| Author | Message | ||
     Cliffb |
Crap! On a 2 lane country lane following a dairy honey truck going about 15mph. I saw no signs of turning, no turn signals, nada. I decided to pass. You guessed it, left turn in front of me. I hit the brakes hard to scrub off as much speed as possible. The bike went down. I bounced off the left rear tire and tumbled to the side of the road. I don’t know what condition the bike is in. Some friends are going to retrieve it from the tow company today. Me? Road rash on 2 knees, strained left shoulder. Hopefully NOT a torn rotator cuff. Very sore. Hell of a way to get time off from work. I’m here to tell you good safety gear does work. I was wearing a Joe Rocket expedition style jacket with armor and padding. Bell full face helmet and good gloves. Not a scratch on me other than the knees. My head hit something hard enough to blow the face shield off. I’ll post pics of my poor baby when I get the chance. | ||
| Thunderbox |
Sorry to hear about this Cliffb. You just never know do you. What did the idiot driver say. I guess when your not sure a horn blast may have been a good idea before chancing it. Always a next time. Be careful and I hope the bike has only got minor damage. | ||
| Jim_sb |
Hello Cliff, Very sorry to hear about your get-off. Hope you heal quickly. Many years ago I did the same thing (except it was an unmarked, blind 90 degree right hand corner which I could not initially see and couldn't negotiate). I was on my Sportster at the time; which, through feats of magic which are still unexplained, levitated over a large curb and into a large gravel/dirt area where I regained control and slowed to a stop. Bike and I were peachy. I vowed "never again" to pass when I wasn't absolutely certain of a successful outcome, and I have held myself strictly to that promise even when it meant my riding partners (more aggressive riders) would get far ahead of me. I also make it a point to wear Aerostitch Darien pants (with knee pads and abrasion protection) in addition to the other gear you mentioned - just in case something unexpected does happen. Regards, Jim | ||
| Smcnamara |
Bummer Cliff. Glad you emerged in one piece, and hope your Uly fares similarly. What was the reaction from the truck driver? I'm with Jim in regards to ATGATT, but have been known to ride in jeans in the past since my riding pants are a bit "uncool" if I'm running errands around town. Thankfully, my father-in-law set me up with a sweet pair of Olympia Mustang riding jeans for xmas... Hope you are back in the saddle soon! -Sean | ||
| Superbee24 |
"What did the idiot driver say" Probably, " Idiot" Sorry to hear about going doing with the bike, but We are each responsible for our own safety. What if another vehicle or god forgive bike was coming around from the other side? Did Cliff not see the turn in the road? If the dairy truck was going 15mph was it necessary to pass without being able to see the turn? Was there a hill? ( bad time to pass ). Not judging, we just don't know all the variables. If someone pulls in front of you, shame on them, If we do something dumb, shame on us. Ride Safe Pablo | ||
| Lowflyer |
Cliff, I am sorry for your mishap. At least you can blame the other guy. Of the three downers I have suffered, I can only blame a hapless garbage truck driver for one of them. Lucky for me these bikes are totally solid. Also lucky for me, I had the presence of mind to wreck slowly each time. The bike got a few new minor parts, but otherwise it hasn't a scratch anywhere on it. That is more than I can say for my pride. Heal quickly. Lee | ||
| Daves |
Cliff, Glad you are ok. The bike can be fixed. Superbee, I think what he is saying is that the driver turned in front of him,like into a driveway. Not a turn/curve in the road. | ||
| Jim_sb |
Daves, I think your reading is correct (I misunderstood it initially as well). In any event, the right of way (as I understand it) belongs to the vehicle being overtaken, does it not? So even if they don't signal a pending turn an incident is still the fault of the vehicle doing the passing. Tough deal, but that's my understanding of how it works over here. Anyway, after I had my ugly passing experience I think carefully before pulling out to pass now. And if I do decide to pass I use everything the bike has so as to minimize the amount of time I spent on the wrong side of the road. PS. I wear jeans only when going on short, local rides too. I mentally take note of the limited protection and try to ride more defensively. | ||
| Dmcutter |
My condolences, Cliff...hope your RC is not torn. I had both mine surgerized in '04, one total tear and one partial. I was in a sling for 6 weeks for the total-obviously no riding. We'll keep our collective fingers crossed for ya. | ||
| Lowflyer |
Rough crowd in here.  The armchair quarterbacks are out in force today. | ||
| Superbee24 |
