First errr two drops
Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:33 am
Ahhh my streak for never dropping a bike has ended. I have only myself to blame.
And no, it wasn't good enough just to drop it once, but I ended up doing it twice.
Break-down of drops:
Drop #1
I had finished riding on some very twisty roads at regular speed - between 25 and 40 - maybe slower even on some particularly sharp sections. I decided to go up a road that I've never been on in my bike. I approached a stop sign and didn't remember which way to go.
Hmmm, left or right. i decided to go right. Then I bitched up the start off with wayyy too much throttle. I overcompensated by reducing the throttle to zero. The bike stalled! (my second stall on this bike, bleh - same kind of scenario. I had actually managed a few feet with too much throttle and using the clutch so I was mid-turn.
Then, I went from a mild case of the stupids to a large case of the stupids. I focused in on the fact that the bike was stalling and trying to correct that problem. Messing around with the clutch and throttle and looking down at the instrument cluster (non fatal error right there). So, I look up in the sequence of events and see that my forward momentum is virtually zero and panic and.... Grabbed the front brake. Partial lean + zero forward momentum = bike on the ground.
Scratches in the usual places. A guy who had let me by earlier (I think he thought I was going to burn it up down the road, which isn't my thing) came out of his truck and helped me lift the bike up. That bike is really heavy. The shape of the seat does not lend itself to being lifted up the way they show little 5' nothing women picking up gold wings on youtube. With his help its up. A minute or two later to focus and I'm back on the road in this residential area.
I ride down the GSP and went to the Metro park exist and in to a businesses parking lot to work on some tight turns, do a few figure 8's and work on some quick stops.
Drop #2
Well, I'm actually doing pretty good. My figure 8's suck. Slow speed control is terrible. When the bike is pulling in first gear it wants to go a speed that is much too fast for real slow-speed maneuvers. Gliding reduces speed very quickly.
But anyway, quick stops are really good on this bike. No problems there. Even at 15 - 20 mph the I apply the breaks and the bike stocks with the rear wheel maybe 1 ft ahead of the paint that I was using as my stop mark. I'm getting better with my confidence. I decide to do 1 last figure 8 before I leave and try and put some highway miles on the bike - and work on my speed on some on/off ramps with declining radius turns and then off to home.
But I turn in to the worlds biggest dork. I enter the U-turn making a right, but I'm sure I'm looking down and not where I need to go. So I look up and feel like I'm going too fast (I'm probably not, actually) and grab a handful of front brake (again!). Down she goes.
Only this time I'm alone and I figure out that I don't have my cell phone with me. It doesn't matter, my wife is pregnant with twins and wouldn't be able to help me pick it up anyway. I don't really have a lot of close friends who are as physically capable as I am.
So, I have to get the bike up myself unless there are security guys roving around that are willing to help.
I try the traditional way a few times. And what are only a few scratches that aren't too bad I'm sure get worse because I'm moving around on the pavement a bit in order to pick the bike up.
Eventually, I set myself up like a football player with one hand on the handlebar and one around the back of the bike. There isn't much place to put a hand on the back of the bike due to the exhausts.
I lift the bike up and as expected the scratches from before are all worse. Still not too bad - they can be viewed as character marks. Need to put some black paint on some covers for the engine. No leaks. Scratch on the enormous non-functional air intake - scratched.
Little scratches on the mirror.
Injuries to me physically, none.
So, my pride and the finish of my bike are a bit damaged. Meh.
I ride home with no incidents. My confidence isn't too messed up as I don't ride the shortest way home. I botch a slow speed turn on the way home and go way to wide.
So, I'll promise myself to ride a little tomorrow to make sure I'm not afraid of the bike. I'll practice again tomorrow , but maybe not figure 8's. I'll probably work on tight slower (but not figure 8 slow) turns in both directions until I have more confidence to handle the figure 8's.
I'll need to work on my clutch control - and even though I dropped the bike, I did do a number of starts from complete stop and emergency stops even after I dropped the bike. I rode up and down the aisles of the parking lot for some more turns.
