, acknowledges that seriousness, sobriety, ongoing training, and wearing complete safety gear is not misguided, but worries about its close alignment with the profit motives of the insurance industry, the motorcycle safety gear advertisers, and the public relations desires of motorcycle manufacturers, as well as governmental bureaucratic inertia and mission creep. He sees motorcyclists who make non-utilitarian choices balancing risk and reward as being as respectable as other categories.

BMW psychologist and researcher Bernt Spiegel has found that non-motorcyclists and novice motorcyclists usually share the fatalistic attitude described by Thompson, insofar as they think that high speed motorcycling is like a game of chicken or Russian roulette, where the rider tests his courage to see how close he can come to “the edge”, or specifically the limit of traction while braking or cornering, without having any idea how close he is to exceeding that limit and crashing. In Thompson’s words in Hell’s Angels it is, “The Edge… There is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over. The others — the living — are those who pushed their luck as far as they felt they could handle it, and then pulled back, or slowed down, or did whatever they had to when it came time to choose between Now and Later.”

Spiegel takes issue with the claim that only those who have “gone over”, that is, crashed or died, know the location of the boundary line. He says that if motorcycle racers, or even non-professional advanced riders who make good use of the capabilities of a modern sport bike, were approaching the limits of traction blindly, they would be like a group of blind men wandering around the top of a building, and most of them would wander off the edge and fall. In fact, Spiegel says, crashes among skilled high speed riders are so infrequent that it must be the case that they can feel where the limit of traction is. Spiegel’s physiological and psychological experiments helped explore how it is possible for a good rider to extend his perception beyond the controls of his motorcycle out to the interface between the contact patches of his motorcycle and the road surface. Whether or not one believes that the limits of traction are knowable can determine whether one falls into the second and third categories, those who try to minimize or accommodate the risks of motorcycling, as opposed to those who think the risks are beyond the rider’s knowledge and control, categories one and four, either rejecting riding altogether or riding recklessly.

Motorcycle Consumer News Proficient Motorcycling columnist Ken Condon put it that, “The best riders are able to measure traction with a good amount of accuracy” even though that amount changes depending on the motorcycle, the tires and the tires’ condition, and the varying qualities of the road surface. But Condon says the rider feels the limit of traction through his hand and foot interface with the handelbars and footpegs, and the seat, rather than extending his perception out to the contact patch itself.

Controversy

In 2007, a report by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) claimed that “supersport” motorcycles were four times more likely to be involved in highway crashes than other types. When reprinting this press release as a news report, USA Today omitted the word “insurance” from the “Insurance Institute for Highway Safety”, giving a false impression the IIHS is a governmental agency, not a private corporation with a conflict of interest.

According to the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA), the IIHS report was an attempt to either ban entire categories of motorcycles, or a covert attempt to legislate requirement for speed governors in all vehicles. The IIHS report was not a new study, being an analysis of existing data from the national Fatal Accident Reporting System. The methodology consisted of a comparison of fatalities for different styles of motorcycles based on a rate per 10,000 registrations. The report did not incorporate key factors, such as the number of miles the bike was ridden, the traffic environment in which it was used, along with the age and experience of the rider, among others.
In an attempt to sort through this confusion, the AMA requested a copy of the classification system the IIHS used in its analysis and found several significant anomalies. For instance, although the IIHS report focused on speed and acceleration as the factors that make its “supersport” category so dangerous, the two most powerful motorcycles that were available at the time in the United States, the Kawasaki ZX-14 and Suzuki Hayabusa, are placed in the Sport category, which are rated considerably less dangerous. And they share that category with the Honda ST1300 and Yamaha FJR1300, two sport-touring bikes.

The AMA thought the timing of the IIHS report was unusual. The National Transportation Safety Board specifically asked the Federal Highway Administration to work with states to develop uniform data-collection procedures that will result in better information about the number of miles traveled by motorcycles, one of the most important factors in evaluating crash statistics. As a result, this could be one of the final reports to use registration data exclusively, which is less accurate in reflecting actual motorcycle use.

