Well it was bound to happen and it did last night. I went down and down hard. OMFG did it hurt but im ok just sore as hell and separated my arm and my legs are tore up
Well this is what happend I was out with a friend we were out on some side roads at about 12am having the time of my live I know the road very well the one we were on I was in the lead going in to a shape 90 i was going about 70 hung off the bike went in to the turn everything was great TILL :x this damn raccoon ran out in front of me. while trying to miss it I highsided I think i should of hit the damn thing and hoped for the best I was in some gear i had my jacket on (JOEROCKET) now its tore up but not my upper body. pants were blue jeans now they have holes in them my legs were bloody as hell just rached. helmit worked gr8 need to get a new one!!!
I will be posting later on what i need for my bike to get it back up and running after i figure out whats all wrong and broke if anyone has parts they can part with!!
Chris
________________________________________
watch for small critters they suck
I have stock handle bars and mirrors from my bike if you want them, and stock aitbox and filter but doubt you need those.
How did your jacket hold up and how fast did you go down? Seeing as I have the same jacket I'd like to know how well it protected you.
I just bought a new HJC CL-14 and like it a lot, lot lighter than my old helmet and the eyeport is fricken huge on it, feels like I have no helmet on almost. Paid $139.99 locally for it. Not bad since its $129.99 at helmet harbor. They had a bunch in stock if you want to look.
sup jason The jacket held up great its alittle rashed but it did its job. yes i do need handle bars how much you want for them maybe i can get them this weekend
let me know
Thanks chris
I dont need them you can have them for free, they are just taking up space in the garage. I'll be around here all weekend cause it looks like rain tommorow.
Raccoons are damned tasty when grilled slowly on an "at temp" GS motor!
Diurnal critters are bigger, but they tend to be smarter and stay out of the way ;)
Happy you're OK.
Glad your ok. I have been considering getting a joe rocket jacket. You have convinced me to do so. Take care of yourself and when you figure out what parts you need, I'll help you keep an eye out for them.
That sucks. Sorry to hear that. Thats why I don't ride after dark unless I have to.
-Anti
glad your ok. highsides suck. my wreck was a highside. luckily mine was only at about 25-30mph.
what model of JoeRocket jacket did you have?
Guys, I love your little site here and I have really taken a liking to these little bikes ... not sure you need some snotty-sounding 40-something to comment :roll: , but I am SERIOUSLY distressed at the amount of crashes that I see people on this board having.
NEWSFLASH: YOU SHOULD NOT EVER BE INVOLVED IN CRASHES IF YOU'RE USING YOUR HEAD. I've ridden several hundred thousand miles over the past 2.5 decades (thankfully, not much of it on the GS!!!) and I have never had one accident. I dropped a bike ONCE when I was a teenager, and that's it! I mean good heavens the tried and tested rule of the road is to not change course for any animal other than a deer or a moose. Your bike weighs probably 550 pounds with you on it; ten pounds of soft raccoon going 1 mph isn't going to affect your trajectory. Just steer where you were going and if the 'coon is the worse for the wear, so be it. Every single solitary motorcycle safety course -- which I urge, absolutely urge, you to take! -- stresses exactly this principle.
As they say, riding a motorcycle's not dangerous at all. Crashing, however, -is-.
I know, you think I'm an old geezer who should mind his own business. But I GIVE a shaZam! and this mindless crashing has to stop. There ain't no percentage in it! Besides, the GS is such a mild mannered bike with wonderful handling and razor-sharp brakes -- if you're crashing on this thing, forget about graduating to 'most any other bike because you really will have your life expectancy significantly shortened.
First of all glad to hear you and the bike weren't totalled chris. Damn coons! My first opinion on this matter was that this was simply bad luck, period. But cruisedaddy brings up a good point. It probably would've been a better idea to force your eyes up and tear over the sucker, but it's simple instinct to try and avoid the animal. Hell, i probably would've tried to swerve around it too, you just have to drill the points from MSF into your head. Sometimes motorcycles are totally counter-intuitive, but them's the breaks i guess.
