Harley Davidson Lowside Motorcycle Crash where luckily, the rider was able to walk away.
httpv://youtu.be/sYxU_lYBHpY
In Los Angeles, this video shows a custom Harley Davidson Bagger crash near the Rock Store. Great recovery, the Harley rider used momentum to land back on his feet then just walked away, while his bike was still crashing. Very, very, lucky, he was uninjured except just a quarter size spot of road rash on his knee.
Harley Davidson Bagger riders have to understand that their bike is the exact opposite of a sport bike or crotch rocket. Most Harley Davidson bikes are designed for touring, not for sport riding, and really, the two don’t mix!
It’s my contention that viewing these videos of motorcycle crashes, one should try to learn what not to do if encountering the same situation. Obviously, in this video, if one is riding a full dress or Bagger Harley and going through twisty mountain roads, they should keep their speed, no higher than what’s posted for cars on the same road.
California Motorcyclist Safety Program (CMSP) – The CHP is statutorily responsible for California’s official motorcycle safety training program. Pursuant to California Vehicle Code Section 2930-2935, the CHP administers the program through a primary contractor, currently the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. As of March 2012, over 800,000 motorcycle riders have received training at one of the CMSP’s 134 training sites since the program began in July 1987.
that sure does show how non-traumatic a proper low side crash actually is
Dave Larson
Jul 15 2013
Ouch? Are u kidding?
That boy walked away, A – ok.
Lucky SOB….
Andy Nichols
Jul 15 2013
Since it started dragging wouldn’t the correct thing to be to bring it upright and slow down, instead of keep dragging more? I didn’t think that, apart from some bikes used for show (with sliders made from magnesium) that if something drags on the ground, there’s something wrong! Or maybe I just don’t get the whole H-D culture thing…
Dave Larson
Jul 16 2013
@andy….bringing it upright and slowing down would require adding lanes to the road.
i dont think they had time for that
K. Cavaliere
Jul 16 2013
I’m not into HD’s but I wouldn’t want that to happen to anyone. Lack of full riding gear aside the gent got away lucky. Look closely at his leg in the video.
Dave, help me out here. Blacked out trim and all white? No chrome? Maybe a modded ex-police model? Does that model really touch down that easy? I understand that some models ride low and have limited lean angles but that looks “off”.
Gary France
Jul 25 2013
What surprises me here is some of the words in the text that accompany the video. “Obviously, in this video, if one is riding a full dress or Bagger Harley and going through twisty mountain roads, they should keep their speed, no higher than what’s posted for cars on the same road.” Really? Is it right to say that they obviously…. should keep their speed no higher than what is posted for cars???? I have ridden baggers on twisty mountain roads higher than posted speed limits across Europe and in the US, without any problems, so where does the “obviously” part come from
I thought, as low sides go on hawgs, it was well done…..
K. Cavaliere
Jul 26 2013
Obviously, some people preface a sentence with “obviously” when the facts are not obvious, or even facts, but opinions.
There’s some motorcycles that touch down sooner than others. It’s not limited to HD’s or baggers. I’ve ridden on old, twisty, roads that would test the limits of a dirt motorcycle at posted speeds.
Dave Larson
Jul 26 2013
You do not have to follow any posted speeds just because you are on a bagger.
You can “drag the bags” in the mountain twisties on a bagger just fine, and its even fun!
Gary France
Jul 26 2013
I’ll drink to that Dave….but obviously not when I’m riding….
Allen Lutz
Jul 26 2013
You don’t have to have signs posted to tell you how fast you can take a bend, you should know your bike well enough to make your own decision. The rider in the video stupidly puts his foot down, presumably to try to keep the bike upright, but his foot ends up under the bike as it goes down. I’d be surprised if he didn’t end up with a broken ankle or at least a painful one. If anyone buys a bike with so little ground clearance they should ride appropriately or accept that they are going to experience the occasional close encounter with the tarmac and wear protective clothing because sooner or later they are going to need it.
Bob Joynt
Jul 26 2013
I think “Optical Fixation” came in to play here as it does with many riders, he became fixated on the outside shoulder or something in the ditch he was afraid he was going to hit,
If you watch his exit line, he starts leaving the apex / curve way to early which he likely would not have done with his eyes looking around the corner at the road surface.
