Don't Drop the Bike

[BCKRIDER]

This is an article I wrote for the BMW ON about 2 1/2 years ago which was never published. Thought I would share it with you. Perhaps with your additions and differing opinions there might eventually be something worth editing for publication in the ON. At least, maybe we can help each other avoid really dumb errors we've made, witnessed, or heard about. I apologize for the length of this post. If you want to quote in a response, please do so selectively.

"Let’s define dropping the bike as “a motorcycle accident at 0 – 2 mph.” These accidents inevitably cause elevated blood pressure, fears about how to raise the fallen beast, at least some scratches to the bike if not the operator, and acute embarrassment. The otherwise excellent books and articles about riding safely mostly ignore the causes of these accidents and the preventive measures one should take to avoid them. My qualifications for writing this article are simple: in ten years and about 50K miles of riding I’ve made several of these mistakes and also admitted them in campfire conversations. Virtually every rider I talked to told me about a time or two that he also dropped a bike. Some of the ideas come from those conversations.

There is a myth that these are problems only beginners have. I wish! Sure, beginners make these errors more often, but I believe it is a life-long problem. Most of us don’t repeat too many of our previous errors, but learning through print how to avoid any type of accident is definitely better than learning through experience.

Side Stands: While taking the MSF beginner course I once dismounted the bike without putting the side stand down at all. I thought I had put it down! Moral: always be sure the side stand is down and will take the weight of the bike before dismounting. On flat concrete you have no worries after you are sure the side stand is really fully extended. On every other surface, beware. Make sure the ground is not too high or too low or too soft before you commit yourself. Before you leave the bike, ask yourself if the side stand could sink into the asphalt - quite possible on a hot day - or if the weight of the bike could push the stand deeper into sand or gravel. Carry some sort of pad to place under the side stand whenever there is a question mark. Make it standard practice to always use the side stand before dismounting, even if you intend to pull the bike onto the centre stand. When your right foot encounters that forgotten duffle bag as you dismount, you will be glad that the side stand is taking the weight of the bike.

I guess it is obvious that parking a bike with the front wheel pointing downhill is inviting disaster. Occasionally it is unavoidable. Shift to first gear, use the rear brake to hold the bike in place as you shut off the engine, let out the clutch and release the brake to engage the engine. Then put down the side stand and dismount.

Center Stands: There is a knack to putting a bike on a center stand, but it is easily acquired if your bike doesn’t have a lowered rear suspension and the ground is hard and flat. Remember those words, “hard” and “flat.” If that bike tilts ever so slightly to the right because the ground under the two center stand contact points really wasn’t flat or the right leg contacted softer ground, gravity will yank that bike out of your hands. While many of us prefer leaving our bikes on the centre stand, the side stand (with pad) is safer if warm asphalt, gravel, or strong winds are a threat. You do promise to never use the center stand if the ground slopes ever so slightly downhill, right?

Front Brake Mistakes: I guess almost everyone realizes by now that it is the front brake that provides most of the stopping power in most situations. The old fear of flipping the bike is almost groundless. The fear of locking the front wheel and falling down is not groundless! One problem with the front brake occurs on sand or gravel roads, or worse still, sand or gravel on hardtop. The instant that front wheel locks you will suddenly find your bike horizontal. I’ve twice dropped a bike making a very low speed turn when there was gravel on pavement. Both times I saw the gravel, did my serious slowing before reaching it, but I think failed to get completely off the front brake before the wheel touched the gravel. Riding on sand or gravel roads, favor the rear brake and use the front brake very judiciously if at all. On wet pavement (maybe all pavements) release the front brake lever when you are almost stopped and use the back brake for the final stop. Yes, I’m afraid this is the voice of experience. The road was wet, my wife was the passenger, and all of a sudden there were two very unhappy (but unhurt) people and another scratch or two on the bike. And this was just a simple stop sign, not a panic situation at all.

David Hough preaches that in an emergency your reaction will be your usual riding practice. I think this idea can be extended: in an unusual situation (for many of us, riding in the rain qualifies) you will probably apply your dry road habits, though you certainly won’t brake as hard unless you have and trust anti-lock brakes. If using only the back brake for the last bit of a stop in the wet is a good idea, I think doing the same thing on dry roads is also a good idea, even though easing up on the front brake certainly works just fine on dry roads. Build good all-weather habits.

Modifications: I had just installed a new windscreen and took the bike for a short test ride. When I pulled into a gravelled church parking lot and made a slow left hand turn, the bike again was suddenly on its side. The proximity of the church did nothing to improve my language. It took me awhile to figure out the cause of that accident. With the bar turned fully to the left, the windscreen touched the front brake lever. Rotating the clutch and brake levers a bit provided the necessary clearance. This is definitely something to check before you ride off with your new screen.

Flat feet: I think it is a very good idea to be able to put both feet flat on the ground while sitting on your bike. It can be tough for people with shorter legs on some bikes, but there are solutions. Tippy toes are ok on flat concrete. Every other stopping situation puts you at much greater risk of dropping the bike.

Check it out: A couple years ago I was examining a friend’s quite new F650. Though this man has ridden many more years and miles than I, his right saddlebag bore lasting testimony to a drop. “We pulled into this gravel parking lot. I put my right foot down and it just kept sinking. Couldn’t hold the damn bike up.” Maybe you should park the bike and check out suspect parking lots on foot before committing yourself. That, of course, is for wimps. But being a wimp can save you both money and pain. I’m now old enough to take the kidding.

