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Safety tips for National Motorcycle Safety Month

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WISH) – May is National Motorcycle Safety month.

Motorcycles are able to drive much faster than you can and they’re much smaller. Which means the potential for danger is even higher when they hit the road.

Here is a very sobering statistic for you: Someone who rides a motorcycle is 26 times more likely to die in a crash than someone in a passenger car.

It’s the reason Harley Davidson want you to know exactly what you’re doing before you take off.

You could say Stephanie Crowe, the manager at the Wabash Valley Harley-Davidson, has motorcycling in her blood. She’s seen her share of riders and she’s been around her share of accidents.

“I’ve visited customers in the hospital that have had shattered toes, you know, head trauma because of no helmets and things like that,” Crowe said.

That’s why Stephanie and her store are offering a new course for new riders.

It’s an academy with Bill Myers, a former Indiana State Police Trooper, as the instructor.

“You’re a smaller object out there,” Myers said. “People are used to seeing trucks and cars, but in a motorcycle whether you got your lights on or not, you’re still a smaller target, and you’re not protected by all the metal that you are in a vehicle.”

And the numbers agree.

In 2012, 5,000 motorcyclists died in crashes. That’s why they’re stressing safety with things like the right gear, helmets and awareness.

“You mean something to someone regardless, and so if you go out there and you are in an accident or something happens to you, everybody cares,” Crowe said.

Making the right moves, and possibly saving lives, even before they even hit the road.

For more information on the academy provided by Wabash Valley Harley-Davidson, contact Bill Myers at (812) 232-7821 and you can check out their website.