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That's kinda the norm for dangerous sports, isn't it? Motorbikes are dangerous; people often die riding. For many people the risks exceeds the rewards, and the

That's kinda the norm for dangerous sports, isn't it? Motorbikes are dangerous; people often die riding. For many people the risks exceeds the rewards, and they choose not to ride. Other people have a greater appetite for risk, and choose to live until they die. I myself refuse to strap on ice skates (or rollerblades) having had 20 titanium screws put into my arm after falling on the ice. But I knew the risk I was getting into when I got onto the ice.

amluto 3y ago
I wish it was more socially acceptable to ice skate recreationally with safety gear. Falling on the ice hurts. Falling on the ice if you’re dressed like you’re playing hockey is considerably less unpleasant.
- giantg2 3y ago
  "I wish it was more socially acceptable to ice skate recreationally with safety gear." I can't remember a time when looking stupid stopped me from doing something. Perhaps that's just my natural state.
- DowagerDave 3y ago
  "Core" gear like helmets and knee/wrist pads seems totally acceptable now. "Extreme" biking/skateboarding (outside of street bmx & skating) has largely adopted safety gear too.
- bartonfink 3y ago
  I give you permission.
- jpgvm 3y ago
  I wear figure skating protection when I'm skating recreationally, because the padding is slim it's basically imperceptible unless you are looking for it. Though in addition I also wear snowboarding wrist guards which aren't a common piece of safety attire on the ice but I just can't risk my wrists. With gloves on they aren't that noticeable either though, just looks like I'm wearing long gloves from a distance.
- gnicholas 3y ago
  In Yosemite all kids are required to wear helmets on the ice rink (at Curry Village). If you don't have one, they provide them for free.
- throwaway2037 3y ago
  > I wish it was more socially acceptable to ice skate recreationally with safety gear. That depends upon where you live. However, I am sympathetic to your concerns. One idea: Find a lake or river that is frozen and go skating with a friend that also wears safety equipment. You will feel less social embarrassed for being the only ones with safety equipment.
  - bombcar 3y ago
    Be careful about the ice conditions because falling through thin ice is not a fun time.
    - avar 3y ago
      They can always wear a drysuit under their hockey gear.
mey 3y ago
As an outsider looking in, there is a bizarre combination of advanced safety tech and completely useless standards in motorcycle safety gear. https://m.youtube.com/@FortNine https://m.youtube.com/@FortNine has amazing videos covering all aspects of motorcycles that I have been enjoying as an outsider, including clear information on airbags, helmets, clothing, visibility, and how horrible pickup trucks are. Is it dangerous? More than a car certainly, but with good gear and training, it "appears" you can control for a lot of risks.
- bombcar 3y ago
  The key is the "and training" part. Private piloting a small plane is quite safe if you have the "and training" - and that training includes avoiding situations where you're putting yourself in danger. For motorcycle riding, that includes staying away from dangerous situations like bad weather, bad drivers, etc.
- HarryHirsch 3y ago
  with good gear and training, it "appears" you can control for a lot of risks I can't find the statistics right now but seem to remember that the main source of fatalities is young men (< 25 years) on crotch rockets and alcohol. If you ride a sensible bike and stay sober, motorcyclists are only 3 times as likely to die as automobile drivers.
DowagerDave 3y ago
I think you demonstrate a common human scenario where we over-estimate the risk in notable activities and far under-estimate the boring ones. Motorcycle fatalities are about 25x higher than car, but car deaths are pretty low. Meanwhile smokers kill themselves and others at very high rates, and general inactivity leads to indirect deaths a magnitude higher. I'd also argue premature death from sky diving > slow, declining death from poor lifestyle, but I recognize that's not a universal opinion.
- manthedudeguy 3y ago
  > car deaths are pretty low By what metric? They kill way more than anything mentioned in this entire thread
akira2501 3y ago
> and choose to live until they die. On the other hand, I didn't start really living my life until I nearly died.
- throwaway2037 3y ago
  Can you share more about your near-death experience?
whartung 3y ago
I tried skydiving once, and was underwhelmed. Did nothing for me. I tried that "indoor skydiving" thing they had in Vegas, where you wear a particular style suit, and jump into an air stream powered by a propeller in the floor. The game is not getting slammed into the padded wall. Maybe because I did that first, skydiving was less interesting to me. Falling out of the plane, there was just a strong blast in my face. None of the "stomach drop" you get from the free fall rides at amusement parks, no sense of speed. Grounds approaching, but you're so high up its not approached THAT fast. Anyway, never again. That said, I do ride motorcycles. I have for a long, long time. Well versed in the statistics of riding, well aware of what I can and can't control. Aware of my efforts at mitigating those things that I do not control. I "know" it's a riskier activity, I do not perceive it as risky, but I do respect the situation. That said, I have a saying. I love motorcycling, I do not recommend it to anyone. It IS dangerous. It's especially dangerous to new riders. There is a learning curve, where the lessons can be painful, expensive, or worse. I do not ride to experience "risk", I don't "push the envelope", I have "chicken strips" on my tires. My bike has a "performance" mode, I do not use it. But I do love riding. It's a true joy in my life.
aylmao 3y ago
The big difference here is that most dangerous sports involve your own training, your own due-diligence and your own ability. People go on the most dangerous motorbike trials after gaining a lot of experience, and training a lot. Moreover, they won't do it unless they've used the equipment before, know it well, they tend to prepare everything themselves, and test it themselves beforehand, etc. They are experts, and take full responsibility. In this case, someone who had never sky-dived before, went to center where he wasn't expected to prepare the parachute, understand the mechanics, test or operate any of the equipment themselves. A "professional" would do it— as makes sense. So it really is upsetting when it turns out, as per the verdict, that the "professional" was actually not properly trained. There are risks to everything, but the reason there's tight regulation and licensing for life-threatening industries is that those of us who aren't experts should at least hope our lives are in the hands of someone doing their best effort to ensure safety. Going to a hospital to have surgery done on me, and doing the surgery myself are two very different decisions. I agree with you. I certainly have no reason to be upset if I cut myself open and end up with a nasty infection. If this happens at a hospital, and I later learn it not only happens often, but the surgeon isn't properly certified to do surgery, I have reasons to be upset.