RhadamYgg
And no, it wasn't good enough just to drop it once, but I ended up doing it twice.
Break-down of drops:
Drop #1
I had finished riding on some very twisty roads at regular speed - between 25 and 40 - maybe slower even on some particularly sharp sections. I decided to go up a road that I've never been on in my bike. I approached a stop sign and didn't remember which way to go.
Hmmm, left or right. i decided to go right. Then I bitched up the start off with wayyy too much throttle. I overcompensated by reducing the throttle to zero. The bike stalled! (my second stall on this bike, bleh - same kind of scenario. I had actually managed a few feet with too much throttle and using the clutch so I was mid-turn.
Then, I went from a mild case of the stupids to a large case of the stupids. I focused in on the fact that the bike was stalling and trying to correct that problem. Messing around with the clutch and throttle and looking down at the instrument cluster (non fatal error right there). So, I look up in the sequence of events and see that my forward momentum is virtually zero and panic and.... Grabbed the front brake. Partial lean + zero forward momentum = bike on the ground.
Scratches in the usual places. A guy who had let me by earlier (I think he thought I was going to burn it up down the road, which isn't my thing) came out of his truck and helped me lift the bike up. That bike is really heavy. The shape of the seat does not lend itself to being lifted up the way they show little 5' nothing women picking up gold wings on youtube. With his help its up. A minute or two later to focus and I'm back on the road in this residential area.
I ride down the GSP and went to the Metro park exist and in to a businesses parking lot to work on some tight turns, do a few figure 8's and work on some quick stops.
Drop #2
Well, I'm actually doing pretty good. My figure 8's suck. Slow speed control is terrible. When the bike is pulling in first gear it wants to go a speed that is much too fast for real slow-speed maneuvers. Gliding reduces speed very quickly.
But anyway, quick stops are really good on this bike. No problems there. Even at 15 - 20 mph the I apply the breaks and the bike stocks with the rear wheel maybe 1 ft ahead of the paint that I was using as my stop mark. I'm getting better with my confidence. I decide to do 1 last figure 8 before I leave and try and put some highway miles on the bike - and work on my speed on some on/off ramps with declining radius turns and then off to home.
But I turn in to the worlds biggest dork. I enter the U-turn making a right, but I'm sure I'm looking down and not where I need to go. So I look up and feel like I'm going too fast (I'm probably not, actually) and grab a handful of front brake (again!). Down she goes.
Only this time I'm alone and I figure out that I don't have my cell phone with me. It doesn't matter, my wife is pregnant with twins and wouldn't be able to help me pick it up anyway. I don't really have a lot of close friends who are as physically capable as I am.
So, I have to get the bike up myself unless there are security guys roving around that are willing to help.
I try the traditional way a few times. And what are only a few scratches that aren't too bad I'm sure get worse because I'm moving around on the pavement a bit in order to pick the bike up.
Eventually, I set myself up like a football player with one hand on the handlebar and one around the back of the bike. There isn't much place to put a hand on the back of the bike due to the exhausts.
I lift the bike up and as expected the scratches from before are all worse. Still not too bad - they can be viewed as character marks. Need to put some black paint on some covers for the engine. No leaks. Scratch on the enormous non-functional air intake - scratched.
Little scratches on the mirror.
Injuries to me physically, none.
So, my pride and the finish of my bike are a bit damaged. Meh.
I ride home with no incidents. My confidence isn't too messed up as I don't ride the shortest way home. I botch a slow speed turn on the way home and go way to wide.
So, I'll promise myself to ride a little tomorrow to make sure I'm not afraid of the bike. I'll practice again tomorrow , but maybe not figure 8's. I'll probably work on tight slower (but not figure 8 slow) turns in both directions until I have more confidence to handle the figure 8's.
I'll need to work on my clutch control - and even though I dropped the bike, I did do a number of starts from complete stop and emergency stops even after I dropped the bike. I rode up and down the aisles of the parking lot for some more turns.
RhadamYgg
