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Karma... or... "Is the C14 less safe than a C10"

S Smith

S Smith

Northeast Area Director
Member
Was teaching a BRC Saturday and got a text message from my wife that our family was meeting up with another family for dinner @ 7pm at a local eatery.  We finished up class a bit early and I decided to take the long way to the restaurant and stretch out the 9 mile ride a bit to help get me to the 600 mile point before my scheduled service on Monday.  The loop I chose ended up being more like 56 miles and got me to the restaurant just in time.  :great:

I left the college campus and headed to the RT 8 expressway entrance. Less than mile from the school a woman pulled out in front of me from a side road from my right. I hit the horn and was hard on the binders, although not excessive to make the ABS kick in. She stopped across my lane and was looking at me. I swerved left around the front of her Taurus and as I recovered in lane.
:steeringwheel:  :-\

Heading south on RT 8 I was between Shelton & Stratford in the far left lane keeping away from the vehicles merging on and following behind a F350 dually with at least a 3-4 second gap. All of a sudden the SUV along side of me began moving into my lane. I began shifting left as the horn button was depressed. Still shifting over left, I was just about to hit the rumble strip on the shoulder when the Asian woman driver finally got a clue about the time I was able to knock on her window.  She looked at me as though I had two heads and finally slowed and moved back into her lane.  I gave a her a dual WTF gesture and continued on my way.
images


My ride continued into New Haven on the Merritt Pkwy where I got off and headed north on RT 69. I was pretty much over the past two episodes of the evening and was well on my way home on the last leg of the ride, on a road that I sometime use to commute home. I was letting the C14 stretch her legs a bit when I came around a curve in Bethany and a CT Trooper was there with someone pulled over.  C:)  On the binders again and he gave me "he look" where we both knew a Few minutes earlier and that could have been me on the side of the road.  As I went around and was sure he was not following I think I did a little seated happy dance.  :celebrate:

The remainder of the ride home was uneventful.  Over dinner I pondered why I never had some many close calls on any ride with my C10.  Was this some strange Karma?

 
Maybe "Atomic Silver" becomes truly "atomic" and the clowns in cages can't see us?  I had several of those incidents since riding the new scoot too!

Perhaps one of THESE is needed:

http://www.bikebone.com/Air-Vest-Motorcycle-Airbag-Hit-Air.htm

I had never heard of them before running into a ZX14 rider with one on the other day!

Peter
 
Now sit back my young Jedi and let me teach you the secret of you new hyper-drive device. Your new speeder is invisible and very quiet because of it's design. Respect and restraint must be shown in engaging the hyper-drive as you are finding out. Not showing restraint can cause you to be be unexpectedly detected by the evil empire. This can have bad repercussions, again as you almost found out, but managed to escape.
Now with the invisibility problem when you don't want it to be. You now should  understand why my hyper-drive units have been upgraded with the Kisan uncloaking device. It's and option that you should now be understanding it's true value with your recent close calls with the drones trying to attack you!


All kidding aside Steve. Whether or not you liked the headlight modulator. You really should consider a Kisan headlight modulator. I've gone through this on the last few bikes including the C14 and FJR. And remember how the FJR turned out. It finally wasn't a near miss! But a lucky glancing blow. The Kisan helps so much, you'll only know once you install it. I've been through this test on multiple bikes now (including the C14 and FJR). I've lived your experience over and over. These close calls only reduce once you install that Kisan. Trust me, I've been there and have experienced the major difference time and time again.
So whether of not you like them or not. I always say that the headlight modulator is a device I can live with! And I truly mean that when I say it! 
 
It's just another one of those days where you had to use your finely honed collision avoidance skills. I've had days like that too and it didn't matter what I was riding/driving. I don't think it's karma or which bike you ride.  Some days S?*t just happens. Having good skills and a good attitude is what keeps you alive.
 
