A personal example of how full gear can save your ass! - Page 7

Amber Lamps · 01-01-2011, 01:30 PM

Aha I found this thread....

Okay, well first, I'm really glad that you are okay-ish and will make a full recovery. Second, I always love all of the post-crash analysis, especially by people that can't ride at 60% of the speed that you do. In my experience, it's usually a combination of factors, little minute differences from the last time you took that corner, that caught up to you. Temperature, tire pressure/wear, road surface, new forks-springs/oil/settings/height in triples, speed, etc. BTW, here's my PC analysis. It'll be hard to judge now but any chance one of the forks slid in the triple? That would do what you described. Also, an incorrectly re-assembled fork after a seal/spring change. You got the forks from someone else. Do you know their exact history? I had that problem at the Gap, Rally before last, and almost lost it. Quite frankly though, my honest guess is that you fucked up...rider error, it causes crashes every once in a while.

As far as you, "giving up street riding and riding track only". Well, that sounds like the pain, your wife and fear talking to me. Seriously, one crash and you're done? Wow, I'm surprised you ever learned how to walk, dated more than one woman, etc with that attitude. One failure/mishap and you quit? Sounds kinda weak, dude.

I gave up street bikes for a season after my '01 GSXR1000 was totaled and bought a DRZ400...Yea, that didn't last long. That might have worked for Brandon but it wasn't cutting it for me. Besides, getting injured on a trail doesn't feel any better than getting injured on the street. Besides, you wear a hell of a lot less gear so it's actually easier to get hurt.

You do realize that people get hurt/killed on the track as well right? One of my worst get offs ever occurred at the track. Being afraid of crashing is going to make going to track just as miserable for you as riding on the street. IMHO. I think that you rode around thinking that you couldn't get hurt because you wore all that gear. Well, that bubble has been burst. So now you're going to be "track only" because you think that you'll be "safer" there... Maybe, but if you keep riding at the limit, you'll end up crashing, and we'll be seeing a thread about you giving up riding all together soon.

I know how you feel, bro. I've totaled 7 bikes and have been in over a dozen street crashes in going on 30 years of riding. I have pins, scars, limps, pains, aches, etc to prove it too. I love it, so for me it's worth the risk. You are going to die, man. It's just that simple. Today, you give up riding and tomorrow you get hit by a bus or find out you have cancer. I'd rather go out happy, smiling with the ground rushing by than any other way.

I don't believe you when you say that you can't have fun unless you take that corner at 120. That same corner at 100 would be pretty damn thrilling IMHO. If you take it down to 80-90% of your potential on the street, it can still be fun. You'd probably half the risk if you slowed down 10%. I can't count the number of times I've heard this crap from people. Heck, I had a friend give up riding after he crashed doing a wheelie... I'm like, "Um you could just stop stunting..."

I ride A LOT slower than I used to and quite frankly, I have MORE fun now because I have less to worry about. Yeesh.

You have to do whats right for you, bro. I do respect that but I just hope that you don't make a decision out of fear that you'll end of regretting later. Oh well, take some time off and see how you feel once you are all healed up. Try not to make too many promises to your wife that you'll have a hard time keeping in the coming years. I did that in '02 and ended up having to break up
with my GF when I decided to buy my '03GSXR1000.... It was either "her or the bike"....

DLIT · 01-01-2011, 04:07 PM

My forks never moved in the triple tree.

And I'm well aware of people getting hurt/killed on the track. Deciding to go track only is to put my wife's mind at ease...for a temporary time. I'm not scared of wrecking again. It wasn't even bad until I hit the curb. I'm just saying there's less hazards to hit on the track.

Reminds me of this commercial:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VruWHHEnZGw

I think I'm doing what's right for me, my wife and my family right now. I am totally fine with track only riding for a couple seasons. Get out there in the middle group and see how I am, maybe eventually get back in the fast group...whatever.