Once he lost his line, he started going straight for the shoulder with no recovery space as Dave mentions, another lane or two, were necessary then.
I scrape the boards on my Goldwing every chance I get “for practice” ….
IMHO …..
Andy Nichols
Jul 26 2013
So the guy can’t ride his bike correctly without another lane? DOH!
Dave Larson
Jul 26 2013
No, he cant ride it “incorrectly” without another lane…
Bob Joynt
Jul 26 2013
Well, he might be able to.. but not this time.
Dave Larson
Jul 26 2013
Putting his foot down was pretty numb, I must agree.
Dave Hubbard
Jul 26 2013
The floor boards are a low wide point on tht bike. Once he leaned over too far and too quick the left floor board hooked up. At this point the rear wheel lifts off the road and he has lost control. Yes, he took the corner too quick. He was fortunate not to have done any apparent damage to his left leg. We may never know.
Andy Nichols
Jul 26 2013
Actually, looking at the video it’s not the foot boards rubbing, it’s the casing (clutch, gearbox whatever) so, too fast for the turn…
Dave Larson
Jul 26 2013
The floor boards will flip up if they grind. The primary cover doesn’t do that, follow?
Geez let it go. It’s just another dumazz wiping out on a stupid bagger.
Next video, please.
Robert Dana
Jul 26 2013
Harley’s aren’t known for their superior handling. Nice illustration on why should know the limits of your bike. I hit my side mount plate frame riding the Dragon on the Raider once. It hopped the back tire over about 6 inches as opposed to this guy riding on his primary cover. The Raider handled it fine. A little scary but a lesson that taught me how far I could lean on a left turn. Peg scrapping is a given but I’ve never hit it since. He seemed to be trying to keep up with the Sport bike and ended up looking like a fool. Good to see he didn’t get hurt though.
K. Cavaliere
Jul 26 2013
A low slung motorcycle and a twisty road can be tricky but possible. This looked like just an unfortunate miscalculation and it could been a lot worse.
I’ve touched down bits (gently) over the years on different motorcycles. Typically it was on motorcycles that I pushed a bit harder than they were designed to be pushed.
Dave Larson
Jul 26 2013
There are a couple things you can check to see if someone really rides, or is just a wanna be:
1. Any wear on the front brakes?
2. Any scrape marks on the pegs or boards?
Its amazing how many bikes have no wear in these two critical places…..
Robert Dana
Jul 26 2013
You left out:
3. No chicken strips on the tires. : )
K. Cavaliere
Jul 27 2013
Square tires. Granted that could mean you do a lot of touring or drag racing, but you have to look for the second “tell”: broken directionals. That usually indicates a rider that has two modes: straight upright or falling over.
Dave Larson
Jul 27 2013
K Cavaliere you also made a good point. You wear the kind of gear you have and can afford.
Dave Larson What isnt pretty … a dude on a bike with clown suit, helmet, boots, gloves, goggles etc on the street!!! What ever happened to live and let live???
JT PEDERSEN
Jul 27 2013
Finding your limits on your machine…a really good reason to do a track day.
My first-ever track day was with my ST1100 at a Cal. Superbike School. As the day progressed, I pushed the bike further and further. I found the answers. Interestingly, I can tell you, you can firmly plant the tip-over bars on the pavement.
That direct experience taught me who was full of baloney in discussion groups. 🙂
Track days give a nice safe place to progressively explore your limits on a given bike.
Robert Dana
Jul 27 2013
True JD about the tip over bars and definitely a reason to go to track day. Impressive that you have the skill to get your bike over far enough to drag them. I’ve never had a bike with them but if I’m not mistaken, they are designed at a height where they do not lift the rear tire off the ground. In other words, if you lay the bike on them, they and the rear tire are still touching the pavement. The center of gravity is still below them and since they’re round and smooth, you’re basically sliding them along your turn. Hopefully your line is right because you’re not going to get any more lean. : ) They are a different animal than low rigid frames/pipes/engine parts, or in my case, the side mount plate frame. Those parts are much lower on the bike and they act as a fulcrum and can literally lift the back of the bike off the ground or at least to the point where traction is compromised. In my case, I hit a dip in the turn which is what caused the plate frame to hit in the first place. Since it was a dip, it hit and hopped the back end over. My cousin was behind me and said he’d never seen anything like it before and couldn’t believe I stayed up. I chalked it up to my superior riding skills. ; ) Oh yea, and there’s that luck thing. A little more lean angle and/or speed and I don’t think the outcome would have been the same. I’m not making an excuse for this guy. He obviously over rode his bike/skill. But I don’t care who you are, your going down when your rear tire isn’t touching the pavement anymore.
