| Home | Classifieds | Customer service |
|
Local News | Sports | Business | My Advertiser | Island Life | Entertainment | Opinion |
Gannett News Service Multimedia
|
Heather Wines, Gannett News Service James Donegan, 24, of Ashburn, Va., wears a full helmet and protective gear as he practices his stunts with other members of The Guilty Ones motorcycle club.
|
It's also one of the signature maneuvers choreographed by "stunters" — young motorcyclists who pursue a risky and sometimes illegal pastime using agile, high-speed sportbikes that have become wildly popular in recent years.
The Internet is flush with Web sites and video clips dedicated to such high-risk motorcycle stunts.
"It's the new form of rebellion," said Dave Sonsky, editor of Super Streetbike magazine and Web site. "Instead of riding a loud chopper, you have a new generation riding these sportbikes and putting them through their paces."
Highway safety officials and advocates fear stunters only encourage reckless riding.
Two insurance groups reported last year that increasingly popular supersport motorcycles, racing bikes modified for the highway, made up less than 10 percent of registered motorcycles but accounted for more than 25 percent of rider deaths in 2005.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the Highway Loss Data Institute reported in September that supersport riders have death rates nearly four times higher than riders using other types of motorcycles.
Motorcyclists already are more inclined to take rists than people driving cars.
One in four motorcyclists involved in a fatal crash in 2006 did not have a valid license, compared with about one in eight drivers, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. And more than one in three bikers killed were speeding, compared with fewer than one in four drivers of cars.
"We love risk-taking, and we love speeding in this culture," said Judie Stone, president of the Washington, D.C.-based Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety. "When you see this along with the increase in motorcycling and motorcycles capable of greater and greater speeds, it's only inevitable that you're also going to see more of the risky behaviors."
Stunters acknowledge what they do is dangerous. And they don't recommend it for riders who aren't willing to practice or are too squeamish to deal with an occasional trip to the emergency room.
"You can get killed doing this, so there's no question you don't take it lightly, and it's certainly not for everyone," said Texan "Big Scott" Harmon, who parlayed his stunt skills into a professional career with Teamstunters. "I've been to the ER numerous times."
Sportbikes first appeared in the 1980s. Over the last decade or so, they have developed into racing machines capable of amazing acrobatics.
In the 1990s, the average 450-pound sportbike boasted 130 horsepower. Today's 400-pound bikes come with 160-horsepower engines, enough to approach 200 miles per hour. Top sportbikes can hit 140 mph in an eighth of a mile.
"For the cost of a car — or much less in some cases — you can have a bike that will go as fast as a Lamborghini," Sonsky said. "It's pretty amazing stuff."
To their critics, stunters say, relax. They note that the sport is coming in from the street and finding a home at the track and at motorsports shows where the riders are not a threat to drivers and medical care is readily available.
Riders at these events are judged on style and professionalism. They wear full protective gear and perform on closed courses.
But most people who have driven to the beach on a weekend can recall being passed by sportbikes that zip past in a blur before vanishing around the next bend like banking fighter jets.
"For some people, this is a lifestyle," Sonsky said. "It's their new bling."
Print this article | E-mail this article to a friend
Originally published March 26, 2008
Report home page
Story index USA TODAY editorials
Searchable database Explore motorcycle accident reports for every U.S. county from 2002 to 2006. Find out whether bikers' involved where wearing helmets and other data.
Tip: Use the back button or links within the database to return to this report.
VideosWearing a helmet is the law in many states if you want to ride a motorcycle, but some bikers want the freedom to choose.
Motorcycle instructors from Apex Cycle Education give safety advice for new riders.
Stunt riders from the Guilty Ones motorcycle club demonstrate their skills and talk about what it takes to get into the sport.
Discussion center Sound off about motorcycle safety in our discussion forum. Share your motorcycle accident experiences and tell us whether you think wearing helmets should be required by law. You also can create your own discussion topics.
Tip: Use the back button or links within the forum to return to this report.
GraphicsAll graphics open in pop-up windows.
Advertisement
More
GNS coverage: