0
![Not allowed!](http://www.nestreetriders.com/forum/images/buttons/down_dis.png)
![Not allowed!](http://www.nestreetriders.com/forum/images/buttons/up_dis.png)
So, there must not be enough souls tortured in Hell today, but what started off as a good Karmic day, turned bad very very fast. I hope you guys find this worthy of reading and learning from, as I sure did. For the sake of the story, my boyfriend is named M and best friend is B.
M and I were going to take a trip up to NH. Midway through, his bike started leaking oil, so we stopped at a park&ride to assess the situation. It was a bolt that sat behind the engine near the front sprocket, which got loose and chainsawed off, producing said leak. After a good karmic visit by a passing fellow rider, we deemed it too dangerous to proceed up, so we hightailed it home. Some visits to a bike shop for supplies, we repair the issue and meet up with my best friend, B, for a ride to do his bike inspection.
We rode staggered, M as front point, B middle, and myself as rear guard. As we changed lanes to get around traffic, instead of straightening up and heading forward, B kept riding tilted. Suddenly, BOOM! His front hit the barrier, and the angled momentum sent the bike right down. B was thrown sideways and forward, as both slid for a second or two. As the bike laid right in my path, I managed to dodge it, but it was so fast and sudden, that I wasn't able to clear it 100%. My front hit B's rear tire, and managed to take off a chunk of my lower belly fairing off. I stopped immediately, and ran towards B, who sprang up almost as fast as he went down.
After some police and EMTs showing up, we tallied the damage.
B: some road rash on the left arm, and left knee, as well as some light bruising.
B's Bike: Slightly twisted forks; missing front left turn signal; front fairing cracked in half; bent shifter
My bike: broken bottom left of the belly cowling, slightly bent shifter
We got home, thankfully in one piece and without further incident. Plans, broken.
Inb4 hate:
We spent as much time as we possibly had to train B to ride before making this plan. Up to now, there were no major incidents.
LESSON LEARNED: Do not let newbie starters on the road until absolutely making sure all maneuvers are learned in the parking lot. We managed to walk away relatively unscathed, and with minimal damage. It could've been worse, much much worse. It seems when it rains, it pours.
Glad everyone is OK. I would say you cashed in some good karma today, could have been a lot worse.
Entertaining writing aside, apart from a guy going down and everyone getting home alright, not sure I follow the drama ??
Glad everyone's ok!
The biggest rule to make sure new riders follow IMO is to not try and keep up, just ride well within their comfort zone. If that means 25MPH, so be it. Speed will build eventually, but don't rush it.
So did he pass inspection?
Who is "I" then?
Lesson B - (Sounds like anyway) Staggered formationis only for very low speeds or arriving a stop and closing up. Otherwise, every rider is entitled to their whole lane and the rider behined should allow a good 3 second gap.
Glad y'all are ok.
"A man who views the world the same at 50 as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life.”
Muhammad Ali.
-Christian LRRS/CCS HasBeen ECK Racing
2011 Pit Bike Race CHAMPION!
-Christian LRRS/CCS HasBeen ECK Racing
2011 Pit Bike Race CHAMPION!
Thanks, man. And thank you all for good words. Me and M generally fall into a staggered formation whenever we ride. I would ride farthest away from traffic, lane permitting, and he would be closer to the edge. We do it that way so that no car tries to cut in the middle of us or suddenly comes in from the side. Sometimes we switch it up and I stay on the edge of the lane. I always try to keep a good amount of distance. I've had near mishaps when I blanked out and had to do an E-stop. Woke me up for the rest of the ride.
Somewhere on this forum, I've heard of the 4 second rule, and that's what I've been adhering to since then. What happened yesterday in terms of my fairing being damaged, is that this time I was a lot closer due to the amount of traffic that was on the road at the time. I also came closer to make sure the SUV that was closing the distance did not freak out B, and that's when the accident happened. I'm sure he's going to be very sore today, but thanks to all the training we've done before, the damage was very, very minimal.
Luuka, were you riding on Rt 9 East in Wellesley this morning around 9:15 am with a friend on a Ducati Monster?
-Christian LRRS/CCS HasBeen ECK Racing
2011 Pit Bike Race CHAMPION!