Don't go crashing that R1 bro. :thumb:
anybody else crashed and I'm gonna have to come over there and wup your ass.
glad you made it okay. gotta ride within the distance of the headlights dude! Riding at night is more dangerous...all this talk of Joe Rocket jackets, I assume you had the mesh jacket on?
while the prev posters have points in not changing your line, let me interject that the friction coefficiancy of rolly polly Fur baring critters of any size can and more then likly slap your now eyes as big as sausers, teeth gritting, Puckerd butt down onto the deck in rude fashion faster then loose gravel or sand. i have hit many a small critters on many bikes in leans and straight up. i have lowsided, high sided, gone baja and even crossed a bridge beam( riding a 12" wide rail for 60') becuase of them at best i was rinsing the blood and foulness off the bike and me, worse i had to shovel my friends bike into a pickup truck. its a flip of the coin, the out come is NOT predictable as so many would say, IF you are upright when you hit, IF you lean back and Blip the throttle, your chances of useing woodland creature as new speedbump are good, but thats it, its the odds of a possible outcome. If your leaning, no matter what speed, the odds of you going down, increase. get those Case savers/sliders, and wear your gear.
Quote from: cruisedaddyNEWSFLASH: YOU SHOULD NOT EVER BE INVOLVED IN CRASHES IF YOU'RE USING YOUR HEAD
I don't really think that's a fair statement. Maybe in a perfect world, nobody would crash. But people make mistakes, no matter if they're using their head or not. So, to say you should NEVER be involved in a crash I think is unreasonable. And besides little critters, and big critters, there's other drivers that can be equally/more unpredictable, uncontrollable and dangerous.
Quote from: cruisedaddyJust steer where you were going and if the 'coon is the worse for the wear, so be it. Every single solitary motorcycle safety course -- which I urge, absolutely urge, you to take! -- stresses exactly this principle.
My MSF class made no mention of this. Even if they did, I bet plenty of people have eaten shaZam! hitting a 10lb fur ball (and the 'coons I've seen are twice that size).
Of course, there is such thing as riding like a dumbass. But if we were to always ride absolutely within our skill level riding would quite simply be less fun. Part of the fun is riding a little harder. Part of learning is making mistakes.
With experience, sure, you can reduce the risk of a crash, but there are just too many risk factors out there to absolutely guarantee safe riding.
We both have JR textile Atomic Jackets. Nice Jackets for hot or cold. I didnt like the phoenix it gets chilly here in the mornings and at night.
Oh did I mention I got in an accident also :bs: , hey Pablo I live in MI if your riding I'll see you in a few days! :nana:
Quote from: JasonB
Oh did I mention I got in an accident also :bs: , hey Pablo I live in MI if your riding I'll see you in a few days! :nana:
check your 6's
cruisedaddy:
you are the exception to the rule. that's great that you have been lucky enough to never have been in a crash. but if you've been riding for that long, then it is just that... Luck.
you may be able to avoid most wrecks by being smart and practicing. but statistics don't lie. everyone crashes. weather it is there fault or not, it happens.
"I know, you think I'm an old geezer who should mind his own business. But I GIVE a shaZam! and this mindless crashing has to stop."
nothing I do is mindless. when you have your crash, I think you will say the same thing.
if when you ride you push your limits, eventually you'll find them.
Just a thought, especially for new riders . . . don't define "fun" in someone else's terms. High speed, high risk riding is the most exhilerating and the most dangerous. Controlled speed, controlled risk riding can be the safest and the most satisfying. ;)
ok people you all have made some good points I dident buy my bike to look at ,I got it to ride.......crashes happen and happen the the best riders,yet I know im not the best, But i fell I can hold my own. I dont like to ride in a straight line I like turns and high speed turns!! you got to have fun on your bike! If you go for a ride and dont have fun You dont need a motorcycle "get rid of it"
I did'nt make this post to have people argue about whos right and whos wrong. I just wanted people to know what happend.
Were all like a family here, we help eachother out when we can and help you up when you go down!!!
life is a learning leason and im still learning!! how about you?!?!?!
Chris
I hear ya bro!
