Here we go - my first fall on my "MiG"
Went for a ride today to take the bike to my parents' and park it for the winter. Learned a lesson about tire temperature and rear brake use (I think!).
It's been kind of chilly lately - between 20 and 30 for the past few days. Funny, as i was rolling out of parking lot, i kept thinking "tires, tires, take it easy, man - they will need time to warm up".
Rode for about 20 mins and then stopped by for fuel and fuel stabilizer. I'm guessing this is where the tires cooled down again? I roll out of the gas station, get on the road and start heading down hill at maybe 15 mph. I am keeping my distance from the car in front of me and as the light ahead turns yellow i start braking, and this is where (I think) I apply rear brake. If i understand this correctly, up until that moment I did not use the rear brake today (though I usually do on the way out of the parking lot), and the bike has been standing outside for a few weeks under cover. I am guessing the rear brake locked out (you know how in the car after rain the first braking is stronger due to oxide on the surface of the disk?) and down i go.
I step off the bike and inertia carried moved me forward so i land on right knee and left elbow, while i'm watching the bike slide down the road and to the right on it's side toward the car in front of me. Aaaaand... Contact!
No damage to the car in front though - i think the bike actually hit it with the passenger's gel backrest. I get the bike up, inspect the damage. Not too happy, but could be much worse. So, to summarize the damage:
Damage to the the Bike:
- Windshield is on the road (in one piece though)
- The fairing
- The frame slider did its job and sacrificed itself
- Some extra scratches right under "Yamaha" on the stator cover (there was a small one from PO)
- Bent right rear-view mirror (ironically, i like the "new" angle better)
- Small scratch on the rear axle - geting the nut off it may take extra effort due to some (very light) damage to the very end of the thread.
Damage to the Gear:
The gear absolutely did its job.
- The Firstgear Kilimanjaro jacket took the elbow impact and there are no traces on it. I had to look hard to find any evidence.
- The Firstgear HT II pants have one small scratch on the knee, but that's about it.
- Coretech Scarab Winter gloves took the impact too, and certainly base-of-palm padding helped.
- Sidi Vertigo - the zipper came apart on the left boot.
Damage to the idiot who got himself and his machine into this mess:spank::
- Left elbow hurts, but is not even bruised
- Right knee has a small scratch received against the jeans that were under the HT pants
- The most serious damage - Big toe on left foot feels like it got hit by a hammer - i'm guessing the impact with the ground inside the boot as i was trying to step off. just a little swollen and the nail went blue. Maybe that's where my bruised ego hides?
Lessons learned:
- Tire temperature will not rise as quickly and will go down rapidly in the cold weather (DUH!!!)
- Rear brake is dangerous when locked up
- "Polish" brakes as you start the ride so that the layer of oxide is removed.
- I got lucky - it could be much worse, especially if I did make it to Merritt Parkway and speeds were higher
Extra Thoughts
After I inspected the bike, I jumped back onto it and kept on going (the snow was about to start and I saw no reason to come back). I actually liked the feel of my newly "naked" bike - i think i did not notice wind noise. I'm starting to think if i want to convert to lighter fairing or go naked completely. I guess i have some time to decide. What are your thoughts?
My main reason for the bike is (a very short) commute and touring - I got topcase and planning on adding side cases - how does topcase/sidecase look on a naked?
Any recommendations on the frame sliders? I'll look at the name of these and will post, since it looks like they serve their purpose.
Any danger from the (seemingly light) impact to the rear axle? The very end of the thread appears to be damaged, no signs of movement within the adjustment range though - it just worked as one of the points of contact.
ATTGATT!!!!!:rockon:
Went for a ride today to take the bike to my parents' and park it for the winter. Learned a lesson about tire temperature and rear brake use (I think!).
It's been kind of chilly lately - between 20 and 30 for the past few days. Funny, as i was rolling out of parking lot, i kept thinking "tires, tires, take it easy, man - they will need time to warm up".
Rode for about 20 mins and then stopped by for fuel and fuel stabilizer. I'm guessing this is where the tires cooled down again? I roll out of the gas station, get on the road and start heading down hill at maybe 15 mph. I am keeping my distance from the car in front of me and as the light ahead turns yellow i start braking, and this is where (I think) I apply rear brake. If i understand this correctly, up until that moment I did not use the rear brake today (though I usually do on the way out of the parking lot), and the bike has been standing outside for a few weeks under cover. I am guessing the rear brake locked out (you know how in the car after rain the first braking is stronger due to oxide on the surface of the disk?) and down i go.
I step off the bike and inertia carried moved me forward so i land on right knee and left elbow, while i'm watching the bike slide down the road and to the right on it's side toward the car in front of me. Aaaaand... Contact!
No damage to the car in front though - i think the bike actually hit it with the passenger's gel backrest. I get the bike up, inspect the damage. Not too happy, but could be much worse. So, to summarize the damage:
Damage to the the Bike:
- Windshield is on the road (in one piece though)
- The fairing
- The frame slider did its job and sacrificed itself
- Some extra scratches right under "Yamaha" on the stator cover (there was a small one from PO)
- Bent right rear-view mirror (ironically, i like the "new" angle better)
- Small scratch on the rear axle - geting the nut off it may take extra effort due to some (very light) damage to the very end of the thread.
Damage to the Gear:
The gear absolutely did its job.
- The Firstgear Kilimanjaro jacket took the elbow impact and there are no traces on it. I had to look hard to find any evidence.
- The Firstgear HT II pants have one small scratch on the knee, but that's about it.
- Coretech Scarab Winter gloves took the impact too, and certainly base-of-palm padding helped.
- Sidi Vertigo - the zipper came apart on the left boot.
Damage to the idiot who got himself and his machine into this mess:spank::
- Left elbow hurts, but is not even bruised
- Right knee has a small scratch received against the jeans that were under the HT pants
- The most serious damage - Big toe on left foot feels like it got hit by a hammer - i'm guessing the impact with the ground inside the boot as i was trying to step off. just a little swollen and the nail went blue. Maybe that's where my bruised ego hides?
Lessons learned:
- Tire temperature will not rise as quickly and will go down rapidly in the cold weather (DUH!!!)
- Rear brake is dangerous when locked up
- "Polish" brakes as you start the ride so that the layer of oxide is removed.
- I got lucky - it could be much worse, especially if I did make it to Merritt Parkway and speeds were higher
Extra Thoughts
After I inspected the bike, I jumped back onto it and kept on going (the snow was about to start and I saw no reason to come back). I actually liked the feel of my newly "naked" bike - i think i did not notice wind noise. I'm starting to think if i want to convert to lighter fairing or go naked completely. I guess i have some time to decide. What are your thoughts?
My main reason for the bike is (a very short) commute and touring - I got topcase and planning on adding side cases - how does topcase/sidecase look on a naked?
Any recommendations on the frame sliders? I'll look at the name of these and will post, since it looks like they serve their purpose.
Any danger from the (seemingly light) impact to the rear axle? The very end of the thread appears to be damaged, no signs of movement within the adjustment range though - it just worked as one of the points of contact.
ATTGATT!!!!!:rockon:
