Crash Chronicles (Crashes and Near Misses)

[shortythorne]

Just saw this Steve ! Glad you are ok, but sorry about your bike, however it can be repaired. Sometimes you just have to lay it down .....sorry.

 

[henzilla]

My Micatech side case will need some TLC as once opened ,it is hard to reclose and the bottom sure is ground off.


grrrr...Iphone
Funny on the "lay'er down"
I have fallen over a few times in riding, sometimes gravity and inattention when parking...but never a slide on purpose. I still am grasping the fact it was so fast and no perceived opportunity to do a single thing but hope it ended soon and without being smooshed by solid objects in path.

 

[henzilla]

Well, it took me over a week to finally get back on a motorbike. Had been on a bicycle a few times since my slip-n-slide but found myself not craving a ride.

That near miss kinda got me harder than I thought. The first ride had me a little tentative even though the roads were dry.

After a few rides the last few days and I almost feel back to "normal" for me. Head games are not fun

 

[Omega Man]

Well, it took me over a week to finally get back on a motorbike. Had been on a bicycle a few times since my slip-n-slide but found myself not craving a ride.

That near miss kinda got me harder than I thought. The first ride had me a little tentative even though the roads were dry.

After a few rides the last few days and I almost feel back to "normal" for me. Head games are not fun

Especially if you don’t know what caused the mishap. I don’t bounce like I used to.
OM

 

[rangerreece]

Well, it took me over a week to finally get back on a motorbike. Had been on a bicycle a few times since my slip-n-slide but found myself not craving a ride.

That near miss kinda got me harder than I thought. The first ride had me a little tentative even though the roads were dry.

After a few rides the last few days and I almost feel back to "normal" for me. Head games are not fun

It's real. The first step in conquering it is admitting its there. In the Army we have what is called a post accident eval. We not only recognize it as a potential issue, we have policies in place to fix/correct the issue. From my experience with this in the helicopter world and in driving with my daughter after her accident, the best medicine is usually not to wait too long. There is some credence in that ole cowboy saying, "Get up, dust yourself off and get back on the horse that bucked ya."

 

[roamingbeemer]

I am convinced that what happens is that the rider, when facing a tight turn at speed, panics. Instead of counter-steering harder to make it through the curve, he panics and gets on the brakes, the bike straightens up, and over the cliff he goes. There is only one way to negotiate the curve - counter-steering, and for whatever reason, he fails to do that. I believe he panics and does everything wrong from then on.

Harry

What is counter steering.... haha... I believe we ride amongst a large percentage of riders with no idea what counter steering is nor how to apply it. Add this to poor vision skills and we have many single motorcycle accidents.
Not saying it will never happen to me because I still catch myself not looking where I should be.
I believe it was in Total Control that we are hard wired to look forward at a distance to see dangers while at human running speed. Takes a conscious effort to look farther ahead.

 

[shortythorne]

Well, it took me over a week to finally get back on a motorbike. Had been on a bicycle a few times since my slip-n-slide but found myself not craving a ride.

That near miss kinda got me harder than I thought. The first ride had me a little tentative even though the roads were dry.

After a few rides the last few days and I almost feel back to "normal" for me. Head games are not fun

Glad your back in the saddle Steve. Also, really glad your "ok". Everyone can always give you "advice" on what you did or didn't do right or wrong. Who really knows what happened, except you went down. I can fully understand the hesitation about getting back on the bike, but it looks like you have overcome it. Glad all is ok .

 

[henzilla]

Well, not a motorcycle near miss or incident, but a bicycle incident in our household today.

We had a club ride cancelled this morning due to weather that never really caused issues. H was off and was ready for a club ride as she has missed the last few opportunities. When the weather cleared, she decided on a bicycle run instead and I passed to be lazy on the couch watching NASCAR after eating too many breakfast tacos.

My phone rang about 20 minutes later with H asking me to come get her...she said she was OK, but, had been hit by a car in town
I jumped in truck and drove the five miles into town to see a firetruck in center lane and ambulance, PD, and FD supervisor trucks on scene...not a comforting sight as I had not eyeballed H yet. As I pulled into parking lot I saw her talking to EMS and PD and ramped down my adrenaline. She is standing between ambulance and FD vehicle in second shot.pictures are not in focus as I was shaking a bit still.
There was a minivan in middle of side street and the driver sitting on a retaining wall talking to EMS as well.