Ramps: If parking your bike involves riding up a ramp, make it a very wide ramp. Yet another time I dropped the bike, the ramp was pretty narrow because the rise into the open shed was only a couple inches. I managed to kill the engine and that extra two inches before my foot touched ground was more than enough to put the bike on its side. And also into my wife’s scooter. Our bikes are now housed in another building that requires a ramp. That ramp is 4.5 feet wide.

I have transported motorcycles a few times in the back of my pick-up and remember getting the bikes in a rather scary experience with narrow plank ramps. Suggested article for someone who knows what he/she is doing.

Pushing and pulling: A lot of bikes topple while being pushed or pulled. Hasn’t happened to me yet, but boy am I ever careful. These accidents frequently involve less than ideal footing such as gravel or wet grass, a slight grade (slight, because nobody expects to push or pull a road bike up anything greater) or else you bump into something. At home, figure out a safe routine for moving your bike in and out of where you store it. At a campsite you might want to park the bike and then figure out how you can park it under power so you can also ride out under power with no manhandling. Brainpower beats muscles in this department. If you err and there are people around, ask for help. I assure you they would rather help push and pull while you steer than help you pick up the machine. These efforts always involve both hands on the grips with a couple fingers over the front brake lever. I’ve heard that some more modern BMW’s have almost no front braking with the engine off. If that is the case on your bike, be sure to find it out before you have it pointed downhill with the engine off.

Snags: I heard about a low speed catastrophe in Spokane at the 2004 rally. The guy’s pant cuff caught on the footpeg as he tried to plant his left foot. The foot peg severely injured his leg as the bike toppled over. Could this happen to you? Do you ever ride with loose cuffs? Not if you always wear riding boots. Before I bought my own BMW, a friend let me ride his K75RT. A fine bike, and I almost dropped it, because there was fairing exactly where I was used to putting down my foot on my 1980 Honda CB750. Before you ride a different bike, be sure you can get your feet down.

Certainly not the last word: I remember Sandy Cohen, former editor of this magazine, mentioning in an editorial that she had dropped bikes quite a number of times. No details were mentioned. Good for her to not come on as the total expert, though I am sure she has more years and miles under her belt than the majority of our club’s members. I wish she and others would write a sequel to this article because I feel that what I have written is just the tip of an iceberg. It seems that having a serious accident has a certain cachet. Dropping your bike because you backed it into your car, etc. just seems (and is) stupid. But most of us have done a few of these really dumb things and only realized after the fact that the accident could have been avoided with a little thought. Anybody else willing to “fess up” and save the rest of us some pain and bucks?

Anyway, I hope this article saves some scratches on both you and your pride and joy."

[Visian]

this is a really good article, not sure why it wouldn't be published other than it may have fallen through the cracks.

i call these kinds of drops "Laugh-in tip-overs" in honor of the guy in the yellow raincoat riding the tricycle.

http://rowanandmartinslaughin.com/tricycle.jpg

the only thing i have to add is if the bike is going to fall, let it fall. don't bust a gut trying to save it once it tips beyond the point of no return. jump out of the way.

ian

[Greenwald]

You wrote a really good article. Why not contact Roger Wiles and see if it might be suitable for MotoSafe?! :thumb

[Paul_F]

You have touched on a lot of good points, a number of instances to which I can identify. :laugh Good article. :ca

[Voni]

I'm hoping you'll resubmit this article. It has so much really important information. Do you have pictures? Maybe we could help with that.

If there aren't pictures, it didn't happen . . . .

http://i320.photobucket.com/albums/nn335/Glaves/2010%20365%20Project%20Part%20Two/P1020451.jpg

Voni
sMiling

[AKBeemer]

Good stuff; thank you! I've suffered my share of such mishaps.

Have you ever encountered the tendency of riders that have just suffered a drop to try to immediately pick-up the bike in a near panic? I guess it is a natural response to limit the potential embarrassment and regain one's dignity. I witnessed a Wing rider (an older version of smaller size than the contemporary models) drop his bike during a slow speed parking lot maneuver. No damage was apparent to rider or machine, but he nearly hurt himself trying to right the bike before others could get to him. I've felt the same urge myself in similar circumstances. Might be helpful to add a cautionary note about taking one's time to think through how the bike is to be picked-up.

Oh, and it certainly helps if there is someone present to give you a loving cuddle following a drop like the lucky little rider pictured above.

[Visian]

http://i320.photobucket.com/albums/nn335/Glaves/2010%20365%20Project%20Part%20Two/P1020451.jpg

oh golly, i've been there. :ha

it isn't much fun, though, after watching your kid do a 50-foot endo in slow motion (due to riding over his head and rolling off the throttle just before jumping) to run over and ask him to wiggle his fingers and toes..... :help

[ANDYVH]

Lots of good points, though I don't agree that getting both feet flat on the ground for stops is needed. I'm 5'-6", 30" inseam, standard seat height on my 94 RS, and I rarely come to a stop getting both feet to the ground, let alone both feet flat to the ground. Having a good scan of your stop area, and planning where your foot will touch down is more important than getting both feet to the ground. Now, perhaps I am a bit "slanted" being I'm an 18 year MSF instructor. Ha, I'm slanted when I come to stop now that I think of it.

