Bike Terminology - Low Side/High Side

[Stroker Girl]

Just a quick query from a relatively newbie rider, what exactly is the difference between a low side and high side crash? :spudwhat: Is it to do with what side you fall down? Haven't had the pleasure of hitting the tarmac yet but when the event occurs I'd like to think I'll know the right bike slang to describe it! Thanks.

P.S Really enjoy reading all the threads here and hearing about everyone's biking experiences. Hope to get out on some KB rides in the New Year when I'm feeling a bit more confident on the viffer (just upgraded from the KR150).

[James Deuce]

A low side hurts.

A high side F__KING hurts.

A low side is what I recently had - about to enter a right hand corner, hit diesel, the bike fell to the right and deposited me on the low side of the bike, i.e the right.

A high side would be if I had entered the right hand corner, hit diesel and started to slide then reached tarmac and had the tyres grip, flinging me up and over to the left, or the high side.

[Cajun]

Just a quick query from a relatively newbie rider, what exactly is the difference between a low side and high side crash? :spudwhat: Is it to do with what side you fall down? Haven't had the pleasure of hitting the tarmac yet but when the event occurs I'd like to think I'll know the right bike slang to describe it! Thanks.

P.S Really enjoy reading all the threads here and hearing about everyone's biking experiences. Hope to get out on some KB rides in the New Year when I'm feeling a bit more confident on the viffer (just upgraded from the KR150).

lowside pretty much, one wheel looses grip and you fall off going around a corner, your normal over in the crorner, so hence low side, high speeds usual come about coming out of a corner, you give it heaps, rear tire spining, then suddly grips, and throws you upwards, hence highside.

[duckman]

Hello there Stroker Girl,

I'll do my best here (after a few beers)

A lowside: is a crash where you fall over on the near side of the lean. i.e. your leaning the bike on the left hand side and you loose grip and fall down on the left side. This is the nicer of the two.

A highside: NASTY!! - You start to loose the bike in a slide and then suddenly the bike grips the tarmac and flings the rider into the air.... lot's of these in racing like GP and superbike.

Hope this helps - Someone who is more articulate and less drunk will explain this better I'm sure.

[Cajun]

A low side hurts.

A high side F__KING hurts.

A low side is what I recently had - about to enter a right hand corner, hit diesel, the bike fell to the right and deposited me on the low side of the bike, i.e the right.

A high side would be if I had entered the right hand corner, hit diesel and started to slide then reached tarmac and had the tyres grip, flinging me up and over to the left, or the high side.

we already had enough of your grumblings old man, dc:<

[James Deuce]

[Paul in NZ]

Don't listen to these fools... They are all mad and evil people bent on destruction.... Listen to me, ONLY to me... Mwahahahaha

Well OK it was worth a try...

This explanation is as good as any..

http://www.megarider.com/Articles/Newsletter1.html

Paul N

[duckman]

Don't listen to these fools... They are all mad and evil people bent on destruction.... Listen to me, ONLY to me... Mwahahahaha

Well OK it was worth a try...

This explanation is as good as any..

http://www.megarider.com/Articles/Newsletter1.html

Paul N

Now listen here you moto Guzzler riding fool, One more half arsed comment like that and I'll .... I'll.... well I'll be mighty offended ...

[Motoracer]

Lowside is when you might loose traction on either front or the rear wheel (or even both) during leaning the bike and the side you are leaning on comes in contact with the ground. Lowsides are usually nice and trouble free, if you have the right gear and telphone poles/cars/trucks, aren't in your path.

Highsides usually happen with more powerfull bikes (although depending on conditions, I have seen 50cc scooters highside). This is when the rear tyre looses traction during mid corner. When this happens, you go into a drifting motion and you gain sideways momentum. When or if the tyre regains traction, the sideways momentem wants to continue going sideways. Eg. When you make a right hand turn, you lean the bike to your right. The tyre starts loosing traction when you are accelerating, then the rear of the bike starts to drift outwards. When the tyre grips, it tries to stop the bike from drifting side ways. However, the sideways momentum is too great to just stop just then. This is when you get the "snap" effect. The bike will launch off into the out side of the corner or the direction where the rear of your bike was headed during it's sideways motion. Eg. if you are leaning right, the bike will hit it's left hand side first on the ground (generally).

[WINJA]

Just a quick query from a relatively newbie rider, what exactly is the difference between a low side and high side crash? :spudwhat: Is it to do with what side you fall down? Haven't had the pleasure of hitting the tarmac yet but when the event occurs I'd like to think I'll know the right bike slang to describe it! Thanks.

P.S Really enjoy reading all the threads here and hearing about everyone's biking experiences. Hope to get out on some KB rides in the New Year when I'm feeling a bit more confident on the viffer (just upgraded from the KR150).

IF YOU COME RIDING WITH ME I CAN SHOW YOU A HIGHSIDE AND LOW SIDE IN ONE DAY

[onearmedbandit]

A low-side accident is exactly that. For example, on a right bend you either lose the front end, rear end, or maybe both, causing the bike to slide completely out from underneath you, dropping you onto the low-side. This, generally, is the 'safest' crash as you don't have far to fall, however what you slide into could still do some serious damage.

A high-side crash, obviously now, is where you go over the opposite side of the bike to which you are leaning. An example of this would be applying too much throttle exiting a corner, causing the rear wheel to slide, which is the beginning of a low side if the rider makes no change to throttle position, or increase throttle load. However, the natural human reaction is to close the throttle, causing the rear wheel to grip the road again. The rear suspension, which during the initial slide is fully or mostly extended, now compresses thanks to the new found grip, causing the bike to flick over to the 'highside', and in the worse case scenario catapulting you off the bike, resulting in serious injuries (head, neck, shoulder, back). This type of crash is the one that took me out a few years ago, not very nice flying through the air head down feet up waiting for the thump as you land on the ground from a couple of metres up.

Some truely talented riders are able to react quick enough to a possible high-side, using a cool mind, a steady hand, and shed-loads of experience to adjust the throttle appropiately to keep the bike shiney side up.

[onearmedbandit]

Wow, it doesn't pay to open a thread, see no answers but walk away for a few minutes to come back and reply. All of a sudden theres 4 or 5 of us with the same answer.

[Paul in NZ]

Now listen here you moto Guzzler riding fool, One more half arsed comment like that and I'll .... I'll.... well I'll be mighty offended ...

Thems fightin words boy....

Vicki! Git me mah brown drinkin' trousers... Its friday and theres gunna be some guzzlin..

Paul N........

[Stroker Girl]

Shite , thanks for clarifying that for me guys. I think I'll go for the lowside any day, though hopefully not too soon I hope! I don't know if the same motto applies to bike riding as it does to horse riding but my riding teacher use to say to me that you are not a good rider until you fall off 8 times! In a way she was right, because it wasn't until I had a good many years riding that I started to hit the deck. Oh well, the viffers already got some nice scratches down it from a previous owner slide, a few more aint gonna hurt.......

[Motoracer]

Wow, it doesn't pay to open a thread, see no answers but walk away for a few minutes to come back and reply. All of a sudden theres 4 or 5 of us with the same answer.

I guess us gentlemen were just a bit eager to help a lady out.