She was shaken, but luckily a few minor scrapes and a pretty gnarly cut on her finger that EMS had dressed.

H was on the thin shoulder to the right of fog line and the minivan had shot across the highways five lanes to beat traffic and "never saw her" in spite of some bright colors of her jersey and helmet and the flashing tailight that wasn't visible from the angle of the minivan.H said she was on alert as she entered town and never saw the van until it crossed her field of view right before impact.She remembered locking the brakes (discs on this bike) and turning away from impact as much as possible. She luckily, by inches missed a full on broadside and went down.
Folks immediately stopped to render aid and called 911. The driver was receiving a citation as we left.

We ride this route often, and fully aware of hazards...just like we accept on motorized bikes. It scared H as it did me as things could have been way worse. ..but wasn't this time. Her new bike has some damage and will be repaired...she is more mad about that...well, and the careless attitude response of the driver. She will be very sore come morning.

On a sadder note, a sixty year old cyclist was killed this morning near where we both lived and I rode for years near Lake Travis. Somber thoughts seeing that report on tonights news knowing I rode that same route many times.

Edit: The fatality mentioned is a former editor of Outdoor magazine and far from a novice. RIP Andrew

https://www.outsideonline.com/2282551/author-and-cyclist-andrew-tilin-dies-in-collision

 

[akbeemer]

Scary stuff to hear Steve. Very thankful it turned out as well as it did. Give Helen our best wishes.

 

[rangerreece]

Steve, I’m glad Helen is ok. The roads are dangerous these days, even when we are doing everything right, the chances of getting hurt are still out there. Take good care of her Steve, she’s gonna be stove up for sure tomorrow.

 

[BlueWaterCooled]

Warning: A little on the long side.

tl;dr; Version: Beware of demon impatience.

I have had a couple of things happen lately that left me evaluating my riding style. In both cases, it was entirely a case of poor judgement on my part. Nothing happened in either case. The first was one of those "if someone had been coming the other way …". After describing the incidents, I will provide my analysis of what I believe led to the situations.

Episode 1: I was riding a winding mountain road. There was very little traffic. I came up behind a slow moving tractor trailer rig. There was a short stretch of straight pavement and I poured on some throttle and went around the truck. The rig turned out to be a tandem and the straight section was a little shorter than my original assessment. I was nearly into the next curve before I could get back in my lane. If someone had been coming the other way, it would have been bad.

Episode 2: I was traveling on multi-lane highway, two lanes in each direction. Traffic was pretty heavy and not moving particularly fast, maybe 80 kph (50 mph). I moved into the left lane passing some slower moving traffic in the right lane. I came up behind a tractor trailer also in the left lane. As we cleared a car in the right lane, I made a judgement that the truck was going to stay in the left lane. I moved into the right lane and accelerated to pass him on the right. However, as soon as he felt clear of the car he started to move to the right. I thought I had enough time to get out of his way so I applied more throttle and moved to the very right edge of the right lane. The edge of the pavement had an abrupt drop of maybe 5 or 10 cm (2-3 inches), with loose gravel on the shoulder. By the time I cleared the front bumper of the truck, I was right on the edge of the pavement and moving at a speed which would have led to disaster if I had had to move on to the shoulder.

Analysis. First I will freely admit that both cases were the result of quickly made, bad decisions on the part of the nut that connects the seat to the handlebars. In thinking about my riding style over the past couple of years, I realized that I have begun to take more chances than I used to, and more chances than I should. I have been living and riding in Mexico for the past few years. Road practices and enforcement are quite different here than in the US where I used to ride. First of all, outside of cities, there is no enforcement of any rules, speed or otherwise. Secondly, motorcycles in Mexico are completely exempt, in practice, not in law, from any rules of the road. They routinely go the wrong way, ignore red lights, filter and split as much as they want. Finally, lane rules on highways are quite different. On two lane roads, if there is a decent shoulder, drivers are expected to pull over onto the shoulder to allow traffic to pass. Consequently, traffic will often pass on a two lane road with oncoming traffic, expecting both cars to pull onto the shoulder. For motorcycles this is even more common because the bike doesn't need much space to pass on the center line between the two cars.