I almost always stop with my left foot to the ground, right foot on the peg. This way my left boot (regular BMW boots) is flat to the ground. Same for when I am riding two up.

When I move my bike around when off the bike I always brace myself to the bike against my right hip, with the bike very slightly leaning into me. Never dropped a bike this way, including K1200LTs and R1200GSAs.

[Paul_F]

Have you ever encountered the tendency of riders that have just suffered a drop to try to immediately pick-up the bike in a near panic? I guess it is a natural response to limit the potential embarrassment and regain one's dignity.

This used to be me, once even shutting the garage door before the neighbours could see my predicament. However, the last couple of times, admittedly awhile ago now, I first looked around for help. Heck, I even corralled three 14 years once to help put the bike back on its contact patches. :laugh:laugh

[manicmechanic]

What is actually pretty nice is, if this happens with a group of riders around, they instantly help out and also see if you are OK. Nobody criticizes , because most likely they've all been there, done that. It's only embarassing for a bit. The worst time is if there are no other riders around, only people in cages, and they'll give you the stink-eye.

[Rpbump]

MSF instructors pointedly tell you to look where you want to turn. When I first rode my CLC it was a struggle for me to complete tight turns as the bike is top heavy at slow speeds (2>5mph). Practicing turns on a narrow curbed 2 lane road I looked at the curb instead of where I wanted to turn and promtly ran into the curb and fell over the curb. Minimal damage to the bike and me but a lesson learned. Ride Safe :usa :usa

[Foxton]

Originally Posted by AKBeemer
Have you ever encountered the tendency of riders that have just suffered a drop to try to immediately pick-up the bike in a near panic? I guess it is a natural response to limit the potential embarrassment and regain one's dignity. YEP!!!!! Just dropped my beautiful RT the day before Christmas at the gas pump. Haven't dropped a street bike in 20 years. Felt really stupid, immediately jerked the bike up, in total embarassment, in stead of stopping, taking a breath and lifting it the correct way. I'm still hurting due to my haste, probably should see the doc... but typical biker guy:banghead ...I won't.

[dadayama]

a few years back, i don't know what i was thinking but some how i pop the clutch making a left hand turn at a very busy intersection, killed the engine and laid the bike over.

I felt as if every single person on earth was looking right at me, i just wanted to get back on the bike and get the hell out of there!


On another note... i was taking a free motorcycle class put on by one of the local police departments. The class was going through some slow maneuvers, weaving through cones when the guy in front of me on a Gold-wing started to lay his bike over and tried to stop it with his leg. Bike won, leg lost he was carted off to the hospital.

[ANDYVH]

Unless you are riding a small dirt bike, once it starts to go over, step away and let the bike go! Attempting to stop the bike fall with your body results in either broken bones or a wrenched back. For that matter, if its a small dirt bike, let it go too! They're made to take the dumps!

If you do have to pick up your bike, do it right. If the bike is on the rh side, first fold out the side stand. Then, facing back to the bike, knees bent but back straight, grab the rh grip with your left hand, find a good grab spot for your right hand, and walk backwards into the bike lifting ONLY with your legs until the bike tilts over to the side stand.

If the bike is on the left side the technique is the same, but you can't fold the sidestand out. So, apply the same technique but STOP the lift when the bike is near vertical and while holding it up, fold out the sidestand with the back of your left or right heel. Then rest the bike on the sidestand.

For either side, make sure the bike is turned off and IN GEAR before you make the lift, so it won't roll away as you lift it. I can easily lift any R series bikes, most any K series, but have not attempted a K1200LT.

[BCKRIDER]

1. Thank you for the positive response and suggestion to re-submit the article to the ON. I believe, with more help from all of you, we can come up with the material for a really worthwhile article (or two?) that will save readers a lot of grief.

2. I believe Voni was right. I don't have pictures, which may well have been one of the reasons the article was rejected, and maybe some of you can help. Which reminds me of a story from a friend whose bike suffered in the mishap. "Long line of bikes all backed into a curb and as close together as possible. One guy somehow knocks his bike over to the right and - dominoes." A picture of THAT would be something! Other than that, I'm a bit mystified how pictures would make this information clearer. Perhaps you shutter bugs have some good ideas.

3. I'd like to thank VISIAN, AKBeemer, and ANDYVH for their advice to just let it fall, take some time, get help if possible, and the correct way to lift a bike. All that info definitely belongs in the article. (I too have often done most of it wrong in my haste to, well, maybe pretend it didn't happen.)

4. ANDYVH, as a very experienced rider, I'm sure a tall saddle with your shorter legs is no problem at all. As an experienced rider coach, would you say the same about your students? It took me a few years before I could be sure the bike would tilt left, not right, when I came to a stop. So I think my comment about "flat feet" is appropriate, though "this does not neccessarily apply to experienced riders" perhaps should be added. Welcome your comments.

4. Finally, klutz that I am, I don't think I've fully explored or heard about all the truly stupid things one can do to drop a bike. Certainly there was the mention of an unfortunate incident in a garage which required immediately closing the door. And somehow a bike went down at a gas pump. But the details are important if others are to learn from our errors. And that is the WHOLE POINT of these posts and a possible article in the ON.

Please see my next post for thoughts on getting those details.

