Accidents & Offs - What happened to you?

[Laminar]

hmmm

  Great post. A worthwhile contribution full of valid technical info and interesting anecdotes.

[Stitch919]

well that was just my fill in as i contemplated whether what i would say is considered thread jacking or not. as this is what i would have said....

1st off you will come to realize that a street bike and dirt bike handle completely differently. i too grew up on dirt bikes and just got my 750 about 5 years ago and im still learning. 2nd as a dirt biker you should know that generally where you look is where bike and body follow(picking lines in a corner). 3rd something i have learned making the transistion is you can look at something a bit longer on a dirt bike than you can on a street bike, and with a street bike i personally take lots of little glances at something that catches my attention. and finally you may wanna check your suspension.

so i didnt wanna turn it away from the initial thread.

[11dhansen]

well that was just my fill in as i contemplated whether what i would say is considered thread jacking or not. as this is what i would have said....

1st off you will come to realize that a street bike and dirt bike handle completely differently. i too grew up on dirt bikes and just got my 750 about 5 years ago and im still learning. 2nd as a dirt biker you should know that generally where you look is where bike and body follow(picking lines in a corner). 3rd something i have learned making the transistion is you can look at something a bit longer on a dirt bike than you can on a street bike, and with a street bike i personally take lots of little glances at something that catches my attention. and finally you may wanna check your suspension.

so i didnt wanna turn it away from the initial thread.

I do understand that street bikes and dirtbikes are different. I still ride dirtbikes a lot. I put over 6000 miles on my street bike from june to august(i don't know if that's a lot to some of the veterans here).I ride the bike everywhere and anytime i can. I've ridden all around Minnesota and I have never had anything like this happen to me at all within all those miles. It was a blunder that i've learned from and it opened my eyes a little more.  I didn't post this to have someone tell me what i did wrong and how to fix it. I know what i did wrong. I posted this just for enjoyment of reading for people and maybe they'll get something out of it.
Ps. The suspension is fine.. My headlight mounting bolts stripped out some, but that's fixed and working well. Thanks for your concern though

[Stitch919]

I do understand that street bikes and dirtbikes are different. I still ride dirtbikes a lot. I put over 6000 miles on my street bike from june to august(i don't know if that's a lot to some of the veterans here).I ride the bike everywhere and anytime i can. I've ridden all around Minnesota and I have never had anything like this happen to me at all within all those miles. It was a blunder that i've learned from and it opened my eyes a little more.  I didn't post this to have someone tell me what i did wrong and how to fix it. I know what i did wrong. I posted this just for enjoyment of reading for people and maybe they'll get something out of it.
Ps. The suspension is fine.. My headlight mounting bolts stripped out some, but that's fixed and working well. Thanks for your concern though

6000 is a lot for me cause i dont get to ride too much and when i do its usually after work rides for like an hour and i wasnt tryin to call you out on what you did wrong or nothin. just my transistion experience....i think you lucked out with the headlight bolts and not mussin up your suspension.

[Captnbob]

My spill was on a recent camping trip.  We found a spot about 1/2 mile off the road on a track that led down to a river.  Great spot except my bike refused to start next AM with temps in the upper 20's.  My friend offered to tow me back to the main road (all uphill).  All went well till a hole turned the front end sideways and I exited in a graceful full gainer.  My bike and I came out ok.  My damage healed, but the exhaust pipe will never be the same.

I also wanted to share a near miss I witnessed in downtown Houston.  I was driving my four wheeler following a motorcycle cop in the middle of three lanes on I45.  We were hemmed in with traffic on all sides, when the car in the left lane decided to move over.  The cop had nowhere to go and began to pound on the passenger window.  Fortunately the car to his right gave him some room, but it took forever for the idiot on the left to figure out what was happening.  He moved over, but the cop kept beating on his window.  After all that he just continued on.  No ticket.

[tdw]

Last week I had the pleasure of participating in a humanitarian mission in Guatemala. We were put up in a hotel in Antigua.