As a consequence of these differences in the rules of the road, I realized I have gradually gotten more casual about paying attention to rules. I have commonly passed people on two lane roads with oncoming traffic, relying on the cars to give me space, and they do. They do the same for cars doing the same thing. In the situation described in Episode 1 above, there were no shoulders for anyone to move over. And the vehicle I was passing was a big truck that took up all of the lane. I have resolved to have a little more patience in the mountains in the future. Episode 2, was just plain dumb and again the result of impatience. I should have given the truck more time until it was clear whether he was going to stay in the left lane or move to the right.

In addition to the lax rules of the road here, I realize that a contributing factor is the power and acceleration available on the wethead compared to the oilheads and airheads that I've ridden before. I can accelerate and get around people in an amazingly short period of time. And it is fun to utilize that power. I have come to abuse that ability. Hopefully, I will learn from these experiences and from the thought process I have put into understanding the reasons for the bad judgement. Only time will tell.

 

[AKsuited]

She was shaken, but luckily a few minor scrapes and a pretty gnarly cut on her finger that EMS had dressed.

...The driver was receiving a citation as we left.

I hope Helen heals fully...in the meantime, check with a personal injury lawyer. Stupid driving needs more than a citation, it should be punished by hefty monetary compensation paid to the victim.

 

[henzilla]

It would be a case of no ability to pay any restitution on the drivers part from what I observed and learned yesterday.
Just fortunate she had any insurance which will be used by us, the bicycles value is $4500 and parts are not cheap.So far no medical issues that seem in need of professional treatment

She said she feels like she got hit by a car this morning...and I am grateful we can talk about it.

 

[BlueWaterCooled]

I hope Helen heals fully...in the meantime, check with a personal injury lawyer. Stupid driving needs more than a citation, it should be punished by hefty monetary compensation paid to the victim.

I also hope she recovers fully and quickly.

However, I take exception to the exhortation to funnel money to a personal injury lawyer. If stupid driving needs more than a citation, and I concur that it does, why not a huge fine that goes to whatever, improving traffic law enforcement, improving the roads, reducing taxes, anything. Why should the unfortunate circumstance of being an accident victim be turned into a lottery of huge judgements for victims. That system only leads to a cadre of personal injury lawyers chasing dubious claims. Victims are certainly entitled to medical costs and reimbursement of any losses, but I don't see that the current tort system is good for anyone.

 

[Omega Man]

Glad she is ok Steve.
I really wanted a new bicycle with full suspension to keep up with aerobic exercise. Around here riding a bike has become more of a risk than I feel I can take. Bought a Bowflex, not bad, scenery never changes.
Gary

 

[henzilla]

Back on two wheels for a birthday ride. She is sore all over, her clutch finger is throbbing and her bikes getting an estimate...no bicycling for a few
35+mph gusts made an interesting ride today

 

[shortythorne]

Steve,

Glad Helen is "OK". I think y'all need to just stay at home . I wonder if the motorist might have doodling with a cell phone? Anyway, glad she wasn't hurt any worse.

 

[KenDittrick]

Steve,

Glad Helen is "OK". I think y'all need to just stay at home . I wonder if the motorist might have doodling with a cell phone? Anyway, glad she wasn't hurt any worse.

I second that for sure - allow some healing time. I have had a few high speed get-offs including getting sideswiped by a glass truck and the hurting can last a while with meagre padding of a lycra shirt between one's body and the pavement. Take care.

 

[henzilla]

Steve,

Glad Helen is "OK". I think y'all need to just stay at home . I wonder if the motorist might have doodling with a cell phone? Anyway, glad she wasn't hurt any worse.

No apparent use of a phone, she was just trying to cross the width of the divided highway at one shot as usually there is some cross traffic.She told the officer and H she never looked for a bicycle.My observation was a heavy methhead user not in the game and the officer seemed to notice.I think they have met.
Yeah, we have had a run lately

I second that for sure - allow some healing time. I have had a few high speed get-offs including getting sideswiped by a glass truck and the hurting can last a while with meagre padding of a lycra shirt between one's body and the pavement. Take care.

I know about some get-offs and the rest needed from years back, this was her first big incident on a bicycle...she's a veteran of a serious motorcycle event a few years before we met so she knows...but still is ready to get back at it after her bike is repaired.
She admitted to be really sore again this morning...which she typically wouldn't admit.

 

[AKsuited]

'Tis the season: watch out for potholes!