[BCKRIDER]

It finally occurred to me why there were not more responses to the question "what stupid thing did you do to drop the bike?" It's one thing to admit that you have had to pick up your bike after doing something truly dumb. It's something else to describe in detail that dumb thing for all the world to read. But that detail is EXACTLY what people need to read to avoid doing the same thing themself.

My suggestion is that someone(s) who is widely known and trusted (and I know I am not - I've probably never met any of the posters personally, and my number of posts is a small percentage of many) VOLUNTEER TO FORWARD ANY PM'S MARKED "DON'T DROP THE BIKE" TO THIS FORUM.

So, we need the volunteers offering this service. We probably need one to tell us how to send a PM (personal message) and the assurance that the PM will be sent on to this thread as a quote with NO identification attached.

I hope my intent is clear - lots more information about this topic without personal embarrassment to anyone. Your better ideas are most welcome.

[From MARS]

BC, I'm probably as close to an "expert" on low-speed drops as anyone as I've dropped a K75C, K12RS, R100GSPD, F650GS, and R100R. You want details? Okay, here goes.

First off, at 5'7"/30"inseam/140lbs, I'm a little guy, but wiry and pretty fit. My size accounts for most of my drops since any loss of bike balance is amplified by the lack of counter-balancing bodyweight and leg length leverage.

The K75C was a fairly tall, top-heavy bike; especially since 90% of the time, I had my 110lb wife riding pillion and full bags. The most memorable drop came when we pulled off a paved road onto a gravel driveway. We were riding outside of our area and didn't know that, where we were, it had rained the day before. Almost as soon as the front tire came off the pavement, the dry-looking rocks gave way to an inch of soft mud. The front tire slid out; we went down. It happened so fast, my leg was trapped under the bike, and the exhaust burned a hole in my riding suit. Ouch! From that drop, I learned to look for tale-tale signs of soil conditions before leaving the pavement.

The K12RS was dropped several times. Most were in the usual places like unpaved parking lots, wet grass, etc. and I think a lot of those were caused by my fear of dropping the bike; I was hesitant to apply throttle for fear of spinning out the rear tire. So instead of over-reacting, I under-reacted. One of the other drops took place when I had parked on a slight incline and the bike was not leaning as far as usual. My right pants cuff caught the footpeg as I climbed on. The most enlightening drop of the K12 came down in Texas. It was really windy with gust to 50mph. As I was pulling out of a rest area across a paved parking lot with a little gravel on it, a gust of wind hit me from the right side. When I leaned into it, the rear slid out. I learned that leaning is leaning and should be avoided when on reduced traction surfaces.

The R100GSPD, which I rode off pavement quite a bit, provided numerous learning experiences. Most were associated with reduced traction of either the tires or my foot (there was no way for me to get two feet flat on the ground) A little mud or cow manure on the bottom of my boot, get a little off balance, and down we would go. Some had to do with putting the sidestand down when there wasn't enough clearance for the stand to extend without leaning the bike to the right. Once, again down in Texas, I thought my right foot was stepping down onto solid ground, but the grass was covering a slight depression; it doesn't take much extra lean to get overpowered by the weight of the bike. I learned that R-bikes are easier to right than K-bikes.

The F650 was only dropped once, and I wasn't even on it. I had it on the centerstand giving it a bath. The attention to detail I was putting into the washing clouded my perception of how much water was soaking into the ground. A little extra pressure on the right side resulted in the bike laying over. I learned to put a piece of plywood under the center stand before soaking the ground.

Now I have the R100R. It was dropped on the ride home. I had stopped on a backroad in AR being careful to park on a fairly flat surface with plenty of clearance to extend the sidestand and making sure there was no mud or manure to step in. There were small (1")rocks, but all in all, a pretty secure parking place. The pant legs on the riding suit were velcroed tight against my boot, and I could get both feet flat on the ground. After my break, I climbed on, started the bike, lifted the bike to raise the sidestand, and then went to plug in the heated gear. Being it was a new-to-me bike, I was leaning over to find the accessory outlet when my right foot slipped. I applied all the lessons I have learned: let the bike down as easy as I can without hurting myself, immediately hit the kill switch since the engine will be starved for oil, turn off the key switch, turn off the petcocks since fuel is draining out of the carbs, examine the situation, formulate a plan of attack, right the bike using the back-to-bike method, inspect the bike, and take a few minutes to regroup before riding off.

Anytime we operate a two-wheeled vehicle, there is the chance it will end up on it's side. I have learned to apply a philosophy an old sailor taught me many years ago: "Its not that you FU, because everybody does eventually, its how you handle your FU's that counts!"

Detailed enough?
Tom

[Merlin III]

In the past two years since re-entering motorcycling, I have dropped the bike twice. The first time was when I was coming down a partially rutted cemetery road and a guy on a riding lawn mower started to turn out in front of me. I avoided him and continued down the road thinking that he was now fully aware of my presence. He actually pulled ahead of me after that. I was going probably a couple miles per hour and he was going faster than me. As I got to the blacktop he turned into my path again and this time I went down when I braked. His actions were clearly the proximate cause of my drop. I had friends who calmed me down and helped me right my bike.