I wrecked at about 120 and slid into a curb and down a slope. Just three weeks later and I'm walking around without using crutches, buying all new gear already (just need a helmet and boots) and I'm out and about a lot now, too. In my mind, by not riding street for a while I'm paying respects to whatever powers that be made it possible to basically walk away from a wreck of that magnitude.

And I always ride around 80% on the street. I'm never near my limit. Even on the track I don't open the throttle up as much and soon as I could probably get away with. None of my decisions are spawned from fear, I promise you that. And I do think I would enjoy street riding even more now, because after the wreck, the pain, the recovering...bottom line is I'm still able to ride. That's why, after a couple seasons maybe, that Ducati cruiser will have my name all over it!

Amber Lamps · 01-01-2011, 05:07 PM

So a few weeks ago, you were blasting through 45mph curves at 120 and now you're posting PSAs?... Born again much? Okay, Bro. I'm honestly just glad that you are okay. BTW for fun and the sake of argument, how can you be happy in the "slower" middle group or on a cruiser when you have stated that you can't ride unless you are going WOT?

FWIW cruisers do suffer crashes too....

Anyway, if you're bored and want to argue to pass the time, I'll check in every so often.

Gas Man · 01-01-2011, 07:40 PM

AL... good post actually. Very rare for me to read such long stuff. YOu bruoght out allot of good points that even if not applied to Dlit apply to many.

i know a rider that crashed a couple of years ago. Not a real bad crash but enough to take the heat from his pants. Now he rides 50% that he use to and is on the edge of loosing the bug. I keep telling him to just get a cruiser, he really likes mine and the way I have it setup but says he's not set at home to have such a bike. I keep pushing him that way cause I know he'll get the bug back and enjoy riding again.

It's always different strokes for different folks and how they deal with crashes. When I high sided the 9R for a damn deer, it didn't slow me down at all. I was on the hill of more and more risk. Till I just told myself a few times, this is getting stupid. Much like DLIT I wasn't happy till I was over 125. I hung up my leather track suit for good and never looked back. Traded in for chrome and chaps. I like it and I have met more people and been to more places on my bike than ever before. It's great.

perhaps dlit will hang up his track suit in a year for a cruiser or maybe he'll get into hot rod cars. Do what you enjoy and F what people think.

Amber Lamps · 01-01-2011, 08:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gas Man

AL... good post actually. Very rare for me to read such long stuff. YOu bruoght out allot of good points that even if not applied to Dlit apply to many.

i know a rider that crashed a couple of years ago. Not a real bad crash but enough to take the heat from his pants. Now he rides 50% that he use to and is on the edge of loosing the bug. I keep telling him to just get a cruiser, he really likes mine and the way I have it setup but says he's not set at home to have such a bike. I keep pushing him that way cause I know he'll get the bug back and enjoy riding again.

It's always different strokes for different folks and how they deal with crashes. When I high sided the 9R for a damn deer, it didn't slow me down at all. I was on the hill of more and more risk. Till I just told myself a few times, this is getting stupid. Much like DLIT I wasn't happy till I was over 125. I hung up my leather track suit for good and never looked back. Traded in for chrome and chaps. I like it and I have met more people and been to more places on my bike than ever before. It's great.

perhaps dlit will hang up his track suit in a year for a cruiser or maybe he'll get into hot rod cars. Do what you enjoy and F what people think.

True dat! I'm just playing devil's advocate and trying to cheer/fire him up a little. To be honest, I've considered quitting several times between funerals and crashes but I always come back. Like I said, you ARE going to die, I know that better than most. I plan to die with a smile on my face and lots of stories to tell in hell!

Captain Morgan · 01-02-2011, 12:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amber Lamps

True dat! I'm just playing devil's advocate and trying to cheer/fire him up a little. To be honest, I've considered quitting several times between funerals and crashes but I always come back. Like I said, you ARE going to die, I know that better than most. I plan to die with a smile on my face and lots of stories to tell in hell!

