Crashes avoided - Thought processes and techniques

**Ocean1** · 12th January 2014, 17:57

I was pootling along Akaroa highway on my orange street triple and some idiot on a big red bike....

P'raps not.

The one that makes me paranoid enough for most situations is one where I had fuck all cards to play. I was passing a truck/trailer unit on a long rural straight with good visibility when a car appeared from behind a hedge off to the right, 30 to 40 metres ahead and turned towards me.

I spent an uncomfortable 3 seconds directly behind the tractor unit's rear wheels, under the trailer deck.

**bogan** · 12th January 2014, 18:05

The one that sticks with me, is when an old lady turned across my path into her own driveway when I assumed she would have seen me. It was a full e-stop, no evasion attempted because I was not sure if she would stop and let me go left, or keep going and let me go right. I hit the passenger side rear door hard enough to dent it and bend a fork, and squash my nuts on the tank but I didn't drop her. So 100% her fault, but now I'm damn sure to look at wheel direction/rotation, car attitude, driver's eyes, etc; had I been as good at preventative awareness as I am now, I'm pretty sure I would have pulled up a few m shorter.

**pritch** · 13th January 2014, 07:53

OK, one from the way back stack.

Morning commute on my AJS 350 in a line of traffic. To my left front there was a guy standing at a bus stop, his face lit up with recognition at someone in one of the cars.
I headed for the curb and braked. His mate saw him and slammed on the brakes and there was a four car end to end pile up beside me, right where I had just been on the bike.

**roogazza** · 13th January 2014, 09:38

In fifty years of riding I have had many,many near misses (some really dumb ones).
In about 71 all the guys were filling up at Piecock before heading home over the hill. One of my mates Nev (Hiscock) laughed while I was filling the tank and not waiting ,took off.
I finished and set off to catch the bugger. Finally caught his 750 Comando (me on a 315 Suzuki) at a big sweeping right hander near Part-a-nui. I swished past glad to have caught him,grinned,FUCK ! and drifted into a water ditch on the left side of the road! Rode thru the ditch and a tree overhanging the ditch,nearly tore my head off,out the other side the road went left ! Across the road I went ,still on, and scraped along the fence on that side of the road ! Stayed on,green shit over the front of my 'Bell' and a bloody sore neck.

Had a fag and went home at 50mph.That was a biggy! RIP Nev.LOL He laughed his head off.

**sugilite:Me** · 13th January 2014, 11:18

Had to many to mention. The thing that has served me best is to have a "crashing is not an option" mindset, that more than any other thing has got me through several seemingly impossible situations.

**ellipsis** · 13th January 2014, 11:58

...five or so years back at 5 o clock , peak hour traffic I with entered one of the busy roundabouts, at Sockburn, Chch...I had the right of way and and was alone on the roundabout with what seemed like half of the traffic in Chch giving away to me...I wanted the second exit and was half way there when a little jap car decided I wasn't really there at all...the girl driving had that terrified look and I had enough time to think, this is gonna hurt...there was no room for me to go behind her and exit where I was going...I heaved the sporty right and tried to hit her at a less acute angle...somehow I ended up parallel to her and the projected pain turned into a soft docking with my left footpeg jammed under her door sill...it locked me there upright and the silly schoolgirl carried on...I screamed through my visor while staring into her face, stop. She did, she wound down the window as I was extricating my peg from under her car...I was more relieved than angry at that point...all I could say to her was...'go home and tell your mum what you just did'...all the cars giving way had a fantastic view, and I carried around the roundabout...I got a few toots and thumbs up...I count that as pure luck...

**SPman** · 13th January 2014, 14:36

Originally Posted by sugilite

Had to many to mention. The thing that has served me best is to have a "crashing is not an option" mindset, that more than any other thing has got me through several seemingly impossible situations.

That mindset has kept me upright in several sticky.....or more correctly, slippery situations......after mentally noting the road verge looks nice and comfortable to lie down on.......fecking diesel spills.....

**quickbuck** · 13th January 2014, 15:25

Closest one for me:
Was on my CBR600 at a Track Day at Manfeild.
Front tyre was brand new and the rear was 50% worn.
I ride around there at a fair pace for an older CBR and was getting quite keen.
I put it into turn 1 and felt I wasn't going quite fast enough as I Apexed it...... Yup, I was a silly fool and gave the thing on the right a bit of a twist!

The back stepped out then grabbed! I was almost high-sided but held on.
The Tank Slapper that resulted was tamed just in time for me to head for the Run Off.
Unfortunately the Run-off had an enormous Pot Hole in it! So I smacked into that too!
At this point i was most likely doing about 70k ish... hard to tell because the worst place to look is the speedo!

The front wheel smacked into the pothole and sent the bike into another tank slapper DOWN THE GRASS toward point 2 marshal point.
I recovered that and rode it back to the pits by rejoining at Turn 5.

The rim had a bend in the bead and the tyre went flat shortly after stopping.......

Took ages to find a new rim. Never found a red one......

How I avoided disaster: Keep your head and eyes up......

**george formby** · 13th January 2014, 17:38

Originally Posted by quickbuck

Keep your head and eyes up......

Yeah. And ride the bloody bike! Even it's bucking like an angry bull.
Amazin how fast your brain works when your date snaps shut like a prison cell door.

**unstuck** · 13th January 2014, 17:48

Originally Posted by george formby

when your date snaps shut like a prison cell door.

Or when you hear the prison cell door opening in the middle of the night.

**george formby** · 13th January 2014, 18:18

Originally Posted by unstuck

Or when you hear the prison cell door opening in the middle of the night.

So prison sex is counter intuitive too? Should be opening when everything is screaming close it.

**unstuck** · 13th January 2014, 18:54

Originally Posted by george formby

So prison sex is counter intuitive too? Should be opening when everything is screaming close it.

Prison sex is best solo I reckon.

**george formby** · 13th January 2014, 19:03

Originally Posted by unstuck

Prison sex is best solo I reckon.

All options best avoided full stop I reckon.

Look where you've brought this thread to Unstuck, shame on you.

Reet, back on topic..... As you were.

**Motu** · 13th January 2014, 22:49

I crashed more than most as a young fella, and my near misses were legion. The crashes finally stopped, but the close shaves still happen - and that's a good thing, keeps the whole thing real, and you always learn something. Sometimes you do the right thing to save the situation, and sometimes you do the wrong thing...and still save the plot. Ah, you didn't know that, so there is another skill to add to your database...or in Kenny Roberts world, another package to hang on your wall of experience, to grab in the same situation. Sometimes the bikes skill level exceeds your own, and pulls you through hanging onto it's coat tails. Sometimes the deficiencies of the bike prove to be an asset in a bad situation...on a better bike you'd have crashed....sobering stuff.

The thought process ? It's so fast it's in slow motion, so many decisions, assessed and discarded one by one....one doesn't make sense, but we're going for it anyway. As mentioned before, look beyond the immediate problem - where you want to be is where you'll end up.