Zero speed drop over gravel road

[jerdurr]

Alright,

So I'll be honest; I was hoping to never have to post on this section, but it happened yesterday while going for a 250 mile ride through the boonies, with a riding group of 20+ ppl (needless to mention the embarrassment).

I was second to the leader of the pack (who sucked at that btw); the guy had a harley, and kept braking within twisties, even when we were only doing roughly 30 mph...super annoying.

Long story short, at one point he slammed on the brakes and turned right onto a gravel road (we were staggered, I was second and occupying the right side of the lane). I did the same, since I didn't want to lose the group. When we turn, he slams on the brakes again! This time, and since the road was on an upward slope, I hit the brakes to avoid hitting him but by then it was too late. Bike stopped, but went down because I had no footing.  :'( :-[

I was able to jump off it, literally zero injury drop; in fact, I never went down myself.

I was truly upset but kept my composure. It broke my heart seeing my bike on the ground; the riding buddies pulled over and helped me bring it back up. The guy played stupid, as he had nothing to do with it. I felt like calling him out, but I realized it was a total moot point. :truce:

Now the damage: The mirror is scratched and scuffed, but not broken (most likely I will replace it soon).
The center right cowling seems to have a cracked tab where the screw is, so most likely i will purchase a new one (160 bucks).
The lower right cowling (matte black) is also cracked, so I already bought that one (used, 60 bucks).
The right foot peg little ball bolt broke; i will buy a new one to replace it (4 bucks). since it was a no speed drop, the foot peg itself didn't seem to sustain much damage.

Lastly the right pannier has a scuff on the lower panel, which is not visible, and my 2 Brothers' exhaust is just a bit scratched.

I'll post pictures soon. It will be roughly 500 bucks; there goes my hope to buy an aftermarket seat

 

[connie_rider]

JD,, Arghhh!!    :-\
Sorry to hear the news..

As it happens; I just read an article in "Motorcyclist", in which the exact thing happened to one of their writers.
  {Going slow, looking for a turn, group ride, gravel}...
He wrote the article, in an effort to prevent others from crashing.
Mebbe your note will also help someone else.

Like you, he felt that the biggest part of the blame falls on the Leader, but {he later realized} that he was too close behind another bike. More distance would have prevented him from going down.

NOTE: I know you were going slow, but too close is sometimes further back than you thought..
              thinkaboutit,,,,,,,,,

Ride safe, Ted

 

[jerdurr]

JD,, Arghhh!!    :-\
Sorry to hear the news..

As it happens; I just read an article in "Motorcyclist", in which the exact thing happened to one of their writers.
  {Going slow, looking for a turn, group ride, gravel}...
He wrote the article, in an effort to prevent others from crashing.
Mebbe your note will also help someone else.

Like you, he felt that the biggest part of the blame falls on the Leader, but {he later realized} that he was too close behind another bike. More distance would have prevented him from going down.

NOTE: I know you were going slow, but too close is sometimes further back than you thought..
              thinkaboutit,,,,,,,,,

Ride safe, Ted

Hey Ted,
I knew someone would point that out...glad it is you
In fact i actually thought about that myself, and, even though this guy was as much a leader (or "road captain", as we call them) as I am an Astronaut, I should have known better and moved myself further back on the line, because the guy's riding was a hazard (you know it when you see people riding with their feet dragging on the ground, for a full 50 meters!!!).

So yeah, I take the blame. Partly it was also a bit of bad luck...had to make an emergency stop on a sloped upwards road, with gravel. When the bike finally stopped, I literally couldn't reach the ground because of the angle of the road/ditch; by the time i did, the bike was already so inclined, it came down like timber

I've already started looking into buying the parts...you have no idea how much more expensive it is to buy parts from Canada...shipping is insane!!

Anyways, thanks for your reply buddy!

 

[ramkumar999]

I have mixed emotions about group ride for some of the reasons listed above. I also sometimes get target fixation at the other riders when I am a little too close.
I am glad you are okay. I remember trying to turn the Connie last week at a Burgerking parking lot and I turned too quickly and sure the bike started tilting., I quickly brought my leg down before I would cross the threshhold or I would have had to post here.

 

[Ranger Jim]

Sorry about your crash but you're right, it was (mostly) your fault.

1. When riding in the "twisties" you shouldn't ride in a staggered formation.  Go to about a 4 second spacing and ride "in line" (more or less). Trying to ride staggered in twisties leads to crashing; you see it all the time on the Tail of the Dragon.

2.  As soon as you recognized the "leader" was a flake you should've back WAAAAAAY off.  I've left more than one group because they simply were too scary to ride with.

Again, sorry about the mishap. Consider it an expensive lesson.

 

[ConcoursKZ]

Never ever ride in parades.

 

[cinnamon]

None of the bike injuries sound so bad that I would consider spending $500 to correct them.I have or the parts are available but really a scratched mirror and bag,tabs can be re-attached or rebuilt. I don't like thinking my bikes might be  embarrassed but...    The Wizard

 

[ZXtasy]

Never ever ride in parades.

Words of wisdom there. I have found that the 'fast guy' in a group of Harley/cruiser riders will be nothing but frustration to a Kawasaki rider stuck following them...