SH22 protective gear test [Archive]

Sparkz

10th October 2005, 12:54

Had to happen I guess, its too easy to get carried away on the old SH22.

Tootling along from Naruawh??? to Naike when one right-hander turned out to be a bit tighter and longer than expected. All was sweet until my right footpeg and boot slider touched the road causing a major pucker and loss of concentration. I made the fundamental cock-up of looking at the edge of the road instead of the corner exit. :whistle:

If the road had been just 10cm wider, I might not be looking for a new bike now :crybaby: .

Anyway, the upshot is that I got to test all my gear. The only things that are untouched are the boots. The gloves look ok in the photo, but the knuckle pads are badly worn. The right glove was nearly pulled right off in the crash, but served its purpose.

I landed hard on my right shoulder and did the whole bounce around and slide thing, which must be where the helmet got stuffed. (anyone got a use for buggered helmets??? or want the Shoei Whisper kit from mine??).

The Teknic Hurricane jacket just came apart. The Kevlar shoulder pad just ripped off at the seams, but the hard armour underneath still did the job. The sleeve is also torn in patches. Abrasion resistance, my arse!

The (brand new) :crybaby: Teknic Sport pants now have a hole in the knee the size of my head. The hard armour in the knee was almost worn through, but again did the job.

I hate to think how I would have looked without the gear. Don't skimp on protective gear, it only seems expensive until you have to use it.

Besides all that, crashing fucking HURTS! I got bruises in places I didnt know I had places.

Riff Raff

10th October 2005, 13:00

Bad luck mate. Hope you heal quickly.

sAsLEX

10th October 2005, 13:01

bad luck dude can you describe the corner a bit better?? not on an uphill bit with some NC30 and R1 bits in the gutter??

FROSTY

10th October 2005, 13:03

sorry to hear it dude. but as ya say the gear earned what ya payed for it --fuck the gear as long as youre okk

bugjuice

10th October 2005, 13:05

sAsLEX

10th October 2005, 13:07

I think I'm thinking of the same spot Alex.. Was it a right hander going up hill slightly, and prior to that are some nice open sweeping corners?
last time through there it claimed a NC30 a MC22 and an r1, farmer said he gets to fix his fence about twice a month at least

vifferman

10th October 2005, 13:11

The Teknic Hurricane jacket just came apart. The Kevlar shoulder pad just ripped off at the seams, but the hard armour underneath still did the job. The sleeve is also torn in patches. Abrasion resistance, my arse!
Indeed.
I could've told you that for free (i.e., without you crash-testing it).
My very first slide of about 2-3 metres at ~30km/h on smoothish road wore a hole the size of a 10c piece in the cordura, and subsequent spills weren't much better. I think only one involved the kevlar pad taking some of the brunt of the spill. That's why the arms and shoulders of my Hurricane are now mostly covered in leather...

Anyway, I'm sorry you wrecked your bike and your gear, but glad you've no real injuries, Sparkz.

TLDV8

10th October 2005, 13:15

TLDV8

10th October 2005, 13:20

last time through there it claimed a NC30 a MC22 and an r1, farmer said he gets to fix his fence about twice a month at least

I wonder if it was the same unhelmeted farmer riding his non registered 4 wheeler on the road when i came up behind him,sat there for a bit for some reason and then he suddenly veered across to the R/H side of the road without looking,if i had passed when i was going to he would have taken me out for sure.

sAsLEX

10th October 2005, 13:20

Glad to hear you are ok except for needing some new gear....... Not that it is the case here but 22 is not a racetrack or the IoM,it doesn't need sticks,braking markers or anything similar.It is a public road and unfortunately it is only a matter of time before there will be post saying someone has been maimed,killed or collected by a car coming the other way.(imho)

i think you missed the jist of BJs post he was by no means thinking about marker to allow people to go faster but to point out areas which could be upsetting to a newbie, ie an unsigned (natural or actual sign) decreasing radius off camber corner etc

and yes it aint a race track by any means of the term

TLDV8

10th October 2005, 13:22

i think you missed the jist of BJs post he was by no means thinking about marker to allow people to go faster but to point out areas which could be upsetting to a newbie, ie an unsigned (natural or actual sign) decreasing radius off camber corner etc

and yes it aint a race track by any means of the term

Its a public road,you need to assess the situation presented as you do on any road.People make mistakes,i have done it myself and ended up on my ass also,on quite a few i was going to fast for the conditions or the condition changed (wet)... One part of learning to ride or drive is just that,reading the road..if it is a twisty road and you start pushing it you risk coming off...What about all the other M/C roads ..Coro loop etc etc,we will needa lot of sticks :whistle:..if you ride at a pace that suits you,you will normally not fall off?.There are many corners on NZ roads that have increasing radius's,entering a corner slower and coming out faster can reduce the pain.

