A deadly highway    

I was shown a video of a terrible accident between what I assume is a pickup truck and a motorcycle with two riders. The occupant of the truck was filming along the Marilaque highway when upon negotiating a curve, the motorcycle overshot its lane and hit the side of the truck, the force being strong enough to spin the truck. The next video shows both riders lying on the bloodstained road. I was told the riders were a married couple and vloggers. Both died because of their injuries sustained in the accident. They had four children. How tragic and sad. Just like that, their children became orphans. I pray they are cared for by their relatives.

The presence of a video of the accident is a boost to the defense of the truck. They were within their lane while the motorcycle overshot its lane. Internet experts will surely weigh in on this unfortunate event, blaming one party or the other. The video should be enough to determine culpability.

I understand the woman rider was a well-known motorcycle vlogger. The Marilaque highway is no stranger to riders from Metro Manila and adjoining areas. The slightly banked curves offer riders to bank their motorcycles just like professional racers do. And that’s the problem. I have been shown videos of riders steeply banking their motorcycles and even dragging their knee and hand over the road as they negotiate a banked curve. All this is done at a substantial speed. I assume those who do this have put in their hours of practice to be able to perform this maneuver. Other bike enthusiasts gather at the side of the road to see who can do the maneuver.

The Marilaque highway is also no stranger to accidents, some fatal. Because of the crowd gathered at the side of these curves, some try to show off, even if their techniques are sorely lacking. They end up sliding into the crowd, while the more unfortunate end up crossing into the oncoming lane. You get the picture if a vehicle happens to be there at that point, turning Marilaque into a deadly highway.

Authorities should act on these dangerous practices. The public national highway is not the place to show off, practice, or throw away all safety measures and actions while riding a motorcycle. It is not a racetrack. I was shown a video where a police officer stood in the middle of the road to discourage these wannabe racers. But there are so many banked curves along the national highway. The PNP cannot cover them all.

Still, if a crowd gathers beside a commonly used curve, then authorities should break them up and tell to leave. No audience, no showing off. And let’s face it, there are so many “kamote” riders out there who think all it takes to drive a motorcycle is being able to balance when in fact there is a whole lot of physics that plays out. As this unfortunate accident has shown, even seasoned riders are subject to the laws of physics once they ride a motorcycle. A miscalculation may have occurred causing them to slam into the truck. A rider friend told me about the saying “Never ride beyond your means.”