This new IIHS report is remarkably similar to a study the group financed twenty years ago that also purported to show higher fatality rates among sportbikes. At that time, the IIHS used its study as the springboard for a well-orchestrated campaign that included ready-made news footage it fed to TV news operations across the country. That campaign culminated in the introduction of a bill in the U.S. Senate to impose a horsepower limit on all motorcycles sold in the U.S.

In response to that previous attempt by the IIHS to ban sportbikes, the AMA conducted an analysis of the study and raised questions that the Association submitted to Harry Hurt, lead researcher on the most comprehensive study of motorcycle crashes ever conducted. Hurt reviewed the research and declared it “fatally flawed” for exactly the kind of methodology problems seen in the new IIHS report. The Association then coordinated a campaign among motorcyclists across the country that eventually led the senator to withdraw his proposed legislation.

The new IIHS report came out just as the AMA and the motorcycling community was successful in getting federal funding for the first comprehensive motorcycle safety study since the Hurt Report.

Consequences of accidents

Once the collision has occurred, or the rider has lost control through some other mishap, several common types of injury occur when the bike falls:

Collision with less forgiving protective barriers, or badly placed roadside “furniture” (lampposts, signs, fences etc.) This is often simply a result of poor road design, and can be engineered out to a large degree. Note that when one falls off a motorcycle in the middle of a curve, lamps and signs create a “wall” of sorts with little chance to avoid slamming against a pole.

Concussion and brain damage, as the head violently contacts other vehicles or objects.

Riders wearing an approved helmet reduce the risk of death by 37 percent.

Breakage of joints (elbows, shoulders, hips, knees and wrists), fingers, spine and neck, for the same reason. The most common breakages are the shoulder and the pelvis.
Soft tissue (skin and muscle) damage (road rash) as the body slides across the surface. This can be prevented entirely with the proper use of motorcycle-specific protective apparel such as a leather jacket or reinforced denim and textile pants.

There is also a condition known as biker’s arm, where the nerves in the upper arm are damaged during the fall, causing a permanent paralysis of arm movement.
Facial disfigurement, if in the absence of a full-face helmet, the unprotected face slides across the ground or smashes into an object. Thirty-five percent of all crashes show major impact on the chin-bar area.

The Hurt Report also commented on injuries after an accident stating that 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.

To address the risks of motorcycling, before and after a fall, motorcyclists use personal protective equipment (PPE, or more commonly “motorcycle gear”). Many developed countries now require certain articles of PPE, and manufacturers and governments recommend its extensive use.

Functions of PPE
Improved Visibility — Although for decades the popular image of the motorcycle rider has been of someone clad head-to-toe in black leather, in the light of the Hurt Report findings, and the day-to-day experiences of motorcyclists themselves, many riders choose higher-visibility gear. Bright colors and retroreflective strips are common on quality equipment.

Abrasion Resistance — Thick, tough leather provides the most abrasion resistance in a crash, but fabrics such as Cordura, Kevlar and ballistic nylon provide significant protection too. In addition, fabrics are generally cheaper, easier to maintain, waterproof, and more comfortable in hot weather. Thick leather, which affords the most abrasion resistance, can be uncomfortable in temperatures exceeding 85 °F (29 °C) and above 100 °F (38 °C) may cause heat stress & loss of control with insufficient fluid replacement. Some PPE may be constructed of fabrics made into a ‘mesh’ that provides cooling and a stable surface for the attachment of padding (see below).

Impact protection — Quality jackets and pants provide significant extra padding in the vulnerable joint regions described above. This can take the form of simple foam padding, or dual-density foam that stiffens when compressed, sometimes with plastic or carbon fiber outer-shells that distribute the impact across the pad. Integrated pieces can be found in some jackets.

Weather Protection — One important aspect of PPE not mentioned above is protection from the elements. Extreme weather can make a long ride unbearable or dangerous. PPE provides protection from wind, rain and cold.

