KB Krashes!!

[Krusti]

The times when I feel I would most likely be to crash are when...and most of you have felt this...you feel yourself lose concentration. Usually a small oops is enough to alert you to this. SLOW DOWN. We all know when we are on our game.

One small oops should be enough to alert you to back off.

I have had whole days when I have not been able to get into the zone or find myself daydreaming/mind wondering. This is not a good time to push ones limits.

Age has also taught me not to care what any one else thinks about my speed etc.At least I can still ride. Maybe faster than most but not as quick as a few, or is it the other way around?

Speed is not the only judge of a good rider!

We all need to take responsibility for each other if we elect to be part of a forum/group like this. As a whole I am very impressed by the concern and big brother attitude of most here but feel there are a few who care only about their own ego stroking.

My 2 cents worth.......

[moko]

I think Motu hit it on the head. There's a lot of posturing goes on in KB (online) and without doing all those fun statistical analyses... there seems to be a reasonably strong correlation between the people getting in trouble with their mouths (in here), and those getting in trouble on the road.

It's a maturity thing - I've noticed it affect my riding as I've aged...
........I think there is basis to the "KB carnage" theory. It's something we need to look out for... I'm not a fan of funerals.........It scares me how a couple of folks in here remain "bulletproof", and I'll bet they've been a split second from death/injury - either to themselves or others........You don't have to ride like a nana... but realise you ain't Rossi either...
MDU

Agree with everything you`ve written.Amazes to see on here people telling of spills as if they`re some kind of macho "badge of courage" when us old geezers wonder why someone`s bragging about their lack of riding skills.Plenty of track days advertised on here,that`s the place to do your Rossi impression and if you drop your bike it`s not going to go under a car coming the other way.I`ve been riding for 30 years,lost my best mate in a bike crash,my sister lost a boyfriend and I`ve known too many others that have been killed or maimed,you need to concentrate 100% on the road,not on what your mate`s doing or trying to prove yourself in some way to boost your image and for every one who thinks your cunning overtaking manouvere at high speed is cool there are more looking on in horror and thinking you`re a total wanker.Forget the old pop songs,killing yourself on a bike isnt cool,you shit yourself and your Mum cries at your funeral.O.k. so you pick yourself up and stagger off like John Wayne...this time,next time might be the false leg or the colostomy bag and they`re not exactly chick-pullers are they?Bikers are mostly older in the U.K. so the testosterone thing isnt quite so prevalent,still see plenty of guys doing stupid things though.On the whole though anyone riding dangerously on an organised run would get told to piss off and dont bother coming back.
What some bike clubs do here is have a guy who`s the agreed leader,he sets the pace,which is always legal-ish,everone rides at their own pace and there`s an experienced guy takes up the rear to assist anyone he sees having problems and to make sure no-one feels like they`re left behind and maybe goes quicker than they`re comfortable with to try and catch up.Those are the rules,you dont like it you just clear off on your own but all the stops e.t.c. are dictated by the guy in front so disappear over the horizon and you`re not on the rideout as such anyway.Seems to work and a lot of guys here are more interested in improving their riding skills rather than racing each other,ride smoothly and learn things like correct road position,cornering lines,reading the road e.t.c. and you`ll get places just as quick as some tear-arse who can only safely ride quickly on the straight bits.
I`ll only ride with guys I trust,if someone`s faster than me on the road I let them pass,maybe I`ll keep up for a while or just watch them head off depending on my mood but what I`ll never do is take any risks to take part in some kind of pissing contest just because someone`s overtaken me.All the hoons are doing is giving people who`d love to ban bikes,or at least clamp down mighty hard,a great excuse to do so.

[Lazy7]

i dont get why people crash when out riding.

i could understand it in inner-city traffic around town. but out in the country side, with the road basically to yourself?

i rode down to new plymouth this weekend and back again.

i took the time to actually *think* about my riding. entering corners i was actively thinking about speed, gear, lean angle, line. I was trying to upskill myself. i was trying things like, what happens when i do this with the bars, what happens if i shift my weight, what happens when i apply the throttle at this part of the corner etc etc.

by the end of the ride i was definitely riding better but i found something quite interesting out. 55km and 65km corners were now boring at the legal limit. 75km and 85km corners i didn't even think about slowing down for.

so

I figure you would need to be going absolutely silly speeds to out do a typical sportsbike around a typical corner.

so if you crash, on the open road, it was either

oil/water/gravel/slippery road surface.
or
your own stupid fault.

[Lazy7]

I still think - "Brake" - when I go in too hot, instead of thinking "Lean more"

Any tips that helped you think lean more instead of brake, back when you were starting out or when you instruct riders, racers?

ride more and go a little bit more each time. if your like me, you're probably thinking your millimetres away from dragging a footpeg when in actual fact your miles off the deck.

i guess its just faith and trust in the machine underneath you, trust in the tyres, a good view of whats coming up ahead of you so you have trust in the road surface - and then just trust in yourself.

[moko]

i took the time to actually *think* about my riding. entering corners i was actively thinking about speed, gear, lean angle, line. I was trying to upskill myself. i was trying things like, what happens when i do this with the bars, what happens if i shift my weight, what happens when i apply the throttle at this part of the corner etc etc....................I figure you would need to be going absolutely silly speeds to out do a typical sportsbike around a typical corner.

so if you crash, on the open road, it was either

oil/water/gravel/slippery road surface.
or
your own stupid fault.

Exactly my point,and you get so much more out of your riding,soon it`ll become second nature,couple more tips for you.Keep your eyes on where you want to go cos that`s where the bike will be headed,logical when you think about it and position yourself properly while cornering.Takes a bit of practice but again you`ll do it without thinking pretty soon,you go to the right of your lane when at the apex of left-hand bends and to the left hand side when taking a right hand bend,that`ll give you the best view ahead.taught in advanced riding lessons here and used by the Police.Dont know if you can get the Brit Police riding manual in N.Z.,"Roadcraft",it`s a bit dry but you`ll learn loads from it.
As for comment on slippery stuff and bad road surfaces,well sometimes for sure you hit a patch of this stuff and you fall off but a lot of the time you should see it in plenty of time,back to observation again,if you see roadworks there`s going to be crap on the road for possibly a few k`s,if you see frost on the grass the roads will be icy as well,an open gate a good chance something is going to come out of it,windscreen wipers going on cars coming the other way mean you`re heading into rain and they`ll be giving the screen a final wipe,or even too thick to turn the things off.If you`re not sure slow down anyway,better to be wary going round a corner and finding that the sprinkling of gravel you`ve seen was no more than that than to ignore it and fly round the corner only to find the rest of the load the truck was losing in a bloody great heap in front of you.Proper positioning would also give you a far greater chance in a situation like that as you`d stand a far better chance of seeing it before it was too late.

[texmo]

Most of you guys dont ride hard you can tell by the way you post, when you have a bit of rubber the size of a 10c or 5c peice holding you on the ground at what ever speed its easy to lose it!

[Kornholio]

People just don't wanna look like pussies infront of everyone else and try to keep up with the front runners even though its beyond their abilities and just get themselves in trouble.

You just have to accept that there are some naturally fast riders and experienced fast riders and then there aren't. If you aren't that fast and or lack the confidence to keep up with the faster guys then don't do it.

Never try to outride your ability (unless on a race track - where its safer and its the best place to push your ability to improve on it), its only a matter of time before it will end in tears.

What he said....THE END

[Qkkid]

I would like to clear testosterone and the like from any of my crashes. I would like to point out that these were all due to alcohol, drugs and erm, mechnical failure.

I am in no way irresponsible or criminal. It is a disease.