-Anti
I think cruisedaddy should be knocking on wood. Don't be so proud as happy that you haven't tasted asphalt. It will happen. PERIOD. Whether you are ready or not. So expect it all the time. I know I do, as does any decent rider. I don't look forward to my turn, but I'm ready for it. Like nut-kicking contest.
Ride hard, Ride safe.
Peace.
Bix
Where can I get the stats from that you guys are quoting?
Its an inductivist (generalization) argument, what your saying is that EVERYONE who has ever ridden a bike WILL crash... thats crazy ;)
I dont doubt that the huge majority of people who ride bikes will crash, no doubt at all! And your turn could be around that next bend.
If a guy has been riding for 20+ years and never come unstuck, dont you think that he is getting further from crashing and not closer to crashing??
I dont know... but seriously, I want to read the stats, I am interested in Motorcycle facts and stats of any kind! So post a link or email me them or whatever...
Stay Safe
I'm glad you're relatively okay! Scary stuff! I think you did the right thing by trying to avoid the racoon. Driver (i.e.: car) training states to run over small woodland creatures, but with riding it's a different story. My MSF instructor ate pavement because she ran over a cat. I think the riders' course stresses quickstops and sharp turns for a reason - it seems like the lesser of two evils. Where I grew up racoons were 20-30 pounds. I don't think I could run one over and stay on the bike. Obstacle avoidance is a good strategy.
I hope you heal quickly...
Personally I found that a more philosophical approach to crashing is more helpful than pure statistics. The following is taken from an essay by Mark C. Taylor and Jose Marquez included in "The Art of the Motorcycle":
"To fall off a speeding motorcycle and survive is the impossible event that underwrites all motorcycling...Falling is the inevitable catastrophe that nevertheless must be avoided, the inescapable fate that must be permanently deferred...the rider must always think of falling but never acknowledge the thought."
That last line is one i like to quote (plagiarize?) whenever the subject of crashing comes up. The entire book is actually a very good read if you live breath and (die) motorcycles. Pour yourself a cup of your favorite beverage and kick back type good.
I _did_ find on interesting stat, specific to my home state NJ at least. In 1998-2002, it turns out that 84% of all motorcycling accidents in NJ had a rider within their first six months of riding. I assume this includes everything from the most trivial fender-bender to T-boning an 18-wheeler, but I think this is telling. You really, really, really want to be careful until you're an expert rider. I mean the GS is often the mount of newbies, so it makes some sense to me that there will be crashes. But, that's not to say that crashes are inevitable ... more experienced riders usually have some hard-won roadcraft skills that you can absorb for free ... ride behind the driver of something like a Honda Gold Wing sometime and you will usually see some excellent road and traffic skills.
Quote from: cruisedaddyI _did_ find on interesting stat, specific to my home state NJ at least. In 1998-2002, it turns out that 84% of all motorcycling accidents in NJ had a rider within their first six months of riding.
Interesting, This is counter to the nationwide(?) stats quoted in MSF course and in
Proficient Motorcycling book that states of those involved in accidents, most were in their 2nd or 3rd year of motorcycling. Their asumption being that it is enough time to gain confidence in your skills but the confidence is above what their skills really are. I don't have the exact numbers off top of my head though.
Quote from: cruisedaddyYou really, really, really want to be careful until you're an expert rider.
You really need to be careful all the time though...the cages are out to kill you. And if you ride the canyons hard you're pushing your limits-eventually you might find them.
If you push the edge of the envelope, eventually you'll get a paper cut.
hahaha
aren't I witty?
There are very few reliable statistics on motorcycle accidents. The only really good report was done in 1981 I believe, commonly referred to as the "Hurt Reprt" after the author. The conclusions are available many places:
http://www.magpie.com/nycmoto/hurt.html
Some excerpts:
20. Motorcycle riders between the ages of 16 and 24 are significantly overrepresented in accidents; motorcycle riders between the ages of 30 and 50 are significantly underrepresented. Although the majority of the accident-involved motorcycle riders are male (96%), the female motorcycles riders are significantly overrepresented in the accident data.