Items of PPE

Half helmets or “skid lids” are worn to meet minimum legal requirements, without much crash protection.

Helmet — A full-face helmet provides the most protection. Thirty-five percent of all crashes show major impact on the chin-bar area. However, 3/4- and 1/2-helmets also are available. Some motorcycle training sites have banned the use of half-helmets because of avoidable injuries sustained by riders wearing them.

Gloves — Commonly made of leather, cordura, or Kevlar, or some combination. Some include carbon fiber knuckle protection or other forms of rigid padding. Gloves designed specifically for motorcycle use have slightly curved fingers and the seams are on the outer surfaces to allow the motorcyclist to maintain his grip and control on the handlebars and clutch/brake levers. Some gloves also provide protection to the wrist.

Jackets — Generally made from leather, ballistic nylon, cordura, Kevlar or other synthetics. Most jackets include special padding on elbows, spine and shoulders. Airbag system technology is now available fitted to jackets and vests for accident protection and impact protection for both riders and pillions. Competition-approved hard armor is superior to soft padding. Competition-approved back and chest protectors can be worn underneath jackets. Inflatable airbag jackets can offer an additional airbag for neck support.

Pants — Made of the same material as jackets, usually including special protection for the knees and hips.

Boots — Especially those for sport riding, include reinforcement and plastic caps on the ankles, and toe area. Boots designed for cruiser-style riders often have steel-reinforced toes (However this reduces sensitivity of the foot when changing gear). Boots should always have a rubber sole (as opposed to leather or other less-flexible materials). Despite their toughness and protection, most boots are very lightweight. Some even include titanium plating.

Goggles or Helmet Visor — Eye protection is of utmost importance – an insect or a kicked-up pebble in the eye at speed has enough momentum to cause significant damage. Such an event could easily cause the rider to lose control and crash. Besides this danger, squinting into the wind is unpleasant at best and watering eyes are quite distracting.

Ear plugs — Most riders experience substantial wind noise at speeds above 40 to 50 mph (64 to 80 km/h). Ear plugs help protect against hearing damage, and reduce fatigue during long rides.

Vests — Made with high-visibility colors and retroreflective materials, vests can be worn over jackets to increase the chance of being seen and allow drivers to better judge the speed and position of riders, especially in adverse conditions of dark and wet.

Other PPE — Dirt bike riders wear a range of plastic armor to protect against injury from falling and hitting other riders and bikes, running into track barriers, and being hit by flying debris kicked up by the tires of other riders’ bikes. This type of armor typically covers the back, chest, and sometimes the extremities.

It is increasingly common for gloves, jackets, pants, and boots to be outfitted with hard plastics on probable contact areas in an effort to ensure that when a motorcyclist contacts the ground, his clothing will permit him to slide relatively easily as opposed to “crumpling”, risking injury to body parts being stressed in abnormal directions.

Since the first line of protection in crash contact is the outer shell of clothing, designers have moved that further from the body. The ultimate protective shell so far is an airbag that stays with the driver as he flies off the bike. However, increasing use of “exoskeleton” plastic shields attached to clothing points toward design of a complete roll bar belted to the driver. A near-stage design is a plastic or light alloy double “wheel” perimeter rim around the driver, over his head and in front and behind him. When the driver unbelts himself and gets off the bike, he leaves the wheel roll bar with the bike. But when the driver flies off the bike, the roll bar flies with him and makes contact with hard surfaces. The driver is relatively safe from contact, belted within a contact rim extending out around him.

Riders sometimes use the acronyms MOTGMOTT and ATGATT, which stand for “Most Of The Gear Most Of The Time” and “All The Gear All The Time”, when describing their personal gear preferences.

In many developed countries riders are now either required or encouraged to attend safety classes in order to obtain a separate motorcycle driving license.

