[muddysteel]

Newbie to the forum - and the old adage about not a question of "if", but "when" comes to mind.. I decided to share a few stories of my riding daze..

Dec. 1973 - Careful scrutiny of California driving rules reveals that when issued a probationary license (15 1/2 yrs old) you must have a licensed driver with you UNLESS you are riding a motorcycle. Aha.. My first ride - a Honda 450 twin. Mom & Dad have to stay behind!!!

Blasting off late from my friend's house, errant cager turns left in front of me, and locks up brakes, creating an even larger target! I slam my back brake on, the bike lays down, and realize I'm going to be hurt. Cager hammers the accelerator down, I (don't know how) manage to get the bike upright and JUST miss the rear bumper.

Lesson: Front brakes have better stopping power, and you should (mostly) always use both brakes! Cagers will turn left in front of you (even if they see you) and attempt to convert you to a hood ornament.

Dec. 1977 - Just back from an overseas tour of duty, I pay cash for my first new bike - a beautiful KZ650. I am being stationed in the lovely state of Washington.

I decide to ride my bike from sunny San Diego, CA to the Seattle, WA area. I will spend the night at Mt. Shasta National Park. Did I mention it's winter in North America? What's this? Snow? Over 6 ft. high on the sides of the road? I learn a new pattern: Ride one hour. Thaw out 20 min. at the first available Denny's. Newspaper stuffed into the riding pants makes for an excellent insulator. I cross into Oregon. The bike gets "weird". I pull off and examine my Vetter fairing - there's at least an inch of ice on it. I continue riding up the interstate. A large Greyhound bus passes me and the "drag" effect hits me - I am suddenly making like an outrigger with my legs on the freeway trying to stay upright as my bike begins to turn left/right/left/right all on its own.. I stop and let the sun melt the black ice for awhile.

Lesson: Not everywhere in the world is 80 deg F in December.

May 1979 - Returning TDY from eastern Washington state, after training some weekend warriors. My buddy is in his TR-7, me on the KZ650. Washington has some AWESOME canyons! The route home is via White's Pass with me in the lead. I pass slow traffic and let my bud know when it's clear.

Take it easy - hairpin (posted 20 mph) ahead; took it about going about 40 mph two days prior, but a little damp now. Glance down at the speedo - doing 23 mph. Downshift, tap brakes and .. Uh-oh! Rear just broke free and bike goes down. I get it back up (man - I am a GOOD rider! Yeah!). What's that? Those tree tops are level with the guard rail! I can't go over that - lay it back down.. Last thought: "I always wondered what it would be like to crash." I find myself hanging onto the guard rail. I pull myself back onto the pavement and notice my right foot is right next to my face.. Ouch! Almost got the leg taken off (open Fx of the femur/closed Fx of the fib/tib). Did get six weeks in traction, 3 months in hospital.. My bike was fine - fairing got banged up and some minor cosmetic.. I start riding again 4 months after the accident.. One year, two weeks, two days later, I got the cast off my leg.

Lesson: Light rain on the roadway brings oil to the surface. A cager had crashed on that turn the day prior.

Jun 1981 - Living in Utah now, and while the roads run a bit longer and straighter, you can still find twisties if you look.

Head out with a group of buds on a poker run... Still running that KZ650 (which has now been up and down the west coast of the U.S. twice) with some minor mods (Kerker exhaust, re-jetted carbs, better stiction, etc.). Varying levels of riding capability with this group. I hit some curves heading out towards Wendover. One of the less experienced guys decides to keep up. We get a little hot. I glance down in mirror, and see an airborne Kawasaki 400 twin - not an easy thing to achieve..

Lesson: When you ride in a group, get the ground rules straight, and never, ever, ride over your head. It's a ride, NOT a race.

Mar. 1985 - Living in Orange County, CA. That old 650 is still flogging the way.

Heading to work early in the a.m. Hit the southbound ramp of interstate 405 kinda of thinking about what's got to get done that day. Oops! I drifted across the oil streak that gets left on those on-ramps! Uh-oh! A jeep is trying to run me over.. I somersault out of the way, my bike slides onto a small island that keeps it from sliding onto the freeway proper - thank God for small miracles. I get the bike upright - the left handlebar is pointing pretty much straight down. I ride home and tell the wife I decided to take day off, and now I think I'll be taking a hot bath.

