My bike was knocked over

[Dima26]

:x   :x
Today I came to my car in a very good mood and what do I see: my bike is lying on her right side :x I was mad as hell. I picked her up and, luckily, there was very minimal damage: scratched handlebar, mirror and muffler. The scratches are not very noticable, but still they are there. I think some drunk girls who wanted to sit on her knocked her over. There were plenty of them returning from bars yesterday. I hope there will be no mechanical damage. The right side was wet in fuel from the tank, so I washed it thoroughly and let it dry. I will ride soon and see if it feels strange.

I think, I will go and buy a cover, which I will make dirty and nasty from outside so that people would not want to come close.

[Dima26]

The bike was parked in a corner with my car close to it, so that it was impossible to knock it over by car or by somebody who was passing by. The people who did that squeezed between my car and the wall of the building and tried to sit on the bike :x

[Dima26]

I wish a had a garage

[Jace009]

sorry to hear that man...well if you see a drunk girl w/ a leg cast you might want to inquire :lol:

[Dima26]

I forgot to mention. My bike is less than 2 months old GS500F so I am still a little bit pissed.

[Jace009]

hopefuly the plastic didn't crack... :x  :x  :x

Was it on the center stand? that makes it a little more stable.

[juggernaught]

FYI...keep the passenger pegs down all the time...it offers at least a little protection.  i park my bike on the sidewalk now in front of my window locked to a no parking sign completely and securely covered.  A neighbor of mine got his Honda cruiser tipped over by a drunk skunk.  I hope he falls down a manhole and is eaten by alligators. :guns:

[Dima26]

No it was not on the center stand. I thought side stand is more stable :dunno:

The plastic did not break or have any scratches on it :nana:

Shopping for a bike cover...

[Kerry]

No it was not on the center stand. I thought side stand is more stable :dunno:

Hmmm.  This was discussed (rather inconclusively) many months back.  With some hard evidence we could all make more informed choices.

Too bad I don't have something like a hefty fish scale.  (Remember the diagrams in your old science textbooks?) I could attach a rope, hook the other end to the frame or seat post or somewhere above the center of gravity, and pull sideways.  From the scale I could determine the maximum force applied before the bike tips over, and with a tape measure I could even measure the horizontal distance from vertical before the tip-over point.

I could try it both ways (sidestand and centerstand), with different ground slants and parking angles ... and a couple friends to keep it from ACTUALLY falling over.  Sheesh, I could publish my findings....  Golly, I could make a million!  Wow - I could take over the world!!  



OK, I've gone too far.  But I really would like some hard evidence.  

[callmelenny]

I wonder if there is also not a psychological factor to consider.

I noticed (:dunno: I think) over the years that non-riders are more likely to swing a leg over a bike on a sidestand. I think a bike on a center stand is less familiar (not like their bicycle as a kid) and the fact that pressure on the seat moves the bike up and down makes it seem unstable. Most folks, even when drunk, don't want to get on a bike they think is going to tip over.

Just my $.02

[indestructibleman]

No it was not on the center stand. I thought side stand is more stable :dunno:

Hmmm.  This was discussed (rather inconclusively) many months back.  With some hard evidence we could all make more informed choices.

Too bad I don't have something like a hefty fish scale.  (Remember the diagrams in your old science textbooks?) I could attach a rope, hook the other end to the frame or seat post or somewhere above the center of gravity, and pull sideways.

not quite as conclusive, but if you measure the width of the footprint from both configurations you should get a good idea of which one is more stable.  i'm about 90% certain the sidestand will give you a wider footprint.

cheers,
will

[Dima26]

I would agree to that. The triangle of the wheels and sidestand seems to be bigger than the triangle made by the center stand ends and front wheel. I think I read somewhere that the center stand is not as stable and designed only for maintenance and storing.

Dima.

[Dima26]

As far as the bike goes, I just bought a cover and its covered nicely and safely, hopefully