BMW Recalls 2013 R1200GS Motorcycles for Transmission Seal Leakage

BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2013 R 1200 GS motorcycles manufactured November 2012 through August 2013.

Pressure inside the transmission may cause the transmission output seal to be pushed out of place. Oil may then leak from the transmission onto the rear tire, increasing the risk of a crash.

1420 units are affected.

Check out my Motorcycle Recalls feature for more details.

Learn to Be Safe on Your Motorcycle - Accidents ARE Happening

It's spring. It's time to take the bike out and give it some exercise. However, the bike needs a skilled rider. That should be you. When's the last time you took a Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) course to tuneup those skills?

Here's a quick story and video by Molly Waldron of ktnv.com from the Las Vegas area that could wake you up a bit. It describes a couple of typical motorcycle accidents and then provides a video interview with an MSF instructor. Here's an excerpt:

"It's spring, and a perfect time for Victor 'Doc' Moss to take a ride on his motorcycle. He's been riding for more than 40 years, and has never had an accident. 'I've never been down and I don't say I've never been down because of luck,' said Moss. 'After a half-million miles, it's because I'm thinking 'what do I need to do to stay alive in this?' Moss is a riding instructor, so safety is a priority for him. 'Motorcycles have certain inherent risks that are greater than a car, and if you don't understand those and how this machine works, you're putting yourself in danger,' Moss said." -- Molly Waldron, ktnv.com

Now, read the article and watch the video.

For more ways to be safe out there, read my 10 Ways to Be Safe on a Motorcycle.

A Bad Day on a Motorcycle

Here's a video that shows what can happen when you have a bad day on a motorcycle or you don't have a lot of experience. Take a look.

Motorcyclists: Watch Out for Left Turners and Be Prepared

I have Google Alerts set to capture most media accounts of fatal motorcycle accidents. So, I see many "left-turner" crashes involving motorcyclists. It makes me want to scream that the majority of riders don't know about left turn accidents or choose to ignore them. I've written about these accidents for the better part of 12 years. I feature "10 Ways to Be Safe on a Motorcycle" on every page of my website. I've written about it in my new Kindle book. I just saw another tragic story about a rider who liked to live on the edge. These stories tend to lock into helmets and proper riding attire as possible ways to prevent accidents. Helmet laws are also discussed heavily. Back and forth discussions among riders and non-riders often ensue in the comments after stories. However, nothing seems to stop the continuing carnage of similar accidents that go on and on across the country. Maybe nothing can stop this senseless loss of life. But, maybe, just maybe we can collectively stop one or two of these accidents by reading the following story and telling a rider friend or two. Can't hurt. Here's an excerpt:

"It was 82 degrees with low humidity and light wind the day Scott Pohl died. This is significant because a motorcycle was not Scott’s primary transportation. He usually drove his pickup to work. Scott’s shift for most of his six-day week started at 4:30 p.m. But on Fridays and Saturdays he’d start at 7 p.m., which is also significant. It is why he was headed east on North Territorial Road in Salem Township at 6:32 p.m. on the second day of summer, approaching an SUV driver who never saw him coming." -- John Counts, AnnArbor.com

Read more.

See also:

• Uneasy Riders: Serious injury rates higher for unhelmeted motorcyclists, but records don't tell all
  
  
• Uneasy Riders: Search how Michigan motorcyclists with and without helmets fared in accidents
  
  

Women Motorcycle Riders Love the Freedom of the Road

Each year, more and more women riders are taking to the road riding their own motorcycles. Here's an excerpt from an article appearing in the Asbury Park Press, written by Chris Jordan:

"Call Andrea Zivari Giannoglou of Montville a happy biker. 'Every day is a lot of fun to go to work,' said Zivari Giannoglou, 48. 'If I have to go to the bank or something, those little side trips make me very happy, because getting on my motorcycle gives me a sense of freedom. It's beautiful out, and there are lots of smells, and it’s just a fun thing for me to do.'" -- Chris Jordan

Read more of this article and view a video from a lady rider.

Learn more about women in motorcycling.

10 Ways to Be Safe Riding a Motorcycle

I get Google Alerts every day telling of motorcycle accidents all over the world. The most disturbing accounts describe the deaths of riders because an oncoming motorist turned left across their path and the motorcycle struck the car.

Folks, most every rider has not yet got the message of the danger of left-turners.

Please read my 10 Ways to Be Safe on a Motorcycle. It describes the left-turner as well as nine more ways to be be safe on a motorcycle.

These tips are also included in my new Kindle book, Getting Started Riding a Motorcycle.

So, get educated and read my 10 Ways to Be Safe on a Motorcycle.

Women are Riding Motorcycles in Greater Numbers

More and more women are getting off the back seat and climbing on the front seat of a motorcycle. Most are learning in special training classes. Here's an excerpt from a story and video from FOX 13 TV in Tampa Bay:

"Tammy Perkins is enamored when she gets on her motorcycle. 'It is freedom,' she said. Perkin's husband bought her a bike for Mother's Day. It is something she has wanted since she was a kid. Now that she is 40, and the youngest of her kids is out of high school, Perkins thinks she deserves it." -- Ken Suarez, FOX 13 News Polk County Reporter

Read more of this story and watch the video.

For more about women riders, check out Women in Motorcycling.

