Current Safety Article
COLD TIRES, COLD STREETS
Happy November everyone. I thought about a safety briefing for each month and so here we go. Please keep in mind there is nothing personal here. These are my musings about something I consider important and relevant.
Complacent/complacency. Who could define this without looking it up?
Def. "Showing smug or uncritical satisfaction with oneself or one's achievements."
A complacent person is very pleased with themselves or feels that they do not need to do anything about a situation, even though the situation may be uncertain or even dangerous...
This is not necessarily a negative emotion but it is definitely an error in judgement.
IE: I've been doing this as a (fill in blank) for (fill in time) which obviously makes me an expert. I've never had an accident, crash, whatever because of that. Was it luck, skill or good fortune?
I don't cover my brakes when I ride in traffic because my bike has (fill in the gadget). What if it fails? Are you letting your devices protect you or would you rather hold your safety in your own hands.
Do you know about reactionary gaps? Do you do a chamber check, mag check, spare mag check every time you gear up? Do you keep your head on a swivel? Do you have arguments with others about who gets to face the door? Do you check your tire pressure? Manually? Or is that TPS fail safe?
We were all OTJ where complacency could have been a death sentence. Do you still have that mindset. Or are you in a white zone? Do you wait a split second when the light changes and clear the oncoming lanes before you take off? Would you go on duty without doing a complete gear check? OF COURSE NOT!!! But now life is more relaxed and it is easy to let the edge off.
So here is my pitch. Stay in orange. This isn't a bad thing. It is human nature. Attitude plays a huge role. Just because it (fill in the blank) has never happened to me doesn't guarantee that it won't. Are you prepared for that left hand turner that doesn't see you. Do you have an escape route? Are you a left lane rider? Or worse, a right lane rider? Don't be the one who crashes their bike to avoid a crash!
Feedback and discussion to this topic is encouraged and invited! Above all, don't fall for the trap of complacency.