Lesson: Don't let yourself be distracted while riding. If you do, you'll pay - maybe a little, maybe all everything you have. Oh yeah - don't cross that oil streak when leaned over..

Summer 1989 - Have a Kawasaki 750 Ninja now (wife calls my pop, "Dad, I failed you! He bought another one!"). Sure beats my old KZ650 - wow! Some nifty things on that ride (the anti-dive was pretty darn trick - just didn't work all that well).

Need gas. Stop at the local station, plant my feet, pull the wallet out, do the plastic thing, lean over.. My feet are sliding out from under me!!! WTF!?!?! My bike does a S-L-O-W fall, as I attempt to conduct some kind of splits I was never designed to achieve. My mint-condition bike is no longer mint.. I go insane at the station attendant and wonder how long a groin takes to recover.

Lesson: Don't plant your feet in oil. It will do it's job even if it's quite old.

Jun 1999 - Southern California is a great place to ride. Have a '98 VFR now - best sport/touring bike I've ever owned (wife no longer even tries). Love fuel-injection - I have to learn to feather the clutch to smooth hard accels out.

My two bro-in-laws and me go riding (VFR, Triumph Speed Triple, Ducati Monster). See another Viffer up ahead - brand new, it still has the paper plates on it. Come to a stop light. Got to say, "Nice ride!" Fella says back, nervously, "Yeah! Thanks! It's my first motorcycle." I think, "uh oh". He's with 3 other bikes, heading same direction. I'm in lead of my little group (and we all know the ground rules). We trail. He's doing fine, a little stiff. Here comes nice easy curve.. With one solo telephone pole at the apex. He's Ok..Doing fine - huh? His head just started tracking the pole! His bike just altered direction - STRAIGHT INTO THE POLE! Ok - jump off, check him over.. nothing busted, pretty banged up.. Wow - the fire station with paramedics is like 1000 yds away. Lucky guy - took just over 1 hour to come get me when I hit something hard..

Lesson: You go where you look. Always look as deep as you can and track where you want to be, not where you DON'T want to be. If you're a new rider, check the ego and start small. 800cc goes REAL fast.

Oct 2006 - Getting dark early now because of the switch to daylight savings time. I LOVE my '03 954 Blade. It's a bit tweaky here and there - you have to nurse power shots out of the corners 'cause it'll grab daylight if you don't pay attention.. what a rush!

Slipping through traffic on my way home. Construction zone, K-rails all around. I slide past a bus in the #1. Cager does a "turn-and-look": Turns at the same time he looks. Glances back at the stopped traffic and realizes he's going to hit the vehicle in front of him. He jerks left even faster.. Uh oh. I slam emergency stop - it's all reflex and because of the k-rails, I've got NOwhere to dodge into/out of. TWO very small inches more, and he wouldn't have hit my front tire. I get slapped to the ground, and I'm thinking, "This is going to hurt real bad." SLAM! "Hey, that wasn't so bad, I've got my helmet on!" I, being experienced at this sort of thing, somersault out of the way of the bus just behind me, and jump over the k-rail to avoid becoming road kill. I am one LUCKY man. The cager continues onward without pause. It's a hit-and-run! Nice. Two vehicles back, a guy jumps out, yells, "I ride a Harley and I saw the whole thing!" I think, "Cool!" 3 or 10 peeps (I'm sorta seeing double or triple) help me push bike to right side of freeway. I sit down.. By myself. No one stays to witness the thing. Man. I call insurance and report it - hit and run, covered by my un-insured motorist clause. Company says, "Well sir, since the driver did not stop, we cannot prove he did not have insurance, and therefore, we cannot apply your un-insured coverage." Right. The bike is about $500 away from being a total.

Lesson: Cagers will ALWAYS try to kill you no matter your level of experience. You can hurt your head even in a helmet - this one gave me my first concussion. Oh yeah - a good lawyer can (and did) straighten the insurance problem out.

