Why???

[wkid_one]

Now if you don't mind, I'm going to find a very large, very wooden tree to hug!

As opposed to the 'non-wooden' ones????

[750Y]

I had 1 good one where I was convinced it wasn't my fault because a drink driver on an unlit country road took me out as he came head on across the road with no indicator to duck down a side road and misjudged the distance between us thinking I was a car with 1 headlight on. he hadn't slowed too much because he was trying to 'run the gap' so to speak. I still don't truly believe it was my fault but i could have done things differently like not travelling at 140k or learning and pracitisng emergency evasive techniques which could have drastically reduced my risk.
all the other crashes I've had were due to rider error. I must face facts, i can't ride for shit, which is mostly why i've crashed. Ironically, every crash has reminded me of that. doh! been upright for over 12 months in a row now but no bike anymore so i'll be back to the drawing board when next summer rolls round.

[jrandom]

hmmm, I've posted about these before but here y'all go:

- Fanged round wet corner, lost front over manhole cover. My fault.

- Filtering hard-out in the rain down motorway lane 2A, someone (understandably) pulls across in front of me, nowhere to go, stopping ability shot to hell in the wet on my cheap tyres, too much rear brake, back washes out and dumps me. Once again, my fault. Maybe better tyres would have saved me, but then it was my choice not to put them on, eh?

These are both first-year riding mishaps and I learned from both of them. No idea when or how I'll crash again but I haven't had any 'moments' for a while and I feel that my riding style is evolving in a less-risky direction.

[Jackrat]

Yep hind sight is an interesting critter for sure,Being hit by another road user is a real hard one,Other than keeping my eyes open I can,t really see how I for one would combat that one,As it is now I just asume that if they can they will kind of thing.My own big one also came after a big argument I had just lost at a club I belonged to at the time,A combination of bad temper,high speed,wet road,=Two weeks in traction and the interesting experiance of watching my own blood running down the gutter.
I don,t really belive any amount of track time would make a difference to the things we face on public roads,After all we don,t have sheep,cows,dogs,kids,people in cars,trucks,drunks,white lines,steel man hole covers ect on race tracks.Track riding like dirt riding must make one better at the bike control thing but unfortunatly the public road is a whole different world.Look how Mike Hailwood died.As for myself I still have just as much fun as I always did but in different situations from what I did.One of my fave' Things when I was errrrrr,Younger was riding in the city in just a Tee shirt in the spring rain,Getting it side ways as much as possible.Now days I look back on that an think I must of had rocks in me head.I have been told I am paranoid but it don't seem like it to me,I mean if it wasn,t fun I wouldn't do it.
I do harp on a bit at some of my friends and family that ride and end up coming across as an old fart,but what the hey,If they are still here in thirty or more years an still riding then I'm happy to be an old fart.

[bluninja]

1980 fell off A100 in carpark driveway after first 20 minutes of riding...my fault.

2001 RSVR versus tractor turning onto road. Technically tractor drivers fault, but a series of choices and mistakes by me (and some other drivers) put myself in the position where I could be taken out. Fault doesn't come into it when your 18 hour old bike is a writeoff and you are laid on the tarmac in trashed leathers awaiting an ambulance. I had plenty of time to reconsider my riding approach and review my actions.

5 racetrack spills (3 in last 12 months), 3 offs having a go at motorcross....all learning exercises

As for the premise that a motorcyclist is responsible for every accident...this is the normal trotted out rubbish. Nothing is black and white (except a zebra crossing maybe). We should all look long and hard at ourselves to see how we can avoid ending up in the accident, but that is not the same thing as being at fault.

eg.

Ex brother in law had 3 accidents within a year. Each a driver turning right from major to minor and him going over the front. Until he changed his attitude from my right of way...to how do I not get hit when this happens he would continue to have these accidents. He changed his attitude and road position...cars still pull out, but less often and he doesn't hit them. I guess that would make him responsible for the accidents...not the car pulling out in front.

AMCC bike ride. Rider hit on the back of a head by a large bird, loses control and plants the bike into a tree. Are you seriously going to tell me that cos this guy knew there were birds in NZ he should have a strategy for dealing with a bird strike??? and therefore was responsible for the accident.

Stationary in a traffic queue get slammed from behind (let's assume that avoidance into the oncoming traffic queue is a no no, no room up the inside, and applying the horn to attract attention didn't work). Whoops I guess the rider should have planned an escape route before stopping.

Whilst I'm started on this diatribe.......one of the reasons that having an accident causes your insurance to go up, is not just the loss of no claims. It's because statistics show that most riders/drivers don't learn from their mistakes and will continue to have those type of accidents over and over when the some situation occurs.

