Skid Marks - The Other Kind

[dwayneb236]

Just a while ago, I was riding down the road, was going to turn left, so signaled and got in left turn lane... Remembered at the last stop I had left my glasses on my saddle bag. Looked down and the glasses were still sitting there. Looked up and there was a car in the left turn lane in front of me. I had seen it earlier waiting to turn in the same direction I was. I was going too fast... Put on my brakes and the rear tire locked up and slid to the right. Luckily it straightened itself up and I was able to quickly get out of the turn lane and continue on. Glad there were no cars in that lane.. I missed the car in front of me by about two feet as I was passing. Probably scared the you know what out of them. I know it did me. And the kicker is, IT WAS ALL MY FAULT. You let your attention wander for just a split second and that's all it takes. Was the closest I've came to crashing so far, and it's not pleasant..So all I have to say is, Pay Attention!!!!!..

[NewRoadie]

. . . did you get your glasses?

I'm sure you feel an overwhelming responsiblity by almost causing an accident, being an officer of the law and all . . . I know the feeling all too well. Did the same in my cage several years ago, light just turned green, two cars ahead, looked away for a second, whaaaa . . . nobody moved, so I 'pushed 'em'. Not fun!

[dwayneb236]

yeah, grabbed my glasses right before I turned my head back.. lesson learned and no one hurt.. good lesson..

I've felt funky on my bike all day. Just nothing seemed right. My mind was not in the game I guess.. Gonna give it a break tonight...Anywhere I need to go the rest of the day is in the cage..

[windsurfdog]

If one can avoid rider error as being the cause of a crash, then a large portion of risk is mitigated...I have to keep reminding myself of this as I ride.

So glad that your rider error didn't result in a negative result.

[botz723]

Originally Posted by dwayneb236

yeah, grabbed my glasses right before I turned my head back.. lesson learned and no one hurt.. good lesson..

I've felt funky on my bike all day. Just nothing seemed right. My mind was not in the game I guess.. Gonna give it a break tonight...Anywhere I need to go the rest of the day is in the cage..

Best advice I've gotten so far is, When your head aint in it GO HOME. Glad it turned out all right.

[dwayneb236]

Me too. It was kinda surreal... You read about it all the time here...thinking it will never happen.. well it almost did...I wasn't going that fast.. but fast enough that I couldn't stop in time...Was scary...

[Badmedicine]

Originally Posted by dwayneb236

yeah, grabbed my glasses right before I turned my head back.. lesson learned and no one hurt.. good lesson..

I've felt funky on my bike all day. Just nothing seemed right. My mind was not in the game I guess.. Gonna give it a break tonight...Anywhere I need to go the rest of the day is in the cage..

Glad to hear all worked out ok, even the glasses! I get that weird "funky" feeling sometimes out riding, kind of like I'm out of sync with the bike or something, hard to explain, but you did a good job explaining it, thank God those feelings are few and far between, gives me the creeps. Ride safe!

[rwreuter]

Boy, for a minute I was thinking you were talking about the kind in your....you know what. But after an incident like that did you check your your.....you know what.

LOL

[tvlle]

Originally Posted by rwreuter

Boy, for a minute I was thinking you were talking about the kind in your....you know what. But after an incident like that did you check your your.....you know what.

LOL

Skid Marks.

[dwayneb236]

Originally Posted by tvlle

Skid Marks.

I had to check..I came out clean all around..hehe...

[VindianaJones]

Just glad you made it ok. Had those feelings myslef and I've always kept to the cage when I get em.

[B3ancounter]

Maybe no skid marks but I bet you needed a spatula to slide between your butt and the seat to break the suction so you could dismount!

[SteelMonkey]

As an Ironworker the most important lesson I have learned is ....if you don't feel at one with the steel, then get off. I suppose that could also be said of riding a bike as well. Somedays, your just not in the groove, it happens, so why push it?

[900classic]

I'm glad everyone is safe and the lesson was learned. Safe riding everyone!

[metallisch]

heh. I have a lot of fun locking up the rear wheel on my meanie. I'd always leave giant marks on the pavement going to/from the house of a girl I was seeing. She enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed creating them. heh heh. I've had a couple rear wheel panic lockups as well, and my experience from doing it for fun really helped in a fast paced situation. It's a handy skill to have, I think.

[Spaceprobe]

Originally Posted by dwayneb236

Just a while ago, I was riding down the road, was going to turn left, so signaled and got in left turn lane... Remembered at the last stop I had left my glasses on my saddle bag. Looked down and the glasses were still sitting there. Looked up and there was a car in the left turn lane in front of me. I had seen it earlier waiting to turn in the same direction I was. I was going too fast... Put on my brakes and the rear tire locked up and slid to the right. Luckily it straightened itself up and I was able to quickly get out of the turn lane and continue on. Glad there were no cars in that lane.. I missed the car in front of me by about two feet as I was passing. Probably scared the you know what out of them. I know it did me. And the kicker is, IT WAS ALL MY FAULT. You let your attention wander for just a split second and that's all it takes. Was the closest I've came to crashing so far, and it's not pleasant..So all I have to say is, Pay Attention!!!!!..

Thank goodness I thought I was the only person daft enough to ride off with their glasses on top of the saddle bags, did it 3 times on my old bike (glasses ok each time). When I got the 900 I got a tank bib with pouch so I have somewhere to put my glasses. Its funny how some days one does not feel comfortable riding I guess its our brains way of telling us to be more careful and alert. Anyway glad you are ok and got out of your little mishap.

[cruiserone]

Lucky for you to avoid a crash and maybe serious damage to yourself (and the bike)!!

but sometimes it's really hard to stay focused ' cause you feel really comfy and your mind swerves away ....

Cheers

[Vulcan900]

There for a while I had a tendency to leave my right saddlebag un-latched. Once a certain speed was reached the wind would open the lid and whatever was on top would float out. I lost a spare shirt, a pair of summer gloves, and 2 hats that way.

As part of my startup procedure I check both bags before the stand comes up, but it took me losing several items to learn.

Hopefully it only takes you one near miss.