I learned early on to always wear good riding gear. I had to be stupid just a few times to realize riding takes all of your attention. And even then, I have to constantly remind myself it STILL takes ALL of my attention. I ride for me and the ten other peeps around me. The two very worst physical injuries I suffered happened at low speed (< 20 mph), and the one nearly cost me leg, the other almost my life.

Ride distracted and/or without safety gear, and you're just begging to fulfill the ER's idea of motorcycle riders: Organ donors.

As I've heard - ride safe, and keep the greasy side down!

[muddysteel]

Oh yeah - here's a couple of pics of my blade prior to being repaired. First one is the left side (crank case was ground open on the bottom); second one shows just how close it was - you can see the scrapes on my tire where the bumper JUST connected..

[ghbzorro]

Welcome, and thanks for the stories.

I hope to learn predominantly from other peoples' events, and to participate in as few as possible myself!

[bladeracer]

Originally Posted by muddysteel

Lesson: Front brakes have better stopping power, and you should (mostly) always use both brakes!

I disagree with this as it depends entirely on the type of bike.
An old style bike, cruiser or tourer has reasonable rear braking due to the rearward weight bias.
A modern sportsbike can get you into a lot of trouble if you go stomping the rear brake in an emergency situation.
The rear brake is good for off-road and wheelies and that's about all.

[exit90a]

Great stories. Are you still riding the 954?

[setanta]

Cheers good reading even though the stories didnt always make for fun reading.
Welcome to the forum.
I think you should concentrate on using your front brake a lot more as the new bikes are designed to be used that way.

[HondaGalToo]

Welcome! Great stories!

[muddysteel]

Originally Posted by bladeracer

I disagree with this as it depends entirely on the type of bike.
An old style bike, cruiser or tourer has reasonable rear braking due to the rearward weight bias.
A modern sportsbike can get you into a lot of trouble if you go stomping the rear brake in an emergency situation.
The rear brake is good for off-road and wheelies and that's about all.

Heh heh - I guess you mostly disagree with me then! All bikes (and cars for that matter) have more stopping power with the front brakes..

[bladeracer]

True, but sportsbikes have _zero_ stopping power from the rear brake in an emergency stop.

[BigBassTurd]

Man I felt I like was back in first grade. I wanted to pop a squat indian style on the rug cause it was "STORY TIME"! That was great MuddySteel thanks for sharing.

[denzee]

Originally Posted by bladeracer

True, but sportsbikes have _zero_ stopping power from the rear brake in an emergency stop.

Great summary of lessons muddy.

I would say most people can't and don't utilize their front brake to its maximum, so as long as the rear tire is touching the pavement, which it usually is, it can provide extra needed stopping power. As you say though blade, it must be controlled.

I'm a big believer in using both brakes. Keeps the bike from diving so much especially two up riding. Easier on the wrists too.

Plus Honda has introduced a combined linked/ABS high performance braking system on the 2009 CBR1000 that supposedly maximizes both brakes.

[muddysteel]

Originally Posted by exit90a

Great stories. Are you still riding the 954?

Oooh yeah - I don't have many vices, but speed is.. ahem.. one of them.

[muddysteel]

Originally Posted by setanta

Cheers good reading even though the stories didnt always make for fun reading.
Welcome to the forum.
I think you should concentrate on using your front brake a lot more as the new bikes are designed to be used that way.

Thanks! My last accident would've been much more serious (I probably would've collided with the k-rail) if I did not have good knowledge of using that front brake.

I'm no Eddie Lawson (or was it Fast Freddie or Keith Code?) who swore he'd never use the back brake again on the track. Equal application with modulation is the best approach (ya don't want a lock up 'cause that's about as much traction as ice provides) for emergency stops. Controlled braking (e.g., trail) is best reserved for the track..

[GypsyRebel]

Wow reading your stories are truly eye opening but I have to ask so now here years later with more experience what do you think you would do different? besides what you said were your lessons? what would you say to a new rider? as I am a new rider myself how do you think you could avoided a few of these seem a bit of rider error don't you agree?

I have to say you do impress me that "if" I ever do something I can get back on the horse (so to speak) thanks for sharing and hope to able to pass along stories after a time of riding.

