SHALLOTTE, N.C. (WECT) – In the past week, two motorcyclists have died in two separate crashes in Southeastern North Carolina.
Drivers were charged for hitting those motorcyclists in both crashes in Columbus County and Brunswick County.
“It’s an unfortunate part of our industry and our sport, but it does seem like recently there’s been a huge increase in the amount of accidents involving motorcycles,” Shawn Hoff, the general manager of Sea Breeze Harley-Davidson said.
Hoff has been riding motorcycles since he was in high school, buying his first motorcycle right after he graduated. He says despite the danger involved, there’s no feeling like it, and many others feel the same way.
“For me, it’s kind of the freedom that comes from it,“ Hoff said. ”I definitely enjoy getting on a motorcycle just being able to ride with no distraction. You feel more like engaged and connected with the world.”
He’s taken that passion and turned it into a career, working with motorcycles for the past decade. In his current role, he and his team help people pick out the best bike for them at their store in Shallotte.
But every once and awhile, he winds up selling a bike to someone who is involved in a crash later.
One of his customers this year, got in a crash and wound up in a coma just a few months later. The driver was cited for hitting him.
“The day that he bought his motorcycle, he was so excited, that’s all he wanted and we got to make that happen for him,” Hoff said. “So, to hear that because somebody’s not paying attention, somebody’s being careless that now he has to go through this, it’s super heartbreaking.”
According to Sergeant Michael Loukos with the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, these crashes aren’t necessarily uncommon.
“Motorcycles only represent about 2% of all registered vehicles in North Carolina,” Sgt. Loukos said. “Yet, they make up 14% of all killed and serious injury crashes. There’s a large discrepancy there.”
Both Sgt. Loukos and Hoff say their biggest pieces of advice to motorcycle riders is to stay vigilant and drive defensively.
“When you’re riding a motorcycle, and you get off from a long ride, you should be a little mentally stressed from being that aware of potential hazards,” Sgt. Loukos said. “Over 40% of all motorcycle crashes involve the motorcyclist only.”
Hoff says a lot of the responsibility also comes down to the other drivers on the road to pay more attention to motorcyclists.
“It always boils down to distracted driving,” Hoff said. “It’s real easy for us to be in somebody’s blind spot. It’s real easy for somebody to run up on the back of you and not be paying attention.”
Hoff also says motorcyclists should always make sure their motorcycle is in good shape before taking it out for a ride.
“So that’s good tires, that’s good brakes, making sure your headlights and your turn signals are always working,” Hoff said. “I think that if you don’t take care of your motorcycle, then it’s not going to take care of you.”
He says many motorcycles also have enhanced safety features these days, and people looking to buy should ask about them before purchasing one.
Both Sgt. Loukos and Hoff say they also recommend classes, and not even just for new riders.
Sea Breeze Harley-Davidson has a partnership with Brunswick Community College for classes.
NC State Highway Patrol offers a course through a program called Bike Safe NC.
“It’s a free to the public motorcycle safety course,” Sgt. Loukos said. “It involves some classroom and an actual on-the-road assessment. So, you’ll go on a ride with highly-trained police motor officers from all across the state. I think the Bike Safe class is really valuable to not just new riders, but highly experienced riders. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been riding, you’re going to pick up something from the class.”
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