"Sorry to hear about going doing with the bike, but We are each responsible for our own safety." "Not judging, we just don't know all the variables." Lowflyer, these are all from my post. I don't think I was too rough or too much of an armchair quarterback. Reread and I now see that the vehicle turned left in front of him " not a left turn in the road". Gotta suck. Lesson learned for everyone, I for one have been in a similar situations before living in a small country town where the older folks drive around at about 20mph. I always honk and make sure I get their attention before passing. Just in case one of them has a senior moment and turns left in front of me. | ||
| Jim_sb |
Hello Lowflyer, So what? I've had 4 of my best riding buddies all go down on the street with injuries ranging from "battered and bruised" to "requires airlift to hospital". Eventually they all healed, bikes were repaired or replaced and we still ride. One guy I've ridden with (although I knew him vaguely) perished in a crash. Several others participated in a group ride I was supposed to attend (I couldn't make it) and 4 of them ended up in the hospital. We've buried too many motorcyclists in my little neck o' the woods in the last 12 months. I'm tired of it. Can you tell? I have no disrespect for Cliff and wish him the best, but we need to use these situations as learning opportunities. I had a very close call passing and I could've ended up in the grille of a Buick. Instead I ended up off road jumping curbs with a Sportster. It was the best option at the time. I'm no better than Cliff or anyone else - just trying to ride, have fun and survive. Ride safely out there, Jim in Santa Barbara | ||
| Snub13 |
Hey Cliff, heal fast and I hope the bike is ok. | ||
| Lowflyer |
"too much of an armchair quarterback" There are not varying degrees of armchair quarterbacking. No matter how you slice it, there just is no denying its utter uselessness. The accident rider will almost always second guess himself. The accident will replay in his mind many times for the next several months. There is simply no better teacher or lesson than that. So letting the guy know how you personally avoid a similar accident after the fact is little more than gloating. "Not judging, we just don't know all the variables." You only say 'not judging' because you know that it will have appeared that you are and you feel a smidge of guilt about it. That is like saying, "Don't take this the wrong way, but I think you are an idiot." Armchairing will only lead to people being reluctant to let us know of their unfortunate experiences. Jim, Sorry for your loss. Unfortunately, the only way to prevent motorcycle accidents is to stop riding them. Short of that, we can all just do the best we can to manage the risk, learn from each other and hope we are not next. My point was to ask that we not beat up on a guy that is providing us with a valuable lesson. Cheers | ||
| Jim_sb |
Hello Cliff, Not my intent to 'beat up' on you as suggested above. Hope you don't feel that way. As for 'gloating', I'm not. I did something stupid and I damn near paid full price for my mistake. I have discussed it at length with my riding buddies in addition to admitting it here. I think discussing it openly is part of the healing process. The mind needs to heal in addition to the body. Lowflyer, perhaps you and I just operate on different frequencies. I think however, we both have equally honorable intentions. Certainly riding is not risk free - but the risks are manageable. Scraping pegs and safety are not mutually exclusive. May your bag of experience become full before your bag of luck runs out. I've already used up a bunch of my bag of luck, so I have to rely on the bag of experience. Regards, Jim in Santa Barbara | ||
| M2nc |
Cliff, x Sorry to hear it. Like I posted on the pics, I feel your pain, at least as far as the bike goes. I'm glad it was not worse on you. The bike looks very fixable. Get well soon. Carlos | ||
| Cliffb |
Thanks Guys. To clarify, the road was clear and visible around the truck. I'm mad at myself for this accident. I've been riding about 36 years and have always tried to ride with the mindset that the other guy is out to get me. It has served me well. I got impatient and paid for it. As for me and the bike, I have some spectacular bruises. The knees are sore and swollen but seem to be healing fine. I have a feeling my shoulder has some joint damage. I have not taken a close look at the bike yet but it looks like the major bits are fine. (The frame puck worked great!) Handguards, mirrors, shift lever and left foot peg mount will need replaced. I'll also have to rebuild the tail section. When I'm moving a little better I'll dig out the parts manual and start getting part numbers. I'll be calling ya Daves! Thanks again. Cliff | ||
| Lowflyer |
This (or worse) can happen to anyone that rides regardless of what they have in their "bag" (luck, experience, enormous ego, or otherwise). I'm glad you were able to post it in here. The damage looks easy to fix. I have replaced a peg mount, clutch lever, tail light, license plate bracket, and a mirror all in about an hour. The license plate bracket took the longest since I had a little trouble with the seat lock. The bike is very modular and will be good as new with the new parts. |
