Joys of the Open Road

You'll have noticed, recently, that the weather has been glorious. Indeed, I'm sitting here in a t-shirt, linen trousers and a pair of sandals. Therefore it won't surprise you to hear that I've been seeing a lot more motorcyclists of late. I'm too old, now, to object to the "fair-weather bikers" out there. I remember objecting most strongly when my mother called me a fair-weather biker on the day I'd biked through a huge storm on my way back from the other side of Oxford, had only just finished getting dry, and asked if I could borrow her car!! Nope, if they'd rather not struggle through storms, far be it for me to insist that they're not "real" bikers.

So, apart from noticing these bikers, more disturbingly I've noticed that many of them are displaying a lot of ankle!

No, I'm not a prude dressed in something akin to a burka, believing that a glimpse of ankle will get the opposite sex all hot and bothered. It's the safety aspect which bothers me. I know you have no intention of falling off your bike - this is why it's called an "accident". I just find it distressing how few bikers plan for the eventuality that they may hit the deck at some point during their trip. Let's face it, we know that more bikers are fatally injured than car drivers - it seems to help, having a metal box around you - and even if your accident isn't terminal, you're very much more likely to sustain some serious injuries coming off a bike, than poofed into your airbag in a car.

Imagine for a moment, if you will, that you're belting down the road at, say, 30, when an idiot pedestrian with a dog decides he hasn't seen you, so Rex and he are crossing the road - within your stopping distance. Even deciding that he and Rex deserve their fate, you're coming off. If you swerve, you've got a really big chance of coming off. If your brakes are particularly good and you haul them on - skidding, falling off - likely to happen. At which point, those unprotected ankles (and indeed most of your unprotected flesh) is at serious risk.

A few years ago, when visiting my friend in hospital, there was a young lad in one of the other beds in his ward. This young lad had come off his bike - and it wasn't even a really bad accident, he'd just slid off. Unfortunately for him his legs weren't protected (beyond that awesome protection that is denim), and at some point during his skid, all the flesh had been scraped off one leg below the knee. Not so bad, was my first thought, at least he didn't crush any bones. But no - you have to think about it, but when there's no flesh, or muscle, what holds the bones together? Well, nothing. So the poor boy ended up losing his leg below the knee, just because the weather is glorious.

So please, it means a lot to me - wear your Boots!