The second time was just recently when I backed my 1150GS out of the garage with a full tank of gas. The garage slab is a foot higher than the driveway so I placed three 2 by 10s together for a ramp. As I was backing down the ramp I slowed myself down with the front brake and placed my feet down on the ramp only to have my left slip off the wet plank and onto the ground 8 inches below. The bike angle passed the angle of no return and we went down with me being able to cushion the drop with shear strength.

As noted by others, I was so ripped at myself that I immediately tried to pick up the bike. The first attempt failed primarily because I just grabbed the bike while facing it and attempted to make upright a GS with a full tank of gas. Next I attempted to upright it the right way while having my back to the bike with one hand on the handle bar and one on the bar at the rear of the bike.

I successfully got the bike upright with no real damage to the bike. I on the other hand, did some bodily damage to myself. Apparently, I strained a lot of muscles in the lifting process. Actually, I believe it was the second attempt to right the bike (the right way) when I was hurt. It is my belief and my RN wife’s belief that I actually fractured a rib on my back side from the straining.

The lessons I learned from these two mishaps were to do more thinking beforehand when I attempt something where there is a clear chance of a mishap. Also, I came to the conclusion that I need to be in better physical shape and have now joined a gym where I concentrate on leg presses and lower back exercises. : )

[Terry Karney]

I have a K100RS. I'm 5'9" and 120 lbs. I usually have some luggage.

I've dropped the bike about half a dozen times. Mostly because I've been startled at low speeds and hit the brakes. The weight goes forward when the front wheel isn't straight, she tips and I can't get a foot down fast enough.

I've been edge trapped once, low speed and the front wheel got against a seam in the pavement. If I'd been moving faster I'd have been fine.

On a dirt road I was riding two-up, and had a bad line on the turn; I'd been trying to miss a large rock, cut around it to the left and was headed off the road, I put the wheel to the right and felt I was going too fast... tapped the front brake (habit, as David Hough says, took over), down we went.

What I learned from that was to not use the front brake on that sort of traction. What I've done since is to remind myself to not use the front brake as a first resort when on dirt roads.

Worst fall was a right turn. A woman decided to enter her left as I was entering my right.... it's a one lane road at that point. I stopped the bike, and she stopped the car. I had the right of way, and resumed; so did she. I should have opened the throttle and taken off, but I was worried I'd drift out of my lane.

I tapped the brake, thinking I could let her through, but I was 1: too slow and 2: leaned over some. Down I went.

To add insult to injury, as I was trying to right the bike (though not in a mad panic I was certainly feeling a bit rushed since I was in the road of a T-intersection) she came back to yell at me, "You were fine, if you'd just kept going you wouldn't have fallen down". Then she left.

Oi.

[BCKRIDER]

My thanks to Tom, Merlin III and Terry Karney. It takes real courage to post these kind of details - and they were exactly what I was asking for. If the revised article is ever published in the ON, many of your insights will be included - without attribution. I'd also like to extend a warm welcome to the last two posters; relative newcomers to the forum.

It seems none of the better known posters on this topic have volunteered to receive and forward PM's, so if any of you wish to contribute information on this topic for a future ON article without "going public," you can send me a PM with my assurance of annonimity.

The more I think about my own mistakes and those I've heard about or read about in this thread, the more I think most (but not all) "drops" are preventable. Absorbing and applying information may be the greatest safety "secret" of all. And we all have more to learn.

Please do add to this pool of knowledge - either in a reply or a PM - with the sure knowledge that you will save some riders some grief.

[Greenwald]

My thanks to Tom, Merlin III and Terry Karney. It takes real courage to post these kind of details - and they were exactly what I was asking for. If the revised article is ever published in the ON, many of your insights will be included - without attribution. I'd also like to extend a warm welcome to the last two posters; relative newcomers to the forum.

It seems none of the better known posters on this topic have volunteered to receive and forward PM's, so if any of you wish to contribute information on this topic for a future ON article without "going public," you can send me a PM with my assurance of annonimity.

The more I think about my own mistakes and those I've heard about or read about in this thread, the more I think most (but not all) "drops" are preventable. Absorbing and applying information may be the greatest safety "secret" of all. And we all have more to learn.

Please do add to this pool of knowledge - either in a reply or a PM - with the sure knowledge that you will save some riders some grief.

An excellent idea for a future ON article! I've already sent my two (2) unfortunate (and preventable) moments of drama off to the OP.

I hope many do likewise, so that he'll have lots of data to review before composing an article we'll all like to read.

Thanks, BCKRIDER :german

[Paul_F]

I dropped my R1100RT twice. Once, in the garage, after adjusting the shifter and checking the shifts with the dash indicator, I simply dismounted. Unfortunately I wasn't on my K and the R requires the side stand up for the gear indicator to operate. As I stepped off, the bike gently rested on its cylinder head. :doh

Last fall, I when in a parking lot, I did my usual practice after putting the side stand down; I pulled the bike back before dismounting. That has worked in the past, but this time I was parked on a decent downhill slope. As I got off, the bike slowly rolled forward, the side stand retracted, bike shifted left and parked on the left cylinder head. :eek

I know and can use the walk your butt backwards against the bike to upright it, but, in the one case, I walked across the street and got a neighbour to give me a hand and in the parking lot, I flagged down a pickup with a couple of guys in it. I may have hurt my dignity, but why chance hurting something else when there is help available? :laugh :dance

[geisterfahrer]

I've dropped every bike I've had since I started riding again a few years ago. Mostly they were manhandling the bike around the garage incidents. It took me a little practice to get used to rolling them around. No high speed getoffs, thank goodness.