kerryg

10th October 2005, 13:29

I was thinking of going along the 22 with some red sticks/steaks and putting them in the ground next to the road on dodgy corners, so people who don't know the road as well can use it as a caution.. for the coming corner

Well...I dunno but I find the idea of bits of bloody meat being used as warnings just a bit too close to the bone BJ. What next? A lung? A severed head?

Motu

10th October 2005, 13:35

that sucks dude.. is the bike totalled too? At least you walked away from it, that's the main thing..
I think I'm thinking of the same spot Alex.. Was it a right hander going up hill slightly, and prior to that are some nice open sweeping corners? That corner has claimed a few bikes, that's for sure..

I was thinking of going along the 22 with some red sticks/steaks and putting them in the ground next to the road on dodgy corners, so people who don't know the road as well can use it as a caution.. for the coming corner

You could make it like SH16,with huge reflective signs on every corner,have a kiosk at each end selling a curve by curve booklet and instructional video.I'm with TDLV8,it's not a race track,you take it as it comes - what worries me is as more sportsbikes use it at speed and keep crashing,one will be the inevatable,the All Seeing Eye will be directed to SH22....and once again a great road will be emancapated for the actions of a few.Not critising Sparkz at all,just that as a Ring Bearer I can feel the EYE.....

Quasievil

10th October 2005, 13:44

Common Motu you can do better than that mate:chase:

Sparkz

10th October 2005, 13:45

Thanks guys.

I think the whole point of SH22 is that you don't need to be doing crazy speeds to have fun. The corners are usually challanging enough at legal speeds (some more challanging than others :crybaby: ) and I, for one, don't treat it like a racetrack.

Having said that, there is really not much point taking corners on a great road like that at 50km/h. You may as well just ride on the motorway. I think the real trick is not riding faster than your skill level allows.

And, yes, it was an uphill right-hander around Huntly.

kerryg

10th October 2005, 13:50

You could make it like SH16,with huge reflective signs on every corner,have a kiosk at each end selling a curve by curve booklet and instructional video.I'm with TDLV8,it's not a race track,you take is it comes - what worries me is as more sportsbikes use it at speed and keep crashing,one be be the inevatable,the All Seeing Eye will be directed to SH22....and once again a great road will be emancapated for the actions of a few.Not critising Sparkz at all,just that as a Ring Bearer I can feel the EYE.....

It's one of not-too-many routes in the Auckland region that are attractive to street bike riders and so it'll attract 'em. There is nothing to be done about that. Unless bikes are banned from it, it makes sense to think about mitigating the hazards, even if does involves putting pieces of uncooked meat on sticks.....

In partricular there are a couple of slow corners that have no signage. They would seem pretty good candidates for a warning sign

Motu

10th October 2005, 13:53

Common Motu you can do better than that mate:chase:

You could dish me out some bad rep - that would be more in character...you could even edit this post as you have done before.

Motu

10th October 2005, 13:55

It's one of not-too-many routes in the Auckland region that are attractive to street bike riders and so it'll attract 'em. There is nothing to be done about that. Unless bikes are banned from it, it makes sense to think about mitigating the hazards, even if does involves putting pieces of uncooked meat on sticks.....

In partricular there are a couple of slow corners that have no signage. They would seem pretty good candidates for a warning sign

The hazzard is the rider,NOT the road.

Marmoot

10th October 2005, 13:56

bad luck dude can you describe the corner a bit better?? not on an uphill bit with some NC30 and R1 bits in the gutter??

Put a fireblade on the list please. 1 year ago, Me. :mellow:

enigma51

10th October 2005, 14:03

Good to hear you are okay sparkz thats the second time I heard of kevlar coming apart like that (NOT GOOD) hope the healing is quick.

And for those of you going on about its not race track blah blah blah blah blah shut the fuck up you where not there and dont known what realy happend if sparkz was exceeding the speed limit so be it dont tell me none of you have not done it before.

