Goosey
June 23rd, 2010, 02:08 PM
Hello All. This is my first post on these forums so I thought I would share some riding experiences I had with dropping my bike. I hope someone finds these entertaining even if they aren't all that cautionary. ;)
A little background - This is my first Motorcycle, a third-hand 2009 Ninja 250r. Beautiful Blue. Lovely little sexy thing. The original owner(s) had not abused it, but it was repo'ed (so no OEM tools/manual) and had a stupid mod done to it (DIY fender-elimination via hacksaw).
But mechanically it's sound. Tires are on their way out (previous owners apparently only rode in straight lines), but not dangerous (BT45 replacements in the mail) and the oil was initially overfilled.. so for now it has a slight burp on the low-RPM range (below maybe 3k) until I get the chance to replace the filter in the airbox, which doubtlessly got a little clogged with oil. But it had never been dropped or stunted as far as I could tell.
My first drop was about 3 weeks ago. It happened as I was practicing getting used to just being on the bike, circling my apartment complex parking lot at maybe 10mph. This was before I took the MSF beginner course or had my license; I thought I was doing myself a favor by taking it very slow and getting some 'safe' experience.
As I came around the bend, which is a very slight-grade slope, a truck pulls in and I don't react properly (AT ALL..). I pull the front break too sharply and fall over at nearly a dead drop. Note that I had my full gear on (helmet + riding jacket + gloves + kevlar jeans + boots) so I didn't get scraped at all, but it was about 90F out and I was not at speed so I was already overheating. I instinctively shot my right arm out to brace for the impact and took the full force of around 450lbs coming down into my elbow.
The combination of the shock, heat, and pain in my arm made me lightheaded (nearly passed out). It must have been confusing for the truck driver (who did stop to help me; thankfully I talked him out of calling 911) to see someone wobblyingly come around a corner, stop, and fall over laying there under the bike. Haha.
My second drop was last Sunday. I had about a week of no-traffic night riding under my belt following completing the MSF course and getting my license, so I decided to take it out for an afternoon of my first daytime riding experience. It was a FANTASTIC day of riding. Never had I been so sure that motorcycling is indeed for me than when I was easily finding the lines through some twists at 65mph with a clear view down a hillside to Lake Travis's sparkling waters down below.
Toward the very end of the ride I was on a slower road when the car ahead of me (I had about a 2 second following distance) suddenly braked hard to catch his missed right turn. I mishandled the quick stop and my rear tire started to skid. In hindsight I could have been perfectly safe; ease off the rear to regain traction and I wouldn't even have to stop as the car was out of the way now. However my newbie instincts took over and I grabbed the front brake hard (noticing a pattern?) and the bike fishtailed and tossed me sliding across the pavement.
Thankfully I suffered no damage aside from a stubbed toe and a tiny patch of road rash on my waist where some street made it's way between my jacket and jeans. Thankfully the car behind me was paying enough attention to not hit me or my Ninja. Thankfully my Ninja stayed in my lane and suffered only cosmetic scratches (on the same side the previous scratches were, nonetheless) and a sheared-off front right turn signal.
I hopped up immediately, grabbed the bike and jogged it off into a parking lot.
My adrenaline was pumping pretty hard at this point so I ducked into a frozen yogurt shop right there to chill out.. Where I ran into the most gorgeous cashier I have ever seen. Simply stunning. She explained to me how the shop worked and I had to have her repeat it twice due to me being so out of it. I got my yogurt and as I was paying explained to her that I had just been in a 'life threatening situation' and it had changed my perspective on the world. This is how I got her number.
I love my Ninja.
A little background - This is my first Motorcycle, a third-hand 2009 Ninja 250r. Beautiful Blue. Lovely little sexy thing. The original owner(s) had not abused it, but it was repo'ed (so no OEM tools/manual) and had a stupid mod done to it (DIY fender-elimination via hacksaw).
But mechanically it's sound. Tires are on their way out (previous owners apparently only rode in straight lines), but not dangerous (BT45 replacements in the mail) and the oil was initially overfilled.. so for now it has a slight burp on the low-RPM range (below maybe 3k) until I get the chance to replace the filter in the airbox, which doubtlessly got a little clogged with oil. But it had never been dropped or stunted as far as I could tell.
My first drop was about 3 weeks ago. It happened as I was practicing getting used to just being on the bike, circling my apartment complex parking lot at maybe 10mph. This was before I took the MSF beginner course or had my license; I thought I was doing myself a favor by taking it very slow and getting some 'safe' experience.
As I came around the bend, which is a very slight-grade slope, a truck pulls in and I don't react properly (AT ALL..). I pull the front break too sharply and fall over at nearly a dead drop. Note that I had my full gear on (helmet + riding jacket + gloves + kevlar jeans + boots) so I didn't get scraped at all, but it was about 90F out and I was not at speed so I was already overheating. I instinctively shot my right arm out to brace for the impact and took the full force of around 450lbs coming down into my elbow.
The combination of the shock, heat, and pain in my arm made me lightheaded (nearly passed out). It must have been confusing for the truck driver (who did stop to help me; thankfully I talked him out of calling 911) to see someone wobblyingly come around a corner, stop, and fall over laying there under the bike. Haha.
My second drop was last Sunday. I had about a week of no-traffic night riding under my belt following completing the MSF course and getting my license, so I decided to take it out for an afternoon of my first daytime riding experience. It was a FANTASTIC day of riding. Never had I been so sure that motorcycling is indeed for me than when I was easily finding the lines through some twists at 65mph with a clear view down a hillside to Lake Travis's sparkling waters down below.
Toward the very end of the ride I was on a slower road when the car ahead of me (I had about a 2 second following distance) suddenly braked hard to catch his missed right turn. I mishandled the quick stop and my rear tire started to skid. In hindsight I could have been perfectly safe; ease off the rear to regain traction and I wouldn't even have to stop as the car was out of the way now. However my newbie instincts took over and I grabbed the front brake hard (noticing a pattern?) and the bike fishtailed and tossed me sliding across the pavement.
Thankfully I suffered no damage aside from a stubbed toe and a tiny patch of road rash on my waist where some street made it's way between my jacket and jeans. Thankfully the car behind me was paying enough attention to not hit me or my Ninja. Thankfully my Ninja stayed in my lane and suffered only cosmetic scratches (on the same side the previous scratches were, nonetheless) and a sheared-off front right turn signal.
I hopped up immediately, grabbed the bike and jogged it off into a parking lot.
My adrenaline was pumping pretty hard at this point so I ducked into a frozen yogurt shop right there to chill out.. Where I ran into the most gorgeous cashier I have ever seen. Simply stunning. She explained to me how the shop worked and I had to have her repeat it twice due to me being so out of it. I got my yogurt and as I was paying explained to her that I had just been in a 'life threatening situation' and it had changed my perspective on the world. This is how I got her number.
I love my Ninja.