On the apocalypse

[IR8D8R]

Guys,
  I have heard from colleagues abroad. This virus is bad. Worse than any flu since 1918. Don't ignore the warnings. Stay home or ride alone. The only thing that is going to solve this crisis is limiting human transmission.

In Italy the army is removing the bodies from hospitals because the morgues are overwhelmed. Thousands will be cremated en masse. I heard this from my friend in Pescara.

In Lebanon people are dropping dead in the street and the bodies are not collected because people are afraid to touch them. I heard this from my colleague in Amman, Jordan.

I'm non-political but our president is a fuc*ing moron and downplaying the potential consequences. The American public will not take this seriously until people they love die. I don't want that to happen to anyone.

I work in healthcare and I have contacts all over the world. The danger is greater than Fox news is telling you. Please stay home and ride this out. The time is NOW to remove yourself from everyone except family. Please. This is not a time for bravado. It is not overblown. The government is failing to act. The only hope is to isolate.

A senior physician I know told me that millions will die in the U.S. if something significant isn't done. Trump doesn't know a virus from his wife's asshole. I have a freezer full of meat, ammo, and 3 gallons of whiskey. I'm home for the next month. I HOPE YOU ALL WILL DO THE SAME. Let's stop this before it kills people we care for. STAY HOME. Going broke is better than being dead.

I spent a month on a ventilator in 1995 from serious pneumonia. Almost killed me. I was wasted, crazy, and gone for 2 years after. I lost 80 lbs in 3 weeks. My hospital bill was $249,000. This will do that to you. STAY HOME!!!!

IR8D8R

[SUPERTUNE]

Thanks for heads up Andrew!! I KNOW you will tell the truth and I know your worldwide connected with the line of work you do, very well heeded...Thank you.
Hope to see you again at Deals Gap in May.
Chuck

[IR8D8R]

Thanks Chuck.

Your support means a lot. I promise I am not a reactionary. Washington state is running near a 10% fatality rate. This is real. I live in a hick town in East Tennessee but I have friends who are in affected places who are really scared. Now they are saying that men are twice as likely to have acute cases. I wish Dakotagirl was here to fry us for that. RIP Heather. If you are over 50 you should worry.

I bet the Dragon is deserted. Maybe I will venture up there to see. I believe that riding alone is very safe. Just stay away from other people and keep it on the pipe.

IR8D8R

[85RZwade]

Thanks for the insight, Andrew. It's so hard to know what to believe watching the news at night, then driving in to work the next morning and seeing...nothing out of the ordinary. I live in a hick town in Washington, and besides the wife and kids being home from school things seem pretty normal. I work at a tractor dealership in a 3000 square-foot shop with 5 other techs, so there's plenty of distance between us, but...? 52 years old, male non-smoker with good lungs who's never seen anything like this.

[Hawaii-Mike]

Like Wade says.  I am truly worried for my parents, friends etc.  Today I went to Home Depot to meet a handyman and buy materials - many people are acting like there is nothing to worry about.

Look what's happening in Italy - 4,000 deaths with a population of 60 million.

Our (USA) population is around 330 million and we are unprepared for what is coming.  Let's protect ourselves, be safe.  Another thing to consider, be extra careful on your motorcycles, we don't want to go to the ER ever, and more so if the hospital is overflowing with sick people.

[Yamaha 179]

I too am concerned about the current flu situation.  Personally as well as nationally and internationally.  Personally because both my wife and I am in our eighties.  I am in very good health; my Doc says I'm in better health than most of her 40 year old patients, but Pat has  some underlying conditions and we have decided to isolate ourselves as much as possible to protect against infection.  Our political and broadcast news situation is difficult to take at face value, but I think it possible to have significant Covid-19 fatalities in a short period of time which might overload our medical system.  There were some 12,000 estimated deaths from swine flu between April 2009 and 2010 but the CDC cautions that the Covid-19 death rate will be higher and quicker without an anti-virus. 