Training can help to bridge the gap between a novice and experienced rider as well as improving the skills of a more experienced rider. Skills training would seem to be the answer to reducing the KSI (“killed or seriously injured”) rate among motorcycle riders. However, research shows that some who undergo advanced skills training are more likely to be at a higher risk while using the roads. This risk compensation effect was commented on in the findings of the evaluation of the “Bikesafe Scotland,” scheme where a number of those who undertook training said they rode faster in non-built-up areas after the course.This is not to say that training in not important, but that more advanced training should be tempered with psychological training.

In the United States, the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) provides a standardized curriculum to the states that, in turn, provide low cost safety training for new and current riders. Two states, Oregon and Idaho, eschew MSF’s curriculum in favor of their own. Even with over 1,500 locations in USA, and over 120,000 annual students, MSF only trains about 3% of the owners of 4,000,000 new motorcycles sold for highway use. Motorcycle injuries and fatalities among U.S. military personnel has continually risen since the early 2000s. Among other United States Department of Defense-initiated programs, the Air National Guard seeks to understand why national safety programs haven’t sufficiently reduced mishaps, and how those programs might be modified to cause productive behaviorial change.

In the United Kingdom, for example, organizations such as the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) and Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) offer advanced motorcycle rider training with the aim of reducing accident rates. There is often an added incentive to riders in the form of reduced insurance premiums.

In Canada, the Canada Safety Council (CSC), a non-profit organization, provides motorcycle safety training courses for beginner and novice riders through its Gearing Up training program. Again, as in the USA and UK, the focus is on improved rider skills to reduce accident rates. Insurance premiums may be reduced upon successful completion as this program is recognised and supported nationally by the Motorcycle and Moped Industry Council (MMIC).

Initiating a motorcycle turn requires countersteering, an initial steering motion opposite that of the steady turn which causes the motorcycle to lean. In addition, in accidents, most riders would over brake and skid the rear wheel, and under brake the front when greatly reducing collision avoidance deceleration. The ability to countersteer and swerve was essentially absent. Because of this, the Motorcycle Safety Foundation teaches countersteering to all students in all of its schools, as do all motorcycle racing schools. Countersteering is included in the US State motorcycle operator manuals and tests, such as Washington, New Jersey, California, and Missouri. These rider’s manuals typically simplify countersteering using some version of the standard verbiage “PRESS — To turn, the motorcycle must lean. To lean the motorcycle, press on the handgrip in the direction of the turn. Press left — lean left — go left. Press right — lean right — go right. Higher speeds and/or tighter turns require the motorcycle to lean more.” This text, and often the entire manual, is copied verbatim from the manual published by the MSF.

Confusion results from the shortness of the initial countersteering input required to get the bike to lean, which is only 0.5 seconds in average curves. Gentle turns might require only 0.125 seconds, while sharp turns might require 1.0 seconds of countersteering at corner entry.

On most new motorcycles, the headlights turn on as soon as the bike is started as a legal requirement. Some bikes have modulated headlights. This is accomplished using headlight modulators. This is still a subjective issue in some European countries. The argument is that the forced use of the headlight will lose all safety benefits if cars are also required to have their lights “hardwired.” There is also an argument that the forced use of the headlight is seen as “aggressive” by other road users and so reinforces negative stereotypes of bike riders held by some. Modulators are legal in the US and Canada. It has been suggested that bright yellow front turn signals would be more practical and more effective than headlights in the daytime.

Crash bars (also called “safety bars,” or “roll bars”) are common equipment on cruiser-type bikes. They are designed to protect a rider’s legs (and the motor) from injury in a rollover and in a glancing contact with other vehicles. The Hurt Report concluded that crash bars are not an effective injury countermeasure; the reduction of injury to the ankle-foot is balanced by increase of injury to the thigh-upper leg, knee, and lower leg.

Airbag devices

Fuel tank mounted airbags as well as wearable jacket airbag devices change the way we think about the risks involved with motorcycles. Accidents occur within a very short time and a rider may not be able to instinctively protect him or herself when a crash takes place. This is where an airbag device becomes useful and potentially lifesaving.