amluto 3y ago

I wish it was more socially acceptable to ice skate recreationally with safety gear. Falling on the ice hurts. Falling on the ice if you’re dressed like you’re playing hockey is considerably less unpleasant.

giantg2 3y ago
"I wish it was more socially acceptable to ice skate recreationally with safety gear." I can't remember a time when looking stupid stopped me from doing something. Perhaps that's just my natural state.
DowagerDave 3y ago
"Core" gear like helmets and knee/wrist pads seems totally acceptable now. "Extreme" biking/skateboarding (outside of street bmx & skating) has largely adopted safety gear too.
bartonfink 3y ago
I give you permission.
jpgvm 3y ago
I wear figure skating protection when I'm skating recreationally, because the padding is slim it's basically imperceptible unless you are looking for it. Though in addition I also wear snowboarding wrist guards which aren't a common piece of safety attire on the ice but I just can't risk my wrists. With gloves on they aren't that noticeable either though, just looks like I'm wearing long gloves from a distance.
gnicholas 3y ago
In Yosemite all kids are required to wear helmets on the ice rink (at Curry Village). If you don't have one, they provide them for free.
throwaway2037 3y ago
> I wish it was more socially acceptable to ice skate recreationally with safety gear. That depends upon where you live. However, I am sympathetic to your concerns. One idea: Find a lake or river that is frozen and go skating with a friend that also wears safety equipment. You will feel less social embarrassed for being the only ones with safety equipment.
- bombcar 3y ago
  Be careful about the ice conditions because falling through thin ice is not a fun time.
  - avar 3y ago
    They can always wear a drysuit under their hockey gear.