JT PEDERSEN
Jul 27 2013
.
Hi Robert,
The skill came with a day’s worth of progressive development. Its not something I’d have simply done following a single-lap warm up. To clarify though, I only touched it down in some of the tight 90 degree turns, not scraping all the way around a sweeper :).
I found it interesting, riding in the mountains after that course, while zero chicken strips remained, I don’t think I ever came close to touching the bars down again after that. They don’t touch, on a ST1100, until it’s over about 45 degrees.
There was one point where I did push it too far, and I could tell the weight had largely transferred to the bars. The front end unloaded and could tell the forks were extending. Any more aggressive and I’d have been sliding it.
So, when I get guys tell me, “yeah, my exhaust pipes restrict my ‘1100’s lean angle, I know they’re full of it.
Now, my FJR on the other hand, with OEM suspension still, is not hard to get pegs to grind (left side in particular) fairly frequently. One remembers to put the balls of their feet on the peg when riding aggressively, if they haven’t already.
anyway…
Dave Larson
Jul 28 2013
If you had the weight on the bars and were fully extended on the forks, you WERE sliding, my friend
JT PEDERSEN
Jul 28 2013
.
most likely correct Dave. I simply did not have the sensation nor did my track significantly change. More precisely, perhaps I should have said it was a low-side that recovered seamlessly? Either way, no crash, kept on going.
Robert Dana
Jul 28 2013
“So, when I get guys tell me, “yeah, my exhaust pipes restrict my ‘1100’s lean angle, I know they’re full of it. ”
I respectfully disagree JT. I don’t think they are (full of it) for two reasons. One, who wants to damage their $600+ pipes. But to your point, as I mentioned, the center of gravity versus where the bike part that drags the pavement is crucial. If your center of gravity is above that part, you’re going down once you’ve gone beyond just scraping. Low pieces like pipes and frames on baggers and cruisers are below the center of gravity and become a fulcrum lifting the tire off the ground once there’s no more give. Ever bottom out in a race car? In a fast turn? You say hello to the hay bales.
Cobra recalled and redesigned the pipes they originally put out for the Raider. They were so low that they hit hard before the pegs fully compressed. A number of riders nearly lost it in hard turns due solely to the pipes. Lucky for Cobra, they had only sold a dozen or so before it became apparent and no one got hurt or crashed. I think in your case you just didn’t go too far. Just like my incident on the Dragon. Millimeters from a different outcome. That and the fact that we are both incredibly skilled. : )
K. Cavaliere
Jul 28 2013
I’ve been thinking about my old motorcycle and parts touching down. On the motorcycles I put together (the keepers), it could be a footpeg feeler, but nothing more solid than that. On old motorcycles I picked up to rebuild and resell there were tell tales signs on the aftermarket parts, usually mufflers and crash bars. This was on the old four cylinder, four muffler motorcycles. They were pretty wide and the mufflers tended to run parallel to the ground, about swingarm height. The suspensions were usually not setup correctly, too. I could bottom them and I don’t weigh all that much.
The (broad) point here is most motorcycles handle well out of the crate – for their intended purpose. Once you starting pushing the design envelope you have do a bit of a rethink, maybe redesign.
Robert: the thing I notice about the Yamaha’s is how compact they made the motorcycles vertically. They have a low seat height but they also have good ground clearance. They didn’t get the stance by lowering the motorcycle chassis. That’s impressive.
Dave Hubbard
Jul 28 2013
Back in the spring of 1975, I bought a Suzuki RE5 and a friend bought a Kawasaki 900. It was a beast. About the same time some police departments changed from Harley to Kawasaki. It was soon found to be a dangerous bike as even the police were having accidents with them. the Kawasaki got the notorious title of cop killer. This was because of the frame flex. California went back to Harley. Oh yes, my friend died last year. He still owned and rode that Kawasaki 900. He respected the bikes limitations and rode within it.
