Medical professionals urge safety gear as motorcycle crashes increase WSOC TV [Video]

YORK, S.C. — Lloyd Blythe has been riding his motorcycle since the 1970s, and he knows firsthand the risk that comes with it.

“If you’re on a motorcycle, this old saying is, ‘It’s not a question of if you will crash, it’s when you will crash,’” Blythe said.

Blythe crashed two years ago, but he was wearing his full gear — without it, he says his injuries could’ve been worse.

“I had four broken ribs, three of which were out of place, one of which had punctured my left-side lung,” Blythe told Channel 9′s Almiya White in York, South Carolina.

But not every motorcycle rider takes the steps to protect themselves.

“These are not easy to get on, and this is why people don’t want to wear them,” Blythe said.

“We’ve seen an increase in our motorcycle accidents in our community over the summer,” said Chelsea Sutton, the trauma program …