New campaign encourages motorcyclists to take safety course

SALT LAKE CITY — Motorcycle-related fatalities have increased over the past five years and that’s one reason why a new campaign is underway that urges Utah’s motorcyclists to take a riding skills course.

The statistics for Utah also show five people have died in crashes that have involved motorcycles. Also, motorcycle crashes are ten times more likely to result in a fatality than a car crash.

“From what I’ve seen, personally, it’s a lack of experience. It’s going into corners too fast, and not being able to navigate those corners at speed too fast,” Maj. Jeff Nigbur of the Utah Highway Patrol said. “It’s the motorcycle not being kept the way it should be.”

The Utah Department of Transportation and the Utah Department of Public Safety paired up to offer four different courses for riders of all levels. Whether you are just hopping on the bike for the first time or want to kick a decades-old bad rider habit, it’s never too late to learn the right way.

“You have a choice to wear a helmet. You have a choice to be visible. That means what you’re wearing, motorcycle lights, and a choice to practice,” Matthew Wallace a rider coach said. “Find a parking lot. Use three different stalls practicing turns, quick stops, swerves.”

Because riding a motorcycle can be exhilarating, it comes with great responsibility. Not only from the riders but from other drivers around them.

“Motorcycles are called vulnerable users for a reason because they are vulnerable out on the road and they are unprotected,” Nigbur said. “So make sure the driver of a vehicle, or whatever you are driving, that you take an opportunity to check your blind spots, to look around you before you merge, before you make a lane change or anything of that nature.”

Regardless of your experience, there is a class and a course available for you. Click here for more information.