How many times have you come off the bike

[Matt]

T

I've dropped my bikes a few times: on the track my with an R6 I've opened the throttle a few times to fast resulting in damaged leathers, engine sides and fairings. Once I was in a bend ont the track with a Guzzi when the front started to wobble and I put the bike upright, making it go straight across the grass (from previous experience I know I shouldn't brake on green grass!) and into the tire wall. I was thrown over the bike and my head hit the tire wall first. The first marshall tried to take off my helmet when I told him that my neck hurt, then left me alone. Everything hurt and the medic said to see my GP after a few days. I did, mainly because I couldn't extend my left arm anymore, the muscle just wouldn't work. GP said to take it easy fo a while... On the advice of someone I saw a physiotherapist, who after the first diagnosis said that it was a jammed nerve in my neck and gave me some exercises to do. A few days later I thankfully could move my arm again.
Couple of weeks ago I was in France, parking the Hima somewhere in a village to get a coffee. Put the bike on the side stand and tried to get off, having a load of camping gear on the back. The bike was on an incline and moved forward, off the side stand and fell on its left side, bending the gear lever. A helpfull man got his toolbox and with a large ringspanner I straightened the lever.

Just two days later I was trying to get to the top of Mont Jafferau; the first bit is asphalt, then bad asphalt, then sand and rocks on very steep hills and hairpins. Sand in the haispins meant low speed cornering, meaning starting from standing still up a very steep hill, moving between and over rocks and boulders. It was so steep that I was in first on half clutch revving the engine. Then I had to stop or toast the clutch, but when I put my foot down there was no ground and the bike fell on its side. Had to move the bike with the wheels facing down hill first and then got it up. Decided to go back, downhil, finding that the ABS kicked in regularly. In one of the corners it fell down again, with (I think) the brake lever pinning down my right foot. My riding boots are quite sturdy, but even so it hurt like hell, and being alone at first I could not free my foot. Almost panicked at that moment. Finally I pushed with my left foot against the seat and pulling my right foot at the same time I got free again.
Another lesson learned.

one advantage from comming off the bike a lot is you stop fearing falls

 

[Robc76]

Today I've fallen off just the once. The gully sucked me in and the baby head rocks were my ultimate downfall.

RobC

 

[grymsr]

Today I've fallen off just the once. The gully sucked me in and the baby head rocks were my ultimate downfall.

RobC

Well, at least your wheels are still on the ground which helps getting it back upright.

 

[Robc76]

That is very true. It was certainly a lot easier to pick up than my GS when it landed in a ditch with the wheels higher than the fuel tank.

RobC

 

[grasscutter]

A few times. The first I think was when I knocked down the garage door doing wheelies in dad's driveway. I was 15 I think. Got a few stitches on that one. Another time I was older and supposedly smarter but laid a Honda 550 four down after going in the air crossing railroad tracks. Road rash, stitches in the chin and a subsequent blood infection. Probably the one that hurt the most I wasn't even going that fast. I was on a gravel road on a Honda 200 and a rock laid me down. Probably going about 20. Massive hematoma. Nothing broken though. I've been lucky too. On a Yamaha 650, I was loving it going through the gears and then a car did a quick stop in front of me. That was a close one. With the Himmi, I'm older and I hope wiser.

 

[Andy131]

Older definitely, wiser
More aware that you aren't invincible, that it is going to hurt for a long time and that we don't mend as quickly .

 

[Matt]

After a while you stop bouncing and start breaking. I'm still well in the bouncing stage at the moment thankfully.

 

[Almar]

I as T-boned by a van when I was eighteen years old. Much damage to the bike and my helmet but the company involved paid for full repairs and the bike came out of the workshop looking like new, better than before the off.

About 15 years ago I was knocked off in a low speed incident in a car park when a car turned into me. Only a bent clutch lever that time.

Last month, aged 74 years I put my foot down on the road only to find that the edge had crumbled away so I slowly toppled sideways onto a grass verge and thistle patch. Not a mark on the Interceptor.

So that’s it in what is now 58 years of motorcycling.

However, a fellow motorcyclists, (Triumph rider), and his friend were riding three weeks ago and stopped at traffic lights. The car behind didn’t slow and ran into them at speed. My friend suffered two broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder. His friend died of internal injuries. They weren’t even moving at the time.

However careful we may be we are still vulnerable.

Take care everybody.

 

[khardung]

In 1978 I somersaulted off a Kawasaki Z1000 I was road testing for a newspaper. It was written off. The 'I didn't see you' holidaymaker pulling out of a side road had to pay up for my injuries (mainly at the time, bruising). Two points: hero of the hour was a driver who saw it and pressed into my pocket a piece of paper with his name and address (my only witness at a time when I was so shook up I couldn't think straight.) Secondly, if I'd have known that the damaged shoulder would still be buggering me up now, I'd have sued for more. But it paid for a special rebuild for my own bike - a T160 Trident. So not all bad!