The poor guy had a crash which could have ended bad and it did not (which is awesome). Why is it that when ever anyone falls there is some assholes on here that go on and on about how should ride within your own capabilities and the road is not a race track blah blah get fucking life your are not that innocent WANKER.

Okay thats me now time for a :drinkup: or two

sAsLEX

10th October 2005, 14:04

Put a fireblade on the list please. 1 year ago, Me. :mellow:

I remember just after that your helmet with the scars, come to think of it have you replaced it yet?

Quasievil

10th October 2005, 14:22

You could dish me out some bad rep - that would be more in character...you could even edit this post as you have done before.

Common old fella Im taking the piss, I agree with you, honestly I gave you some green rep hope thats ok grumpy :dodge:

I thought your post was good ......... I know I need to move on from my gravel on 22 post, I need tobuild a bridge yeah..... OK built done forgoted

Quasievil

10th October 2005, 14:24

Have to admit I was around the back of Kawhia and had a moment coming around a corner with a hunk of shite on it, bike had a "see ya later" moment lucky I held it together otherwise it would be me with a fucked bike.

I think I will leave that road to the adventure boys.

Motu

10th October 2005, 14:25

And for those of you going on about its not race track blah blah blah blah blah shut the fuck up you where not there and dont known what realy happend if sparkz was exceeding the speed limit so be it dont tell me none of you have not done it before.

The poor guy had a crash which could have ended bad and it did not (which is awesome). Why is it that when ever anyone falls there is some assholes on here that go on and on about how should ride within your own capabilities and the road is not a race track blah blah get fucking life your are not that innocent WANKER.

I'm not critizising Sparkz,and Sparkz is not critizising the road,he acccepts total responsability for what happened...good on him.But others don't accept the responsability and want to blame the road,the conditions....anything but themselves.I'm certainly not innocent,and very possibly a wanker,but I learned a very long time ago to take responsability for my actions,take a look at what went wrong and learn by it.

A driver pulls out on a bike and says - ''I didn't see it...'' so it's the car drivers fault.

A bike takes a corner and crashes on gravel,roadworks or a tight corner and says - ''I didn't see it'' - so it's the roads fault,or the council's fault...obviously.

And no...I won't shut the fuck up.

kerryg

10th October 2005, 14:26

The hazzard is the rider,NOT the road.

Yes, there's some truth in that (riding within one's limits, reading the road and so on) but you can't mean that literally, surely, otherwise you appear to be arguing for the complete absence of warning signs. If all road-users consistently exercised care, patience, courtesy, alertness and commonsense etc etc many road signs, perhaps even traffic lights and lane markers etc would not be needed, not as much anyway, but in the real world we occasionally need a little help to stay out of trouble. Obviously there's a point at which it becomes ridiculous but not to sign-post low-speed corners in a 100km/hour area (as there are on SH22 in a couple of places) creates an unnecessary risk. Nearly all are signposted, some aren't. Therein lies the danger.

Stroker Girl

10th October 2005, 14:28

Motu

10th October 2005, 14:34

but you can't mean that literally, surely, otherwise you appear to be arguing for the complete absence of warning signs.

Come for a ride with me sometime - I will show you roads with a complete absence of road signs,I ride them fast....and safetly.All it takes is good roadcraft,using your eyes,using your brain.

steved

10th October 2005, 14:38

Yes, there's some truth in that (riding within one's limits, reading the road and so on) but you can't mean that literally, surely, otherwise you appear to be arguing for the complete absence of warning signs. If all road-users consistently exercised care, patience, courtesy, alertness and commonsense etc etc many road signs, perhaps even traffic lights and lane markers etc would not be needed, not as much anyway, but in the real world we occasionally need a little help to stay out of trouble. Obviously there's a point at which it becomes ridiculous but not to sign-post low-speed corners in a 100km/hour area (as there are on SH22 in a couple of places) creates an unnecessary risk. Nearly all are signposted, some aren't. Therein lies the danger.The problem comes when you begin to expect warnings and signs and so on. Only the rider can look after themselves. It's just an attitude shift IMO.

oldrider

10th October 2005, 14:38

Hey Sparkz, sorry about your loss but really admire your attitude.

"Completely furcked my bike but what a great opportunity to test my safety gear."

I have often heard people ask the difference between an optimist and a pessimist?

You sir are surely an example of an optimist congratulations I salute you. Cheers John.