[bladeracer]

Originally Posted by denzee

I would say most people can't and don't utilize their front brake to its maximum, so as long as the rear tire is touching the pavement, which it usually is, it can provide extra needed stopping power. As you say though blade, it must be controlled.

But, if the rear tyre still has any weight on the ground then you aren't making the most of your front brake.
The front works better and better the more weight you transfer to it and is more and more difficult to lock up.

[muddysteel]

Originally Posted by GypsyRebel

Wow reading your stories are truly eye opening but I have to ask so now here years later with more experience what do you think you would do different? besides what you said were your lessons? what would you say to a new rider? as I am a new rider myself how do you think you could avoided a few of these seem a bit of rider error don't you agree?

I have to say you do impress me that "if" I ever do something I can get back on the horse (so to speak) thanks for sharing and hope to able to pass along stories after a time of riding.

For me, four main things: First, no matter how good a rider I might be, things can (and do) go wrong. So, if I (you) focus on removing the "rider induced errors", my (your) odds of staying alive increase tremendously. My personal biggies are paying attention, and not hot-dogging it (just toooo easy on these modern liter bikes). I have to check my ego when I ride on the street.

Second, if you're new, own that. By this, I mean you have to check the ego and start small. If I'd tried to start my riding on something like a Blade, I'm pretty sure you'd be ready my obituary, and not my stories.

Third, take a motorcycle safety course. Here's an old stat - may not still be true - here in Calif., if you're a new rider and you LIVE longer than 6 months, your odds of living go up over 50%. There's a lot of things to coordinate, and I've missed more accidents than I've shared here because of my reflexes. Those take time..

Last - places like this forum are totally awesome. Lots of sagely advice and I SURE wish I could've had a place like this to just hang out and ask questions. Just check the ego, and fire away.. The "tone" is right - many KUDOS to the forum owners/admins/moderators - and I can see it very easy to get good direction..

Did I mention to check the ego?

[bladeracer]

Originally Posted by GypsyRebel

Wow reading your stories are truly eye opening but I have to ask so now here years later with more experience what do you think you would do different? besides what you said were your lessons? what would you say to a new rider? as I am a new rider myself how do you think you could avoided a few of these seem a bit of rider error don't you agree?

Two of them were caused by using the rear brake which I would suggest is the first lesson to learn :-)
I've broken about 30 bones while learning to crash better :-)

[muddysteel]

Originally Posted by bladeracer

Two of them were caused by using the rear brake which I would suggest is the first lesson to learn :-)
I've broken about 30 bones while learning to crash better :-)

Well, really only the first story I related was rear-brake induced. The guardrail happened using both brakes - the real issue was rider awareness (how is my ride going to react?) to poor road conditions (oil/damp/ice).

Here's a non-crash story: In the #2 on state route 91, near Weir Canyon (anyone who knows the 91 knows what a lousy drive that is). Two young lasses gabbing away in the #1 and a snap-lane change to the #2. I managed to do a stoppie and angle my Ninja such that I ended up parallel to their rear bumper. Some deft body language, and I stayed upright (funny - there was another Jeep behind me!). My reflexes know about which brake to use...

[bladeracer]

I was approaching an intersection in heavy traffic one wet morning in 1989.
Traffic was stopping at the other side of the intersection and I was slowing to stop behind the last car with enough room to barely need to brake at all as I could see ahead that it was almost ready to move off again when a car turned out against their red light and without giving way to me and parked itself in the spot. The lane alongside has a semi in it just idling forward so there's no room there either. Grab a bit more front brake and it locks, let it off and grab it again and it locks, let if off again and I'm almost into the back of the car. I grab it one last time and this time there's no room to let if off so I'm getting set to ride it down. The driver sees me in the mirror and starts moving forward with the traffic and I watch my locked front tyre just miss her rear bumper and tuck under the car as I go down on the right side. I roll off the bike and under the trailer of the semi. The truck driver though has watched the whole incident in his off-side mirror and immediately locks his air brakes with a howl and clouds of tyre smoke. As soon as I stop rolling I scramble out, shake the truck driver's hand who has already run around to see the mess, pick up my bike and rejoin the traffic. The entire incident was over in seconds. If the traffic alongside had been going any faster I would've had to aim to impact the rear of the car and launch myself over to the left to survive it.
The Lesson: intersections absorb heaps of oil so always try to avoid having to brake through them in the rain. And, even when you do avoid having to brake through them some fool will still try to kill you so always look for somewhere soft to land :-)

[KVR]

Muddysteel your sobering yet humorously readable stories and this cup of coffee just made my morning. Also, your advice and the way you conveyed it just might just save my a#$ down the road.

