In sickness and in health
By TMX Archives on 1st May 15
Just in case we were becoming complacent, the weekends sporting activities reminded us just how dangerous riding dirt bikes can be.
From Michael Brown's killer knee cruncher in Japan to namesake Stuart's qualifying crash through a fence at Frome, the MXGP madness at Valkenswaard and AMA SX shenanigans in New Jersey – if there was one thing we were constantly reminded of it was that motorcycles are dangerous.
Of course, that's not strictly true as motorcycles don't hurt people – throttle twisters do. Themselves, mostly...
There are some people that ask ‘why we do it?' but generally those people have never sat on a bike and tried it for themselves. It would seem that only a rider understands the thrills and feeling of freedom that riding a motorbike can offer and it's that enjoyment that keeps us coming back for more. Some say it's an addiction and they might just be right.
And while there are some things we can do to make riding safer they're not always practical, affordable or even enjoyable. I'm all for promoting quality safety products at reasonable prices but I'll never advocate slowing down or riding on less technical terrain. The throttle works both ways and it's up to the individual rider's discretion how hard it's twisted.
I was really quite amused on Sunday to see that they'd brought in a load of temporary steel-mesh shields to offer MXGP spectators at Valkenswaard a little bit more protection than the aged chestnut fencing could offer. As a fan of the sport I'd be pretty miffed with that view-damaging move although probably not half as peeved as I'd be if a speeding motocross bike landed in my lap.
In terms of ‘Health and Safety', promoting a big event is a total nightmare and very expensive too – as Steve Dixon will quite happily tell anyone who asks – which goes some way to explaining why ticket prices for these events are where they have to be.
When you see the haphazard way in which the promoters brought Valkenswaard up to spec then I guess we have to appreciate the fact that Matterley Basin can be laid out to meet certain standards while still affording us fans the best view possible. Yeah, we'd all like to be closer to the action but those days are long gone I'm afraid – like Camel bibs and two-strokes in the main races.
Going back to the subject of safety for a moment – and after all that trouble they'd gone to with the spectator fences in Holland – I was quite surprised to see an ornamental pond plonked on the outside of the first turn. The only way that could have been made any less safe for the riders was if they'd stocked it up with sharks – sharks with lasers on their heads – beforehand.
It was kind of inevitable that someone would end up in it and even more inevitable that it'd be one of our own – considering how we Brits like to get stuck in and all that. So congratulations to Ben Watson for stepping up and proving that the Health and Safety brigade spend most of their time interfering with things that aren't actually all that important while the obvious quite often escapes them. Good work guys...