The first motorcycle crash tests with an airbag were performed in 1973 and proved that airbag systems could be advantageous to a rider. These tests were followed up by tests in the 1990s that showed airbag devices could not fully restrain a rider when traveling more than 30 mph (48 km/h), but it still reduced a rider’s velocity and his/her trajectory. Honda has recently developed a fuel tank mounted airbag for the Goldwing model that takes just 0.15 seconds to deploy. Crash sensors in the front wheel send data to the airbag ECU (electronic control unit) which in turn activates the airbag inflater. The airbag then takes the force of the rider.

Fuel tank mounted airbags can aid in saving many lives. It has been proven with crash test dummies that this type of airbag technology is very beneficial during a frontal collision. This is important because statistically, 62% of motorcycle accidents in the U.S. are frontal collisions. Additional tests were performed to show that when a motorcycle rider impacts a car during a frontal collision, the fuel tank mounted airbag averts the person from traveling into the vehicle. This significantly reduced the head trauma by 83% that otherwise would have occurred according to the data from the crash test dummy. A rider would have lived with an airbag, whereas the fatality rate would be higher without the airbag. It has also been pointed out that this can only work if the accident is at low speed and follows the same dynamics as a car accident. It should be viewed as passenger vehicle airbags – a worthwhile supplement, but not as a replacement for any other safety devices including a change in the basic design of road going motorcycles.

The second airbag device which is now available is an inflatable airbag jacket. A rider can wear an airbag jacket that is tethered to the motorcycle, so if he or she is thrown from the bike during a collision, the jacket will automatically inflate for a 20 second period to provide a cushion for the rider. This will lessen the upper body and internal injuries to a rider that may often be fatal. Mugen Denko pioneered the development of airbag jackets in 1995 and conducted many tests, although the idea was initially patented in Hungary in 1976. Full inflation of these jackets can now be achieved in 25ms.The majority of the airbag jackets on the market are tethered to the motorcycle, but Dainese has a technology called D-Air which has a built-in computer chip.

This computer chip constantly detects the rider’s environment and if it detects a collision, the jacket will then self-inflate. This jacket is currently aimed specifically at the racing environment and undergoing testing by Dainese-sponsored riders. Hit Air, the maker of another airbag jacket, performed tests on its jacket which showed that its safety effectiveness surpassed that of a normal riding jacket or a jacket with extra padding protection. Little independent testing has been done to date on the effectiveness of these devices. The airbag jackets provide reusable airbag protection to the neck, chest, back, shoulders, hips, bottom and spine.
As demand for safety measures increases, so the need for motorcycle airbags may grow in popularity over the coming years. Yamaha and Suzuki are currently testing airbag systems,[citation needed] so they will be available on additional motorcycles and so that more people will request airbag devices more often. According to Honda’s web site, the Goldwing model motorcycle currently retails for US$23,099 and the airbag is only an additional US$1,250 option.

With the advances in this technology, it may be possible to apply this knowledge to produce airbags for jet-skis, ATVs, and go-karts.

A motorcycle club is a group of individuals whose primary interest and activities involve motorcycles.

In the U.S. the abbreviation, MC or MCC, can have a special social meaning from the point of view of the outlaw (aka one percenter) subcultures, and is usually reserved by them for those clubs that are mutually recognized by other MC clubs. This is indicated by wearing the MC patch, or a three piece patch, or colors, on the back of a club jacket or vest. Outlaw (or one percenter) can mean merely that the club is not chartered under the auspices of the American Motorcyclist Association, implying a radical rejection of authority and embracing of the “biker” lifestyle defined and popularized since the 1950s and represented by such media as Easyriders magazine, the work of painter David Mann, and more. In many contexts the terms overlap with the usual meaning of “outlaw” because some of these clubs, or some their members, are recognized by law enforcement agencies as taking part in organized crime.
Outside of the outlaw subculture, the words “motorcycle club” carry no heavy meaning beyond the everyday English definition of the words – a club involving motorcycles, whose members come from every walk of life. Thus, there are clubs that are culturally and stylistically nothing like outlaw or one percenter clubs, and whose activities and goals not similar to them at all, but still use three-part patches or the initials MC in their name or insignia.

