accidents - an unpleasant subject

[Inhouse Bob]

On the comments about the first few minutes of a ride being dangerous...
I sometimes start a ride and notice that my clutch work or stops and starts are off. Or perhaps I just don't feel 100% in the groove. I just go home and save it for another day when I am better prepared/more awake. It doesn't happen often but it does happen. The trick is to recognize the problem and admit that today is not the day.
On the subject of stopping on uphills...
Never stop close behind a car or especially a trunk on an uphill. They almost always roll backward a bit (or a lot) before getting going and if you are there, you get hit. An old friend in Texas had it happen. His bike fell sideways throwing him to the left and into the path of an oncoming truck. Rest in peace, Ivan.

[GoldOxide_imp]

On the comments about the first few minutes of a ride being dangerous...
I sometimes start a ride and notice that my clutch work or stops and starts are off. Or perhaps I just don't feel 100% in the groove. I just go home and save it for another day when I am better prepared/more awake. It doesn't happen often but it does happen. The trick is to recognize the problem and admit that today is not the day.
On the subject of stopping on uphills...
Never stop close behind a car or especially a trunk on an uphill. They almost always roll backward a bit (or a lot) before getting going and if you are there, you get hit. An old friend in Texas had it happen. His bike fell sideways throwing him to the left and into the path of an oncoming truck. Rest in peace, Ivan.

(+1) Bob

Once a VW Jetta rolled backward (standard gearbox) on a congested and parked freeway overpass. The driver was yacking on a cellphone. I rolled back, but had limited space behind me as a truck was there. I honked, the Jetta stopped rolling backward. Then, it starting rolling again, I honked, it stopped. The third time the Jetta hit my CB750S. I was furious.

[j3gq_imp]

@Paris
If you're interested I can add the description of what to do if you stopped on the same hill-top, and realized you had to turn around going "backwards" (I didn't invent the method). But may be you can guess already ...

Yes, please do!

Yes, please do!
Okay, here it comes. Imagine you get into a dead end, end of tarmac, or other and you can't see this before you arrive at the top of the hill. Regardless of whether the road is one lane or wider, DO NEVER try to make a turn forward. Too many chances of getting stuck in a position where you cannot balance the bike any more.
Stay on the right side on the road until you arrive at the spot (uphill or at the hilltop) where you have to double back. Stop as explained before. Start rolling backwards as explained before, always your left foot on the ground. Use the right foot / brake to control your speed. Turn the handle bar slightly left and let the bike slowly role towards the center of the street, and stop when the bike is at a 90 degrees angle across the street. No power, no clutch, never at risk of loosing balance. Hold the bike there with your foot brake, turn the handle bar full right, and "lift off".
This works in any lane even if it's no wider than your wheelbase. If the description is hard to fathom, check youtube, there might be a movie.
If you can, get a training session on a wide street without any traffic. Good luck !

[GoldOxide_imp]

@Paris
If you're interested I can add the description of what to do if you stopped on the same hill-top, and realized you had to turn around going "backwards" (I didn't invent the method). But may be you can guess already ...

Yes, please do!

Yes, please do!
Okay, here it comes. Imagine you get into a dead end, end of tarmac, or other and you can't see this before you arrive at the top of the hill. Regardless of whether the road is one lane or wider, DO NEVER try to make a turn forward. Too many chances of getting stuck in a position where you cannot balance the bike any more.
Stay on the right side on the road until you arrive at the spot (uphill or at the hilltop) where you have to double back. Stop as explained before. Start rolling backwards as explained before, always your left foot on the ground. Use the right foot / brake to control your speed. Turn the handle bar slightly left and let the bike slowly role towards the center of the street, and stop when the bike is at a 90 degrees angle across the street. No power, no clutch, never at risk of loosing balance. Hold the bike there with your foot brake, turn the handle bar full right, and "lift off".
This works in any lane even if it's no wider than your wheelbase. If the description is hard to fathom, check youtube, there might be a movie.
If you can, get a training session on a wide street without any traffic. Good luck !