My theory is that silver/grey dammit is, like Bob sez, cloaked.  No interest in proving the theory one way or the other.  Extra special loud horn is not a bad idea... for revenge if nothing else.  I've also invested in HiViz (goes well with the faster blue model). :rotflmao:
 
Maybe it was something about Saturday...I did a day trip to Corpus and had to take agressive action to avoid collisions three separate times. I think that was a record for me even for Corpus riding. In Alice on the way home I also passed a woman in a huge SUV using both hands and her eyes to text. (That explained why she was doing 20 in a 45...)

People are just stupid, and we still give them licenses to drive anyway.  ???
 
A headlight modulator would have provided no benefit form the person pulling in from the right lane.  I wear a Hi-Viz vest.  We all know that with some drivers we could be lit up like a ballpark, wearing a gorilla suit with hi-viz jacket, and they still would not see us.

BigJoeVA68 said:
People are just stupid, and we still give them licenses to drive anyway.  ???
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Oh yeah  :-[
 
S Smith said:
A headlight modulator would have provided no benefit form the person pulling in from the right lane.  I wear a Hi-Viz vest.  We all know that with some drivers we could be lit up like a ballpark, wearing a gorilla suit with hi-viz jacket, and they still would not see us.
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If they are in front of you in almost any circumstance. The modulator makes you visible. Unless they come out from behind a blind building or something. But if you overtaking them. The modulating light in their mirror is there to annoy them. If they're on the side of the road to pull out, they see a modulator. If they're coming at you from the other direction, they see you.  Just about the only time they won't see the modulator is if they're behind you about to run you over. Until you've tried one and experienced the difference, you'll be having these close calls. I've been there! But hey, it's up to you!  ;)
 
Cap'n Bob said:
30 years riding and I made it this far without one.  ;D
Based on my experience, I hardly have 2 close calls in one week, let alone in one day.  I know your results vary.  You have a modulator...  and your statistics (and those riding with you) are worse.  :p
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S Smith said:
Cap'n Bob said:
30 years riding and I made it this far without one.  ;D
Based on my experience, I hardly have 2 close calls in one week, let alone in one day.  I know your results vary.  You have a modulator...  and your statistics (and those riding with you) are worse.  :p
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Only when the modulator wasn't installed for me.

I can't speak for anyone following me! And in Ben's case, only God could have saved him from that freak accident!  :))
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S Smith said:
A headlight modulator would have provided no benefit form the person pulling in from the right lane.  I wear a Hi-Viz vest.  We all know that with some drivers we could be lit up like a ballpark, wearing a gorilla suit with hi-viz jacket, and they still would not see us.

BigJoeVA68 said:
People are just stupid, and we still give them licenses to drive anyway.  ???
Click to expand...

Oh yeah  :-[
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Steve....new bike syndrome.....black hole, sucking all evil in the universe (within 1000ft of you) into the void....
I agree, you wear a vest (dorky looking...but effective!!), and the lady pulling left didn't even notice that...I'm sure the person pulling out in front of you would have been bedazzled by the flashing (Shiney squirrel..) and still done it anyways, likely she would have had target fixation and actually timed and aimed to hit ya...
oh, and why oh why ever make a flashing spectacle 1/4 mile away from an leo, to give him advance warning and a target for his "gun" knowing everyone with a kissian is speeding....
bwaaahaaaaaaa.

ok, you got past the first "hat trick day", take the bike home, drop it on its side, exclaim "no more!!" to it.....oh, pat the old green bike and tell it you are sorry...she is reflecting karma on the new bike by proxy, and close storage stall...sell the old one....be safe, I know you are.

I mean really, look at the stich I wear.....bright orange balistics?...I get invisible every time I ride..... lets face it, people don't see silver....it's all gray to them.
 
