A recent evening out with new friends prompted a conversation about riding motorbikes in Thailand. Chris and I share a bike but he’s the driver and I always ride pillion. Always. I don’t drive a motorbike in Thailand and probably never will, but I have my reasons why.
Anyone who knows me knows that I’m not a risk taker. I’d also go so far to say I’m a safety nut. I’m that woman who won’t go skydiving and I can’t be bothered to gamble. That’s because I won’t do something if I know the chances of me getting hurt, losing money, or experiencing negative consequences are high.
So boring, I know.
With that said, I made the conscious decision not to drive a motorbike after Chris and I moved to Thailand. That was nearly three years ago and I still don’t know how to drive one. Sure, I miss my independence that I used to have when I drove a car. I’m also regularly inconvenienced by the time I waste walking or trying to hail a songthaew, but I have my reasons.
Like I like living.
I have a not-so-great track record
Let’s just say I’ve gotten in a few accidents in my good ol’ driving days back in the USA. I was very lucky that in most of the accidents the damage was done solely to my vehicle. None of my accidents injured anyone, myself included.
Silly things, like the one time the light turned green and I started to go (because that’s what you’re supposed to do) but the car in front of me didn’t.
Or that other time I was actively avoiding a collision with someone else and ended up causing another accident in the process.
I admit that I can get distracted easily. Since riding a motorbike requires a superhuman level of concentration to avoid and prevent accidents, I’d be a big, fat FAILURE.
I’m not confident in my motorcycle driving ability
I learned how to ride a horse by getting on its back and holding on. But that is not how I want to learn how to ride a motorbike.
I guess any beginner lacks confidence. Arguably confidence grows with practice. I’ve tried riding a motorbike twice and as soon as I hopped on the seat I was ready to get off. The motorbike was heavy and wobbly. When I reflexively put my foot down to stable myself while practicing turns and making u-turns, my leg got yanked back. Ouch! The alternative was to not put my foot down and therefore topple over sideways and scrape up the rental and one side of my body. It was pretty much a lose-lose situation and not fun at all.
Plus unlike a bicycle, if I was riding a motorbike and it fell over (god forbid ON me), would I be strong enough to pick it up? If can’t physically manhandle the motorbike then I have no business riding it.
I think my biggest heartache is the throttle. Why on earth would someone design the throttle to fail-safe in the accelerating position!? Having to pull the throttle back to go is the reason countless “superman” accidents happen. SMH.
Why doesn’t the throttle require a forward push to accelerate? Or a sensitive throttle thumb control? I’d be so much more confident knowing that I wouldn’t accidentally rev the engine as I straddled the bike and take off flying. Because that’s exactly what I want to do in life: have the bike yank me around and cause me to tear a ligament in my knee or something. We know someone who that happened to!
I get one chance to counter steer properly, prevent myself from stalling, or successfully dodge potholes – one chance – or else I crash. If you ask me, those are some pretty lousy statistics.
I’m not ready to accept the consequences of an accident
I live close to a major clinic in Chiang Mai’s Old City. I’ve seen my fair share of tourists (although a few Thai people, too) painfully limping around with bright white bandages on their ankles, knees, and elbows.
As a beginner driver, I am not ready to accept the consequences of my sub-par driving skills. Displaying purple, disfiguring road rash for several years is not on my bucket list. Or, say, having a limp or an ache that never ever goes away. Nope, no thank you. I’m thirty years old, have never broken a bone, and wish to keep it that way.
That’s not to say Chris’s driving skills will keep us completely out of harm’s way because there are still crazy drivers out there. But he’s definitely a much safer, more experienced driver than I am. That would lessen the chance of us getting into an accident. At least when I’m a passenger, I trust Chris to handle situations far better than I can. He’s taken a week-long motorcycle safety course. Plus, he’s had several years of experience driving motorcycles in the USA before coming to Thailand.
As a motorbike driver, I’d hold the heavy weight of responsibility in my hands, too. Beginners are high-risk drivers. If I were to hurt someone, I wouldn’t be ready for the consequences of dealing with a legal battle if it came to that. Especially in a foreign country!
It will always be my fault
At least in the USA, if you get in an accident the person at fault is usually correctly blamed. But in Thailand, all I’ve ever read on forums and heard from other people sharing their experiences is that the foreigner is always to blame for causing the accident. Some hodgepodge about “if the foreigner wasn’t in Thailand, the accident would have never happened.”
Sure, if I cause an accident I have enough integrity to accept the blame. However, if I didn’t cause an accident and got slapped with the blame and bill, I would see red.
I am a person who accepts responsibility and consequences of my own actions. Therefore, I expect the same if someone else were to hit me. Unfortunately, as the foreigner, I am slapped with the label that I have more money. Often in Thai society, that’s the person who automatically is responsible for paying for an accident, regardless of who’s at fault.
I can’t wrap my head around it and I refuse to play that game.
