Motorcycles and Personal Safety

All of us here at Hybrid Fitness share many common interests and enjoy many of the same recreational activities. Besides the obvious passion for cultivating a balanced, healthy, lifestyle all three of us have a long standing interest in marital arts, personal protection and developing good people safety skills. Oh yeah, I almost forgot, we are all motorcycle enthusiasts.

Now, you might wonder what riding a motorcycle has to do with health, fitness, or personal safety. Well, I’ll tell you. When riding a motorcycle you must learn to be hyper-vigilant. You can not afford to ever go on auto-pilot. Being physically fit, well fed and well hydrated all add to the ability of a person to be agile, alert and aware. These qualities are some that are worth cultivating at all times in our lives, not just when operating motor vehicles.

There is an acronym I use when I ride my motorcycle which I feel readily applies to moving through the world safely, regardless of our mode of transport. It is S.E.E.

S.E.E. Stands for:

S. Search around you for potential hazards

E. Evaluate any possible hazards.

E. Execute the proper action to avoid the hazard.

Let’s break it down a little. The first letter is “S” which stands for SEARCH. While out walking you should always remain actively aware of your surroundings. This means to notice other people as well as places where someone might easily conceal themselves along your chosen route. You could even go as far as noticing cracks in the sidewalk or uneven pavement so as to avoid an unwanted spill.

You can take this a step further by looking at your life ahead of time. This is where the first “E” comes in to play, Evaluate. Begin by thinking about the places you visit on a regular basis. Are there safer choices you could make en route to the bank or while out for an evening jog? Where is safety? If I had a problem, how would I resolve it in this environment?

Finally we need to be ready and able to “E” Execute our plan when needed. This may be something simple like crossing the street when we feel uncomfortable while out walking alone; or it could be something more intense like setting a firm verbal boundary or actually physically defending ourselves.

Now, don’t get all nervous and crazy just because I brought all of this to your attention. As my friend Tony Blauer says “there is a difference between being paranoid and being prepared”. The S.E.E. model is just one of many useful personal safety strategies. Tony Blauer teaches the “three D’s” Detect, Diffuse, Defend. At Kidpower we teach the concepts of be aware, take charge and get help.

If you have ever wondered how you might handle an emergency situation or worried about the safety and welfare of those closest to you perhaps it is time you took action and stopped just thinking about it.

Remember all of us here at Hybrid Fitness are dedicated to spreading the word of health, fitness and wellness and this includes having good people safety skills.

Remember to go to Hybrid Fitness and register your name and email address on the sign-in box.  We’ll keep you up to date on what’s happening…stuff you won’t want to miss!  It looks like this:

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For tips and ideas about people safety and info about where you might take a course yourself click on the link below.

Kidpower-Teenpower-Fullpower International

 Liam “TAKU” Bauer is a certified instructor of Kidpower Teenpower Fullpower International, a nonprofit organization that has brought “People Safety” skills to over a million children, teenagers, and adults, including those with disabilities,  and people from many different cultures around the world.