Yep. My mom hates that I ride because she's heard so many stories of people getting hurt, killed, maimed, etc. I just tell her that when it's my time, it's my time, and it will happen whether I'm riding a motorcycle or walking down my basement stairs. I might as well enjoy life while I'm here!! One story that really bugs her is that her cousin was riding passenger and some guy fell asleep at the wheel and hit the cousin's bike. Killed the cousin's husband and caused the cousin to lose her leg. Mom's cousin still rides.

101lifts2 · 01-02-2011, 02:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amber Lamps

.... Like I said, you ARE going to die, I know that better than most....

So you know more than others that we are all going to die. U smart.

101lifts2 · 01-02-2011, 01:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gas Man

.... Traded in for chrome and chaps. .....

I never understood the chaps thing.

DLIT · 01-01-2011, 05:15 PM

It goes back to me actually being able to ride again. I'll be satisfied in the middle group for now. There's nothing to argue. I'm set in my ways and thoughts now.

Amber Lamps · 01-01-2011, 08:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLIT

It goes back to me actually being able to ride again. I'll be satisfied in the middle group for now. There's nothing to argue. I'm set in my ways and thoughts now.

Aw... I wanted to argue with you for fun, dang it!

01-01-2011, 04:07 PM	#2
DLIT Clit Commander Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Las Vegas Moto: 2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale S Posts: 4,189	My forks never moved in the triple tree. And I'm well aware of people getting hurt/killed on the track. Deciding to go track only is to put my wife's mind at ease...for a temporary time. I'm not scared of wrecking again. It wasn't even bad until I hit the curb. I'm just saying there's less hazards to hit on the track. Reminds me of this commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VruWHHEnZGw I think I'm doing what's right for me, my wife and my family right now. I am totally fine with track only riding for a couple seasons. Get out there in the middle group and see how I am, maybe eventually get back in the fast group...whatever. I wrecked at about 120 and slid into a curb and down a slope. Just three weeks later and I'm walking around without using crutches, buying all new gear already (just need a helmet and boots) and I'm out and about a lot now, too. In my mind, by not riding street for a while I'm paying respects to whatever powers that be made it possible to basically walk away from a wreck of that magnitude. And I always ride around 80% on the street. I'm never near my limit. Even on the track I don't open the throttle up as much and soon as I could probably get away with. None of my decisions are spawned from fear, I promise you that. And I do think I would enjoy street riding even more now, because after the wreck, the pain, the recovering...bottom line is I'm still able to ride. That's why, after a couple seasons maybe, that Ducati cruiser will have my name all over it! __________________ Dress for the crash. Not the ride.

01-01-2011, 07:40 PM	#4
Gas Man Trip's Assistant Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Imported from Detroit Moto: 2009 HD Street Classic Posts: 12,149	AL... good post actually. Very rare for me to read such long stuff. YOu bruoght out allot of good points that even if not applied to Dlit apply to many. i know a rider that crashed a couple of years ago. Not a real bad crash but enough to take the heat from his pants. Now he rides 50% that he use to and is on the edge of loosing the bug. I keep telling him to just get a cruiser, he really likes mine and the way I have it setup but says he's not set at home to have such a bike. I keep pushing him that way cause I know he'll get the bug back and enjoy riding again. It's always different strokes for different folks and how they deal with crashes. When I high sided the 9R for a damn deer, it didn't slow me down at all. I was on the hill of more and more risk. Till I just told myself a few times, this is getting stupid. Much like DLIT I wasn't happy till I was over 125. I hung up my leather track suit for good and never looked back. Traded in for chrome and chaps. I like it and I have met more people and been to more places on my bike than ever before. It's great. perhaps dlit will hang up his track suit in a year for a cruiser or maybe he'll get into hot rod cars. Do what you enjoy and F what people think. __________________ -Chris "Why pay somebody else to fuck up your bike?" Run Amsoil Product

01-01-2011, 05:15 PM	#9
DLIT Clit Commander Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Las Vegas Moto: 2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale S Posts: 4,189	It goes back to me actually being able to ride again. I'll be satisfied in the middle group for now. There's nothing to argue. I'm set in my ways and thoughts now. __________________ Dress for the crash. Not the ride.

