Is it selfish to ride a motorbike?

[NoraLuka]

I’m asking because I’m a novice biker with a 125 cc bike which I hardly ride because I worry about what my children would do if anything happened to me. They are late teens but DD2 especially still needs me due to her mental health.

I’m sensible, stick to familiar roads in daylight, have all the gear and everything but much as I would love to, I can’t justify it in my own mind. It makes me sad because I loved doing my CBT and was really excited to get the bike 🙁 I know accidents can happen in cars too but statistically, it’s not the same.

Does anyone else get this? All the other bikers I know have been riding since they were teenagers and they don’t understand.

I don’t ride a motorcycle but I’d say it’s the opposite of selfish as it’s much less polluting than a car for a lone person. I cycle and there are associated risks, so I understand where you’re coming from. I think as costs and pollution increase we’ll see more vehicles like scooters and bikes on the road.

Yes.
The noise levels alone are so selfish, I hate it whenever they drive past.

Me too.

personally I don’t think it is selfish. If it’s something you enjoy doing and take the necessary safety precautions then go for it.
i cycle, ride horses etc and also have children under 5 yrs. I couldn’t imagine having to give up my hobbies ‘just in case’.

I don’t think my bike is a problem in terms of noise, it’s no louder than a car. Doesn’t have a loud exhaust or anything like that, and I definitely didn’t want one that would have people turning round to look as I go past!

It’s funny about bicycles because it can be risky to ride them on the road too (which I often do!) but I’ve never once felt guilty about cycling, it’s more like yay I’m doing a good thing by not taking the car.

I think it would be different if I’d been riding for years but I’m new to this and so it does feel like unnecessary risk in a way.

Agreed. Also, round here, they like to roar around at 5am in the morning so the roads are clear and they can speed.
I used to work in a hospital and they were known as donorcycles…

I wonder if you feel selfish because you are doing an activity you enjoy on your own and you are still stuck in the paren mode mindset. I take it you are female , because a man wouldn't have those doubts .

I don't know about selfish, but it's very risky. During my nursing time, I cared for quite a few post motorbike head and neck injured people. They had a poor quality of life and we used to say the lucky bike accidents died rather than being left with nothing and in permanent pain. Some couldn't even communicate. It was tough seeing people struggle like that.

My dad died after a pushbike accident. The police never found out what happened, but he died from a severe head injury. At least in a car you have some protection.

I was driving near the coast in north yorkshire one afternoon and a motorbike passed me at speed. I remember thinking he must be mad. Another couple of miles further along the road, we saw him injured and off his bike and a dead sheep lying there as well. It wasn't a pretty sight.

If you can live with these realities and risks then go ahead, but be fully aware of what might happen. Even if you're a sensible rider, there's always that speeding driver who doesn't see you and it's not them who'll be in the hospital.

I agree 100%. I find people driving motorbikes selfish, uncaring, and reckless. The fumes and the noise are terrible. I live across from the FDR, in Manhattan. even across the river the worse noise is always from the random low class biker speeding up to produce noise in purpose, and it reverberates all along the underpass, polluting and ruining the moment for, literally, MILLIONS of people. One sole motorcycle.