I dropped the R90/6, or rather, it dropped itself, this past fall. I had rolled the bike out in the driveway and parked it "downhill" on the sidestand. My drive is very nearly flat, so much so I thought nothing of which way the bike was pointing. I started the engine and let it idle while I went back in the garage to don my gear. As I was starting to put on my helmet, I hear a crash, and turned to see the bike on its left side. The vibration of idling was enough to roll the bike "downhill" and off its side stand :doh

The engine cut off before I could get to it, probably due to the left carb flooding out. I got her back upright, checked her over, and hit the starter button. She fired right back up, with a little hiccuping, and soon was purring as usual. I parked her perpendicular to the slope and finished putting my gear on. Aside from a small scuff on the left valve cover, there was no damage.

Lesson learned. :thumb

[BCKRIDER]

Could someone PLEASE tell us all EXACTLY how to send a PM to a poster perhaps several posts back? I suspect the reason I have received only Greenwald's PM has much more to do with this general lack of understanding of the process of sending PM's than lack of interest or unwillingnes to trust me not to reveal identities in any future ON article.

I am sure this information is available somewhere on the site. For many, finding it is just too much trouble, so they just don't do it.

Your help would be greatly appreciated I think by many of us.

[marchyman]

Could someone PLEASE tell us all EXACTLY how to send a PM to a poster perhaps several posts back?

To send a PM to someone when you are reading one of their posts do this:

click on their user name; you'll get a pop up menu
from that menu click on "send a private message to ...". Your window will be replaced with one that looks something like that when you reply to a message. The user name of the user you are sending the PM to will already be filled in.
click in the title field and fill in a title. This is the subject of your PM.
click in the message box and write your message exactly as if you're writing a new post to the forum.
optional: hit the preview button to see what your message will look like.
hit the submit button to send the message

Anything else?

[BCKRIDER]

I believe the ONLY THING you fellow computer semi-illiterates need to remember when you want to send a PM is to click on the "user name" - in my case, BCKRider.

Everthing after that is crystal clear to anyone who has posted on a forum. I printed off marchyman's post before realizing that I (and you) only needed that first advice - click on the "user name."

I am still solicitting information - either by posts to this forum or PM's - before I write a draft to the ON. Anything new is very valuable, even if was something you saw rather than did.

[rebake]

The only really unexpected drop i have had was like this.Riding an 83 suzuki gs750es into a closed gas station to take a break.Ran over one of the metal caps where the tanks are filled.It wasn't locked down and fipped up and jammed into my header pipe.I looked like the laugh-in guy for a moment.Luckily no injuries to me or the bike and a couple Harley guys that were there helped me pick it up.I haven't ran over a metal cover since. Ed

[ANDYVH]

"4. ANDYVH, as a very experienced rider, I'm sure a tall saddle with your shorter legs is no problem at all. As an experienced rider coach, would you say the same about your students? It took me a few years before I could be sure the bike would tilt left, not right, when I came to a stop. So I think my comment about "flat feet" is appropriate, though "this does not neccessarily apply to experienced riders" perhaps should be added. Welcome your comments."

Very true. It takes new riders, and many riders of "experience" to adapt to the left foot down first method. One thing I coach is to "lead out" with the left leg a bit early which shifts body wieght to the left and then the rider can adjust before the stop is actually made. With the left-leg-lead, the bike will lean in that direction. BUT! The bigger part of it is scanning the stop area before you get there, and keeping your vision forward WHILE making the stop. As many riders have a tendency to look down while stopping it makes the bike unstable, which is countered by both feet popping out. By keeping the head and eyes up, the bike remains stable and its very easy to get one foot down. I have been doing this for so long, quite often I can come to a full stop, and then place my left foot down. The visual control has that much influence. Your peripheral vision handles picking up the actual point stop and foot down, while you keep your head/eyes up.

[Professor]

There is just one risk factor you missed in your article - ride an LT. :laugh

I haven't dropped mine yet in a couple of years of riding it, but I've sure come close. I love the way it handles once it gets rolling, but at very slow speeds, it can be tricky.

I agree - your article is excellent and should be published. Voni said she might be able to help with pictures. If ON doesn't want it, there are lots of other good magazines that might. Rider is one of my favorites, but try again with ON and send it directly to Roger Wiles.

[brewmeister]

I only droped my k100LT twice and it fell over both times from hot,soft asphault like in shop-ko parking lot. I go inside to shop and come out to find my bike beached on it's right side. same for the left side only different time. What we need is deployable air bags on the side of the bikes that way they'd also float in water. Thats a different story.

[bogthebasher]

What we need is deployable air bags on the side of the bikes that way they'd also float in water. Thats a different story.

Oh come on! Now I gotta hear the story!
:lurk

[Kirbster919]

I'm a huge believer in the Peltzman Effect, or the idea that when one safety feature is implimented, humans naturally accept more risk and therefore there is no increased level of safety. People drive faster and more recklessly when they have airbags and seatbelts. If you don't believe me, you probably will agree that you would be significantly less likely to tailgate if there was a spear jutting towards you from your steering wheel.

Point being, I dropped every bike I had, probably 8 drops in three years. All the bikes had crash bars or frame sliders. A year ago, I took the frame sliders and crash bars off, giving myself the full knowledge I'd do significant damage to my bikes from a careless drop. No drops since.