For our day off, a friend & I decided to take advantage of a ex-pat run motorcycle touring company and do a one day tour to some Mayan ruins. More on that with pics in a trip report later this week.

Anyway, I didn't have any of my gear with me for a number of reasons. The organization running the tour suggested we wear jackets (for the change in weather as we climbed the mountains) long pants and boots. They provided shin/knee protection, helmets & gloves (if requested).

We rode dual purpose street/dirt bikes that wore knobby tires as some of the tour was through dirt trails.

You may imagine the roads through the mountains in a less developed country, narrow, no shoulder, very twisty  , lots of rounding corners as you climb or descend  , and unfortunately, lots of pot holes, sand & debris  .

My buddy is more experienced and rode directly behind the tour guide. I pulled up the rear & kept trying to remind myself (i) it's not a race & (ii) ride at your own pace. Typically I was between three and five seconds behind them, which didn't bother me in the least.

Sadly, on one left hand descending turn I low-sided. 

I still don't know exactly why I crashed; but, clearly I wasn't fully engaged with riding the bike.  I know I came in a little hot; but, not ridiculously fast so I should have been able to simply push harder on the left handle bar to lean more aggressively through the turn. I also know that there was a lot of sand through the outside of the corner; but this shouldn't have been an issue as I was trying to carefully pick my line through the corners riding outside-inside-outside to get a better view of the road and the hazards. I know the bike and the tires were not the best for the majority of the riding as I frequently felt the knobby rear tire skip through corners and the bike had a noticeable wobble at 80 kph or above on the highway. I also remember braking mid-corner (I know - a definite no-no ...  ); but, I can't remember if that was after I realized I was going to go down and was trying to scrub as much speed as possible or if that was the cause of the crash. Finally, I know the sand on the outside of the corner played a role; but, again, I can't remember the exact sequence of events and don't know if I started to feel like I was loosing it in the sand and hit the brakes, or felt like I was too fast & touched the brakes taking me into the sand, or felt the rear tire bounce through the corner & touched the brakes, or did I let the dog and little girl I was watching out for along the side of the road distract me too much from navigating the upcoming corner, or ...

Regardless, it was clearly driver error and both speed & experience played a role. 

Positive aspects of the crash: It was a good wake-up call without paying too high a price (thankfully, I walked away with only a skinned forearm and the bike was still rideable). It was a rental bike that was damaged, not my new-to-me plastic coated sport-tourer that would have costed a mint to repair. There was no other traffic and I was going slow enough that I didn't fly off the edge of the mountain.

Lessons Learned: Stay engaged, ride your ride, ride at your comfort level.

[talespin]

Lessons Learned: Stay engaged, ride your ride, ride at your comfort level.

Excellent lessons, but don't ignore the possibility that the bike shares some of the blame. Rental bikes in foreign countries probably aren't the best-treated and -maintained bikes you'll come across.

[rebel715]

My last wreck was due to my fault of NOT going over a used bike like I should have after buying it before putting it on the road.  The bike was a 2007 Moto Guzzi Norge 1200GT sport tourer.  I bought it 'used' from a local shop and took it home.  I then rode it to work the next day and on my way home from work (on Friday 13th no less) the rear wheel came off of the bike at 55mph.  The previous owner had installed a new rear tire, but never tightened the lugbolts on the rear wheel mounted to the single sided swingarm.  Well, needless to say the bike got 'really loose' in the back and after the wheel separated and I created more sparks on the highway than the 4th of July I made it to the edge of the road as gracefully as I could.  I had proper riding gear, so I did not get hurt, so all is good.  Note to all:  check your bike thoroughly, you can't 'assume' anything!!