MAN OF BLUES said:
<snip>
oh, and why oh why ever make a flashing spectacle 1/4 mile away from an leo, to give him advance warning and a target for his "gun" knowing everyone with a kissian is speeding....
bwaaahaaaaaaa.
<snip>
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Because I personally would rather chance a possible ticket, rather than have all the people who pull out in front of me when I don't have a flashing spectacle!  Your must live in a land where nobody ever pulls in front of you! So I can see your not needing one. But I personally would rather chance the ticket than have to hit another car that couldn't see me.  :)
Also contrary to the wear a vest theory. Bright colored vests do almost nothing for visibility from the front, where people are pulling in front of you. They will help from behind, but do little from the front. And since I don't normally ride on the highway where the police are viewing people with radar, your 1/4 mile theory rarely applies! Most police on back roads are either Mobile with the radar on, or waiting over hills or around turns!
I've had way too many close calls without a flashing spectacle, and very few with one. Maybe people just started looking a lot better each time I install a modulator on my bikes. Because they sure have me as a target (constantly) when I don't use a modulator!  :))  I bet most people who are so anti-modulator, probably never used one to actually see the difference for themselves!  :eek:
 
I realize any day I ride, some cage might run a light or pull over top of me from behind and I might get hurt or killed. Such a high percentage of motorcycle fatalities are composed of simply extreme bad luck, nothing you could do about it.

But many can be avoided, or escaped from.

I remember back in the 80s there was rumbling about making headlight modulation mandatory on motorcycles. I was in California at the time, and we all know about California. They just passed that EPA-controled motorcycle exhaust replacement law. Bye bye loud pipes.

But.... I have ridden for over four decades, and never had modulated headlights, and never used my horn except in city traffic when cage windows are down,  and the only accident I ever had was a low side 40 mph over the speed limit in an uphill 90 degree turn in the Santa Cruz Mountains. So my own stupidity.

I believe that bright headlights, and using your high-beam switch to flash traffic on the side of the road ahead of you (or coming out a farm lane, for example) and modulated progressive decay brake lights, and lots of lighting in general, is what has kept me safe all these years.

That, and learning to ride technically well, through repeated formal training. And doing track days when I was younger. And drag racing semi-pro while I was in the Army in the 70s. All of it combined to make me a good enough rider to avoid everything that ever got thrown at me.

I'm nowhere near that good anymore, so now I just have to stay out of the way. LOL.
 
The C14 is much safer with the new technologies that were incorporated into it by Kawasaki.  So it has nothing to do with the C14 by itself.

However as we all know Stupid Is As Stupid Does.  No matter how much you prepare yourself, make yourself visible or ride safely the people who are stupid while driving will always find a way to threaten you.  It all boils down to the fact that you must be diligent in regards to your own safety at all times and never assume what another driver is going to do or not going to do.  As a MC rider these days you almost have to ride offensively and not defensively as we are taught.  Expect the unexpected from everyone!!

Ride safe!
 
AngryBaby said:
The C14 is much safer with the new technologies that were incorporated into it by Kawasaki.  So it has nothing to do with the C14 by itself.

However as we all know Stupid Is As Stupid Does.  No matter how much you prepare yourself, make yourself visible or ride safely the people who are stupid while driving will always find a way to threaten you.  It all boils down to the fact that you must be diligent in regards to your own safety at all times and never assume what another driver is going to do or not going to do.  As a MC rider these days you almost have to ride offensively and not defensively as we are taught.  Expect the unexpected from everyone!!

Ride safe!
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I remember one of the first rides with my current pillion  She asked me why I would go in and out of traffic.  I had to explain that I ride offensively and move to get away from the crowds instead of riding in the middle of them. 
 
I think you guys are using "defensive" and "offensive" wrong.

Riding sufficiently defensive will by its very nature cause you to move from a location where traffic etc. limites your escape options, to a location where you have acceptable escape options. Pure, plain, MSF.

