How do you guys deal with them? Like they'd go around citing statistics and crap, come on I just wanna ride my bike, I don't wanna hear that most organ donations come from us riders!

 

I use the, " i can die by simply walking down the street" excuse. It usually works lol.

 

Ignore them - ride your bike - come home with a big smile every time you ride

All statistics can be manipulated to the benefit of the user! for example - "bike riders account for 80% or road accidents" - flip this to "80% of bike accidents involve car drivers"

The more you argue/force the situation, IMO, the more they will try to bait you

 

Moved to Off Topic.

It's not F4i specific and might get more responses in a non-bike specific forum

 

Laugh at them.... just keep on laughing while putting on your helmet then keep laughing as you ride off then when you get back you laugh as you take off your helmet then you hold your belly while pointing at them and keep on laughing.

 

this literally made me lol! and to be honest I completely agree.

most of my family didn't want me to get a motorcycle. my dad, grandpa, and uncle's all have cruiser's. when the finally realized I was getting a motorcycle they told me I had better get a cruiser and not one of those "rice burner's" bc it will get me killed. I "LOL" to that one still. after I got it they would all tell me I better be careful and all that Jazz. every once in a while i'll catch chit bc I have a motorcycle/sportbike, but luckily for me I don't put up with it much and the negativity goes away. Just don't let them run you down about it and you will be fine.

 

winner

 

Take a spare helmet with you and take one for a nice ride! It'll get you out for a ride & maybe get them less against bikes.

 

Honest answer? You have to identify and separate them into two groups:

• Those doing it to bust your ***** / out of spite / ect
• Those doing out of genuine concern for you

The ones trying to rile you (and every family / group of friends usually has a few) you can ignore / shut down. A guy at work who says he's a friend does this a lot but it's not out of any real concern for me. He's just trying to shake me. Says all sorts of stupid chit too like about how when he lived overseas he saw guys getting decapitated and crushed and cut in half all the time. Finally pissed me off that I said "Watching you drive your work truck I can believe you come from a country where guys can't ride. YOU CAN BARELY DRIVE!". That shut him up for a bit. Now I just toss him my lid and ask "Have you grown a pair yet?"

But people who truly care about you, you can't shut down like that. Yeah, you're ignoring their warnings of death and dismemberment. But to them you're also ignoring the fact that they care. That can stress your family ties. The only way to combat that is with maturity, communication and facts. Sit down with them for a serious talk. Let them have their say. Ask them about their thoughts and feelings, not to relay the gory stories of what they've seen or heard about. Then have your say. Explain to them that this is something you choose to do. That in life all choices have pitfalls and dangers, some that can affect health and well being. Does anyone in your family smoke? That's a choice and has proven to negatively affect health, often leading to a slow and painful death. But it's a choice they make.

Explain to them that you ride safely (hopefully you do). If you don't wear gear, make a concession and start. You'd be surprised that they may offer to help you buy gear. Which helps them feel better, feeling like they're taking an active part in contributing to your safety. If you haven't taken any courses, go take the BRC.

If you're ballsy, have them watch some of the racers. Explain to them how with skill and experience, those guys can push the envelope far beyond what you ever will and finish a race safely. Show them how with the right gear, many of them walk away from crashes / avoid serious injury.

You can't shut down or ignore someone who's doing it out of genuine concern for your well being without causing bad blood. Even if they're doing it out of ignorant fear. But that where you have to show a maturity they're prolly not expecting from you (after all you still ride that damn MurderCycle despite their warnings). And that will help allay some of it. Worse comes to worse, there's a final card you can play... but it's a low blow against someone that cares about you: the confidence card.

A lot of riding is about confidence. Even after seeing someone like Stoner do it on a regular basis, who believes they can lean their bike over and not fall until they finally say "**** it! I can do this!"? The low blow is telling someone that cares is that what they're doing could erode your confidence, actually putting you in danger. That if you pause to question yourself, that the seconds you lose while doing it could cause something bad to happen. It's a really low blow tho.

 

I told all my family members well it's either the bike or I'm building a Meth lab and or doing mass amounts of coke. Seems to work for a little while. My dad rode with me a few times and I didn't hold back on the twisties so now at family events he decides to tell everyone I'm a wildman and everything else. Mom gives me dirty looks but not much else, they just tell me to be careful and I am. But my dad checks on my chicken strips from time to time haha. And what Kuroshio said is spot on. I've had friends and family watch MotoGP with me and it seemed to help a little. Showing that you're a responsible level headed human being and not someone that does wheelies through intersections at 90 mph all the time will help ease their stress.