motorcycle safety

Where is this taking place? In the US, helmet laws vary from state to state. Our state, NH, which takes its motto "Live Free or Die" very seriously, has no law requiring a helmet. Our neighbor to the south, MA, requires helmets for driver and passenger. How did the two of them get to where they are without two helmets?

The one driving and in front should wear the helmet because it has the extra function of stopping them from being blinded by insects and debris.

If their goal is to flee the more accomplished person should drive.

If their getaway has to be real quick I'd just have one of them hanging on to the helmet, no time to put it on.

I second the driver wearing it. Debris protection is critical. I know someone who crashed from getting a bug in his eye. Keep in mind that a helmet that fits him might not fit her and vice versa. If she wore it and it was his, it would probably slide around too much for her to drive safely. Also, with a loose helmet, there's a lot less crash protection. You have impact happening inside the helmet as well then, in the event of a crash. Not that they'd be thinking about that with a quick getaway.

The best advice on motorcycle safety I can provide is:

Don't ride one.

caw

I'm wondering how he rides her bike when he's 10 inches taller than her. He must have his knees around his chin.....

Helmets come in sizes. I'm not going to believe a helmet fitting both of them. The size difference is too great.

Best of luck,

Jim Clark-Dawe

Seconding what everyone said about the driver wearing it during a quick getaway. He can close his eyes if he needs to; she can't. Even if no debris or bugs hit, the wind from going freeway speeds is fierce -- think about what a windshield does for you in a car!

mirandashell said:

I'm wondering how he rides her bike when he's 10 inches taller than her. He must have his knees around his chin.....

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Not necessarily! I've ridden the same bike as people a foot taller than me with no modifications, and no feeling that I or they needed them. It depends how it's set up, obviously, but it's totally believable. It's not like a bicycle where the fact that you have to pedal means your legs must reach through a whole cycle (the seat height makes a much larger difference on a bicycle).

And really experienced riders sometimes do enjoy riding bigger, more powerful motorcycles that newer riders would feel were too big (like, they can't flat-foot 'em).

jclarkdawe said:

Helmets come in sizes. I'm not going to believe a helmet fitting both of them. The size difference is too great.

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Head size does not have to have any correlation with height. My mom is a titchy little thing and smaller than I am, and she wears a helmet that is two sizes bigger. It's a little coincidental that both your characters would both have the same helmet size -- just cuz, coincidence* -- but it's not unbelievable in the sense that her head couldn't be big enough.

* Though at at least in the U.S. helmet sizes aren't done by inches but are S/M/L (XS/XL etc) so it's not THAT much of a coincidence, and I could wear my size or the next size up and be okay. If you want to lampshade it you could say something about her jamming his helmet onto her head and a fleeting thought about how he's got a smaller head than she does despite being a foot taller.

eta: As for the intimidating approach, I'm tempted to say she should still drive, because she can come in super fast and skid to a stop or something and look badaaasssss.....but if it's specifically about making HIM look macho, and it's just around the corner, I'd say she should wear the helmet. He'll look more "macho" to thugs (or whomever) if he doesn't have a helmet but his little hot girlfriend on the back does.....er, at least, I would think. Not a thug myself.

slhuang said:

Originally Posted by jclarkdawe
Helmets come in sizes. I'm not going to believe a helmet fitting both of them. The size difference is too great.

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Head size does not have to have any correlation with height. My mom is a titchy little thing and smaller than I am, and she wears a helmet that is two sizes bigger. It's a little coincidental that both your characters would both have the same helmet size -- just cuz, coincidence* -- but it's not unbelievable in the sense that her head couldn't be big enough.

* Though at at least in the U.S. helmet sizes aren't done by inches but are S/M/L (XS/XL etc) so it's not THAT much of a coincidence, and I could wear my size or the next size up and be okay. If you want to lampshade it you could say something about her jamming his helmet onto her head and a fleeting thought about how he's got a smaller head than she does despite being a foot taller.

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With some setup, yes, this could work. But setup is going to matter. If it just happens in this scene, it's going to be hard to make it credible.

Best of luck,

Jim Clark-Dawe

5'10" is still rather on the short side for a man, so I don't think he'd look too big driving her bike. But one other thing to keep in mind is that a woman who's 5'0" isn't going to be able to touch her feet to the ground solidly on a lot of bikes without some sort of seat modification. Some of the cruiser-type bikes have naturally low seats, so they're not a problem for most short women. But if you're looking for standard bikes or Asian-style crotch rockets, she might need a modified seat that's been shaved down to lower the overall seat height. If you Google motorcycle seat heights for women, you'll find a lot of info.

That's what I was thinking. 5' is short for a woman in the West so the seat will be low. His legs will be a lot longer at 5'10. That's why I thought he couldn't get comfortable on her bike.

I would believe it more if she was 5'6 and he was 6'2

From the perspective of lifelong motorcyclists (wife & I) who own several bikes and a van, you've got a couple of problems here.

You'll need a credible reason for your FMC to abandon the van. It's not unusual to keep an extra helmet or two in a van - especially if it's often used to transport bikes. If she doesn't have an extra helmet, you'll need to explain why - or why she didn't think of it. Bikers know the helmet laws of the jurisdictions in which they ride.

A motorcycle operator's size, weight, strength, and overall skill set matters considerably when carrying a passenger/pillion. The handling dynamics alter by the moment - having a passenger who outweighs the operator ratchets the difficulty up significantly. In your scenario, you're describing a pretty high stress situation. Of course, it's not impossible that she could be that good, but it would be quite challenging to say the least.

Street thugs aren't as stupid as most think and tend to avoid confrontations with motorcyclists/bikers (who are rarely, if ever, passive). The odds would have to be heavily stacked in the thugs' favour in that moment.

Remember that plausibility is important - unless, of course, this is a fantasy tale.

Identifying the motorcycle would help (type, brand. model, etc.). Take the time to do the research and get it right - it's not that hard. Get it wrong and your credibility will falter in the eyes of readers who ride.

This is not intended to discourage you - on the contrary, I think you've got great ideas and should go for it! Just do your best to get it right. Best of Luck!

You're right, Mirandashell. He probably wouldn't want to ride cross country on it. But it's still a big machine, regardless of the model and seat height.