LOst a friend today and fellow rider today

Ironically I think the last post I have put up on ADV was the same senseless type of tragedy. Riders struck from behind.

http://www.nj.com/independentpress/index.ssf/2012/04/chatham_begins_to_deal_with_lo.html

I fondly recall Chuck calling me into the garage like a little kid showing me his new 100th anniversary Ultra that he had traded in his super glide for. He hid the upgrade from his wife. lol He had this awesome playful kiddish quality to him. He was the kind of guy you just instantly liked. For all she knew it was the same bike under the tarp in the corner.

I have no words for this loss and I pry that his wife Linda can find the strength to make it through this senseless senseless loss. RIP Chuck

Sad.

Whenever I come up on a suddenly stopped bunch of cars, I'll pull around them onto the shoulder or between them just so I don't become the meat in the sandwich...

Sorry for the loss of your chum, a fellow biker, someone's husband (and father as well perhaps).

A senseless way to pass.

Thoughts to his family.

So sorry to hear. Gods speed

Peace to you and peace to his family.

I hope in posting this tragedy someone else can learn and be saved from this situation.

One of my riding buddies says he never puts his bike in neutral at a stop, in case he needs to get out of someones way...

very sorry to hear- prayers with them

Sorry to read this.........condolences to the family.

Friends and Family will be in my prayers My condolences to everyone . Be safe...

A terrible tragedy. I hope that his family find the strength and comfort that they need both now and the sorrowful time ahead.
My condolences to all.
Brian Ward
Australia

Sorry to hear about your buddy's passing.

Never forget to tell your loved ones " I love you" EVERY time you leave the house.

Very sad...and a good tip I had never thought about.

Always sheild yourself, if posssible.
Use other masses to block.

Very, very sad.

Sorry to hear about your friend and a fellow rider,godspeed and prayers to his friends and family.Well said to who said always tell your loved ones ya love em everytime ya leave the house.Sad my brother hasnt grasped this concept yet even tho we lost both our folks.1 more word of advice I always keep a hand on the clutch,foot on the shifter right hand on the front brake and I keep an eye on my rearview mirrors in case some on gets close and I gotta take off from a stop even if its over the curb.I rather have a broken leg then be dead.IDK if this is uselfull advice but being proactive cant hurt.1 again sorry for your loss of your friend.

Why is the penalty for negligent homicide/vehicular homicide so low? It may be charged as a misdemeanor in some states, and may have county jail time, or prison time, or no incarceration, but never long enough to send a message to the next fool driving while drunk, or driving while phoning, or driving while day dreaming, or doing anything except paying attention to his driving.

The reason that the penalties are so "low" for negligent homicide is that it is not an intentional act of harm.

And do you really think the a person reading a newspaper article about someone else killing someone else, neither of whom they know, will have their behavior impacted one iota?

As for posters who think the rider may have been able to avoid this somehow: You don't ALWAYS have an out and sometimes a chain of events collapses around you. None of us were there or know all of the facts so it's impossible to judge whether or not the rider could have prevented this.

All we know for sure is that a good person was taken out and that his family and friends are suffering. Peace to all of them.

Thank you for posting. I am on a trip far way from home right now, and this gives me the somber reminder to stay vigilant.

Very sad indeed. A sobering reminder of how every time any of us leave the driveway on 2 wheels it's truly an ADV ride.
R.I.P. Chuck.

RIP Charles.

When I was in college I worked the parts counter for a Honda dealer. In those 2 years we had over a dozen customers or employees seriously injured or killed on motorcycles. Chances are excellent all of us will know at least one person in our lifetime that is killed on a motorcycle. Understand the risks and be as prepared as you can be. Sounds grim, but I have all the insurance and death\health related legal paperwork ready "just in case". Some days, I'll admit, the reality hits me pretty hard having lost a co-worker/good friend to a motorcycle/drunk driver accident, and I make a point to never ride when I feel like that.

Prayers for the family and friends left behind.