Motorcycle clubs vary a great deal in their objectives and organizations. Mainstream motorcycle clubs or associations typically have elected officers and directors, annual dues, and a regular publication. They may also sponsor annual or more frequent “rallies” where members can socialize and get to know each other. Some publish in book form lists of members that can be used by touring motorcyclists needing assistance.

There are a great many brand clubs, or clubs dedicated to particular marques, including those sponsored by various manufacturers, such as the Harley Owners Group and the Honda Riders Club of America. There are large national independent motorcycle clubs, such as BMW Motorcycle Owners of America, the STAR Touring and Riding Association, and the Gold Wing Road Riders Association (GWRRA). In the United Kingdom, there are brand clubs such as the Triumph Owners’ Motor Cycle Club (founded in 1949).

Clubs catering for those interested in vintage machines such as the Vintage Motor Cycle Club are also popular as well as for those centered around particular venues such as the Ace Cafe club. Clubs catering for riders’ rights such as the Motorcycle Action Group, and charities such as the 59 Club are popular, many affiliating with the umbrella organization, the British Motorcyclists Federation. National and local branch club magazines and events are typical characteristics of such clubs. More informal groupings continue to exist though for riders local to each other.

Other organizations whose activities primarily involve motorcycles exist for a specific purpose, such as the Patriot Guard Riders, who provide funeral escorts for military veterans, and Rolling Thunder, which advocates for troops missing in action and prisoners of war. While neither of the latter two groups require a motorcycle for membership, they are motorcycling-oriented and much of their activity involves rides. The Christian Motorcyclists Association is a biker ministry. In the United Kingdom, Freewheelers EVS is one of a number of similar charities, which use motorcycles to provide an out-of-hours emergency medical courier service. Some clubs attract membership from specific groups, such as the Blue Knights Law Enforcement Motorcycle Club, consisting of law enforcement personnel.

The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) is the largest American motorcyclist organization. It serves as an umbrella organization for local clubs and sporting events. As of March, 2006, the AMA counts 269,884 active members and many chartered clubs.

A custom motorcycle is a motorcycle that is highly stylized or which treats aspects such as frame geometry or engine design in an unusual way compared to standard manufacturing. Custom motorcycles are unique or individually produced in a very limited quantity, as opposed to “stock” bikes or “stockers,” which are mass produced. In the 1990s and early 2000s, very expensive customs such as those built by Orange County Choppers, Jesse James’s West Coast Choppers, Roger Goldammer or Ian Barry’s Falcon Motorcycles became fashionable status symbols. There are also companies that are bringing back pin striping, such as Kenny Howard (also known as Von Dutch) and Dean Jeffries from the 1950s, with a continued effort to keep pin striping alive. The choppers of the 1960s and 1970s fit into this category. Jan Bachleda (originally from Slovakia) of JBIKEZ builds highly customized Triumph choppers from the 1970s era.

Some motorcycle manufacturers, such as Harley-Davidson and Honda, include the word “custom” as part of a model name. If capitalized, “Custom” does not denote a custom motorcycle as described above; rather, it is part of the model name of a mass-produced motorcycle.

The factory custom segment has become the most visible in the custom industry in recent years. The original factory custom was the 1971 Harley-Davidson Super Glide, designed by Willie G. Davidson, which, imitating the custom scene of the time, combined the fork from a Sportster with the frame and engine of a big twin Electra Glide, thereby founding a style imitated by many other manufactures ever since.

Higher volume producers like American IronHorse, Bourget, Big Dog and BMC build custom motorcycles that also must meet basic safety requirements set by the US Department of Transportation. Factory customs allow the buyer to select from a wide range of options, paint styles, engine sizes and accessories while still having the confidence, support, warranty and finance options that typically are associated with major production manufacturers. Factory customs typically do not offer the total individuality of a home built bike or a “one off custom”, but they share much of the appeal that comes with a custom bike and many of the benefits of a factory production motorcycle.