Motorcycle Rear ended my truck.

[Klondike1020]

I was driving home from work in very thick traffic this evening .... driving sorta into the sun. A car three places ahead of me did a little swerve then break trying to pull a late turn.

The cars in front of me stopped abruptly and I braked gradually at first then hard as I got close... just hard enough for the stuff on my seat to slide onto the floor.

Then I heard a clatter of my plastic cooler in the bed of my truck (empty) tumbling into my tool box.....

Then a louder crash n clatter that barley moved my truck.... just a slight bump.

I see a spinning wheel in my side view mirror, slap the shifter in park hit the fourways on as I unbuckle and jump out of the car waving for traffic to avoid us.

A young man ridding a Kawasaki Vulcan 900 had used his breaks too late and skidded his rear tire then ran into my truck at a low speed.

As I asked him if he was ok he said he was fine and held out his hand for me to help him up.... The bike was on his leg. I asked him if he could sit still and make certain that nothing is broken while I pick the bike up off of his leg . He said "If you can pick it up please do" . so I picked it up and he hopped right up and got the kick stand down as I was on the other side.

We checked him out briefly as the cars were zooming around us and I had him steer the bike while I pushed it down the street and into a parking lot.

A police officer pulled up and blocked the traffic for a moment and I got my truck out of the road.

The officer was very nice and made a accident report and I explained that I don't want to make a claim because there was no damage to my truck.

I am very glad he was ok . He was wearing a cheap modular helmet, a fashion leather jacket, no gloves, plain jeans and a decent looking pair of work boots.

He slammed his wrist so I gave him some advil to prevent swelling because its always worse if you let it swell up.

we sat and talked for a while and his friends who were back in traffic pulled in and waited with us and about 45 min later he felt well enough to ride it home so we checked the breaks, lights and what not and he went on his way with his friends following.

I told him he should practice emergency breaking and maybe look into some motorcycle skill building videos if he is going to continue ridding in traffic like that. He seemed to think his two seasons of ridding made him an experienced rider.

Seemed nice ... I hope he takes it for a lesson because it could have been much worse.

DAmage-
bent bars
broken master cylinder
rashed pipes
rashed rear fender support
badly bent foot peg
smashed mirror

other than that I didnt see much else.


Large tank dent

[cuong-nutz]

BRAKES!!!

Glad that you could help him. I hope he learned his lesson and takes your advice on getting some training in.

[cbinker]

Cruiser riders need to learn how to use front brake with the rear.

[Sirref]

that is still a sweet bike

agreed that he should learn that the front brake won't flip his bike, I don't even think cruiser brakes have that kind of power

[Klondike1020]

@cbinker - I as well as many people are competent cruiser riders. It is more of a mentality issue than a style issue. I can take the Victory Magnum or Indian Cheiftan and ride very aggressively and competently and stop in some very short distances.

I know a lot of people who ride sport bikes who have the same problems. Three different people I have been ridding with this summer gave out advice like "just use the back breaks, it is safer" or "I can slow down by down shifting as good as I can using my front breaks"

Granted.... these statements usually stem a discussion about physics where I might get a little lecture going.

Three younger guys from my work are now ridding with me and watching the "crash course" and other instructional videos on you tube.

So cruisers / sport bike riders... In my experience it is the difference between the enthusiast and the people who ride for the image.

I as an enthusiast started reading enduro ridding books from the library as a kid to learn a lot of interesting things about trials bikes and enduro cross.

And I have always tried to understand the mechanics of what I do and learn about different gear, techniques and technology that is out there and pertinent to my ridding.

Image riders are seeking out Farkles, Tourque power and whatever other macho bs will make them feel better and more deserving of attention. Thus they don't learn about what they are doing.

Its like people with cars that have no idea what makes a car go.

oh well. I just hope he rides safe and allows more following distance.

I am always looking to develop myself from a skill perspective. So with every skill I learn I can apply it to the next motorcycle I ride.
What is funny is that people jump on these bikes learn how to go go go and never comprehend that different motorcycles, situations and terrains require very different skills, techniques and gear.

- hence the statement he made. "I have been ridding dirt bikes for years and I have been ridding this bike a long time" I asked "how long is a long time" Two years... Two season in NY is hardly any experience especially with the range of terrain and conditions you experience up here with our weather and roads.

[cbinker]

Originally Posted by Sirref

that is still a sweet bike

agreed that he should learn that the front brake won't flip his bike, I don't even think cruiser brakes have that kind of power

the weight on the rear wheel, which gives them the false sense that the rear is the way to stop, makes that a challenge, but possible.

[Klondike1020]

Originally Posted by cbinker

the weight on the rear wheel, which gives them the false sense that the rear is the way to stop, makes that a challenge, but possible.

LOL he had a single disc in the front any how....
pizza cutter tire and a freakin tiny caliper.

This is

WEAKER than

This


ROCKETS GETTING THERE FASTER AND STOPPING SHORTER

[cbinker]

its like a 250/300 brake.

