If you ride sober, slower, and with full gear, generally (as I recall from when I did the math years back) the statistical risk is about the same as being a pedestrian in terms of mortality.

Do you fear walking down the street? If not, you shouldn’t fear responsible motorcycling.

I also personally, anecdotally believe that the risk is overblown and romanticized. Is it more dangerous than cars? Yeah. Is it a death sentence to hop on? No. There are many more risky things most people do than a geared and educated motorcyclist riding attentively.

A lot of the accident statistics are people who drink, speed, don’t take the course, aren’t wearing gear, or ride beyond their ability. Anecdotally again, the people I know who get hurt are the people who don’t wear gear JUST THIS ONCE (meaning occasionally), the people who think they aren’t speeding but do, and the people who hop on after prolonged breaks without brushing up.

With all that said, it’s not if, but when, on the crash. You will lay the bike down. And most accidents, I am told, happen just when you start feeling able, a few years in.

And if you’re the kind of person who can’t naturally pay attention and well, which most people know about themselves, I’d choose another hobby.

But me? I was scared too. Then I got my bike, and wish I had fifteen years ago. I’ll never get those years back. Life is short. Live.

I broke my toe two years back on my bike, a stupid little dumb drop I could have avoided. My first thought was "Is the bike okay?" Because fuck my foot, my joy is there on two wheels.

Good luck making a safe and wise decision.