lame spill

[suckaFree]

After 8k miles and 2 yrs my knee has tasted the pavement... well - kissed the pavement.

6:15pm - just splitting on the right hand side up duboce at guerrero in SF. About 20mph clip.

All the traffic is stopped - All of a sudden where there's a street opening to my right and a car was cutting across stopped traffic in front of me. I could have stopped safely in time but just so startled that before i know it - i locked front brake - handlebars twisted and left side hit the deck. I don't even remember hitting the brakes at all - just all of a sudden i hit the ground. Didn't touch anyone else.

I remember hearing my helmet hit the pavement. I get up - get someone to lift the bike with me. I think i had a little adrenalin going. Looking over the damage:

body: mild bruise on left knee - not a scratch on my jeans. medium scrape on my steel toe'd boots. No scrapes on my A* jacket. Little scrape on my helmet. I feel a little sore on my left side...

Really - i just feel stupid - but it really happened so quick. Basically - it's all reaction... muscle memory. and i didn't have it for some reason cuz i wasn't mentally "on"

there you have it.

 

[brichter]

Basically - it's all reaction... muscle memory. and i didn't have it for some reason cuz i wasn't mentally "on"

No, the problem was you did have it, and it was the wrong reaction for the situation. :|

The car driver's reaction to encroachment on their right of way is to slam on the brakes, as a motorcycle rider you need to react differently. You need to break the instinctive habits and form completely new ones. That takes training, years and years of training.

Keep riding and it gets easier to see it coming with enough time to think it through. You'll find yourself being less startled and more resigned to this kind of stuff happening as you get more and more used to riding.

Remember, 90% of the cagers don't see you, and the other 10% are trying to kill you, now get back on and ride! :teeth

 

[suckaFree]

thanks brichter,

I will take your advice to heart. Learn from this and get back on the road.

thx

 

[Ironbutt]

What he said and this:

Under duress you react like you normally do, and that would be stabbing at the brakes. I've done it. still do it at times when I'm startled.

So what I do to undo this 'bad habit' is to pratice gradually appling the brakes.. front brake first to compress the suspension and then add rear.. add a finger at a time, as you add more fingers to the front brake add more pressure to the rear. Pratice this allllll the time..

ALSO.. don't use the handle bars as a crutch. in other words don't lean on the bars, sit back on your haunches and squeeze the tank w/your knees.. lower body tight , upper body loose.

help? try it..

 

[petehed]

oh dang.. I go up that hill all the time (and continue up, across Market, around the right up the hill, to Hermann and the Mint).
Did you actually make it up the hill past Guerrero?
Glad you made it through without too much damage.

 

[Enchanter]

So what I do to undo this 'bad habit' is to pratice gradually appling the brakes.. front brake first to compress the suspension and then add rear.

Well, I would apply both brakes simultaneously rather than one before the other. If you are going to apply them separately, then I'd start with the rear brake first, then apply the front brake. Application of the rear brake will actually cause the rear of the bike to squat a small amount and limit the weight transfer. The can aid in avoiding the rear to get too light.

 

[brichter]

Well, I would apply both brakes simultaneously rather than one before the other. If you are going to apply them separately, then I'd start with the rear brake first, then apply the front brake. Application of the rear brake will actually cause the rear of the bike to squat a small amount and limit the weight transfer. The can aid in avoiding the rear to get too light.

+1 on rear first if not simultaneous. Adding front first can lead to instant rear lockup when you do get around to using it, not a good thing.

 

[Lazerus]

better the ground than the car for sure. glad you're okay and :thumbup on the learning attitude.

 

[Ironbutt]

+1 on rear first if not simultaneous. Adding front first can lead to instant rear lockup when you do get around to using it, not a good thing.

If it's applied incorrectly.. Personally I apply front brake a split second before I add rear and that's how I teach it. If you crank on the front binder and then step down on the rear brake.. yeah your going to have some intresting results.

 

[afm199]

DAMN! People! The front brake stops the bike, the rear brake is like a small anchor you throw out to stabiize the bike. If you need to stop RIGHT NOW, don't screw around trying to remember:
First apply rear brake lightly, then apply front brake lightly and increase, then increase rear brake. In an emergency you don't want to apply a complicated pattern and watch it fail.

Learn to cover the front brake, and learn to apply it lightly initially. Period. Use that rear brake in the rain. if you are hard on the front brakes on most modern bikes, the rear will be so light that any rear brake pressure locks it up, making your problem worse, not better.

 

[Xenos]

You might want to get a new helmet. I have heard that even small drops make the helmet loose it's protective ability dramaticly. But maybe that's just a rumor...

 

[redline]

I don't have the guts or skills to ride in SF, but in the spirit of crash analysis and trying to learn from accidents...

from the description of the front end lock up, it sounds as if the front tire slid under lock up (is that right?). Under more "ideal" traction circumstances, most sportbikes will lift the back tire off the ground without the front end sliding. So what caused the slide? Maybe you were going down hill?

On the other hand, if there's gravel/dirt or some slippery stuff on the road, the front end seems to lock up very easily (without lifting the back wheel off the ground) and then the bike just wants to flop on it's side (fast!).

What do you think caused what happened on your bike? Did you turn the bars? Did the front end "wash out" on something slippery? If you used the back brake differently, what you you think would've happened?

PS, heal up and better luck next time!

 

[brichter]

Under more "ideal" traction circumstances, most sportbikes will lift the back tire off the ground without the front end sliding.

Not necessarily. If you get ham-fisted with the front brake (apply it very quickly), it will lock because you're not giving the bike enough time to get the weight onto the front wheel. Less weight = less traction, that's why it's so easy to lock the rear under hard braking.

 

[redline]

Not necessarily. If you get ham-fisted with the front brake (apply it very quickly), it will lock because you're not giving the bike enough time to get the weight onto the front wheel. Less weight = less traction, that's why it's so easy to lock the rear under hard braking.

Oh, glad I never learned that (the hard way)! Thanks for the tip.

 

[brichter]

No problem, you just learned that with a lot less pain than I did.:teeth

 

[nweaver]

This is also why I'd want ABS on my bike. I don't have it, but I locked the front up once myself (I didn't crash but came close).

The proper role of ABS is to augment the "Oh Shit" reflex, turning the "Oh Shit" action of hauling the front brake hard-and-fast into stopping the bike in the minimum distance.

The only time I've ever activated an ABS system (in both a car and on a demo-ride on a BMW) is as a deliberate test to feel the system and its limits.

 

[suckaFree]

i sent my RF-1000 into shoei - to get it xray'd and inspected. I got it back today and turns out it passed inspection. It's perfectly fine to use.

I had dropped it once while wearing on the crown of my head while i was talking to someone - about 6ft fall onto hard concrete.

Then this crash- where i remember hitting my head against the ground and hearing a loud thud.

Thanks Shoei!

 

[GiorgioFurioso]

i sent my RF-1000 into shoei - to get it xray'd and inspected. I got it back today and turns out it passed inspection. It's perfectly fine to use.

I looked on the Shoei website for this address but didn't find it...what address did you use? Did you get an RMA first?

 

[shw911]

How much was shipping and where are they located?

 

[suckaFree]

SHOEI Safety Helmet Corp.
Attn: Inspection Dept.
3002 Dow St., Ste. 128
Tustin, CA 92780

I paid 7$ for USPS. Put a note describing what happened. It took about 2 weeks.