We Americans generally just don't take care of ourselves, relying on corrective medicine rather than prevention.  You might have heard of the Georgia State Senator that had symptoms of the flu but still attended sessions of the legislature so he could vote on measures being presented.  What an idiot!  He represents me and he hasn't the sense to stay home when he is sick!  Dumb ass.  We all need to be smart, take care of ourselves, hope and pray for the best, and we will get through this.
Lyn Garland

[yaman]

i agree with all comments
part of the problem;
i was raised to do the right thing- and that is to provide for my family- even if it kills me
so it is very ,very hard to sit around and not provide-i think i am speaking for many when i say that

i also dont think staying inside my house will do anything against a thing that can travel the world- stay alive on some surfaces for who knows how long (the list is longer than my computers memery)
i dont believe there is any such thing as an antivirus- like the flu shot??!? is that an antivirus? , if so dont get your hopes up
if it is really as bad is what they say, it wont make a difference what WE do, many will die and some will live and the world will have to go on
all this hiding from doing anything is going to leave us with NOTHING when we are truly weak
hey get those damn farmers away from that food for 2 weeks!- bye bye food
in all fairness, i am an electrician and not a doctor so take it with a grain of salt
i did have to give up trusting the "health care industry" a few years back for many reasons but mostly because an industry has no concern for my GOOD health

[scully]

and you felt compelled to add politics in to it...

[pdxjim]

Many good points being made here, and I am relieved to hear that most of us are taking this VERY seriously.

One very valid point to make, that I don't believe has been mentioned yet, is that social distancing and isolation are SO important because a huge percentage of the infected are showing, and will show NO SYMPTOMS at all.  Do not, for a second, believe that because those around you (or you yourself) are not coughing or running a fever that you haven't been exposed.  The numbers here in the States are artificially low (by design) because we have almost no testing compared to other nations. 

As of this morning, there are 18,000+ confirmed cases in the US.  It is in every state, including DC, HI and AK.    In reality, that number is likely MUCH higher, as most aren't showing symptoms (yet or never will) and those who are are being told to stay home unless they are at death's door.

I will qualify all of this by saying, I typically have the most cavalier, "safety third" attitude possible, but this shit has me seriously spooked. 

Do whatever you can to stay healthy and stay out of the hospital, because, if you have been paying attention at all to the timelines and exponential growth and spread of Covid-19 in places like Italy, Iran, etc, then you know WE AIN'T SEEN NUTHIN' YET.  Your local hospital WILL be overwhelmed. 

Unfortunately, it looks like we are gonna be in this for the long haul.  Like many months (or longer).  Get out in the shop, garage, basement, shed or wherever you work on your bikes.  Post up lots of pics, listen to/make lots of music, get out in your garden, hold your family close and we'll get thru this together. 


(... and I have tried to keep politics out of this as I know that is Mark's wish, but I do believe the current Administration has blood on their hands for seriously fucking this up.  Putting personal profit, corporate bailouts, and re-election hopes over American lives is reprehensible and IMHO as good a definition of treason as any)

[Striker1423]

This too shall pass. Worry is waste and a huge mental drain on your personal well being.

That said as well, politics aside, the President has done plenty to inform the public about this. Folks ot ain't hard. Its not up to him to stop this spreading short of what he's already done, nor is it state and local governments job, its ours as everyday people. Any time the government steps in for anything its a shit show. Perhaps one day you might learn that.

Though in general people are retarded and tend to Panic! At the Costco... so there's that as well.

[m in sc]

just keep it civil and i have no issues. Interesting times for sure. 

[IR8D8R]

I have a friend who is a farmer up in Wisconsin. Dairy and corn. He isn't stopping tending his farm. They just aren't going to town.

He can plant and milk his cows without worry. Hopefully this will be over by the fall. They are prepared to limit contact for a month by staying home.

He says the truckers who deliver and take away can stay in their cabs and he doesn't need to have personal contact outside his family.

IR8D8R

[rd400canuck]

Hi guys,

I have been watching a doctor in the uk on youtube. He makes vids on it.. how to protect yourself etc.. he is non alarmist and sticks to facts and numbers.

Check him out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otl55TejBEE

[elliottles1]

dudes,

its not about "it will go around the world anyway so why......"
I am in Ireland, and watch the news from Italy every day. England and Ireland are next in line for the biggy.
today in Italy, who have been on lock-down for two weeks already.
5000 new cases in one day
790 deaths in one day
the army are overloaded with corpses on their way to the crem.
take it seriously.
Italy has the best medical care in Europe, Ireland the worst.
it is doubling here every three days.
that means that if you hospital system is at 50 percent one day, in three days it will be overloaded.

it is not about accepting it and riding it out, it is about spread the curve spike out so the medical system can cope over a longer period of time.

please stay safe and isolate.

best form of transport is the motorcycle, transport AND isolation!.

cheers folks
les

[thatguy]

I've decided to take 5 days off and reassess then. Certain things in my life cannot withstand dragging the virus into other's lives .The banks and such will have to wait for their money and deal with it. I am recovering financially from a rough couple years so WTF is a couple more? Just ain't worth it to me for a few bucks. I will venture out tomorrow and grab some cigars if the shop is open. Must have something to occupy my time with.