[mr_longhair]

i grew up on a dirtbike, so when i was old enought i signed up for my motorcycle safety coarse.  We were supposed to line up ride at slow as u can speed, make a square when u make the last corner the next person in line goes.  i was in line waiting my turn and the instuctor tpld me to stop we were going to do something diff, the lady on the coarse freaked out when i was still in line right where she was supp to go.  she pannicded and hit the throlle instead of the brake, it was only a 5 or 10 mile impact so bikes were fine and both of us were to.

While still in the class we had an off day, he said just go practise on the coarse.  (our hs had a huge parking lot, one end was devoted to mini roads complete with a stop light and all the signs u seee on a real road.)  well i decided to get out a little 50cc scooter,  i was going to try emergency stoping with it,  well i forgot that the lefgt lever isint the clutch, i pulled it all the way the front locked and down i went.  a few scratches and a broken mirror was all that happened but my pride got the worst of it

[witness.45]

I have had my m/c license since 16(now 34) and have ridden on and off since I was 12. I have only had two falls on the street.

1st one: I was about 17(had an 85 shadow 700). My dad had just picked up his 89 goldwing 1500 from having some work done on it. It was threatening to rain, so he asked if i wanted to ride the goldwing home while he followed in his pickup. So, coming into Lampasas, TX from Kempner on US 190, we bore left to get on the loop that heads downtown(hard right curve, then immediate hard left). I hit the curve at about 40mph, and when I straightened out from the left curve, I saw the deer standing there looking at me from about 40 yards away. I nailed the brakes(just short of locking up the tires). I realized with about 10yards to go(yeah, the world was in slo-mo at the time) that i would be unable to stop. So, I downshifted 2 gears and grabbed a handful of throttle. It turns out that a goldwing DOES have enough power to lift the front wheel at that speed. So, in the wheelie position, my front tire hit the deer, retarding my progress to the point that the wheel came back down on the other side of the deer. Though I count this as a fall, I never actually dropped the bike, just basically ran over a deer. The engine died, and I pulled over, Dad pulled up behind me with his flashers on, and inquired as to the condition of his motorcycle"is my bike ok?"   To sum up, the bike was fine, and I rode it home, also, the deer jumped up and ran away after a few seconds. The lesson: the proper speed for a corner is not only dictated by your ability to make the turn, but also your ability to see down the road.

2nd one: I think I was 19 or 20. on my afforementioned Shadow. An unnamed "friend" asked me to give him a ride to see his girlfriend(maybe 100 mi away). I agreed, but I told him I had to be back by 0700 for work the next day. We got there about 2100, and I crashed on the couch. Got up at 0500 and it was raining really heavy, but I had to get home, so off we went. We made it to within 10 miles of the house when the front tire hit a slick spot and slid left. I threw my weight into it in an attempt to recover, as just as I decided I had it pulled out, the bike went over to the right. I kicked away and slid to a stop(wearing chaps, jacket, gloves and helmet with visor, so I was unhurt). The bike had a couple of scratches, and the windshield was broken. The couple that was riding behind us in their truck when we went down picked us up and gave us a ride home. I came back later with a pickup and got the bike. I get to talking with my friend about the accident later, and he tells me "I never saw it coming, I was asleep"...... the lesson there is never do any favors for that guy......

[tdw]

This was supposed to be a trip report on my ride down through Pennsylvania & on to Washington on my new to me R1150RT.

I was planning on taking two days to get down and a day and a half to return. Wanted to take my time and enjoy the ride. The first day was pleasant enough. A friend joined me for the first leg to the border. We crossed over, had lunch, visited a bike store then parted ways - he returning home, me on to my conference.

Riding through NY from North of Buffalo was uneventful, mostly highway as there was a threat of rain & I wanted to get to the fun roads in PA through the mountains. The plan was to follow the 144 from Galeton to Renovo and then on to Snow Shoe. For the most part, that was fun.  I'm a new rider; this is only my second year. I was taking it easy, keeping my speed down, trying to watch my lines, the traffic, the road, potential hazards, ... I passed a couple of cars; but, never dangerously. There was always plenty of room, I had a clear view of the road and with the acceleration of the bike I was back in my lane and returning to posted speeds within seconds.

