Corps hits 10-year high in motorcycle deaths
By John Hoellwarth - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Sep 8, 2007 7:03:12 EDT

Eighteen Marines have died in motorcycle accidents this fiscal year, the highest annual number since the Corps began tracking those statistics 10 years ago, according to the Naval Safety Center’s Web site.

With that in mind, the Corps is looking toward providing “more robust” motorcycle training in the mandatory riding course Marines must take before registering a motorcycle on base and possibly establishing “riding clubs” at every base and station to promote leadership and safety, said Peter Hill, chief engineer at the Corps’ safety division.

Hill said safety officials saw the 10-year high coming earlier this year when the numbers reached last year’s 17, up three from 2005 and 10 from 2004.

Hill said the majority of motorcycle accidents result from “a loss of control” and attributed this year’s death toll to Marines’ tendency to buy “too much bike” for their experience level.

Statistically, it’s difficult to point toward trends among less than two dozen Marines in a Corps of more than 180,000, but safety officials have noticed patterns, Hill said.

For example, motorcycle-related fatalities have always been higher on the East Coast at the beginning of each year, “but later on throughout the year, the West Coast will invariably catch up and surpass the East Coast numbers,” he said. “That has been consistent over the last five years.”

Hill said this is likely because of the climate in each area. East Coast riders will be subject to more inclement winter weather while it remains relatively temperate in California, where more riders stay on the roads year-round.

Hill said safety officials have looked into a possible connection between combat deployments and motorcycle deaths.

“There’s a lot of talk about the adrenaline factor, but the numbers aren’t showing that in terms of death,” Hill said. “I’ve had a hard time finding something I can call a trend there. It seems fairly random and consistent throughout the Marine Corps.”

He said half of the Marines who have died on motorcycles this year never deployed. Only a quarter of them had deployed within the last year and one-eighth had deployed within the last six months.

To address the issue of motorcycle deaths, the Corps is focusing on prevention — and looking beyond safety measures already in place.

Every Marine who wants to register a motorcycle on base must first take the Pentagon-mandated, three-day basic motorcycle safety course, which involves classroom instruction and limited riding in a controlled environment.
“As safe as they could be?”

“If you’ve never been on a bike, you do learn how to stay upright and do basic maneuvers, but establishing a confidence level, we don’t think it’s there,” Hill said. “We are punching a ticket and doing what we have to do by instruction, but are we making Marines as safe as they could be?”

The Defense Department instruction requires military installations to teach Motorcycle Safety Foundation curriculum specifically, “So we can’t just stop doing this and start doing that,” he said. “But we’re looking at starting advanced courses.”

Hill said Gen. Robert Magnus, assistant commandant, is the “driver” of an initiative to start riding clubs at Marine Corps installations and require Marines with motorcycles to join them, so that “way more experienced riders can share their experience and mentor junior riders.”

Norfolk, Va.-based Marine Corps Forces Command, and subordinate units, have implemented the mandatory riding clubs. If the pilot program works out, it may be implemented Corps-wide, Hill said.

But not everyone is for it.

“Some folks will say the older riders will have their big old hog and the younger rider will have a sports bike. That’s two different cultures, two different riding styles, and they won’t get the same pleasure out of their ride if the sports bike is cruising around at 45 miles per hour,” Hill said. “But it doesn’t mean they have to ride together. It means they can have a dialogue and exchange information. We just have to iron out some details about the execution.”

Hill admitted that “it’s hard to come out with a policy that mandates a person become a member of a club,” but said, “we look at it from a standpoint of some of the older riders will outrank some of the junior riders, so it’s a leadership thing as well.”

“If you’re a gunny and you have a guy that just bought an 1800cc bike and he’s never ridden before, you might want to try to influence him and help him make a more realistic decision.”

This alone would save lives, Hill said.

“If you want to be a lifelong safe rider, you need to build your experience in a manner that respects the limits of your bike and yourself. Folks who get a big bike are at significant risk during the period of time that they are learning to manage that bike,” he said. “Ninety percent of the time they may be all right, but it’s that 10 percent that prevents them from living to the day where they can move up to something bigger.”

Ellie