Rode with only my helmet Sunday, never again...

[HillnTx]

I was riding my old KZ1000P with just a 3/4 helmet; not a bike I ride too often. On the freeway on-ramp the two cars in front of me stopped to allow an emergency vehicle off the road. Distracted watching the emergency vehicle cross three lanes of traffic I didn't notice the cars stop. I hit both brakes, the bike started to skid while still rapidly approaching the trunk of the car in front of me. I didn't hit the car, but ended up on the ground face first. Abrasions on my chin, both arms, both hands, both knees, and a severly bruised foot. Fortunately no broken bones, missing teeth, or items needing stitches. The bike has some scuffs and a slightly bent front crash bar; those old KZ's are tough. I realized while riding the bike home, before going to the hospital to get checked out, that the front brakes weren't operating correctly and needed to have the fluid changed. I was really lucky.

I did everything wrong: went out without my usual gear, rode a poorly maintained bike, got distracted, target fixated, wrecked, and hit the pavement real hard.

I have five helmets at the house from a cafe style 1/2 to a new full face. I have four riding jackets at the house from an armoured mesh to a First Gear Kilimanjaro. But, it was a beautiful day and I chose to go without...never again. You just don't know what the world will throw at you from one day to the next and you have to be ready for anything.

Let the thrashing and re-hashing begin...

 

[STurgisSTeele]

Sorry you went down. Glad you're okay enough to post about it. You just never know when that accident is going to happen. Best to be prepared as best as possible. Again, glad you're okay.

 

[DANS ST]

Thanks for sharing, and re-iterating the things we know, but don't always do.

Glad you weren't hurt more seriously and hope you heal quickly.

 

[George]

Lesson learned. Glad ya lived thru it. Not all do.

(I still miss my both my boys. Glad one of'em of is still close enuff to hug on occasion. Adam, I love you.)

 

[970mike]

I am glad you were not hurt worse then you are. Now that is how we all learn by doing and watching others make mistakes. Thank you for sharing.

Mike

 

[Mellow]

No thrashing necessary... You pretty much said it all yourself...

Very glad it wasn't worse and hope you heal quickly.

Thanks for the reminder about the choices we make and how they may or may not affect our day.

 

[AgSTreak]

Yep, you said it all. Sometimes I complain to myself about how heavy the extra gear is, how it makes me sweat on hot days, etc. It makes me a little safer and a little more confident. Heal up quickly my friend.

 

[longdog_cymru]

Glad you're OK

I've often been tempted to go out with the right gear when it's hot and sunny, but bad things can happen to anyone at any time.

Glad you learned the lesson with minimum injury to yourself, your pride and your bike.

 

[HillnTx]

Thanks for all the good thoughts!

The steed is fine. I wasn't riding my ST that day which is good and bad. If I went down on the ST there would have been more damage to the bike, but if I had been riding the ST it would have stopped much sooner and probably avoided the situation. I was riding my KZ1000 Police model. Fortunately it was built to take abuse and only needs the front crash/highway bar replaced (and some work on the front brakes). After putting it back upright on its wheels, I gave it some choke, cranked it up and rode it home.

 

[Papa]

Hindsight's always 20/20. Thanks for the reminder. I'm often tempted to ride without a helmet when it's very warm, kinda glad it's the law.

 

[Viggo]

Thanks for sharing, and re-iterating the things we know, but don't always do.

Glad you weren't hurt more seriously and hope you heal quickly.

The risk is ALWAYS there and we know well what we should do but very few of us do it 100% of the time.

 

[TXRoadRash]

Good lesson learned the hard way and with no long-term damage.

Glad you're OK. BTW, that 3/4 makes for a great planter...

 

[Dex]

Riding a motorcycle is not dangerous.

However falling off or crashing one....

Making sure you concentrate on riding has to be the biggest safety step anyone can take. Glad to hear you survived reasonably intact and live to ride another day.

 

[BigTom]

First off, glad you came through in good enough shape to post here! I don't suppose any ***** whipping I can dish out will hurt near as much as the one you've given yourself

I love old bikes, and if I can get shunt of a couple around here, I might get one or two (I have a real jones for a 'Guzzi, a thing I've never owned), but for me, your post exemplifies the need for hyper vigilance with a 'mature MC'. The brakes don't work as well, the tires don't grip as well, the suspension is usually 'loose' at best, you have to be WAY ahead of your normal zone to get by.

Glad you are ok, thanks for posting!

 

[Mountain Mike]

Thanks for sharing, I seek out these posts to help me find gear that holds up better in a accident, and keep me from getting too complacent on the road.

So glad you are OK, and not in the news this morning.

 

[GetaHandleOnit]

Good to hear your O.K. :1st:
Prior to my ST, I had just restored a KZ-1000P model, yes they are tough (and heavy) bikes, that is why their still out there on the road
https://www.st-owners.com/forums/album.php?albumid=1424 Some Pics !

 

[schlep1967]

Glad you survived to remind us. My inlaws both bought new riding jackets this spring. They showed up at the house in T-shirts one day to go on a ride. I mentioned that you don't choose when a car is going to hit you or when you are going to hit some gravel. They had forgotten something at the house and went back to get it. The MIL came out wearing her jacket, the FIL is not as smart. His choice, didn't preach to him anymore. At least the comment got one of them to wear the gear.

 

[ChipSTer]

Best to be prepared as best as possible.

Always! Glad you are able to Live-And-Learn...

P.S. I was moving my bike back into the garage (I had walked it out - very slight downhill) and I needed to put it back (and it needed to run a little), so I rode it 20 feet without any gear... I almost panicked and stopped to put on my gear because I felt neekid without my gear...

 

[cptgrits]

First off, glad you came through in good enough shape to post here! I don't suppose any ***** whipping I can dish out will hurt near as much as the one you've given yourself

I love old bikes, and if I can get shunt of a couple around here, I might get one or two (I have a real jones for a 'Guzzi, a thing I've never owned), but for me, your post exemplifies the need for hyper vigilance with a 'mature MC'. The brakes don't work as well, the tires don't grip as well, the suspension is usually 'loose' at best, you have to be WAY ahead of your normal zone to get by.

Glad you are ok, thanks for posting!

Ditto. The mature motorcycle advice is true. I have to account for it each time I switch from the 08 ST1300 to the 98 CB750, braking being the major difference. BTW this applies to all vehicles. General Chuck Yeager once commented that when he climbed out of his USAF F-15 Eagle and into his personal P-51 Mustang he would always sit in the cockpit and remind himself "Yeager, this is a Mustang, it will kill you if you let it". Good advice, and if it's good enough for Chuck Yeager it's good enough for me.

 

[HillnTx]

Thanks for all the good thoughts! Its been roughly 10 days since the incident and I'm practically healed; still have a silver dollar sized spot on the arm, a quarter sized spot on the chin, and my right foot is giving me grief, but Neosporin works wonders.

Several good points have been made about transitioning between older and newer technologies. I was riding the KZ1000 a couple weeks before the accident after not riding it for almost a year (I had loaned it to a friend) and managed to lock up the rear tire in a quick stop and put the bike in a slight slide while still remaining vertical. At the time I just thought I was not used to the older less effective braking system on the bike after riding the ST1300 exclusively for several months. It wasn't until I was riding the 1.5 miles home after my accident with the front crash bar inhibiting the rear brake pedal travel that I realized the front brakes really needed to be serviced.

So advice to the guys with older bikes in the stable: ride your older steeds frequently to stay familiar with their feel in comparison to you primary ride.