Hi Folks, Well, today being a beautiful day, I took off after a 1/2 day at work for a ride on the VFR. Did a usual route taking me thru nice backroads with curvy sections. Headed out for about an hr., then turned around to come back the same way. Just a ways back where the road gets nice & curvy, I went in to a left-hander too hot, promptly forgot everything I've heard or learned about handling such a situation, made the beginner mistake of looking directly at my crash site, and low-sided. Well fuck it. The bike went about 20 ft. into damp dirt/grass & stopped while I traveled over the front & another 10 ft. or so in kind of a rag doll fashion before stopping. I remember that I had no thought about tuck/roll, slide on my back, cross this/that ... just a little voice screaming OH CRAP OH CRAP OH CRAP ... A nice guy on a cruiser coming the other way saw the whole mess & stopped to see if I was ok. A kid from the nearby farmhouse came up to see if I was ok as well. Between the 3 of us, we managed to get the VFR up out of the dirt & on the road for me to look her over. I was still a bit dazed so it took me some time to get the start sequence straight as I couldn't find neutral right away. I think the shift lever is damaged. The kids dad showed up, asked if anyone was hurt, then he/the kid left. I got the bike started, turned it in the direction of home, and cruiser dude followed me back in my direction a few miles. He watched my bike from behind, & between us we decided it would get me home :^). Which it did. Anyway, it appears that the damage could reach $1K, mostly bodywork & misc. broken parts. However, my ego is irreparable ;^). ACE
Well, if there's a bright side, you're A-OK and the bike was drivable. Glad you made it though - that's the important thing.
I'm glad you weren't seriously hurt. It sux to bruise up your baby, but in the end it's a machine and can be fixed.
We all suffer from your infliction from time to time. I looked at the grill on an old Ford van about a year ago. Fortunately for me the van moved. Doesn't mean I did not feel a little bit ...well lets say... emabarrassed. Especially seing as I did this in front of some of the more prominant members of this VFRW society.
Crashing makes you more tuff, and more cool. Consider this... In a month or two when your bike is fixed and your ego has recovered, you can take comfort in knowing this is another awesome campfire story you can add to your repertoire.
glad you're alright! Thanks for sharing, it hasn't happened to me - yet, at least not on the street. However, I must say;
+1 on all the above,....... however, it could have been worse. It could have been a Harley rider that came to your rescue. :biggrin:
Thanx all. After washing the bike off today I can see how light the damage actually was. Not bad at all, and who knows, maybe I won't make this exact mistake again ... nah, I know me & that may be asking too much ... ACE
We all fall, have fell or will fall again... Learn from what has happened and wear your gear ... Enjoy the ride with more confidence than you did before as you have learned not to make some mistakes.
Bummer dude. Glad your OK. As they say there are two kinds of bikers on the road. Those that have gone down and those that are gonna. Your notta gonna anymore.
Crashing sux period. If you got leathers on its better to stay on the tarmac and de-accelerate, just gota make sure you stopped before you try to get up. I have seen people tumble their arse off trying to get up when they were actually sliding at 30 mph. Sliding on the grass can be ok, just make sure there are no phone poles or wires in your way, easier said than done. Just think your gona look like a toughie now with your seasoned riding gear. Better to be riding than not.