See you in the wind terry…
Dave Larson
Jul 28 2013
You left out something very big – the Suzi RE5.
Dude, it was a Wankel engine !
Was was that frankenbike like?
Dave Hubbard
Jul 29 2013
Yes, I am well aware of that engine. It was a fine ride.I went coast to coast on RE. Rode it for 4years. Had to replace the rotor seals once. I would ride with other buddies on Kawasaki 900, Triumph Trident, Norton and sometimes BMW We would get some odd looks some time. People in the know would want to talk about my RE. Finally In the spring of 79 I traded her on a Suzie GS 850.
Of all the bikes I have owned I remember my RE fondly and wish I still had it.
K. Cavaliere
Jul 29 2013
That was an interesting time. Engine tech lept way ahead of frame, suspension and tire tech. Now we have computers to sort all this out.
I’m still curious about that HD in the video. I never saw a white HD with luggage and blacked out trim.
Dave Larson
Jul 29 2013
I remember those times. I was at camp Pendleton 75-78. The cops had a bad time with Z1’s cause they were so overpowered.
You could tear up California freeways, back then, big time. U bought a new Suzi gs1k fall 77 and had prolly the best 30k miles of my life.
Now I am an old man pushing buttons on a tiny “personal device”.
It’s time for a wheelie.
JT PEDERSEN
Jul 29 2013
.
Hello Robert,
Understand what you’re saying. The ST doesn’t fit the situation you describe. The 1100’s tip-over bars are the limiting feature. You can just lay the bike on the ground, and the pipes won’t touch. Matter of fact, I had some graze marks on the plastic fairing, inboard and beneath of the shift/brake pedals, yet never touched the pipes.
Can’t speak to other designs, just specific to the 1100, the tip over bars restrict your getting -to- the pipes.
Axe DeKruif
Jul 30 2013
it’s ok to scrape a little on a low hanging part, but when you put too much force on that, it becomes a fulcrum, the tire comes off the ground, and good night.
Dragging was ok until he put his foot down hard which caused a complete shift in weight and down it goes.
Greg Griffin
Jul 30 2013
I have seen guys loose it on that corner with a lot more suitable bikes at lower speeds than that… he just grounded too much bike and lifted the rear wheel off the ground… nice Ninja skills on the dismount….
Craig Gephart
Jul 30 2013
I’ve seen clips from this particular stretch of road before. Taking chances is just plain stupidity, IMO, and the best technique begins with common sense. A smart rider will ride according to the conditions and situation, not try to push the envelope – especially on public roads.
Axe DeKruif
Jul 30 2013
fair, Craig, but if you don’t push to the limit, you never find it, and you never know how much you can do. goes for anything.
that said, it’s of course preferable to find a limit by a small kickout of the rear tire, not a pucker factor 8 like this guy. (PF9 injures him, PF10 dead)
Craig Gephart
Jul 30 2013
Find a deserted road, if pushing the envelope is what trips your trigger, not a public road where there is traffic (note the car going the other direction at the beginning of the clip). Again, the best technique begins with common sense.
Dave Larson
Jul 30 2013
The best technique does not begin with common sense.
The safe technique begins with common sense. The best technique begins with a testicle check, then………..
Nick Roberts
Aug 23 2013
This video shows a rider that was afraid of the turn from the beginning. His body language says fear and the fact that he does not turn his head into the turn indicates that he is looking exactly where he is going to wind up. It’s one of the basic skills taught in MSF beginning classes that you turn your head and look where you want to go.
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that sure does show how non-traumatic a proper low side crash actually is
Ouch? Are u kidding?
That boy walked away, A – ok.
Lucky SOB….
Since it started dragging wouldn’t the correct thing to be to bring it upright and slow down, instead of keep dragging more? I didn’t think that, apart from some bikes used for show (with sliders made from magnesium) that if something drags on the ground, there’s something wrong! Or maybe I just don’t get the whole H-D culture thing…
@andy….bringing it upright and slowing down would require adding lanes to the road.
i dont think they had time for that
I’m not into HD’s but I wouldn’t want that to happen to anyone. Lack of full riding gear aside the gent got away lucky. Look closely at his leg in the video.