Military Personnel Advised to Ride Safe in the Spring

It's May Motorcycle Awareness Time again. All the major publications are advising motorists to watch out for motorcycles. But the military has the same problem on its bases. At Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey, they take extra precautions to train their personnel in safe riding techniques and to promote safe riding including wearing proper protective riding apparel. Here's an excerpt from an article on their website by Staff Sgt. Carlton Anthony:

"No one expects to be seriously injured or die in a motorcycle mishap when Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst warriors begin hitting the roadways. Unfortunately, every spring the number of motorcycle mishaps spike due to several factors: inexperience, risky riding, alcohol, speed, distractions and fatigue. All these factors are preventable and may lead to fewer accidents during this time of year." -- Staff Sgt. Carlton Anthony

Read more of this article.

Learn How to Ride a Motorcycle

I receive a lot of questions from people who want to learn how to ride a motorcycle but don't know where to start or what steps they should follow.

There is no magic process to learn how to ride a motorcycle. Every rider follows a different plan to learn how to ride a motorcycle.

I have written a 5-part article that tells you what you have to do to learn how to ride a motorcycle.

Part 1 is an introduction to motorcycles.

Part 2 tells you how to get started learning to ride a motorcycle.

Part 3 discusses getting the training you need to ride a motorcycle.

Part 4 talks about buying your first motorcycle.

Part 5 discusses becoming a motorcyclist.

This article gives you my viewpoint on what it takes to become a proficient motorcyclist. Check out How You CAN Learn to Ride a Motorcycle

Consumer Reports and Motorcycles

Well, I've been a subscriber to Consumer Reports (CR) for longer than I can remember. I even pay for subscriptions for my three adult children. Today, I saw that CR is now possibly getting into the business of evaluating entry-level motorcycles and scooters.

Here's an excerpt from an article Motorists Move to Scooters and Motorcycles to Save from the Consumer Reports Blog:

"Consumer Reports is researching this segment and is looking into developing a test protocol to evaluate scooters and entry-level motorcycles. We approach these products with grave concern for rider safety and caution readers against a hasty decision to move to two-wheeled transportation without proper training and safety gear."

Motorcycles and Consumer Reports. I can hardly believe it, but I'm happy at the same time. Let's hope they spend lots of time talking about Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) training and wearing proper apparel. We certainly don't want a whole new segment of riders who are only riding to save on gas money.

Motor Scooters -- Are You Ready for One?

Almost every day, I'm seeing more and more articles about the advantages of owning a motor scooter in a world of ever increasing gas prices.

Here's an excerpt from an article, Born to Be ... Fuel-Efficient, by Jonathan Welsh of the Wall Street Journal that sums up the current economic thinking about motor scooters:

"Chris Casal, a Brooklyn, N.Y., elementary-school teacher, used to drive to work almost every day, mainly because it took 12 minutes compared with an hour by subway. But rising fuel and parking costs made the trip 'kind of ridiculous,' he says. So last year he bought a Vespa GTS scooter that uses about $7 of fuel every two weeks instead of the $30 his Honda Civic consumed. He parks free in the schoolyard, and the two-wheeler impresses his students."

Of course, there are other considerations beyond the price of gas. There's the need to learn how to be safe while riding a motor scooter. Motorcycles are very hard to see as it is and motor scooters are even smaller visual targets for the average motorist.

The average non-motorcyclist has a lot to learn about riding on two wheels. I remember all the scooter accidents I saw while in Bermuda by newbie riders. I think I got a one-minute lesson before I rented my scooter.

I've just revised my article, Motor Scooters - Have Fun While Saving Gas, that summarizes all my motor scooter resources that may assist in introducing motor scooters to the masses.

Don't put your life on the line by getting a motor scooter without proper training and wearing apparel.

Have fun and save gas if you get a motor scooter but remember to first BE SAFE.

Picture ©2004 Lonnie W. Cavenee

Transportation Secretary, Mary Peters, Wants to Lower Motorcycle Deaths

Today, Transportation Secretary Mary Peters has announced new initiatives to support motorcyclists. Peters is, herself, a motorcyclist. According to USA TODAY, she has proposed a new plan that includes:

• Training. DOT will develop national standards for entry-level motorcycle riders to achieve what Peters calls "a baseline of competency."
• Enforcement. DOT will create a training program to teach police officers about specific efforts to reduce crashes.
• Education. Public Service Announcements will feature Peters on the importance of helmets and other protective gear. A "Share the Road" campaign will remind drivers to be alert for motorcyclists.

Check out the complete story and offer your comments on this new plan, below.

Motorcycle Trike Lifts Off the Ground

Some people think that a modern motorcycle trike is inherently unstable. They are actually thinking of the old 3-wheeler ATVs that were banned. Modern motorcycle trikes came after that with most built on stable Honda Gold Wing platforms that have a low center-of-gravity.

I took a trike training class that had an exercise to show how stable a modern trike can be. Trikes driven in a circle at high speed or making quick 180 degree turns will not tip over. They will possibly lift the inside wheel off the pavement but as soon as the wheel leaves the ground, the power to that wheel stops and the trike returns to the ground.

Here's a very short video I took. The instructor is standing inside the circle as the trike moves faster and faster around him. When the instructor hears a slight slipping sound, he knows that the trike is lifting off the ground. He signals the student so the student can see that the trike then returns to the ground and then the student slows the trike.