So I'm gettin a quote here from Progressive trying to insure my 05 savage, and I'm wondering, should I get some hospital coverage.

I have 1) No Money     2) No health insurance.
This creates a dilemma.  For just minimal coverage it's 100 bucks a year, no personal injury coverage.  That sounds wonderful.

With a 5000 dollar hospital coverage, it's 351 bucks a year.  That's quite a bit more that I can't really afford to get, but if I were to wreck and break my arm or something, I DEFINITELY couldn't pay hospital bills then.

Usually I just risk it with stuff like this - but many people have told me that I should expect to go down at least once on my bike, and I'll most likely have my wife on the back, because she's usually riding with me.

When people get hurt in motorcycle wrecks, is it stuff like broken arms that a 5000 hospital coverage would help?  Or is it one of those things where it's either scratches or death? (in which case the 5000 won't likely put a dent in the hospital bill).

I'm more hardpressed for cash than I have been before, so should I risk it and hope for no wrecks or little wrecks?  I'm kind of at a point where I have to chose hospital coverage or helmet, because I can only afford one.

(P.S.  this is my second day to drive a motorcycle, so I'm in the learning process)

$5000.00 medical will just START to cover the medical bills if you wreck your bike, Josh.

For an in-and-out broken arm or road rash, you'll be covered (quick trip to the emergency room where you or someone can drive you.)  If its more serious and requires ambulatory care, the ambulance trip alone will set you back $1000.00.  Anything that would require surgery, specialized care or a stay in the hospital and your $5000.00 coverage will be used and not even begin to pay the rest of the bills.

Riding a bike is a calculated risk.  Riding a bike without any kind of medical coverage is just asking for trouble......

I'd look for more insurance, I help run the Orhopaedic ward at the hospital, $5000 would just be a drop for most bkie wrecks we get. YOu figure broken leg, xrays, Er, Or, post-op, 2-3 days stay, labs, etc it could easily be $30,000. I don't have inurance on the bike, but its only a $4000 bike, but I have major medical through work. Check at few more places like Gico or something but if $5000 is ally you can get it could help you from going to the poor house. Good luck and be safe and ride like everyone has a death wiah for ya

Do you have health insurance?  Wouldn't this also cover you in the event of a wreck?  Also, do you own your own home?  Have the Homestead Act?  These are things you might want to think about.

$100 a year is incredible.  Ours is $300/yr for one bike with only bare minimum coverage..no liability.  

You definately need two helmets. That said, you definately need health insurance. You're risking too much at this point; and being a new rider, the odds are not in your favor. If you're unable to afford helmets, it's doubtful you have the proper riding gear either. The bike is already purchased, or I'd be recommending you wait on the bike altogether.

If this is a primary transport for you, I would recommend a second or third job in order to get the basic necessities of helmet, ride gear, and insurance covered. Do what you have to, but you've a family now. You have to think of them (her). Take a job, any job, that has health insurance. Even if it sucks. Ask family or friends for a loan or gift, in order to get the resources you need. Do whatever, short of anything immoral or illegal.

Shop around. I recently sold a riding suit on Ebay for a fraction of what it cost new, and it was in very good condition. DON'T buy from the stealership. Online has much better deals. Even some Walmarts sell helmets for around $60 - $80. Seek out motorcyclists in your area, who are safety minded, that can show you where to get the best deals locally, and maybe give you some tips on riding that may save you and your wife from serious injury, or worse. Get a MSF course as soon as possible.

I'm afraid you may have bitten off a bit more than you can chew, at this point. I'm not meaning this in a harsh way, but I am genuinely concerned for you and your wife's wellbeing. I have somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 years riding experience, and still have not taken my wife on the pillion because I don't feel experienced enough on this bike yet (I purchased it new in May). I wish you the best my freind.

Ok, like many others, I have wrecked one bike and I am a new rider....

I had a helmet, and I just bought a new one... There is a reason, I BROKE the first one in the wreck. My bike took at least $8000 in damage and they stopped counting as that was the used cost of another on their sales floor... That bike did not get fixed....

I had the squad show on the scene plus a hospital visit that night as "things still did not feel right..." I have a helmet, I have riding gear, and because I love my wife and kids, I have BOTH Health and Life insurance through my job.  $ 5000 did not touch the X-rays and the squad... Did I metion how EXTREMELY lucky I was to walk away with only a severe sprained wrist....

My wife and kids only touch my bike when it is turned off, and they will not ride on it with me for at least another year. Again, I love them too much to risk it.

Park the bike and do this right, buy the helmet one month, buy a jacket the next, boots the next, insurance on a monthly payment plan, leave the "better" half at home....

Don't make your first chance your only chance.

I chose the best insurance Geico was offering, covering everything including collision/theft. I think it's around $180.00 per year.

Inexpensive helmets here: http://ironhorsehelmets.com/motorcycle.htm. No excuses, you can get a full face for under $100 if you shop around. Apply for a credit card if you have to. As long as you have a job and no bad debts, you should be able to pull that off.

Next is leather everything; jacket, gloves and boots. When my girlfriend rides with me, she wears a leather jacket/helmet/boots regardless of how hot it is outside. It's actually one of my requirements for passengers.

Although I got my first street bike at 21 years old, some 27 years ago, I had a layoff of over 10 years before I got the Savage in March. My gf had to wait for a while to ride with me. Even now, I'll ride mostly on back roads with her, through farm land with very little traffic. Her life is in my hands. Should anything happen to her while she's a passenger on my bike, regardless of who's at fault, I would hate myself. Not to mention her brother, sister-in-law, little nephew, mother, father, aunts, uncles and cousins hating me also ....you get the idea.

Reality is that we can die at very slow speeds on a bike. Getting into an accident in a car, we have the protection of the cage around us. Going down on a bike our bodies get hit, and, we're usually lying on the road which can cause us to get run over to boot. It's a bloody mess.

How we react to potentially fatal situations take time. I've had a few already, and was lucky that I was riding alone. It takes a long time for our reactions to become second nature, and even then the outcome is a crapshoot. There's no worse feeling in the world than going down hard on a bike. The cost for medical treatment, as said, will break you if you don't have insurance.

Be responsible to yourself and your passenger. Take a state run course first and foremost, and heed the suggestions/comments here.

I just started  riding 2 months ago, and when I first was learning my hubby rode on the back and tried to help. I had a really hard time stopping and such, now that I am riding on my own I notice a huge differance, all that weight on back makes  riding the bike much more difficult.  I always  wear my jacket  with pads and a full face helmet.  Everyone on the bike  should wear a helmet.   also  there are  2 kinds  of  bike riders ..... those  who have  wrecked and those that are going too. get the best  insurance you can, and  drive safe, remember you can and most likely will get hurt.