Harry Hurt
(Photo: AMA)
He rode motorcycles all his life, and never crashed, but Harry Hurt's name will forever be associated with motorcycle crashes. Hurt died Nov. 29, it was reported yesterday, from a heart attack that was deemed a complication of back surgery a week earlier, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Hurt is known to motorcyclists everywhere as the principal investigator of the 1976-77 “Volume I: Technical Report, Motorcycle Accident Cause Factors and Identification of Countermeasures, January, 1981 - Final Report.” Hurt and his colleagues investigated 900 motorcycle crashes in Los Angeles, and, says the Chronicle, finding that "that speed was not a factor in most crashes; that helmets were effective in preventing brain injuries and deaths; and that two-thirds of motorcycle crashes involved cars and two-thirds of those accidents occurred when a car driver failed to see the motorcycle and violated the motorcyclist's right of way."
"Harry Hurt was an icon in the motorcycling community, and there's no doubt that his research prevented many motorcycle crashes and saved many lives," said Rob Dingman, president and CEO of the American Motorcyclist Association. "On a personal level, he was such a good friend to so many people. He will be missed greatly, and yet his legacy will live on and inspire all of us to achieve excellence."
A remembrance will be held in January in Hurt's honor at the Head Protection Research Laboratory that he created in Paramount, CA.
Comments
So sad to lose someone who did so much for us, I'm forever grateful for his work.
All motorcyclists owe a debt of gratitude to Harry Hurt and his Hurt Report.
Godspeed
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