7 Things You Should Never Do While Riding a Motorcycle

Riding a motorcycle is one of the most freeing sensations you can ever experience in life and if you have not ridden a motorcycle to travel destinations, we strongly recommend that you try it out and find out what you have been missing all these times. Your safety is sacrosanct and therefore you need to take all necessary precautions and steps to avoid getting into an accident in the first place, or suffering because of the mistakes of someone else on the road.  Wearing motorcycle safety gears at all times can keep you safe and protect your body from physical harm if you unfortunately happen to lose balance and have an accident.  

In addition to staying protected with motorcycle riding gears such as a branded motorcycle helmet and riding gloves, there are a few things that you should never make. We have compiled the seven common mistakes that often lead to mishaps. Check these out and try to avoid them at all times.  

Don’t tie shoelaces in loops

Have you ever noticed why motorcycle riding boots do not have lasers in them? It is because the laces can get in the way of shifting gears or applying the brakes, and they can get tangled in the brake lever and lead to an accident. Even if you have to wear a pair of everyday boots with laces, make sure the laces are not tied in big, large loops which can catch in the foot pegs or on the gear lever. It is also a good idea to tie the loops behind your heel and keep it tucked inside the boot for added protection.

Don’t watch the speedometer, watch the road

When you're riding a motorcycle, your focus should always be on the road and not anything else! Many people make the mistake of watching the speedometer when they are going at high speeds just for the sake of personal gratification. It is one of the most common mistakes that you need to avoid because when you are at high speeds, you don't get a lot of time to rectify mistakes, if any at all! Even in the condition that you need to check your speed to maintain speed limits on the road do it quickly and look back on the road as soon as possible.  

Watch the tires of the vehicle in front of you (don’t trust brake-lights blindly)

When you are sharing the road with many vehicles driving in different lanes, someone may suddenly decide to change lanes without indicating properly. This often leads to accidents and you can avoid them by watching the road minutely. Instead of trusting the brake light or indicating lights of the vehicle in front of you, you need to focus on the wheels of the vehicle which will turn slightly before making the lane change, that should give you enough time to take evasive action and protect yourself.

Don’t change speed in the middle of a corner

Another common mistake that you need to avoid as a motorcyclist is to change the speed of the motorcycle when you are in the middle of taking a corner. Decide whether the corner is good enough for the speed that you are already in and if you think that you are going faster than the motorcycle can handle, reduce speed before entering the corner and take a lean angle that you are comfortable with controlling the motorcycle.  Once you're in the corner, try not to make the mistake of changing the line because there is a very good chance of losing balance and crashing the bike.  

Change gear before an overtake, not during the overtake

Just like you need to maintain the speed of the motorcycle when you are in a corner you must also maintain the same speed when you are overtaking a vehicle. Suddenly changing gears in the middle of an overtake will result in a dip in the RPMs, and that will slow you down, which might lead to the eventuality that a vehicle rams you from behind! Shift the gear down a notch, ride the torque curve, build up the momentum and then overtake the vehicle. Do not change the gear until your maneuver is complete.  

Don’t use high-beam in traffic

A bright beam of light hitting directly in the eyes of a driver in the oncoming traffic lane can completely disorient the driver and force them to lose orientation which might result in them jumping the divider line and hitting you fatally!  A bright beam of light is also where it is comforting for vehicles right in front of you because a beam of light will reflect on their rear-view mirror and fall directly on the rise which might lead them to break hard if they are unable to see things in front of them which will result in you hitting them from behind. Since you are in the motorcycle, you are at a higher risk of being seriously hurt if that happens! Which is why the responsibility of staying safe falls on you. Never make the mistake of using high beams when you are riding in bumper-to-bumper traffic or even when you are riding in closely divided lanes.  

Avoid riding behind the center of a car

Cars and other four wheelers align their wheels in such a way that the central portion of the vehicle passes over potholes while the wheels avoid it completely. If you are riding directly behind the center of a four-wheeler, there is a good chance that you might suddenly find yourself diving into a pothole! Always keep enough difference between yourself and the vehicle in front of you so that you have time to navigate such sudden challenges on the road, but in unavoidable circumstances when you have to follow a vehicle closely, make sure that you are riding behind their wheels rather than the center of the vehicle.