mey 3y ago

As an outsider looking in, there is a bizarre combination of advanced safety tech and completely useless standards in motorcycle safety gear. https://m.youtube.com/@FortNine https://m.youtube.com/@FortNine has amazing videos covering all aspects of motorcycles that I have been enjoying as an outsider, including clear information on airbags, helmets, clothing, visibility, and how horrible pickup trucks are. Is it dangerous? More than a car certainly, but with good gear and training, it "appears" you can control for a lot of risks.

bombcar 3y ago
The key is the "and training" part. Private piloting a small plane is quite safe if you have the "and training" - and that training includes avoiding situations where you're putting yourself in danger. For motorcycle riding, that includes staying away from dangerous situations like bad weather, bad drivers, etc.
HarryHirsch 3y ago
with good gear and training, it "appears" you can control for a lot of risks I can't find the statistics right now but seem to remember that the main source of fatalities is young men (< 25 years) on crotch rockets and alcohol. If you ride a sensible bike and stay sober, motorcyclists are only 3 times as likely to die as automobile drivers.

DowagerDave 3y ago

I think you demonstrate a common human scenario where we over-estimate the risk in notable activities and far under-estimate the boring ones. Motorcycle fatalities are about 25x higher than car, but car deaths are pretty low. Meanwhile smokers kill themselves and others at very high rates, and general inactivity leads to indirect deaths a magnitude higher. I'd also argue premature death from sky diving > slow, declining death from poor lifestyle, but I recognize that's not a universal opinion.

manthedudeguy 3y ago
> car deaths are pretty low By what metric? They kill way more than anything mentioned in this entire thread

akira2501 3y ago

> and choose to live until they die. On the other hand, I didn't start really living my life until I nearly died.

throwaway2037 3y ago
Can you share more about your near-death experience?

whartung 3y ago

I tried skydiving once, and was underwhelmed. Did nothing for me. I tried that "indoor skydiving" thing they had in Vegas, where you wear a particular style suit, and jump into an air stream powered by a propeller in the floor. The game is not getting slammed into the padded wall. Maybe because I did that first, skydiving was less interesting to me. Falling out of the plane, there was just a strong blast in my face. None of the "stomach drop" you get from the free fall rides at amusement parks, no sense of speed. Grounds approaching, but you're so high up its not approached THAT fast. Anyway, never again. That said, I do ride motorcycles. I have for a long, long time. Well versed in the statistics of riding, well aware of what I can and can't control. Aware of my efforts at mitigating those things that I do not control. I "know" it's a riskier activity, I do not perceive it as risky, but I do respect the situation. That said, I have a saying. I love motorcycling, I do not recommend it to anyone. It IS dangerous. It's especially dangerous to new riders. There is a learning curve, where the lessons can be painful, expensive, or worse. I do not ride to experience "risk", I don't "push the envelope", I have "chicken strips" on my tires. My bike has a "performance" mode, I do not use it. But I do love riding. It's a true joy in my life.

aylmao 3y ago

The big difference here is that most dangerous sports involve your own training, your own due-diligence and your own ability. People go on the most dangerous motorbike trials after gaining a lot of experience, and training a lot. Moreover, they won't do it unless they've used the equipment before, know it well, they tend to prepare everything themselves, and test it themselves beforehand, etc. They are experts, and take full responsibility. In this case, someone who had never sky-dived before, went to center where he wasn't expected to prepare the parachute, understand the mechanics, test or operate any of the equipment themselves. A "professional" would do it— as makes sense. So it really is upsetting when it turns out, as per the verdict, that the "professional" was actually not properly trained. There are risks to everything, but the reason there's tight regulation and licensing for life-threatening industries is that those of us who aren't experts should at least hope our lives are in the hands of someone doing their best effort to ensure safety. Going to a hospital to have surgery done on me, and doing the surgery myself are two very different decisions. I agree with you. I certainly have no reason to be upset if I cut myself open and end up with a nasty infection. If this happens at a hospital, and I later learn it not only happens often, but the surgeon isn't properly certified to do surgery, I have reasons to be upset.