Litre class superbikes, with their overwhelming power and breakneck acceleration, more often than not take up a big space in the fantasies of a true bike aficionado. While most petrol heads love this category of motorcycles to bits, there are others who think that the ludicrous amounts of power possessed by these machines are too hazardous for the real world. And while this topic has been hotly debated by speed junkies across the world for decades now, the upsurge in superbike crashes of late has taken the argument to an unprecedented level. What has added further fuel to the fire is the fact that global superbike makers are pushing the envelope every passing day, with the power output of their litre class offerings nudging or breaching the 200bhp mark.
The supercharged Ninja H2, Yamaha R1 M, Ninja ZX-10R and the dominant S1000RR are the leading liter class offerings, and all of them offer performance which is capable of showing the stairway to heaven (or hell) to a rider who’s not careful enough. Detractors of these hyperbikes argue that the power output and acceleration offered by these machines renders them unusable on public roads. The supporters, on the other hand reason that using any amount of power is ultimately in the hands of the rider.
Supporters of hi-performance superbikes feel that the idea of not having these exponents of epic performance on public roads is a prejudiced thought, as nobody raises finger at the ludicrously powered and priced Veyrons and the Venoms of the world. So why single out motorcycles? Against which, naysayers argue that cars are more stable, and thus, safer than motorcycles.
Now, riding any vehicle, superbike or otherwise, responsibly, is of paramount importance. Just because you have more power doesn’t mean you have to necessarily lay it down brazenly on public roads. A responsible rider will be safe even on a 300 bhp megabike. Conversely even a 50cc moped, when ridden irresponsibly may cause death and/or injury.
Some of the bikemakers want the new age two-wheeled rockets taken off the shelf though. In a recent interview, Stefan Pierer, CEO of KTM was heard talking on similar lines. The top man at KTM said that ‘if your Superbike is reaching 200 horsepower or more, it’s impossible to argue that it belongs on the street. It really doesn’t, anymore.’ Pierer has confirmed that KTM will phase out its RC8 superbike as soon as its track-only successor arrives.
At Motoroids, we really think that it’s not fair to take sides on this subject. Like in the case of most things associated with humans, there is nothing painted in black and white here. There are several perspectives to look at this topic from, and the resultant thoughts would invariably be different based on an individual’s philosophy and worldly view.
What we plan to do here, however, is to invite you, the readers, for an open debate on the subject. Is it the man or the machine that is responsible for the superbike crashes that we often witness on public roads? How much power is too much power? Would banning these power mongers make public roads any better? Would that stop the lunatics from putting their own and others’ lives in danger?
We really want to know your thoughts on the topic. Best comments and views will get featured on Motoroids with due credits to their authors. You can comment via the comment section below or on our Facebook post embedded immediately after the post.
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HOT DEBATE: Is banning hyperbikes a solution to mitigate road accidents? Some people agree, some don't. Do let us know…
Posted by Motoroids India on Thursday, 11 June 2015
The first question is, where are you talking about? India or abroad, and if so, which country exactly?
Banning them, in any country, would be a big mistake. That would only encourage sky high prices for second hand superbikes, because obviously you’ll ban new ones, not the old ones the public already has.
And what all will a government ban? A Ninja 300 can touch 180 kmph on some days.. A Duke 390 touches 100 kmph in around 6 seconds. Are these safe bikes? Yes of course. They are inherently not dangerous. They’re just non-tolerant towards careless or reckless riders.
If we even get into topic of banning, we’ll get into a lot of endless debate regarding what all bikes, supercars & trucks must be banned… isn’t it? Because Trucks kill people too, and quite graphically, at it.
Superbikes are good, if you can use them to the full, even if that happens rarely. Even going by crowded UK streets as an example, we need people to take initiative and stop purchasing superbikes, and get medium powered streetbikes instead, like FZ6, CB1000R, Ninja 650, etc.
There’s no point banning them hairdryers.
Moving ahead & talking about India, we might require a good licensing system first of all. We don’t want a repeat of the Azharuddin’s son & nephew’s accident. Or the Chennai incident.
The common riding license is given to commoners, some of whom have no idea what a superbike is.
So, how do we proceed in real world? Well, make a signable campaign on change creating sites. In the campaign, we must ask for stricter norms for a new Superbike license for India… Encourage people on sites, forums, and real life to sign the campaign, so that India can be secured, both from the rider’s and the pedestrian’s point of view.
Once the government takes notice, we will surely have a separate superbike licensing system, because for government this does equate to more income.
I believe this system would mean half the problem solved, because as we say in the community, half the motorcycle problems are caused by the nut that connects the handlebar to the saddle, i.e. the human brain.
Sort that out, and we’ll do good.
Banning superbikes is not the solution when you have the right to indulge in what your heart has set its desire upon.. neither can you exploit your indulgence to rip others safety n most importantly yours too.. the solutions from my point of view to prevent these accidents are:
1. separate license for under 500cc and performance machines
2.training prospective customers by the manufactures .. its difficult for the manufacturer to handle the burden … yeah.. they can include the training cost with the superbikes’ package … else certification from reputed superbike training schools should be made mandatory for purchasing these liter class machines
Well I would say these superbikes are certainly not made for everyone and every road. You indeed can argue how often do the riders use it’s full potential, but you cannot blame superbikes for fatalities. I am part of many superbiking clubs and I see these riders very strictly follow all safety precautions, none found in regular riders. I see lot of fatal regular motorcycle accidents in which generally riders are knocked down by large a truck/bus and run over. I really see lot of such cases and these do not involve any speeding at all. So motorcycle accidents are the result of indiscipline and irresponsibility – just human nature, you can’t change it. We can’t ban knives because it can kill humans, can we?
Make license levels, like in UK, where an applicant has to spend a minimum number of days in a level before advancing to the next level. For a purchase of a specific class of bike, the owner should possess a valid license of the bike in transaction. This will reduce the amount of brainless heavy wallets from getting their ass kicked by the tarmac. Make strict penalties like confiscation of vehicle for non-conformation of the requirements, cancellation of license and banning of applicant. In cases of accidents of such non conformants, if the rider is the accused, the insurance amount of the accused shall be given to the victim, entirely.
The government should also start training schools for motorcycles beyond certain capacities. Reduce license validity to 5 years.
Make commission basis for traffic officers. 50% of fines from them will be added to their salaries. This will also reduce the level of corruption. If the cop will benefit by fining, they will have no need for losing their dignity.
Does it seriously matter how much power one has..? Any amount of power is too much power if you cant control..Lunatics drive splendor and still die..
And siding with cars isn’t right.. Cars may be safer.. But crashing at excess of 350 kmph no amount of carbon, magnesium, titanium or any other ium going to stop you from bein literally red paint on the road for half a mile.. Not to mention cars (just like bikes) can hit other people.. And they too are in danger.. Infact much more than when a bike it about to hit them as supercars weigh in excess of 1.4 tonnes.. It will be nothing short of a comet hitting you at that speed..