I come up behind a pickup (maybe that should have been my first clue ... but, then, that's prejudice, right?) going slower than the posted limit. I stayed patiently a safe distance back and waited for a safe opportunity to pass him. Finally, a clearing came, I signalled, zoomed by, pulled back in, slowed down & continued on. Through the next few corners I didn't see him in my mirrors, then he suddenly appears.

Is he accelerating towards me? Is he pissed at me? I tried to just keep riding the way I was all along; but, I swear this guy is trying to 'push' me.  I try to remind myself "this is not a race, ride your ride, ride at your comfort level". I also started looking for a safe place to pull over and let him by. As you may imagine on those mountain roads, it's basically one blind corner to the next. Prior to this episode there were a number of 'rest stops' full of pick-ups & SUV's with tons of fishermen. Where were they now that I needed one of them? Sadly, I let him distract me and end up taking a corner too wide. That really scared me. I pulled over at the next straight-away and let him pass even though I wasn't convinced it was the safest spot. I turned off the bike and just sat for a few minutes to collect myself. 

That really spooked me. If I could have, I would have stopped right there; but, I was at least another hour and a half from the nearest hotel. As I'm riding on, it starts drizzling, then raining as dusk falls. I wouldn't call it a white knuckle ride but I clearly needed to pull over ASAP for the day. I was relieved when I finally got out of the mountains and found a hotel near Interstate 80.

The next morning it starts out overcast but promises to be a nice day for a ride. I put my rain gear over my protective gear in case it rains in the morning. I noticed I was also still a bit jittery. Was I still nervous about what happened yesterday? Or was this a premonition?

I've been riding for about an hour now. At this point I was going down I-90. Nice ride. Clear blue skies. Sunday morning, not much traffic. Nice road, long sweeping curves, decent speed limit (for the most part), lots of ascending & descending. I'm paying attention (maybe too much?) to my speed; I don't want a ticket. I'm trying to keep it around 65 - 70 mph in the 65 mph zones and travel mostly in the right hand lane.

I come up on a Camero and there is a silver Benz down the road. I think we were on an ascending curve to the left that straightened out as it crested and descended. I was gaining on the Camero so I signalled pulled out to pass, passed him, see him in my mirror, signal again, check my blind spot & pull back in front of him. What was that in the left corner of my vision as I checked my blind spot? Looking back, there's the Benz a safe distance in front of me and ... what? ... two deer coming out of from the median!! Oh sugar! I was already rolling off the throttle to slow down as I was pulling back in front of the Camero so I got on the brakes to slow down more, trying to assess the situation.

Sadly, I was not fast enough with my reaction. I see the second dear try to jump the car but instead ram right into the driver's side door and bounce on to the road in front of me. I thought momentarily about trying to evade it; but, felt my best bet was to hit it head on. It was on its side on the road. I hit it and all I remember of what happened after that was sliding down the road, looking to see that no cars were coming about to hit me & coming to a stop a few feet from my bike on the left shoulder.

I've been trying to replay this sad episode to figure out if I could have avoided wiping out.  I think I thought of changing lanes but decided I wasn't sure if the dear would get spooked by the car & try to back track making the left lane more dangerous. I was already slowing down so I was feeling like I had time to react.

Could I have been harder on the brakes? I think so. They are ABS after all; but, I've not had an opportunity to do the parking lot practice like I want to. (I know Bee, I hear you already and agree with you.)

Could I have swerved? Maybe, I don't know. It all happened so fast and it was like the deer was covering the half the road. Could I have swerved aggressively enough to miss it and swerve back again, regaining control? I don't think we'll ever now.

In hindsight, I wonder if the deer was still spinning in the road from the impact with the car 'cause I know I was slowing down & was trying to think about what would be the best course of action. I settled on hitting it head on & hoping my wheels would take me over it like a board or log in the road.

