Motorcycle Riding Tips for Keeping Safe - Avoiding Drugs and Alcohol

thevillan (68)in #travel • 7 years ago

For the next part in my motorcycle safety tips series I would like to share my thought on alcohol and drugs and why they should be avoided while riding.

☠️ Avoiding Drugs and Alcohol ☠️

Well avoiding drugs should be done all the time naughty naughty, but here I was more concerned with prescription drugs and especially the type which are going to cause drowsiness or dizziness.
These prescription drugs might be something along the lines of mirtazapine or endone, which are commonly prescribed to patients.

Riding while under the influence of drugs like these is incredibly dangerous, as they affect your reaction times and decision making skills which are critical while riding. A reduced reaction time of just a fraction of a second could be the difference between having an accident or avoiding one.
I actually use both of those medications from when I had a bad accident when I was young, mirtazipine I use each night to help me sleep and take the pain away from my severe injuries and endone I only use maybe once or twice every few months when my back is playing up on me and I'm in lots of pain.
If I do take my medication I won't touch the bike or even think about going for a ride, as I know that my chances of having an accident are increased while I'm affected by the medication.

The same is true if you have had a single drink or multiple drinks, although if you have just one drink you won't be anywhere near as badly affected.
But alcohol inhibits your ability to make decisions and also affects your reaction times.
So you may say well I have only had the one drink so I will be fine, but that one drink still affects you although you may not notice it.
On top of all of this drugs and alcohol can also affect you balance and control skills of the motorbike.
It seems to be ingrained into our culture that it is ok to have a drink or two while riding or taking prescription pills while riding is ok. But this is a major problem.

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There is so much we need to be paying attention to being motorbike riders.
☣️ Have I got enough stopping distance to allow for the person tailgating me.
☣️ When stopping, checking your rear view to make sure the person behind you is stopping.
☣️ Can that person see me at the intersection, or will they pull out.
☣️ Am I out of the blind spots of other road users.
☣️ Which lane will be the safest to sit in on a multi lane road.
☣️ Can pedestrians see me or will they step onto the road in front of me.
☣️ A dog runs on to the road barking at you because it doesn't like the noise your bike makes.

The list just goes on and on.
I find when I'm riding I'm constantly analyzing the situation I'm in, lol and you don't very often get the chance to relax.
With so much going on you really need your decision making skills and reaction times to be the best they can possibly be.
So for me if I'm riding I just won't touch alcohol.