Riding offensively is normally what gets you a ticket, or worse. Someone on the ZX14ninjaforum.com site posted about exiting a highway in the rain at 80 mph behind a semi and trying to pass it in the exit ramp on the right. He ran out of room, and destroyed a brand new 2011 ZX10R. He was riding offensively.

The solution is simple. C14 traction control and ABS will not save you from your own stupidity, nor from overly offensive riding style. It will save you when you stay within the limits of your ability and the road surface and conditions, and something stupid happens to you. There is a difference, and it isn't subtle.
 
How will the C14 traction control ABS know whether it is your own stupidity or stupidity that happens to you? You need kipass for that.
 
Privateer said:
I think you guys are using "defensive" and "offensive" wrong.
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I mean offensive riding not reckless riding like the guy on the Ninja.  Staying ahead of the pack of cars.  Accelerating out of vehicle's blind spots.  Accelerating past 18 wheelers.  Quick lane changes to open lanes.  Covering your brakes/clutch.  All of these are offensive riding techniques.

My definition of defensive riding techniques would be where you sit back in a "safe" zone and allow the vehicles to do what they want and then you react.  This is how people get hurt or killed.  Defensive riding is a good thing in situations like traffic all of a sudden coming to a stop, riding around a blind curve or avoiding debris in the roadway.

Moving to and escape route is offensive....Slamming on you brakes would be defensive.

The ABS and Traction Control is not an excuse to ride like and idiot.  Everybody has a level of proficiency and riding past that level is at your own risk.

The MSF class is a good place to start for basic skills.  However, I think that the motorcycling community is too caught up in thinking that MSF's ideas on how to ride can never be built upon. (I think it might be time for MSF to overhaul the entire program)

Riding offensively will never score you a ticket BUT riding recklessly will always get you some paper.

I am not saying that Privateer is wrong at all we just have different definitions of Offensive vs Defensive.
 
of·fen·sive (-fnsv)
adj.
1. Disagreeable to the senses: an offensive odor.
2. Causing anger, displeasure, resentment, or affront: an offensive gesture.
3.
a. Making an attack: The offensive troops gained ground quickly.
b. Of, relating to, or designed for attack: offensive weapons.
4. (fn-) Sports Of or relating to a team having possession of a ball or puck: the offensive line.
n.
1. An attitude or position of attack: go on the offensive in chess.
2. An attack or assault: led a massive military offensive.
 
Privateer said:
of·fen·sive (-fnsv)
adj.
1. Disagreeable to the senses: an offensive odor.
2. Causing anger, displeasure, resentment, or affront: an offensive gesture.
3.
a. Making an attack: The offensive troops gained ground quickly.
b. Of, relating to, or designed for attack: offensive weapons.
4. (fn-) Sports Of or relating to a team having possession of a ball or puck: the offensive line.
n.
1. An attitude or position of attack: go on the offensive in chess.
2. An attack or assault: led a massive military offensive.
Click to expand...

:sign0103:
 
I've met quite a few of the NE crew, and from the riding I've seen some of them do, I'm pretty sure they treat their ABS and traction control with the proper degree of caution. Counting on it to assist them, but not protect them.

One of the motorcycle rags (Motorcyclist?) has an article that reprints the results of some epic studies which have shown that ABS and traction control, if anything, have increased accident rates, and the death rate of passengers (of all things). Seems people tend to give their safety over to the technology and become less good at driving/riding.

So when bad stuff happens, they aren't able to execute the start of escapes etc. correctly and/or fast enough, so the technology goes active but can't make up for driver/rider error.

In other words, it will help you ride better if you keep your skills high, but it won't make up for lack of skills or lack of training (some think they are the same, I cannot argue).
 
Riding offensively is normally what gets you a ticket
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A better word to describe the same thing might be 'pro-active'.

Riding between the gaggles of cages that can tend to run in bunches, staying out of blind spots and not passing lazily (freeway) are all good 'pro-active' measures, even if it means accelerating or slowing to keep out of such situations.
 
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