Marmoot

10th October 2005, 14:51

I remember just after that your helmet with the scars, come to think of it have you replaced it yet?

Forgive me Father for I have sinned.....no I haven't replaced my helmet.

Worse yet, it's been through 3 crashes, actually. :mellow:

Sparkz

10th October 2005, 14:51

Hey Neil

Big bummer about your crash mate. Lucky for you I guess that you only got a few bruises to show for it. :doctor: Really glad you are ok but shame about your poor FZR. Is it repairable or will it be off to the bike shops for a test riding session?

I left the old girl with a farmer out there. I am constantly amazed at the kindness of people in rural area. The first car to stop offered me a ride and then a women with a trailer stopped and offered to get her husband to help and take the bike over to their farm. Bloody good people!

Anyway, I reckon the bike is toast. I haven't been back to have a look yet, but pretty much most of it was bust. And a full tank of petrol too!!!! Probably worth more than the bike.

kerryg

10th October 2005, 15:01

Come for a ride with me sometime - I will show you roads with a complete absence of road signs,I ride them fast....and safetly.All it takes is good roadcraft,using your eyes,using your brain.

Fair enough, Motu. I guess it's one of those "you say to-marto, I say to-mayto" situations. Your point is quite fair, but I beg to differ on applying it quite so literally . No signs at all might have been safer. No signs, you rely on your roadcraft etc completely. However there are many many signs before corners on that piece of road (35km,45km, 55km etc), and only a couple (of really tight and slow corners) without any warning. It is reasonable to place some (not total) reliance on signs when the road has them up on (almost) every corner; and their absence informs as much as their presence. No sign= safe at 100km.The problem is in the inconsistency.

Anyone uses it or any other piece of road as a racetrack has only themselves to blame if their riding doesn't suit the road conditions. That's a given. But someone riding sensibly can get into trouble if the road signs mislead by their absence.

Anyway my last word on this subject.

Lou Girardin

10th October 2005, 15:17

If you need a quote for the insurance co on your gear, give me a PM with the sizes etc and I'll mail one to you.

Lou Girardin

10th October 2005, 15:18

Indeed.
I could've told you that for free (i.e., without you crash-testing it).
My very first slide of about 2-3 metres at ~30km/h on smoothish road wore a hole the size of a 10c piece in the cordura, and subsequent spills weren't much better. I think only one involved the kevlar pad taking some of the brunt of the spill. That's why the arms and shoulders of my Hurricane are now mostly covered in leather...

That's why quality gear costs.

vifferman

10th October 2005, 15:26

That's why quality gear costs.
Yeah.
About $700 (IIRC) for the jacket, and a few hundred in repairs / improvements.
Dunno what to replace it with now. I'm not keen on paying $200/year for a jacket, $100/year for boots, $350/year for a helmet, etc. etc.

Ixion

10th October 2005, 15:31

Yes, there's some truth in that (riding within one's limits, reading the road and so on) but you can't mean that literally, surely, otherwise you appear to be arguing for the complete absence of warning signs. ..

Yes, actually. I'd do away with all of them. Didn't have 'em when I learned to ride/drive (damn few , anyway).But we have been through this before, amidst much heat and red-repping. Nothing makes a sprotbike rider more furious than the suggestion that he should ride to the road. But , for me, there is only one person responsible if I mess things up. The guy holding the handlebars.

myvice

10th October 2005, 19:30

Anything you walk away from is good!
Glad your Ok, last crash I saw out there was a helicopter job!
Denim isn’t as good as leather apparently!
Who would have thought?
Got to have leather myself, just don’t quite trust the nylon/cordura, and I’ve tested leather. Suit No3 is waiting on armour!

Quasievil

10th October 2005, 20:25

A good salesman never misses an opportunity!
Would you like to do a ride along with me an Riff Raff, Lou? We could split the profits at the end of the day.:doctor:

Damn Right

And if you want some good quality leather give ole Quasi a yell I will do you a good deal:whistle:

N4CR

10th October 2005, 20:31

Yeah my cordura was pretty shit in a 40k bin as well.

The cordura part got holes in it really bad, the actual kevlar/cordura weave around the shoulders was okay though (hardly wore at all).

Then I got my knees down in the shit without kneepads. BAD idea... got 40-60cm holes now fucks sake... silly me. (Wasn't thinking really).

Good to hear you didnt get to munted up, I got a twisted shoulder which hurt for a while because of the way I landed.