Oh and another thing....glad nobody was injured by WKID when he honed his high speed skills on the road.

and another thing don't you offroad/gravel riders make excuses like cos it's a loose surface it don't count....not if you're going to poo poo cold tyres, wet roads. We should all ride to the conditions and stay upright.

[Motu]

Urghh I don't know if I should answer this cos of "walking under ladders" "touch wood" and all that. I have been off roading 5-6 years and road riding about 4 years.

I have not had a crash road riding. (only had the bike fall on top of me while
I was stationary at the time)....

I read somewhere that it is usually the first 5 years riding a motorcycle when most crashes on a motorbike will happen. dont quote me on that. has anyone heard that one? it makes sense since thats the start of learning how to ride.

That you rode off road before you took to the streets says it all KATWYN,I reckon off road training should be compulsary before a street license.My wife went to a riding school - she knew stuff that it took me 4 yrs to learn the hard way bouncing off cars,falling off on white lines etc.I'm kinda proud that I taught myself,learnt from it,then took it beyond a normal level - I used to train myself to take in information at an excelerated level for short periods until I could maintain it for longer,then it became second nature.But I was a danger to myself and others until I realised something was wrong....me

[Motu]

I mentioned random events bluninja - once the basics are second nature...not riding but damage control,not falling off or hitting others - then you can put that left over input into being ready for random events,sure they may catch you by suprise,but be still able to cope.Thats why I like back roads and gravel - random events come thick and fast,I like it like that.

[Jackrat]

Who ever said lose gravel surfaces don't count,If it,s on a public road of course it does.Bit of selective interpretation on your part me thinks.Iv,e personaly never riden my XR on a road of any type.And that has NOTHING to do with this thread.As for your mate that got hit by the bird,If his bike control skills were up to it he wouldn't have come off Aye,So yes it was his own fault,I mean in the back of the head,Come on!!,I got hit in the chest by a hawk and didn't come off.
BTW insurance also has NOTHING to do with this thread,so why bring it in.
Try to just stick to the subject rather than leting your little Ego get in the way of what until you showed up was going just fine.
If you can't except responsibilty for your own actions then don,t bore us with your usual unprovable claims.
Now we can sit back and wait for all the made up facts an figures to ruin the thread.

[Motoracer]

Comming off is usually due to lack of skills and experience. No matter what excusess there may be, it usually boils down to the hard facts of life. Crashing is a major driver/rider error/mistake. And every mistake has its conciquences. It is always a good idea to face the conciquences for the long term (you might come out as a better/wiser person). If you/I make excuses for every mistake we make, we will never learn from them.

Why you guys (Motu, jack etc..) haven't come off in ages? Its due to all the experience you have gained over the years that have made you guys the wiser. AND I think you guys are less likely to make silly mistakes that the younger guys (like my self) are more prone to make. eg. ego issues.

[wkid_one]

I don,t really belive any amount of track time would make a difference to the things we face on public roads,After all we don,t have sheep,cows,dogs,kids,people in cars,trucks,drunks,white lines,steel man hole covers ect on race tracks.Track riding like dirt riding must make one better at the bike control thing but unfortunatly the public road is a whole different world..

I actually think it works to the contrary on the road. You stop thinking about potholes, whitelines, gravel etc with too much track riding - taking the road surface for granted....plus you focus more on yourself than the area as the track becomes second natrure

[bluninja]

Motu, apologies I didn't read your post fully.

As for Jackrat. Bro if you don't like my post because it doesn't make sense to you, or you disagree....well this is a forum.

I take responsibility for all my actions thankyou, and before I descended into drivel I did say a series of choices and mistakes by me (and some other drivers) put myself in the position where I could be taken out. Put simply I put myself in the position to be hit. My responsibility.

You asked Why do some of you folks fall off so often. I remembered some research done by insurance companies and posted about it, but can't find the research...however I did find...

If you have had an accident in one 3 year period, you are twice as likely to have another accident in the next 3 years.
Roadcraft, The Police Drivers Handbook

I was in my own way trying to answer your original question.

And it's so nice to know that your manly(?) chest can take a hawk strike without losing control of the bike. A bird strike to the head is a bit different. Since I don't have any facts to support this I would be quite happy to throw an oven ready chicken at the back of your head as you ride by and let you post the results

[Jackrat]

Yeah like I said,more pointless made up facts an figures.
The thread was never about other people,it was about your own experiances.
Not your mate that got hit by a bird.What the hell has that got to do with anything.It was probably crap anyway.