When my roommate purchased a motorcycle a few months ago, I logged onto Google and applied for email news alerts about his motorcycle brand. Instead of receiving news about investment possibilities for this company, I began to receive alerts about individuals who had been killed on that particular motorcycle. Most of the accidents involved another car and/or speeding, and not all of the motorcyclists were teenagers.

But my roommate has already been in an accident, one that left him in a weeklong coma during his late teens. Now he wears a full helmet, padded jacket, gloves, and pants, and any other gear that will soften the blow if he meets face-to-face with something more solid than his body. And, he's extremely critical about any motorcyclist who doesn't wear a helmet or other safety gear, as he feels that they're asking for a quick pass to the pearly gates.

As I listened to his complaints and began to observe motorcycle riders, I began to understand several things:

1. Younger motorcyclists aren't the only ones who go without safety gear. Whether the older motorcyclists have enough money to purchase the gear is unknown (I live in a state that doesn't require helmets when the motorcyclist is over 21, holds health insurance, and has driven motorcycles for over a year).
   
   
2. I've seen larger bikes more than I've seen the simple smaller motorcycles recently. Even female motorcyclists seem to be riding bikes that seem too large for them.
   
   
3. When I do see teens on motorcycles (and it isn't very often), they're usually driving smaller and older bikes.
   
   
4. Automobile drivers still remain unaware about how easily they can become the instigator in a motorcycle accident. Many times I've seen automobile drivers almost sideswipe a motorcyclist, or they stop right on top of a motorcycle bumper at a stoplight (of course, I've seen the reverse as well).

When I logged onto the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) site and downloaded their June 2006 Recent Trends in Fatal Motorcycle Crashes: An Update [PDF], I discovered that my observations weren't off the mark. In fact, what I learned was that motorcyclists in my area represent a microscopic version of the national average.

Between the statistics and the knowledge that my roommate had suffered from a multi-vehicle accident, I now know why he's so interested in safety gear. But, he's not alone. His little motorcycle 'group' carries similar sentiments, and those folks (all over age 39) are big into a market that I never knew existed. Color me astounded, because I had no idea that a vehicle with two wheels could generate so many investment ideas.

This market includes everything from safety products to jewelry. Some ideas for gear are borrowed from the U.S. army, like cooling vests that make hot-weather riding more pleasurable. Automotive companies that want to incorporate car-friendly items like airbags into motorcycles have generated more ideas about how to keep motorcyclists safe. Private interests want to include mini-airbags in clothing, so that the motorcyclist blows up like a doughboy once he's hit the pavement.

While some ideas seem impractical, the ideas that are gleaned from the military are the most interesting. For instance, while the cooling vest - an idea that has kept our military cool in a hot Baghdad - has become common, the idea that it might be cooled in the near future by small computer chips isn't that common. That chip deserves a further look.

Items that are geared toward a specific motorcycle brand are easy to recognize, as the brand is stamped on their items. Interestingly, I discovered that many motorcyclists aren't that loyal to a company's products once they've purchased that company's motorcycle. Cost is a factor, as well as unwillingness on the motorcyclist's part to be branded with a motorcycle name all over his or her body. Other items, such as the chip mentioned previously, requires a little research and patience to see who will profit from devices like this.

I doubt that Warren Buffet owns a motorcycle - but would he consider two-wheel vehicles and their accessories a good investment? The answer, I'm sure, would lie somewhere in that annual report. But, that report about motorcycle fatalities seems to provide solid proof that this industry has grown. After all, not all motorcyclists face the same fate as those individuals included in that report.

Until Next Week,
Linda Goin