I had a moment ...
 

Riding over to Loughton on Minnie this morning on quite damp roads, I applied too much front brake and the wheels locked up as I was coming down to a roundabout. Just managed to avoid going into the back of a transit.

My thoughts on this? (a) I was too close and should have used the gears to slow down because I knew the roads were slippery and (b) had it been the 996 I would have dropped her.

Moral of the storey
1. plan further ahead
2. don't rely on the breaks when the roads are so *****ty
3. good move to have had crash bungs fitted, even though today I didn't have to test them
4. glad I was in protective gear because even at 5 miles an hour it hurts to fall off.

Anyone got any other tips to help me with this winter riding malarkey. :o:o

ruth -- a mate of mine teaches direct access and cbt's etc he always comes up with this bit of advice 'COAST' might be teaching you to suck eggs but a good little mnemonic

Concentration-being alert
Observation- looking and seeing
Anticipation-expect the unexpected
Space- maintaining sensible distance around yourself giving yourself -
Time- to react to eventualities

apart from that try to keep everything smooth in bad weather conditions braking gearchanges acceleration etc

but i ride like a woose anyway!!





[Edited on 9-12-2005 by monstermob 998]

Keep it smooth and give yourself twice as long to react ( twice as much space )
Wearing thicker clothing / gloves amd being out in colder weather makes you less sensitive on the controls and slower to react.
And 1 to 4 inclusive are all spot on!

Theres a plethero of saying for this time of year.....

Brakes to slow...gears to go.., bit of vision before decision.....

one i like was from a now retired ex sgt major who did basic driving instruction up to a few years ago.....he said "think soapy tits!" then made a gesture with his hands as if to demonstrate ease and squeeze. slow on slow off!

worked for me!:o:lol:

Thanks for those tips. Interesting, Rushjob about the thicker clothing thing. I hadn't thought of that at all. But now that I do, when I'm in my summer leathers on the 996 I feel like I'm part of the bike. When I'm on Minnie head to toe in warm winter clothes, I'm just riding. Hmmm. Will bear that in mind.

Andy, the 'soapy tits' analagy doesn't really work for me but I can convert it to something that will :devil::devil:

I had a moment on my bike tonite too,

but that another story!!!!!!!!!

Well, it is friday nite.

Ruth not only keep back but keep outside not nearside of the traffic (Looking into the drivers offside mirror)so if you have to brake quickly at least you can go along side the vehicle and loose you speed and avoid slamming into the back of it . 4D

Cloathing has been mentioned but I can't believe nobody has yet mentioned soiled underwear :devil:

i'll get my coat

Skids, I wasn't that frightened. I've come off more bikes at no miles an hour than I've had ... good relationships !

Monstermob, I'll remember 'coast'.
Fordie, that was the thing I needed to do - leave more space and be on the outside, because the van wouldn't have been able to see me in his mirrors.

Thinking about it, I should really just hang up my Ducati keys and stick to 4 wheels :(:(:(

:lol::lol::lol::lol:;)

I don't fink so :frog:

Am I the only one ...
 

.. who doesn't want to see Skids and...

.. soiled underwear in the same sentence?? ;)

Glad you're OK Ruthy :D

Ruth the only thing i can add to the wise old sages who preceed me is you also learn by experience, and what happened today will hopefully save you in the future.

Thanks Shaun. They're not necessarily that old though :devil:

At least not as old as Shaun....... :lol:

my tip: Dont ride in the winter, its too much of a gamble !!!

/ian

hmm, if you braked hard and still nearly stuffed it up the transit then you were to fast/to close. or maybe (being a bird) you saw in the corner of your eye a sale on at a shoe shop or something and that distracted you ! :D

Riding in the winter can be a big help to summer ridding, odd you may think but you become more aware af what is going on around you, you constantly watch the road surface for changes in colour, fluids etc, your lines & riding style will be smoother, throttle control etc will be smoother, ability to react to changing road conditions is faster & smoother, but above all else self preservation will make you a better rider.
Having had to do long & short distances when I was in the forces & only had a bike to get home on, doing 200 odd miles from portsmouth to lincoln WHAT ever the weather, summer or winter, snow etc,etc gives you the best training in bike control you can get.


