Another Moped Fatality

[RayfromTX]

People call me crazy for riding my bicycle on the roads but my favorite place to ride is lower manhattan during rush hour. Head on a swivel and processor going full tilt boogie. Play it like a video game where everybody is out to get you and nobody follows the rules. Don't assume they see you or will stop. I'm not cool with the little wheels but the bigger wheels with at least 110 ccs and brakes that work and I'm good. I know it's got to be safer than in the states where almost nobody rides two wheels. At least in Coz they are used to seeing you.

Three things on the plus side. You can find parking anywhere. You feel a part of the local culture. Last but not least, when you take off from a light with a dozen other scooters with their bwap bwap engines all ripping, you can't help but laugh out loud.

It does seem a bit funny to hear the concern about scooter safety from a bunch of scuba divers that spend the rest of the time talking about DCS and other diving issues.

 

[ggunn]

It does seem a bit funny to hear the concern about scooter safety from a bunch of scuba divers that spend the rest of the time talking about DCS and other diving issues.

Diving is a whole lot safer.

 

[RayfromTX]

And yet there is no shortage of accident reports and on a participant basis..... I've been told that skydiving would be the death of me, cycling, mountain climbing, traveling in Mexico, scuba diving and now scooter driving. Heck I have one we keep parked in Coz for when we are there. The most dangerous thing I do is drive to work. What kills most poeple is cancer or a heart attack. I dropped 60 lbs, don't drink and ride my bike 5-10k miles a year. I'll take my chances on the scooter. I'm cautious on it and the miles per year will always be pretty low. I don't have dependent kids. We take our choices. I choose to avoid the heart hospital and take a few small risks elsewhere to enjoy my life. For many, that would not be the right decision. Cheers

 

[drrich2]

It seems like there is a serious accident on mopeds here everyday and most of them are tourists (many dead this year alone). So even with a strapped helmet I highly discourage any of our guests from renting mopeds.

We get a report somebody dies scuba diving at some destination (e.g.: Grand Cayman), sometimes it triggers questions about whether there should be stricter regulation, whether people should be fitter to dive, etc...

Yet sounds like moped wrecks are whacking people right and left, mopeds are considered dangerous by some, and...all I see in this thread, at least, are calls for personal responsibility and caution. Interesting.

 

[JamesBon92007]

I was checking out the prices of "motorcycles" at Chedraui a few weeks ago and was amazed at how cheap they are. I've driven a lot of different things in my life but I don't think any of them qualifies me for riding on Cozumel. There are 100K people in San Miguel and sometimes it seems like they all have a car and are driving at the same time in a big hurry to get to some place you can probably walk to in 20 minutes. When riding in a car or taxi I am amazed at how the drivers anticipate each other and avoid collisions. But they do, and I figure I can learn too. Plus it might be easier on a bike than in a car but I think I'd prefer something with a little bit better response than a moped. Besides that, I figure it's probably safer than crossing most of the streets at a corner while walking. I tend to jay-walk whenever possible.

 

[RayfromTX]

I think walking is about as dangerous as riding a scooter and yes, anticipation is the key to staying alive on a scooter and I find my mind is in gear more while operating one than it tends to be when walking.

 

[Dave Dillehay]

For those who don't don't drive around mopeds or motorcycles, you ought to be aware that most car drivers just don't see people on motorcycles or mopeds. I have done that myself many times…pulling out in front of a moped, or in the States a motorcycle. I think there is some thing ingrained in our brains to not see a morto as a threat and not even see them as a threat to our cars. It may not be right but that is the way it is.

Recently, the improved economics in Cozumel have allowed many more people to buy not just mopeds but more powerful and fast motorcycles. Indeed, the practice has been for them to go as fast as they can, passing left, passing right, and endangering themselves immensely. Indeed I am very afraid every day that I am going to squash one. The stupid thing is that if that happens, the car is at fault and the driver may end up in jail with great consequences.

I wish to work with the government here to sort these thing out and will do my best as a citizen of Cozumel but I don't know how they will change the ingrained macho like attitude of the Moped drivers. Maybe a few more deaths may convince them.

Dave Dillehay

Aldora Divers

 

[ggunn]

I think walking is about as dangerous as riding a scooter and yes, anticipation is the key to staying alive on a scooter and I find my mind is in gear more while operating one than it tends to be when walking.

Whatever floats yer boat. I'll dive but I wont ride a moped. I did a few times without hurting myself but I had a few scary moments, and I watched my brother launch one into a ditch and end up in the emergency room. Scootering around Cozumel might be great for you but I think for the majority of us who don't ride them regularly and who enjoy a beer or two on vacation it's not such a good idea.

 

[gopbroek]

I to have watched to many injuries on scooters. Even if you do everything right your can still loose a loved one like my friend Miguel who's wife was murdered by a repeat, but politically connected, drunk who still drives today. You simply have no protection on a scooter. The other big factor is the road conditions, most roads are batched mixed concrete with no consistency on the surface. Near the waterfront on Melgar downtown, for artistic effect, the surface was floated and stamped then sealed. This makes it very slick.

 

[ggunn]

I to have watched to many injuries on scooters. Even if you do everything right your can still loose a loved one like my friend Miguel who's wife was murdered by a repeat, but politically connected, drunk who still drives today. You simply have no protection on a scooter. The other big factor is the road conditions, most roads are batched mixed concrete with no consistency on the surface. Near the waterfront on Melgar downtown, for artistic effect, the surface was floated and stamped then sealed. This makes it very slick.

Patches of sand on the pavement can really affect your steering, too, with those little wheels. You don't see that so much in town, but over on the east side they are everywhere.