Dave, help me out here. Blacked out trim and all white? No chrome? Maybe a modded ex-police model? Does that model really touch down that easy? I understand that some models ride low and have limited lean angles but that looks “off”.
What surprises me here is some of the words in the text that accompany the video. “Obviously, in this video, if one is riding a full dress or Bagger Harley and going through twisty mountain roads, they should keep their speed, no higher than what’s posted for cars on the same road.” Really? Is it right to say that they obviously…. should keep their speed no higher than what is posted for cars???? I have ridden baggers on twisty mountain roads higher than posted speed limits across Europe and in the US, without any problems, so where does the “obviously” part come from
I thought, as low sides go on hawgs, it was well done…..
Obviously, some people preface a sentence with “obviously” when the facts are not obvious, or even facts, but opinions.
There’s some motorcycles that touch down sooner than others. It’s not limited to HD’s or baggers. I’ve ridden on old, twisty, roads that would test the limits of a dirt motorcycle at posted speeds.
You do not have to follow any posted speeds just because you are on a bagger.
You can “drag the bags” in the mountain twisties on a bagger just fine, and its even fun!
I’ll drink to that Dave….but obviously not when I’m riding….
You don’t have to have signs posted to tell you how fast you can take a bend, you should know your bike well enough to make your own decision. The rider in the video stupidly puts his foot down, presumably to try to keep the bike upright, but his foot ends up under the bike as it goes down. I’d be surprised if he didn’t end up with a broken ankle or at least a painful one. If anyone buys a bike with so little ground clearance they should ride appropriately or accept that they are going to experience the occasional close encounter with the tarmac and wear protective clothing because sooner or later they are going to need it.
I think “Optical Fixation” came in to play here as it does with many riders, he became fixated on the outside shoulder or something in the ditch he was afraid he was going to hit,
If you watch his exit line, he starts leaving the apex / curve way to early which he likely would not have done with his eyes looking around the corner at the road surface.
Once he lost his line, he started going straight for the shoulder with no recovery space as Dave mentions, another lane or two, were necessary then.
I scrape the boards on my Goldwing every chance I get “for practice” ….
IMHO …..
So the guy can’t ride his bike correctly without another lane? DOH!
No, he cant ride it “incorrectly” without another lane…
Well, he might be able to.. but not this time.
Putting his foot down was pretty numb, I must agree.
The floor boards are a low wide point on tht bike. Once he leaned over too far and too quick the left floor board hooked up. At this point the rear wheel lifts off the road and he has lost control. Yes, he took the corner too quick. He was fortunate not to have done any apparent damage to his left leg. We may never know.
Actually, looking at the video it’s not the foot boards rubbing, it’s the casing (clutch, gearbox whatever) so, too fast for the turn…
The floor boards will flip up if they grind. The primary cover doesn’t do that, follow?
Geez let it go. It’s just another dumazz wiping out on a stupid bagger.
Next video, please.
Harley’s aren’t known for their superior handling. Nice illustration on why should know the limits of your bike. I hit my side mount plate frame riding the Dragon on the Raider once. It hopped the back tire over about 6 inches as opposed to this guy riding on his primary cover. The Raider handled it fine. A little scary but a lesson that taught me how far I could lean on a left turn. Peg scrapping is a given but I’ve never hit it since. He seemed to be trying to keep up with the Sport bike and ended up looking like a fool. Good to see he didn’t get hurt though.
A low slung motorcycle and a twisty road can be tricky but possible. This looked like just an unfortunate miscalculation and it could been a lot worse.
I’ve touched down bits (gently) over the years on different motorcycles. Typically it was on motorcycles that I pushed a bit harder than they were designed to be pushed.
There are a couple things you can check to see if someone really rides, or is just a wanna be:
1. Any wear on the front brakes?
2. Any scrape marks on the pegs or boards?
Its amazing how many bikes have no wear in these two critical places…..
You left out:
3. No chicken strips on the tires. : )
Square tires. Granted that could mean you do a lot of touring or drag racing, but you have to look for the second “tell”: broken directionals. That usually indicates a rider that has two modes: straight upright or falling over.
K Cavaliere you also made a good point. You wear the kind of gear you have and can afford.