Could I have been farther back behind the Benz to allow more reaction time? I'm not sure. I try to stay 2 to 3 seconds behind the vehicle in front of me; but, frequently find myself 1 1/2 to 2 seconds behind. It seems like such an easy thing to do (stay 3 seconds back) but it's hard. Why? I know part of it for me is that I really get miffed when I leave 3 seconds and cars keep pushing into that buffer zone. "Idiot, don't you know I'm leaving that space for the safety of all of us?" Consequently, in heavier traffic (precisely when you need more space) I tend to close the gap some. In this case there was little traffic so I'm pretty sure I was between 2 and 3 seconds behind any vehicle I followed. If not, I was passing it and pulling back into the right lane in front of it.

Thankfully, I wasn't seriously injured, just bumps, bruises & some soreness. One of the first people to come to me after the accident looked at me and said "I'm a rider too. I saw the whole thing. (pointing to all my gear) This stuff saved your life."

Unfortunately, nothing saved my bike. According to the insurance, it's a write-off.  And it was such a nice ride!

[talespin]

tdw, I'm glad you're okay, and sorry to hear about the bike. You're right, they're sweet rides. The silver lining here is that perhaps her replacement will be even sweeter!

Again, glad you lived through it without serious injuries.

[El_Steverino]

Been down twice, both of them my fault for riding a little faster than I should have.

First time, I was going around an ever so slight corner down hill at night time with no traffic on the road. I think the corner went slightly to the right, and then to the left (I was in Japan, so riding on the left hand side). I was going a little too fast and not turning enough on the leftward bend.. it wasn't much of a bend but I started to drift toward the other lane and didn't like it. My lack of experience allowed me to react by just tapping the brakes a little with hope of slowing down, when I should have just counter-steered a little more to the left and I would have been OK. Instead, the back wheel fishtailed off behind me to my left, and the bike then slammed down on my right side and skidded across the opposite lane and off the road. The most vivid thing that I can remember about it is the sound of the glass headlamp lens shattering. I was wearing jeans and a non-riding jacket, but I got off with some road rash on the bottom half of my right leg and a sore knee for a few months.
Looking back, I think am super lucky that I didn't fully highside that one.. the direction I fell over was sort of uphill and the bike went downhill in front of me.
I took the bike to my regular shop, but the guy told me that the crankcase was cracked on the bottom and replacing it would cost more than what I paid for the bike. The cheaper option would have been to pick up another used engine and swap it in, but I didn't really want to try it, so I scrapped it and went half a year without a bike, and then got a little single cylinder Yamaha when I could afford it.

The second time, it was night time and I was on a flat straight road in the city, and I guess I thought it was ok to be going a little faster than usual. I was looking a little too far down the road and forgot about the traffic light coming up, not an intersection, but a light for a pedestrian crossing where people can push the button to get clearance to cross. I looked up and saw too late that I was quickly approaching a red light, jammed on the brakes, locked up the front, and made friends with the pavement again. I did make the "stop" before the line where vehicles should stop for that light, and there is a bit of space before the crosswalk there, and I don't think anyone was actually crossing the road (I would have seen it earlier in that case) but it's a damn good thing I didn't hit somebody. Once again, wearing jeans and a riding jacket, even though I know better. This time the handlebars got jolted a little to the left, and I shattered a turn signal bulb (oddly the housing was fine) and chewed up a rubber handlebar grip, and the bike was fine to ride for another year and some change   Big dumbass moment for me.

Lessons learned:
Both of these would have been preventable if I had been paying better attention and not let myself speed up more than I needed to for where I was riding.
Get into the habit of proper braking technique, don't just jam them on (I KNEW that and just didn't do it), and know when NOT to touch the brakes.

I can't really say "wear gear" in my lessons learned, because even after both of these falls I continued to ride around town in shorts and a t-shirt in the summer.
I wear gear now, but that's just because I always knew that I should, and finally got around to implementing it in practice.