01-01-2011, 01:30 PM	#1
Amber Lamps Moto GP Star Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 14,556	Aha I found this thread.... Okay, well first, I'm really glad that you are okay-ish and will make a full recovery. Second, I always love all of the post-crash analysis, especially by people that can't ride at 60% of the speed that you do. In my experience, it's usually a combination of factors, little minute differences from the last time you took that corner, that caught up to you. Temperature, tire pressure/wear, road surface, new forks-springs/oil/settings/height in triples, speed, etc. BTW, here's my PC analysis. It'll be hard to judge now but any chance one of the forks slid in the triple? That would do what you described. Also, an incorrectly re-assembled fork after a seal/spring change. You got the forks from someone else. Do you know their exact history? I had that problem at the Gap, Rally before last, and almost lost it. Quite frankly though, my honest guess is that you fucked up...rider error, it causes crashes every once in a while. As far as you, "giving up street riding and riding track only". Well, that sounds like the pain, your wife and fear talking to me. Seriously, one crash and you're done? Wow, I'm surprised you ever learned how to walk, dated more than one woman, etc with that attitude. One failure/mishap and you quit? Sounds kinda weak, dude. I gave up street bikes for a season after my '01 GSXR1000 was totaled and bought a DRZ400...Yea, that didn't last long. That might have worked for Brandon but it wasn't cutting it for me. Besides, getting injured on a trail doesn't feel any better than getting injured on the street. Besides, you wear a hell of a lot less gear so it's actually easier to get hurt. You do realize that people get hurt/killed on the track as well right? One of my worst get offs ever occurred at the track. Being afraid of crashing is going to make going to track just as miserable for you as riding on the street. IMHO. I think that you rode around thinking that you couldn't get hurt because you wore all that gear. Well, that bubble has been burst. So now you're going to be "track only" because you think that you'll be "safer" there... Maybe, but if you keep riding at the limit, you'll end up crashing, and we'll be seeing a thread about you giving up riding all together soon. I know how you feel, bro. I've totaled 7 bikes and have been in over a dozen street crashes in going on 30 years of riding. I have pins, scars, limps, pains, aches, etc to prove it too. I love it, so for me it's worth the risk. You are going to die, man. It's just that simple. Today, you give up riding and tomorrow you get hit by a bus or find out you have cancer. I'd rather go out happy, smiling with the ground rushing by than any other way. I don't believe you when you say that you can't have fun unless you take that corner at 120. That same corner at 100 would be pretty damn thrilling IMHO. If you take it down to 80-90% of your potential on the street, it can still be fun. You'd probably half the risk if you slowed down 10%. I can't count the number of times I've heard this crap from people. Heck, I had a friend give up riding after he crashed doing a wheelie... I'm like, "Um you could just stop stunting..." I ride A LOT slower than I used to and quite frankly, I have MORE fun now because I have less to worry about. Yeesh. You have to do whats right for you, bro. I do respect that but I just hope that you don't make a decision out of fear that you'll end of regretting later. Oh well, take some time off and see how you feel once you are all healed up. Try not to make too many promises to your wife that you'll have a hard time keeping in the coming years. I did that in '02 and ended up having to break up with my GF when I decided to buy my '03GSXR1000.... It was either "her or the bike"....

01-01-2011, 05:07 PM	#3
Amber Lamps Moto GP Star Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 14,556	So a few weeks ago, you were blasting through 45mph curves at 120 and now you're posting PSAs?... Born again much? Okay, Bro. I'm honestly just glad that you are okay. BTW for fun and the sake of argument, how can you be happy in the "slower" middle group or on a cruiser when you have stated that you can't ride unless you are going WOT? FWIW cruisers do suffer crashes too.... Anyway, if you're bored and want to argue to pass the time, I'll check in every so often.