Dave Larson What isnt pretty … a dude on a bike with clown suit, helmet, boots, gloves, goggles etc on the street!!! What ever happened to live and let live???
Finding your limits on your machine…a really good reason to do a track day.
My first-ever track day was with my ST1100 at a Cal. Superbike School. As the day progressed, I pushed the bike further and further. I found the answers. Interestingly, I can tell you, you can firmly plant the tip-over bars on the pavement.
That direct experience taught me who was full of baloney in discussion groups. 🙂
Track days give a nice safe place to progressively explore your limits on a given bike.
True JD about the tip over bars and definitely a reason to go to track day. Impressive that you have the skill to get your bike over far enough to drag them. I’ve never had a bike with them but if I’m not mistaken, they are designed at a height where they do not lift the rear tire off the ground. In other words, if you lay the bike on them, they and the rear tire are still touching the pavement. The center of gravity is still below them and since they’re round and smooth, you’re basically sliding them along your turn. Hopefully your line is right because you’re not going to get any more lean. : ) They are a different animal than low rigid frames/pipes/engine parts, or in my case, the side mount plate frame. Those parts are much lower on the bike and they act as a fulcrum and can literally lift the back of the bike off the ground or at least to the point where traction is compromised. In my case, I hit a dip in the turn which is what caused the plate frame to hit in the first place. Since it was a dip, it hit and hopped the back end over. My cousin was behind me and said he’d never seen anything like it before and couldn’t believe I stayed up. I chalked it up to my superior riding skills. ; ) Oh yea, and there’s that luck thing. A little more lean angle and/or speed and I don’t think the outcome would have been the same. I’m not making an excuse for this guy. He obviously over rode his bike/skill. But I don’t care who you are, your going down when your rear tire isn’t touching the pavement anymore.
.
Hi Robert,
The skill came with a day’s worth of progressive development. Its not something I’d have simply done following a single-lap warm up. To clarify though, I only touched it down in some of the tight 90 degree turns, not scraping all the way around a sweeper :).
I found it interesting, riding in the mountains after that course, while zero chicken strips remained, I don’t think I ever came close to touching the bars down again after that. They don’t touch, on a ST1100, until it’s over about 45 degrees.
There was one point where I did push it too far, and I could tell the weight had largely transferred to the bars. The front end unloaded and could tell the forks were extending. Any more aggressive and I’d have been sliding it.
So, when I get guys tell me, “yeah, my exhaust pipes restrict my ‘1100’s lean angle, I know they’re full of it.
Now, my FJR on the other hand, with OEM suspension still, is not hard to get pegs to grind (left side in particular) fairly frequently. One remembers to put the balls of their feet on the peg when riding aggressively, if they haven’t already.
anyway…
If you had the weight on the bars and were fully extended on the forks, you WERE sliding, my friend
.
most likely correct Dave. I simply did not have the sensation nor did my track significantly change. More precisely, perhaps I should have said it was a low-side that recovered seamlessly? Either way, no crash, kept on going.
“So, when I get guys tell me, “yeah, my exhaust pipes restrict my ‘1100’s lean angle, I know they’re full of it. ”
I respectfully disagree JT. I don’t think they are (full of it) for two reasons. One, who wants to damage their $600+ pipes. But to your point, as I mentioned, the center of gravity versus where the bike part that drags the pavement is crucial. If your center of gravity is above that part, you’re going down once you’ve gone beyond just scraping. Low pieces like pipes and frames on baggers and cruisers are below the center of gravity and become a fulcrum lifting the tire off the ground once there’s no more give. Ever bottom out in a race car? In a fast turn? You say hello to the hay bales.
Cobra recalled and redesigned the pipes they originally put out for the Raider. They were so low that they hit hard before the pegs fully compressed. A number of riders nearly lost it in hard turns due solely to the pipes. Lucky for Cobra, they had only sold a dozen or so before it became apparent and no one got hurt or crashed. I think in your case you just didn’t go too far. Just like my incident on the Dragon. Millimeters from a different outcome. That and the fact that we are both incredibly skilled. : )
I’ve been thinking about my old motorcycle and parts touching down. On the motorcycles I put together (the keepers), it could be a footpeg feeler, but nothing more solid than that. On old motorcycles I picked up to rebuild and resell there were tell tales signs on the aftermarket parts, usually mufflers and crash bars. This was on the old four cylinder, four muffler motorcycles. They were pretty wide and the mufflers tended to run parallel to the ground, about swingarm height. The suspensions were usually not setup correctly, too. I could bottom them and I don’t weigh all that much.