I can't prove that the absence of crash bars caused this, as I'm a young rider so increased skill may have something to do with it. I will say that the care I use now is much greater than the care I used when a dropped bike didn't have consequences.

[marchyman]

Oh come on! Now I gotta hear the story!
:lurk

Don't know his story, but you always read about this (http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=584006) one on advrider. That's what I call planning ahead! :bow

http://metaljockey.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/Zambia-2010/P1010444/857959986_vbTaE-L.jpg

[brewmeister]

Oh come on! Now I gotta hear the story!
:lurk

I'll try and keep it short.
My friend and myself were attending omro street daze back in 1980. He had a Harley FLH 1976, I had my 77 100/7. After it became time to head back to my parents cabin about 10 miles away we took the back roads to Wautoma,Wis. Our route was 21 to K to D to H to W and home base. well back on D I missed the turn onto D from K. Well that left us on B going straite into Lake Poygan via a boat launching ramp.
I finally realized my mistake before disaster but my buddy Tim kept tooling along right into the drink. He did stop before the whole bike was submerged but we both sat there after I helped him pull his harley out of the water and laughed for 1/2 hour ,yet no damage was done ,it was in below the carb on the harley so it started after we let it sit for a while. We made it back by 3:00AM. This is a you had to be there story cause I stoped my bike maybe 50 feet before I hit the water. This road IS seemless transition between the road and the boat launch. The night was no moon cloudy DARK night so headlights wer'nt super effective .Harleys don't float ,nor BMW's.:whistle:lurk

[Rpbump]

At one time or another I have dropped every bike that I've owned. In the dirt, on the road, practicing tight turns, on purpose, etc. Now that I have purchased a sidecar rig dropping the bike should become a memory of times past.
Ride Safe :usa :usa

PS: I have never dropped a borrowed bike (Thank God).

[Visian]

PS: I have never dropped a borrowed bike (Thank God).

oh man... i have. pretty hard and really embarrassing. :doh!

i was not being disrespectful of the other guy's bike, either. just wham.... down.

ian

[Rollifahrer]

If it's not too late, here are couple thoughts related to front brake mistakes:

Rolling stops with right turn: I used to really hate putting feet down, and would creep toward the stop sign, looking for traffic. More than once I was surprised after starting to initiate a right turn and grabbed too much front brake. Now, if I'm not absolutely certain about visibility before I downshift to 1st, I keep my eyes forward and stop completely before looking for traffic--besides, that's the legal way turn at a stop sign.

In gravel or very tense slow maneuvering situations, I use two fingers on top of the brake lever. Between lack of leverage and lack of friction, it's harder to "grab too much" brake.

Rotating the hips and shoulders, along with head and eyes, in tight U-turns helps turn head and eyes farther and hold them there longer.

Dropping the elbows creates a more relaxed upper body and helps prevent the arms from fighting each other's inputs. Joe Morgan, Cincinnati Reds second basemen (back in the day) was famous for flapping his inside elbow when at bat. The reason was it reminded him to get it into the ideal position before the pitch. I check my inside elbow, then relax and drop it before pushing on the opposite bar at low speeds.

[154048]

Excellent hints!! I had to laugh because I did the exact thing on my RS, where I modified the handlebar position and the the brake lever hit the fairing as I pulled out of a parking spot....

With no warning what so ever, I found myself laying on the pavement with the Boxer propped up on its' left jug...I didn't even have time to brace myself.

I know the tourists walking by probably thought I had a few pints in me, to fall over at one MPH!:blush

[Bullett]

I blame the first time I dropped my RT on lack of coffee, but it was really due to lack of attention and too much front brake with (I surmise) the wheel slightly turned when I tried to follow my husband, who suddenly pulled into a parking space along the road. My bike fell over so quick I was left standing over it swearing like a sailor. It took me a really long time before I would ride before coffee again. :coffee

The second time I dropped my RT was in a parking lot. I thought I had shifted down into first, but was actually in neutral. I gave the bike some throttle and it just fell over.:blush I landed about 6 feet away on my back. I had no idea what had occurred until we got the bike upright and I saw it was in neutral.

The most embarrassing drop occurred with my R26, a much lighter bike. I was 15 years old and just got my license. I went to a local motorcycle shop and purchased a new pair of riding gloves. There were 4 or 5 guys in the store watching me go back out to my bike. When I took my first kick on the starter ( which involved putting all my weight on the kick starter while facing the bike from the side) it didn't start and I dropped the bike and cracked my mirror. I was mortified. The guys all came running out of the shop and picked up my bike for me. Did I mention how much I like electric starters?

[larrysb]

I admit it. I'm an old guy, newbie biker. I got my ticket and rode a Suzuki Burgman 650 for a year and then got a R12GSA. Stupidly, I have dropped the GSA a couple of times. The first, I won't even count, as it left not even the slightest mark on the bike at all. Rode it home from the dealership. Pulled into my parking lot at work, where I've parked the Burgman about a million times on the upsloping motorcycle area. Stood there for a minute, trying to figure out how to turn off the engine the dealer-recommended method of using the key instead of the kill switch, without the benefit of either a rear brake on the left hand, or a parking brake as the Burgman had and dealing with the clutch as the Burgman did not have. I puzzled with this momentarily, lifted my right foot back to apply rear brake, turned it off at the key. Got started to get off the bike, not having put the kickstand down. Duhh. I set her down as gentle as a lamb on the smooth asphalt. Didn't leave a mark at all. Not even a little one. Decided from then on, the kill switch would be just fine for shutdowns on any kind of slope.