25. More than half of the accident-involved motorcycle riders had less than 5 months experience on the accident motorcycle, although the total street riding experience was almost 3 years. Motorcycle riders with dirt bike experience are significantly underrepresented in the accident data.
There is a movement afoot to do an updated study, since so many factors have changed since 1981:
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/pedbimot/motorcycle/00-NHT-212-motorcycle/appendix_a-81.html
Quote from: KevinC25. More than half of the accident-involved motorcycle riders had less than 5 months experience on the accident motorcycle, although the total street riding experience was almost 3 years.
That would indicate crashing on your second bike...more reason to stick with the GS.
Sorry to hear about that man.... Hope you're ok..
When I crashed earlier in the year I had all my gear on and came out ok. I carry a big knife in my pocket and landed on it. My leg was all bruised up there and my jeans wore through in that spot. I don't have special riding pants so I am stuck with jeans. Hope you scab up soon!
One of my favorite movie quotes is "pain goes away and chicks dig scars"....
or something like that. hahahahaha
L8r
It's
"Pain heals. Chicks dig scars. Glory... lasts forever."
-Shane Falco
The Replacements
great movie.
Quote from: tricked500ok people you all have made some good points I dident buy my bike to look at ,I got it to ride.......crashes happen and happen the the best riders,yet I know im not the best, But i fell I can hold my own. I dont like to ride in a straight line I like turns and high speed turns!! you got to have fun on your bike! If you go for a ride and dont have fun You dont need a motorcycle "get rid of it"
I did'nt make this post to have people argue about whos right and whos wrong. I just wanted people to know what happend.
Were all like a family here, we help eachother out when we can and help you up when you go down!!!
life is a learning leason and im still learning!! how about you?!?!?!
Chris
I hear you man, and since we're all friends we want you alive.
Riding agressively at night where there is chances of wildlife is a big GAMBLE.. don't gamble with your life. You can have high speed twisties and fun and everything without riding in the woods at night.
Oh.. and I'de like to add.. the stats thing, I heard it was the first six months and then again between 2 and 3 years.
As for sayings..
"Ride like there's no tomorrow and there won't be"
Glad you are ok.
I have once hit a small piglet and gone down. I have also hit a big dog and not done anything other than break its spine both on the same bike in India within a minth of each other, and the difference was mainly if you were going straight and trying to turn/swerve and how much suspension and steering you have left unused. The pig hit was when I swerved right and had the brakes on and I hit it cos it also was runing to the right. Also the critter in the fraction of a second it takes to get to where you hit it may be a few inches ahead and that could make the difference between hitting and not hitting it. I have assumed that I am hitting something only to show up at the pre arranged location to find out that the silly creature has decided to die another day. Cats mostly and I believe foxes, raccons and dogs on occassion but the darkness usually plays its share of games. Usually if I am going straight I'd let off the gas, brake lightly and see if I run into it. On a Curve I would let off the gas and drag my inner foot motocross style heading up to the impact. More often than not I have missed the creature cos it moved away.
Cool.
Srinath.
Quote from: pantabloanybody else crashed and I'm gonna have to come over there and wup your ass.quote]
There goes Pablo bullying everyone around again...
Just to throw something else into the equation.
I know the area you ride in has to affect your chances of crashing.
I've riden in the middle of nowhere Indiana were there aren't as many cagers and intersections and twisties. Then I moved to the Wilmington, DE, Philly, Baltimore area were things are much more crowded, busyier and hectic.
From my experience the more cagers around, the more chances of one of them doing something unexpectedly stupid.
I just try to pay attention, and make sure that if I go down it wasn't because I did something stupid.
BTW, in my MSC, they told us about "squishables" and "non-squishables", but making the call leaned over in a bend in a split second sounds like a flip of a coin to me.
later :cheers:
Quote from: mrslush50It's
"Pain heals. Chicks dig scars. Glory... lasts forever."
-Shane Falco
The Replacements
great movie.
My name is Shane.... I think I will *adopt* that quote. hahahahah. Too cool. Thanks for the correction.