Chris.:burn:

Shaun , we have Owl's that sit in trees down here shouting out instructions to those less experianced, that is untill those with experiance have to replace those wise old birds that fall of the bough every now and then ,we have a name for them, Jools or Monty even Rushjob :lol::lol: 4D

[Edited on 10-12-2005 by Fordie]

See if "riding in winter" is available on DVD?:lol::lol::lol:

PS you took it back yet?:saint:

That's an easy one Ruthie,

SLOW DOWN!!!! :lol:


Remember, you are cold, your tyres are cold, so it takes longer to think and longer to stop.
And it extra hurts when you fall down when you're cold! :D

Thanks for that advice, Andy. I have decided that turning up at Curry's with the DVD player shoved in my rucksack might lead the staff to suspect that I have somehow mistreated it. Furthermore, if they do change it for a new one, I won't be able to get it in my rucksack without taking it out of the box and shoving it into my rucksack, which may well damage it. On balance, therefore, I have decided to wait until my car is available and then I can drive in a civilised manner with my DVD and give the staff WHAT FOR! :P

Ruth

Fordies advice on positioning is good and also applies when you come to a halt behind a stationary vehicle. If you keep to the offside and you see a vehicle in your mirrors, which doesn't look like it's going to stop in time you can get out of the way rather than being hit from behind.


In general traffic - A roads , dual carriageways & motorways my main problem is distance'. In other words I will leave a safe gap between my vehicle and the one in front, but then get drawn in and close up the gap without realising.

I was told the following saying years ago and use it every day.

If you are following a vehicle, watch for it passing a stationary object such as a lamp post ,tree or mark on the road and then say to yourself '' Only a fool breaks the two second rule ''. If you reach the observed object before you have finished saying the above, you are too close.

Apparently it works at any speed.

But what you have to watch out for then is people tail gating you because they want to get into the gap you are now creating.

Can't win can you?

Phil

The two second rule is for clear dry days... nights, wet and grotty conditions look to double it.
It's one of those things that good drivers observe and muppets who can't see or plan 10 feet beyond their headlights cock up for you.
At least if you maintain the gap, even if you are overtaken, not only are you able to react safely, but the idiot who is travelling too close you your rsend has a bit more time to slow as you aren't on your brakes and there's a reduced chance of them shunting you..

i still practice my emergancie stops
when i set of for work in the morning i'll do a bit of heavy braking just to see how much grip there is
when i first started trying this i was amazed at how heavily you can apply the brakes on a wet greasy road
but this only works in a straight line
when it's icy aim to ride as if i had no brakes, and in reality in icy conditions you havn't
and on a high torqe bike cutting the gas on a slippy bit of road is often enough to lock the back wheel
but however carefull you are there is still the unexpected and you must have a safty zone large enough to deal with these eventualitys

Riding in winter
 

Hi Ruth

Talking of moments, I took my beloved Ducati 999 out on Christmas Eve. Taking extra care because the roads were damp and cold, I took the first bend on a roundabout and before I knew it, I had a front wheel slide. No brake, no excessive lean, no excessive acceleration. All I remember is sliding along the ground (thought I was never going to stop) and watching my bike sliding along the ground in an array of sparks and parts flying into the air. Boy, these bikes with fairings don’t want to stop. I remember maintaining eye contact with the bike as I slid behind it thinking ‘please don’t hit anything’. Unbelievably, my concern was with the bike. And of course, there's that dreadful moment when you stand the bike up (with the help of a passer by) to reveal the damage. I can only conclude that the cause was due to a number of things. A wet and cold road and dare I say, whilst trying to lessen the feelings of guilt for having damaged such a lovely looking machine, the possibility of diesel. Not to mention a negative camber on the roundabout. Anyway, I managed to get away with a bruised foot and sore shoulder so counting my blessings. My bike, on the other hand, apart from having the entire left side damaged, needs a new frame and swing arm so will probably be a write-off pending a crash repair assessment. C’est la vie.

Never an option! I know how you feel; we *all* have those moments - but if you put a bit of time between this scarey moment and a chance to sit down and think of what you'd miss, not being on 2 wheels, you'd realise that it's not really something you'd want to do.

Enjoy it while you can, consider this little incident as a learning experience (and that's all it was!), and stay on 2 wheels.

You'll be fine.

Glad you're OK, Ruth. I had a similar "moment" last week, bt unlike you failed to keep it "shiny side up". :(

i;m now faced with a bill for resprayed plastic and new mirrors, not to mention a fine collection of bruises!

I'm putting it down to Michelins :p , but these greasy winter roads are probably best left to the car.

The "moment" in question was in 2005.

Not really sure why people resurrect ancient posts...

Damn, that's awful. Bad luck mate.

It shows how this sort of thing can happen at any time, irrespective of your level of caution and attention. Rotten luck.

Ahhh - I see why it's bubbled back to the top - Vince's post popped back up there.

Sorry RedRuth :lol: I should've read the whole thread (and checked the dates) ;)

My humble apologies. I thought it would be a logical follow up on winter riding. As threads are kept on file I didn't think the resurrection of posts would be frowned upon. I shall amend my ways forthwith Sir!

Quite right.

Don't do it again.

Big Brother

why would it be frowned upon
and you are very polite:D

Slightly 'tongue-in-cheek' Glyn. But hey, I like to think we're all on the same side on this forum, so being 'polite' is the only bench mark ;)