To Dump or Not To Dump

[Sev]

Today at a party I got into something of an argument with an EMT. Errrr... EMT in training. Who essentially told me, that in the event of an unaviodable crash it is better to dump your bike and go into a "crash roll" then it is to lay on the brakes and take the hit. Ironically his GF's brother did this and died. He made a left in front of a car, realized he couldn't get out of the way in time, and jumped off. She swerved to avoid where the bike was going, he was still where he was, so he got hit. The bike was fine. Something tells me that if he had stayed on, he would have been okay as well. Though that is PURELY my thoughts. I mean she didn't hit the bike, just the guy who jumped off it.
He stated many "facts", it's possible to slow yourself faster in a crash roll then your bike can slow down. Kevlar will slow you faster then brakes apparently.
Upon impact the gas tank or your handle bars will apparently double fracture your femur which can lead to the femoral artery being severed... you'll bleed to death in under a minute.
If you clear the car you'll most likely roll and land on your neck. Break your neck and then you're done.

I maintained that I'd rather slow myself as much as possible and either take the hit, or try to turn around whatever the obstruction was after I had bled off my speed. As even in a crash roll, you're still going awfully fast, and leathers, kevlar, or textiles cannot slow you that much.

So now I'm wondering what everyone else thinks?


Edit: It's been brought to my attention that there are multiple situations. For me, I'm thinking something like you're in the city doing about 60 km/h (30 mph) and someone in a car makes a left in front of you and stalls. Or something similar. Do you brake hard and try to swerve? Or do you just dump it when you see someone in the way?

[Telesque]

Depends on the speeds involved and the nature of the obstruction. Are we going 30 mph at an intersection with an ice cream truck? Or are we doing 70 mph on a two lane highway with oncoming traffic?

If I could only pick between the two options, I'd probably say ... stay on the bike. Just.. wear your seatbelt or something, fool!

[BuzZz]

Jeez Dude, You scared me stupid(er?) with this topic. I thought you wadded up your new bike.....

But to the question... I don't think you can set a hard and fast rule about this. Sometimes it's better to stay with the bike, sometimes it's better to get away from it. Too bad you only have mico-seconds to decide which one to go with....

Only thing I will say for sure... if the bike is airborne and you don't have control of it, get the hell away from it.... anyway you can.

[Mac]

I didn’t vote and here is why. The situation is completely dependant on the scenario.
In your example stay on the bike!
In the event of slamming into a semi at 100 MPH, break as much as possible then dump. Better odds with the road then the smash!
Etc….

R/

[iwannadie]

id say if the bike is contrallable stay with it and do what you can to slow down before impact and keep as much of the bike between you and the object. better to slow yourself as much as possible in a controlld situation than jump off and try to roll. i dont think most people that choose to jump off would actually roll very well. fear and panic makes you go stiff(jokes aside buzz) and will have your arms and legs straight out stopping any roll, while breaking those limbs. its hard to make yourself go limp and roll in a situation like that.

a friend of mine took the riding class(no prior exp). then decided to go rent a big harley for a long road trip with some other friends. he got the bike a day early to get used to it and stuff, his second time on it in a parking lot he lost controll of it. the bike took off towards a big ditch he panicd jumpd off and let the bike go into the ditch. he was going under 20 but still the jump off caused some broken bones, and obviously the bike didnt do to well.

oh also i was watching one of those extreme cop video shows tonight. they had a guy on a bike going Really fast and tried to blow through an intersection. a bus was going through the intersection and the guy went straight into it. had he dumpd it he might of ended up under the wheels of the bus and crushed. instead he went straight into it and he lived and wasnt that hurt i think.

[Sev]

Jeez Dude, You scared me stupid(er?) with this topic. I thought you wadded up your new bike.....

But to the question... I don't think you can set a hard and fast rule about this. Sometimes it's better to stay with the bike, sometimes it's better to get away from it. Too bad you only have mico-seconds to decide which one to go with....

Only thing I will say for sure... if the bike is airborne and you don't have control of it, get the hell away from it.... anyway you can.

Actually came close today, some tool in a car pulled a left in front of me. Came within 2 meters of hitting him, but feathering the brakes was all it took to pass behind instead of through him. My Guts hurt for a good 4 minutes after that. But it was one of those things I always expect and try to be prepared for. So it wasn't that big a deal. Last time I check my speed going INTO an intersection though.

[ronboskz650sr]

Yesterday, I was riding two-up with my daughter down a hill at 40 mph, approaching a somewhat infamous intersection. Today it appeared to be threat free, as a car turned left in front of us (with plenty of time) and then stopped completely across both lanes. The pickup driver in the left turn lane behind her stopped, and I could see him looking at us wondering what we could possibly do, and what was he about to see. The left lane behind us was closed by a car barreling down on all of this. What he saw was a motorcycle panic braking nosedive to an almost complete stop, as the old lady finally rolled forward. We were going to turn right, into the open space. There is a separate right turn lane, and she wasn't in it yet...we could get stopped in the space left there, if necessary, but it never happened. If we had hit her, we probably would have ridden away. What's the point? My personal opinion, is...if you are riding within your capabilities, and are using proper traffic awareness, and you have time to think about jumping off, you probably have time to squeeze harder and get slowed down enough to make the impact minimal, since the bike will hit first. I'd rather be one obstacle for the other traffic to avoid, as well. I realize I may be a boring rider in traffic, but I use the flow just like I do in my truck at work. I just add a couple of extra mph most of the time to stay out front, and out of blind spots. I vote stay with the bike.

[emperorjordan]

I think, if I still have any control over the bike, and I am not airborne, then I am going to stick with it, and brake to lose as much speed as possible. But, if the bike is off the ground, like buzz said, GET THE HELL AWAY FROM IT!

[Sev]

I agree completely. I mean, if you're riding well it means that you should be aware of what is going on around you, and prepared to evade what happens WHILE staying on the bike. However, if you're riding beyond your limits, or not paying attention, you will get hurt.

[Mag7C]

I voted brake. Imagining myself in such a situation, I think it's more instinctual for me to squeeze the brakes than jump. I've thought about and practiced hard braking, but bailing never even crossed my mind as an escape until now.