Comments on Motorcycle Philosophy: Learning to Ride the Hard Way

For me it was a dog, it didn't know which way to r...

2008-07-27T23:22:00.000-07:00

For me it was a dog, it didn't know which way to run so I ran it over at around 60 or 70 kilometres per hour. Unfortunately the dog wasn't one of those fluffy breeds that are all soft and squishy on the inside. It was incompressible and just fractionally softer than diamond.

Although the dog was running scared after I blasted it with some air horn, I still had ample opportunity to avoid the situation entirely. The single thing I didn't do was bleed off speed as soon as I saw the animal, I had plenty of time, I just didn't do it. In my head I'm thinking the dog will get off the road, they always do. Never thought for a second the damn thing would grab a calculator and tweak the numbers, then run at me with a perfect intercept. (Lesson learned, the hard way)

I was wearing full gear, so not much more than a few scratches and a bit of a limp for a couple of days after, same can't be said for my bike. Dented front rim, flat tire, damaged head bearings in the steering, bent brake disc, damaged caliper, front brake line severed, fairing damage all over, busted mirrors, levers, and some scrapes and bends here and there where they never existed previously.

The short story, I was an idiot. The longer story, I was an idiot. The crazy thing is that I'd already gone over this scenario in my head a thousand times. I didn't follow the little voice in my head saying slow it down dude.

Hey Steve, Sorry it's taken me so long to get back...

2008-05-11T11:44:00.000-07:00

Hey Steve, Sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you. I'm not sure if you're aware, but I'm in college and two weeks away from graduation with my AA in Law...IF I get through the next two weeks. I've been spending most of my time working on my studies and as a result my blog time is suffering.
If I can get there I will definitely take you up on your offer (if it still stands. I have some last minute work to do that night, but I hope to be done before 7:30.
As for the spill... Your friend is lucky. I've known people who have gone down a LOT slower and ended up with major injuries. I hope the lesson is not lost. Mrs. RC is right, if you stay within your comfort zone, but push toward the limit of it, it will expand. The key is balancing on the line.
As for the debate over using the rear brake in a turn, I think the emphasis is on the word "gently". You don't want to lock up the rear wheel & cause a skid for sure. I personally use both in tandem most of the time, so that is my reflex.
So far I'm still in the category of those who will crash, someday.
Hopefully we'll all find methods that work for us when we need them.

It wasn't counter steering, it was being afraid to...

2008-05-11T07:27:00.000-07:00

It wasn't counter steering, it was being afraid to drag his boards. As soon as he heard that sound, he straighted up, and put himself on a course for the ditch.

Sorry Chuck, I respectfully disagree.There are man...

2008-05-11T04:01:00.000-07:00

Sorry Chuck, I respectfully disagree.

There are many myths about proper motorcycle braking, and all I can say is that I wouldn't say it if I hadn't successfully done it.

While in a curve and leaning, traction and braking efficiency are reduced, but that doesn't mean it can't be done, and done safely. Gentle use of the rear brake cuts your speed and has the advantage of not automatically widening the turn as is the case when you use the front brake.

In the case of a panic stop, it's not easy to do but you have to straighten the bike up and apply the front brake first, then the rear. The way I was taught, the guy said always "look straight and brake straight."

Honestly, I've never had to try an emergency stop in a curve, so I don't know if it works or if I could do it successfully. I do know that I have come into a few corners too fast, and easy use of the back brake going into the curve, combined with countersteering works. After all, I'm still here to write about it. :)

Crashing doesn't make you a better rider, it makes...

2008-05-11T01:07:00.000-07:00

Crashing doesn't make you a better rider, it makes you an injured rider. What the act of crashing does is to shine a blinding spotlight on whatever skills you are deficient in and perhaps inspire you to improve on them. I have two words for your friend: Counter and Steering.

And Joker... Holy crap, you tap your REAR brake in a hard turn? That's just begging for trouble, my friend.

Just because something is new to you or you are pu...

2008-05-10T13:21:00.000-07:00

Just because something is new to you or you are pushing beyond what you have ever done before doesn't mean that it is out of your comfort zone. In order to become a better rider, you must continue to press right to the edge of that comfort zone. After awhile, that edge moves forward. Riding on roads with more than 2 lanes scared the crap out of me the first month or two that I had my license. But after riding at 25 mph around my neighborhood for hours, it became comfortable enough to pick up the speed to a 40 mph two-lane road. THAT was actually exhilerating the first time I did it! In no time, the speed was a non-issue, so it made the multiple lane road much less daunting. Last week I rode a section of interstate highway! As you climb your ladder of risk, you will eventually feel so at home on one rung that stepping it up to the next level is not out of your comfort zone. Just take baby steps...and there doesn't have to be a "hard way."

Ouch! My broken wings were 100% cager inflicted, ...

2008-05-09T17:11:00.000-07:00

Ouch! My broken wings were 100% cager inflicted, and there wasn't anything I could do about it. It must be a humbling experience to run your bike into a ditch. I'm glad your friend's ego is bruised more than the rest of him.

I've gone into a few corners and realized a bit too late that I was going too fast for the turn. There's that panic pain in the pit of your stomach that comes with a simultaneous lump in the back of your throat... Luckily I was able to lean my Sporty for all she was worth, tap the rear brake, throttle up out of it, and not crash. So far, anyway!

BTW, I crashed about 6 weeks after bragging to a guy about how proud I was I'd ridden so long and never crashed!