Hit and runs scare me
If I were to get into an accident, I wouldn’t trust whatever Thai person or random tourist that hit me to call for help if no one else was around! That’s because it’s not common to be penalized for leaving the scene of an accident.
The thought of paying a huge medical bill or replacing a motorbike out-of-pocket can easily convince someone to flee the scene of an accident. And how many tourists do you think have a cell phone with a functioning Thai SIM card before they go zipping around on Thailand’s roads? I know I didn’t invest in a SIM card when I was on vacation in Thailand in 2012.
I don’t want to be riding around by myself and something happens where I’m left alone, bleeding and broken on the side of the road. At least if I’m riding with Chris, he’s there with me. There’s the chance that one of us isn’t knocked out and physically capable of calling the police or functional enough to help the other person.
I don’t drive a motorbike in Thailand and may never do it.
Maybe I’m being too cautious and should really give driving a motorbike another try. But at the end of the day, I know my limitations. It’s more important for me to be a functional human being than some vegetable hooked up in a hospital somewhere.
There may come a time that I work up my courage to drive a motorbike in Thailand. For now, I’m content with sitting behind Chris on a bike. At least he’s an awesome driver!
Would you drive a motorbike in Thailand without prior experience?
PIN IT FOR LATER!
I ride motorcycles in Australia and fairly good with the Honda VFR but I don’t ride in Bangkok as it’s too many traffic but tried it in Pattaya only a few times thinking there was a peak times but found out there is no such thing always busy so left the bike at the Condo as it was easier and less hassle with paying the songthaew instead. In Bangkok easy with the BTS then on foot and Chang Mai on foot from Hotel M with the Sunday night markets next door and nice walk from there to the other night… Read more »
We’d never ride in Bangkok! We end up either using taxis or staying near the BTS. If you’re staying right by ThaPhae gate and do most of your shopping/eating/activities within the city, there’s not much reason to have a bike. It’s a great spot to get a songthaew, that’s for sure.
Drinking and driving – never a good combination! It is sad to hear that your friend had to learn from a hard, expensive lesson not to do that.
I tried riding ONCE when I was in Krabi and only because my friends had rented two bikes and I had to take one back (for another friend who was to hungover to get up). Anyways, I was able to ride it fine on wide roads but when I had to Uturn, I had trouble with the throttle. Worst was when we were just returning the bike…for some reason, I accelerated RIGHT at the shop and almost hit all the other bikes that were parked there. My friend said Shayan, never ride a bike…and since then I never have. But… Read more »
Of all places to nearly have an accident… yikes! We’ve actually seen that happen before and the driver ended up knocking over four or five bikes that were parked in a line. It’s a tough decision but it’s better to keep yourself and your wife safe :/
It’s nice to see that you don’t ride if you don’t have the confidence,too many inexperienced motorbike riders get hurt in Thailand. Great blog guys
Perhaps the pressure to sightsee and “not get ripped off by local taxis” gives people the courage. That and so many guidebooks and travel bloggers say, “Things to do in Thailand: Rent a motorbike” that visitors don’t realize the difficulty until it’s too late.
I always don’t trust the skills of the driver of incoming vehicle. Even we are experienced and safe riders, one stupid driver can drag us to trouble on the road.
The worst is when they are coming at us in OUR lane! It drives me bonkers seeing drivers so casually cross over the double line to pass cars, and yet they have no intention of yielding to us.. who are in our correct lane!
I’m still with you on this one Angela! Hopefully when we get back up to Chiang Mai you can show me all the best walking routes :-)
If you live in or just outside the Old City it is totally possible to live in town without a bike. Songthaews are plentiful and walking isn’t too bad in some areas (although others are severely lacking in decent sidewalks!)
Thanks for this article! We will be traveling to Thailand for three months starting in October and I just assumed we’d rent motorbikes while there. My stepmother is Thai and my father (American) refused to drive in Thailand when they lived there, but I always assumed he was being “an old fuddy duddy.” He stated a lot of the same reasons as you, but hearing it now from multiple sources, I think we will stick with public transportation.
LOL! Now you see what he means! If you aren’t comfortable, then by all means just stick with the songthaews.
its scary to drive a bike in thailand because drivers can be reckless and there isnt much of a rule. i only ride in slow pace no traffic roads.
The lack of rules is what irks me. I have no chance in predicting what someone will do at say, a T-intersection. Gah! That’s when you wobble right into someone!
yes its like a video game on a motorbike here, but I love riding mine here in CM, and feel safer than riding mine in the states. My Thai wife has a car and just hate driving around town in it as the traffic is so bad and on the MB can get thru so much quicker, that said driving a MB here is not for the faint of heart and if you dont need to, then no reason to do. Safe ride.
“Frogger” comes to mind! A car in the city is ridiculous, but I would be confident to drive a car if we lived in the country. No reason for me to drive a motorbike if I have Chris :)
Hey Angela….loved reading your post and am so on your same page. We are heading to Thailand very soon on a permanent basis and I have full faith in hubby’s (already proven) riding abilities. He has ridden bikes since he was a 5 year old and is very confident. But….it is the others that freak me out. Like you mentioned, the unpredictables…pulling out in front of you..cutting you off…turning in front of you…drunk drivers…under age drivers etc etc. For me, I would also be way too anxious of all the other drivers, to enjoy my ride and I would definitely… Read more »
We’re both lucky to have a hubby who we can trust to be the driver. I may still learn to ride someday (an important skill, like learning to drive a clutch in case of an emergency) and to help overcome my fear. Just gotta get up the courage!
I am originally a Southern California girl and have always loved to drive. I resolved never to drive any vehicle in Bangkok – ever – the first time I went there in 1979. Believe it or not, it is a little saner now than it was then, but I still won’t drive. Same thing for Pattaya, Chieng Mai, and the larger provincial capitols. When I was living in a village in Sisaket, I rode a bike, but never into town – songteaw for me. I love driving, but in Thailand I have to avoid focusing on what is happening in… Read more »
I’m thankful I have enough options in Chiang Mai’s Old City. If I was stuck out in the boonies somewhere I would have learned to ride by now or at least bought a tiny car so that I’d be sane! (There’s no sense in owning a car living so close to the moat, it only adds to the congestion.) Chris won’t even ride a motorbike in Bangkok. Tooooo crazy!
I got to Thailand two weeks ago with the full intention of renting a bike when I got up north. After watching the (lack of) traffic patterns for the past couple weeks, I’ve done a 360. I feel the same as you, just not worth the risk. I don’t have the proper experience and would be nothing but a hazard on the road.
I feel I would just be a hazard, too!
I wouldn’t even ride a motorcycle taxi. But how about a car? You know 8 miles from home vloggers have a car (albeit a very old one) and they seem to cover a lot of distance in Thailand and so far they seem accidents and trouble free. Today I saw a farang on scooter without helmet (both the driver and a passenger) going oncoming traffic Thai style over center line when they got caught in traffic (as a four wheels vehicle driver I really find them annoying coming my way expecting me that they have the right of the way).… Read more »
We’ve done a road trip with them! It was so interesting to be in a car after a year or so riding on a bike – no helmet hair, no sunburn, no shouting at each other to be heard… oh and the music!
The motorbike taxi’s in Bangkok intrigue me, although I’d have to carry around my helmet with me everywhere I went!
Good article Angela, but it all seems to be about your ability (or lack thereof) and very little mention of the idiots on the roads here. It is dangerous riding here, whether experienced or not. Like Chris, I’m a bike rider from my home country, but it still concerns me riding bikes around LOS. The concentration required is full on as anything can and will happen. I see tourists/expats riding around all the time without helmets and a few drinks under their belts. Not sure what they are thinking, but I did have a giggle when you mentioned the white… Read more »
Great word choice: “Bandage brigade”! I had never driven a motorbike before coming to Thailand, let alone ride on the back of one. The first week was composed entirely of me having a death grip around Chris’s waist and poking him in the ribs when he went too fast or between two cars stopped in traffic (My knees! My knees!). Looking back on it, poking him in the ribs is not safe, but I was terrified! We’ve had a few close calls. Twice when we were about to make a right into a shop on a straight road (so had… Read more »
Would I drive a motorbike in Thailand? Absolutely not. For me, the risks seem to consistently outweigh the benefits, no matter which way I look at it. I’ve been in Chiang Mai for nearly six months and have no trouble getting around on my bicycle or by songthaew. I don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything by not biking – even if I decided to rent a bike, I would be far too anxious to enjoy it. I always hear tragic news about foreigners getting into accidents (including an awful report today) and I imagine it’s the same for… Read more »
You’re welcome. I’d be too anxious, too. I’m afraid that my fear of getting into an accident would cause me be flighty and overreact, thus prompting an accident that a calm, confident driver would be totally able avoid. Just not worth it for now.
You definitely have your reasons Angela. Thanks for writing an excellent and candid report. I’ve been here two months and I also had many years of motorcycle experience in the US, but I still haven’t ridden a scooter or motorcycle here in Thailand yet. The driving here, both the drunk driving and simply incompetent driving frankly scares me. I’m in CM now, but maybe that will change when I get to Cha Am in a few weeks. I hope so, just for the convenience for my wife and I.
The unpredictability gets me! Since no one really follows rules, it a lot harder to anticipate where another motorcyclist is going to turn or give right away. Maybe in the country beachside with less people you’ll have more confidence.
I’m right there with you on this one and for almost all the same reasons. My little sis on the other hand handled her scooter like a pro when she came to visit us last fall. I’ll admit I was a little jealous, but I think being the b*tch on the back has a lot of perks.
I’d be a bit jealous too, but I’m with you on riding on back!