The (broad) point here is most motorcycles handle well out of the crate – for their intended purpose. Once you starting pushing the design envelope you have do a bit of a rethink, maybe redesign.
Robert: the thing I notice about the Yamaha’s is how compact they made the motorcycles vertically. They have a low seat height but they also have good ground clearance. They didn’t get the stance by lowering the motorcycle chassis. That’s impressive.
Back in the spring of 1975, I bought a Suzuki RE5 and a friend bought a Kawasaki 900. It was a beast. About the same time some police departments changed from Harley to Kawasaki. It was soon found to be a dangerous bike as even the police were having accidents with them. the Kawasaki got the notorious title of cop killer. This was because of the frame flex. California went back to Harley. Oh yes, my friend died last year. He still owned and rode that Kawasaki 900. He respected the bikes limitations and rode within it.
See you in the wind terry…
You left out something very big – the Suzi RE5.
Dude, it was a Wankel engine !
Was was that frankenbike like?
Yes, I am well aware of that engine. It was a fine ride.I went coast to coast on RE. Rode it for 4years. Had to replace the rotor seals once. I would ride with other buddies on Kawasaki 900, Triumph Trident, Norton and sometimes BMW We would get some odd looks some time. People in the know would want to talk about my RE. Finally In the spring of 79 I traded her on a Suzie GS 850.
Of all the bikes I have owned I remember my RE fondly and wish I still had it.
That was an interesting time. Engine tech lept way ahead of frame, suspension and tire tech. Now we have computers to sort all this out.
I’m still curious about that HD in the video. I never saw a white HD with luggage and blacked out trim.
I remember those times. I was at camp Pendleton 75-78. The cops had a bad time with Z1’s cause they were so overpowered.
You could tear up California freeways, back then, big time. U bought a new Suzi gs1k fall 77 and had prolly the best 30k miles of my life.
Now I am an old man pushing buttons on a tiny “personal device”.
It’s time for a wheelie.
.
Hello Robert,
Understand what you’re saying. The ST doesn’t fit the situation you describe. The 1100’s tip-over bars are the limiting feature. You can just lay the bike on the ground, and the pipes won’t touch. Matter of fact, I had some graze marks on the plastic fairing, inboard and beneath of the shift/brake pedals, yet never touched the pipes.
Can’t speak to other designs, just specific to the 1100, the tip over bars restrict your getting -to- the pipes.
it’s ok to scrape a little on a low hanging part, but when you put too much force on that, it becomes a fulcrum, the tire comes off the ground, and good night.
picture of the lower pipe of my sportie before is sold it showing some leaning. https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/561279_411674348868479_1503615284_n.jpg
https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/561279_411674348868479_1503615284_n.jpg
Dragging was ok until he put his foot down hard which caused a complete shift in weight and down it goes.
I have seen guys loose it on that corner with a lot more suitable bikes at lower speeds than that… he just grounded too much bike and lifted the rear wheel off the ground… nice Ninja skills on the dismount….
I’ve seen clips from this particular stretch of road before. Taking chances is just plain stupidity, IMO, and the best technique begins with common sense. A smart rider will ride according to the conditions and situation, not try to push the envelope – especially on public roads.
fair, Craig, but if you don’t push to the limit, you never find it, and you never know how much you can do. goes for anything.
that said, it’s of course preferable to find a limit by a small kickout of the rear tire, not a pucker factor 8 like this guy. (PF9 injures him, PF10 dead)
Find a deserted road, if pushing the envelope is what trips your trigger, not a public road where there is traffic (note the car going the other direction at the beginning of the clip). Again, the best technique begins with common sense.
The best technique does not begin with common sense.
The safe technique begins with common sense. The best technique begins with a testicle check, then………..
This video shows a rider that was afraid of the turn from the beginning. His body language says fear and the fact that he does not turn his head into the turn indicates that he is looking exactly where he is going to wind up. It’s one of the basic skills taught in MSF beginning classes that you turn your head and look where you want to go.
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