I'm not going to bother trying to talk people out of riding like an ass. It's a waste of time. So read this instead. Here's why I will NEVER ride irresponsibly.
1. Carbondale, IL, 1990. A guy and his girlfriend were going down a large straight road at what was estimated around 105mph. What the rider forgot was there were speed bumps (and many warning signs) in place to slow down traffic due to large pedestrian traffic. The rider and his girlfriend were launched. He landed in the opposite lane and slid into the curb. Dead. She landed on her face but I hear she lived. Her face was mangled. It was a bloody, bloody scene.
2. Rockford, IL, 1996. I went to the store during work to get a bunch of stuff to us to grill on break. As I was leaving the store five riders had it wound up pretty high going past me at the stoplight. One rider was doing a wheelie at 75mph through a very busy intersection and skirting the white line. While the front wheel was up, he failed to see the minivan in the turn lane. He caved in the right half of the minivan to the back seat. I pulled over and got my gloves and first aid kit out but I knew what I was going to find. No helmet but it wouldn't have done any good. He was bleeding from the ears and mouth but was still alive. As his friends started to come back after noticing him missing it hit the fan. His friend freaked out on me. Said he was never going to ride again. Judging by the look on his face I'll bet he kept his word. An aside to all, stop rubbernecking. I went into traffic and kicked the door of a stopped car because he didn't notice the ambulance stopped behind him. It got worse. The guy's father happened to be driving by and saw his own son as a mangled mess before he died. I went back to work (in TV news) with blood on my pants and shoes and had to watch the story two more times that night.
3. My neighborhood, 2013. There is a one mile stretch of very tempting road next to my house. No stoplights, a clear view and a decent hill. I was in my backyard. when I heard some guy wind it up pretty good followed by silence. The sirens happened soon after. What happened was the guy didn't see the car stopped and was making a turn onto a side street. When he hit the car he hit it so hard it spun completely around. Helmet was attached to the side of the bike but it wouldn't have helped. The bike was split in two. This time the rider seriously hurt the passenger in the car, but both people in the car lived.
One near miss I had was when my family was returning from a day at the movies. We were doing the speed limit (45) and had just changed lanes at the top of a hill on a 4-land divided highway. No sooner had I completed the lane change two guys doing at least 100mph blew past me and just missing my driver's side door. That was especially scary because if I was still in the other lane, a whole lot of people would be dead. I'd also like to add the fact that my dad was t-boned on his motorcycle by a car who missed a stop sign. Leg crushed but survived. Some pretty bad scars though.
I get the adrenaline addiction. What I don't get is why it has to be acquired when it endangers innocent people no matter how careful you think you might be. Like I said, nothing I say will change the mind of a reckless rider, stupidity can't be reversed......neither can death.
Be safe.