US Forces train riders

United States armed forces are looking at new rider training for serviceman following recently released figures showing there has been more than 100 soldiers killed in the past year on motorcycles.

Of the four branches of the US military – the Air Force, the Army, the Marines and the Navy have all suffered heavy losses totalling 109 killed on road bikes. Only the Air Force has seen a reduction in those killed after implementing new clubs and rider training courses.

Dr. Ray Shelton, a director at the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress in New York, suggests returning combat veterans wait four to eight weeks before jumping on a bike.

Those who survived roadside bombs and insurgent bullets often come home feeling invulnerable. “If they carry that thinking into the civilian world, they’ll ride into a truck,” says Shelton, a biker for 35 years.
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All but seven of the accidents involved sportsbikes – the remaining seven were Harley-Davidson riders.

The spate of accidents is being blamed on serviceman returning from fighting in Afganistan and Iraq with lots of money and little or no training on bikes.