[cadd]

I bet the weakest motorcycle brake can still lock up a tire. So....it's adequate for stopping the bike. May not be as rewarding in the "feel" category, but it'll do the job.

[Hero Danny]

Good on you for handling the situation well. It sounds like you were calm and really helped the rider out. I know some people would have gone completely bananas if a bike hit their vehicle from behind. I can't believe you didn't put a claim, How did your truck take no damage? That's just surprising to me, either way. That was really nice of you.

Lots of people are afraid of the front brake because if you lock it up it is a very serious issue where as the rear being locked may not hold the same amount of trouble. But hey, you gotta stop. I recommend to people to practice using 2 finger braking as much as possible.

[asdfman]

Originally Posted by Hero Danny

Lots of people are afraid of the front brake because if you lock it up it is a very serious issue where as the rear being locked may not hold the same amount of trouble.

That's weird. In my experience, most people say avoid the rear brake since that locks up much easier than the front brake. Plus the front brake does most of the braking so not using it at all is a disaster waiting to happen.

[demp]

Originally Posted by asdfman

That's weird. In my experience, most people say avoid the rear brake since that locks up much easier than the front brake. Plus the front brake does most of the braking so not using it at all is a disaster waiting to happen.

while you can stop the bike with only the front brake... you'll cut that distance by a lot if you can even apply the rear gently. there's a reason they come with 2 brakes!

[asdfman]

Originally Posted by demp

while you can stop the bike with only the front brake... you'll cut that distance by a lot if you can even apply the rear gently. there's a reason they come with 2 brakes!

Indeed. I agree with using both brakes. Just thought it was odd that there's a school of thought that says to use only the rear brakes.

[demp]

Originally Posted by asdfman

Indeed. I agree with using both brakes. Just thought it was odd that there's a school of thought that says to use only the rear brakes.

Yeah, I know what you mean.. I have tried to stop my bike with just the rear while coming to a stoplight just to see how effective it is, it's not.

[Panda]

1. I don't know who "lots of people are". If I had to guess on this board the majority of the people use the front brake as their primary brake. Some probably don't even use the rear brake.

2. I don't know what using two fingers to brake has to do with this topic.

[Hero Danny]

Originally Posted by Panda

1. I don't know who "lots of people are". If I had to guess on this board the majority of the people use the front brake as their primary brake. Some probably don't even use the rear brake.

2. I don't know what using two fingers to brake has to do with this topic.

1. People here seem pretty well educated on how to ride. But I've known a lot of new riders who were afraid of the front brake which is why they would try to get ABS.

2. 2 fingers? It's a braking tactic so I thought it sorta fit in here. lol

[sh123469]

You can't grab as hard with 2 fingers as with 4. It will allow you to stop but may help you not lock up the front.

These little bikes will really stop short if you want them to and are good at working both brakes. If in an emergency stop, I generally have the rear right on the edge of breaking loose and the front almost there. You stop really fast. Now, if someone will just invent an inertial dampener, we can stop in 2 feet with no skidding.

[alex.s]

the people i hit usually just flee the scene

[reggae5]

Originally Posted by alex.s

the people i hit usually just flee the scene

AHA So that was you

[FrugalNinja250]

I ride two finger brake, a habit I developed while riding bicycles, and it's saved my butt many times. Two of those times were people make a left turn from the right lane of a three-lane one-way street in front of me. I've locked the front tire with those two fingers, and the reaction time I save is critical to me. I also brake with both brakes as a habit since two tires braking always beats one right up until the point of doing a stoppie.

[DEFY]

Originally Posted by FrugalNinja250

I ride two finger brake, a habit I developed while riding bicycles, and it's saved my butt many times. Two of those times were people make a left turn from the right lane of a three-lane one-way street in front of me. I've locked the front tire with those two fingers, and the reaction time I save is critical to me. I also brake with both brakes as a habit since two tires braking always beats one right up until the point of doing a stoppie.

I started my MSF riding this way, got yelled at plenty of times before I stopped doing it. The idea is you don't want to accidentally hit the brakes, obviously the newer the more likely you are to just grab brake. So a well seasoned rider probably won't have this issue, all about habits.

[akima]

Originally Posted by FrugalNinja250

I also brake with both brakes as a habit since two tires braking always beats one right up until the point of doing a stoppie.

I think that's an over-simplification. When you factor in mental concentration and muscle co-ordination rear braking isn't such a clear winner.

Perhaps you can co-ordinate your hand and foot better than me (drummer?), but personally I find that splitting my focus between the 2 during an emergency stop results in me not using either of them to anywhere near maximum capability.

I use a nice compromise between just front and front+rear. Initially I get on both, but I then only continue progressively adding braking to the front (so all my attention is on the front). As I feel the front really bite into the ground I let off the rear entirely. So I get the initial benefit of both brakes but then the greater benefit of maxing out my use of the front brake. Well... "maxing out" relative to my skills. @csmith12 "maxing out" the front brake probably looks very different to me doing it