[muddysteel]

Originally Posted by KVR

Muddysteel your sobering yet humorously readable stories and this cup of coffee just made my morning. Also, your advice and the way you conveyed it just might just save my a#$ down the road.

Well, good, and to this joint!

[KVR]

thanks man, I love this forum

[honorcode3]

Thanks for the good write up and lessons. I'm a new rider and I always like hearing peoples tips. I hear that everyone falls at least once, is this true?

[bladeracer]

Originally Posted by honorcode3

Thanks for the good write up and lessons. I'm a new rider and I always like hearing peoples tips. I hear that everyone falls at least once, is this true?

No idea.
I've crashed 29 times on the road and track.

[muddysteel]

Originally Posted by honorcode3

Thanks for the good write up and lessons. I'm a new rider and I always like hearing peoples tips. I hear that everyone falls at least once, is this true?

There's an old adage about motorcycling - you've probably heard it: It's not a matter of "if" you'll crash, but "when".

[Jetpilot07]

welcome, and great stories....loved to read them.....

[bjay51d]

repped those stories were great...

[UcantCATCHme]

Originally Posted by bladeracer

But, if the rear tyre still has any weight on the ground then you aren't making the most of your front brake.
The front works better and better the more weight you transfer to it and is more and more difficult to lock up.

Blade says it best. If your front is not locking up because of road conditions (ice rain oil gas) it is locking up because your front is not carrying enough weight, therefore the brake is strong enough to lock the wheel.

Using your rear brake hinders the bikes weight from transfering up front to the forks and in turn the wheel.

Also unless you can play the piano and harmonica while tapping your feet to another tune, you can see in EMERGENCY braking how difficult it is to firmly grab with your hand and gently push with your foot.

Yes you can practice emergency braking all year but you never get to put the oh **** factor in. Also your brain can't really imagine all other factors of the situation (what every other vehicle is doing in front and behind you scanning road and manipulating the bike).

So in an accident you will (with enough practice) most likely engage the front brake correctly. This will lessen the weight on the rear tire and in turn rear brake pressure will lock the rear up.

Better practice to down shift with front brake (also leaves you in the lowest gear if acceleration suddenly becomes a need). But hey using the rear brake at least gives you and out by lowsiding the bike and letting you slide off before hitting that cage lol.

[TheOne11]

Man I went down about a dozen times at Willow when I first started track days... Wish I had some more knowledge back then... would have saved pain and money...

Welcome!

[muddysteel]

LOL - my lessons learned is becoming a critique on braking (and in this case, my braking). Perhaps an appropriate "How To" article by some willing contributor??

Originally Posted by UcantCATCHme

Also unless you can play the piano and harmonica while tapping your feet to another tune, you can see in EMERGENCY braking how difficult it is to firmly grab with your hand and gently push with your foot.

Huh?!? You mean not all motorcyclists play the piano, harmonica, AND the drums at the same time already?!?!?

Seriously, some more good points on using front vs. rear break only..I believe it's clear: Don't use the rear brake, alone, to emergency stop.

However, you should NOT go the other way, and use the front brake only in an emergency. MODULATED braking with BOTH brakes is the best way to manage an EMERGENCY stop.

By MODULATED, I mean as hard as you can without locking up/losing control. This, in practice, will translate into applying more front brake than rear brake - because, as already written, the front brake can brake more (up to 75% more) than the rear brake can.

The reason for using both brakes is the for the same reason ABS exists: It's not about stopping faster, it's about stopping better, under control..Both wheels biting and slowing down means you're going to maintain better control - allowing you to aim for your "escape" route that you are always planning for (everyone does SEPE, right? Search, Evaluate, Plan, Execute).