Yes, please do!
Okay, here it comes. Imagine you get into a dead end, end of tarmac, or other and you can't see this before you arrive at the top of the hill. Regardless of whether the road is one lane or wider, DO NEVER try to make a turn forward. Too many chances of getting stuck in a position where you cannot balance the bike any more.
Stay on the right side on the road until you arrive at the spot (uphill or at the hilltop) where you have to double back. Stop as explained before. Start rolling backwards as explained before, always your left foot on the ground. Use the right foot / brake to control your speed. Turn the handle bar slightly left and let the bike slowly role towards the center of the street, and stop when the bike is at a 90 degrees angle across the street. No power, no clutch, never at risk of loosing balance. Hold the bike there with your foot brake, turn the handle bar full right, and "lift off".
This works in any lane even if it's no wider than your wheelbase. If the description is hard to fathom, check youtube, there might be a movie.
If you can, get a training session on a wide street without any traffic. Good luck !
Sound reasonable.

[Cormanus]

Mmm ... thanks j3gq. I'll have to ponder how it works in a country where we drive on the left hand side of the road. I guess you just have to stop in the middle of the road or to the right if you can manage it.

[j3gq_imp]

@Cormanus
I never thought about this, are your streets and traffic "left", but all the motorcycle controls "regular"?
In this case it's just a little different, you got to use the hand brake instead of the foot brake: line up on the left (instead of your right), now continue as described before. All set, BUT it is a little more "mentally demanding". While using the foot brake in a right side lineup makes you use the left foot for balancing (you can't get it wrong), you could use the wrong foot in the left line-up and loose balance. So you have to focus on using the "downhill" foot for balancing the bike consistently, consciously, every time. It's not as automatic as before.
I am sorry if the description got a little complicated. It's just hard to describe. May be you need to find that youtube video.

[Cormanus]

Yes, j3gq, our controls are "regular". As you say, one really has to use the front brake as you need to use the uphill foot for balancing the bike. Using the lower (or left) foot runs the risk of putting the bike on too much of an angle to be able to hold it up. I guess, when one has to do it, the trick is to try to get far enough to the right to be able to execute the turn as if one were on a right-hand drive road.

As an aside, one of the advantages of driving on the left with "standard" motorbike controls is that, when one parks beside the road, the bike leans away from the traffic rather than into it.

[GoldOxide_imp]

Yes, j3gq, our controls are "regular". As you say, one really has to use the front brake as you need to use the uphill foot for balancing the bike. Using the lower (or left) foot runs the risk of putting the bike on too much of an angle to be able to hold it up. I guess, when one has to do it, the trick is to try to get far enough to the right to be able to execute the turn as if one were on a right-hand drive road.

As an aside, one of the advantages of driving on the left with "standard" motorbike controls is that, when one parks beside the road, the bike leans away from the traffic rather than into it.

Yeah, deploying the side stand on a concrete curb in summer is far more confidence-inspiring than on the adjoining asphalt, and especially new asphalt.

[ampm7_imp]

I recently wrecked on my 2016 Moto Guzzi Eldorado. The bike was totaled. I subsequently bought another Guzzi and a CB1100 with the proceeds. The wreck was entirely my fault. The funny thing is, I had just done a trip the previous week to Monterey, Ca (from San Diego) and back down through Big Sur with no problems. But on this day, I was riding the Eldo and they were repaving the road and they had those rumble strips which are devastating on a long Cardan shaft bike. I decided to go around but, the difference in height between the new pavement and the old was 5". Once I turned into the new pavement, I crossed up and slid while watching my bike go into its death throes. This was not an accident as that implies that no one was at fault. It was my mistake. The previous time I went down was on Palomar mountain. I was going up the east side and when I came around the corner before the general store a squid did not stop at his yield sign and and I went down. Thank God I was wearing full leathers. That was not my mistake. Riding here in SoCal is dangerous especially in the heavily trafficked areas and not so bad once you get on the back roads.

[Houtman_imp]

Sorry to hear about your accident , yes repaving on one side of the road can be very dangerous if you have to move to the other side.