Then there was the very close call, that I don't feel too bad about. Came up to the top of a steep hill, to make a left turn, had the green arrow. Rolled into the turn and spotted a pickup truck cresting the hill at a rate that immediately in my mind said, "he ain't gonna stop". I was right, grabbed the front brake while trying to straighten out. Got quickly down to 0mph and my pant cuff cut the toothy metal footpeg of the Adventure. I went down on the left side. Left a few marks on the adventure case and crash bar. I was fully geared, so not even a scratch on me. Righted the bike with a little help and rode on. The pickup driver probably never even saw the red light, much less saw me go down. Had I not stopped quickly, I would have been hit. Decided I needed to deal with my gear a bit and to install rubber footpads on the adventure's pegs. (the ones from the 650-Xcountry fit it perfectly).

The last one, entirely my stupid fault. Intersection at the bottom of a steep hill. Following a buddy in traffic. Light changes, I stopped too quick and toppled over at 0mph. Sigh. Another little scratch in the crash bar, no harm done.

Things I've learned: It takes time to get used to a new, big motorcycle. There were parts of my riding experience from a year on the Burgman that were undeveloped, such as dealing with the clutch, parking in slopes (a breeze on the burgie) and that even though the Burgman 650 features powerful ABS triple disc brakes, the powerful ABS triple disc brakes on the R12GSA are way more powerful and completely unforgiving of technique. The Burgman for whatever reason, despite being heavier, is a lot more forgiving of braking technique. You can squeeze it hard for dear life and it just won't dump you. The GSA, well, it will happily dump you on your butt for being a little sloppy.

The Burgie is also easier to pick up, even though it is heavier. The GSA, that thing is hard to lift, even though it is 60 lbs lighter.

Confessions of a real life semi-newbie.

[roofertoo]

The first time I dropped my bike was coming up to a stop where the ground was uneven and when I put my right foot down, nothing but air....

The next time was a double drop... I broke my own rule after riding several miles to pull into a nice flat spot to park and easily get off. Instead I spotted a nice restaurant with a parking spot in front which sloped down toward the curb. I was fully loaded down. As I was backing down into the slot down went the bike on its right side... I was so pissed I picked it back up without the kick stand out and down she went onto the other side... This time a couple guys came to my rescue and helped me right it...

At this point I had to decide if I wanted to go into the coffee shop after such an embarrassing display or just ride on off... I was hungry so in I went.. A lady sitting at the counter who watched this whole episode unfold said to me, don't you hate it when that happens...:sick

Living here in the Northwest a lot of us commute by ferries. I like to mention something here about putting the bike on the center stands.. If the boat encounters any heavy wave action there is the possibility the bike will get pitched forward off of the stand.. It's a good ideal to put it on the side stand and in gear.. and if you are crossing the straights and it's really nasty out just hang with your bike and go rinse the salt water off after getting off the boat...

[Visian]

The first time I dropped my bike was coming up to a stop where the ground was uneven and when I put my right foot down, nothing but air....

Level ground or not, that happens to me all the time with my HP2e.....

Ian

.

[bselwyn]

http://www.bmwmoa.org/forum/picture.php?albumid=192&pictureid=953

This is my 2000 R1150GS taking a nap after a full lunch of 87 octane (only gas available) at Twin Butte, Alberta, Canada, in Jluy 2010. This was the second day of a 34-day trip from Missoula, Montana, to Deadhorse, Alaska. I tried pushing Big Bertha away from the pumps, the side stand drug, and when she leaned toward me, she just kept leaning! This was the last time I pushed her. Ride that five feet and stay balanced!

My son helped me get the bike back up after taking the picture and laughing hard. He got his someuppance at our camp site at Liard Hot Springs in northern British Columbia a few days later.

[PGlaves]

All in all I've had better luck with bikes than cars, I think. At just a few days past my 14th birthday I received my brand new drivers license. It went like this. Drive to the Courthouse; then drive around with the State Trooper. Walk inside and get my new license. Walk back to the car. Get in. And get hit by an oncoming car as I pulled out of the parking space. In my defense, it was a one-way street and I was parked on the left side instead of the right side so couldn't see very well, but still. I drove almost exactly 6 feet with my brand new license before my first accident.

Essentially no damage to my car. Contact was just with the bumper. But the car that hit it and slid on by had a crease starting at the front fender and proceeding back across both doors and the rear quarter panel. Looking at the crease you could actually see how the front of the car dipped when she slammed on the brakes after she hit me. My first accident reconstruction case. :)

[From MARS]

All in all I've had better luck with bikes than cars, I think. At just a few days past my 14th birthday I received my brand new drivers license. It went like this. Drive to the Courthouse; then drive around with the State Trooper. Walk inside and get my new license. Walk back to the car. Get in. And get hit by an oncoming car as I pulled out of the parking space. In my defense, it was a one-way street and I was parked on the left side instead of the right side so couldn't see very well, but still. I drove almost exactly 6 feet with my brand new license before my first accident....................:)

We have a winner!:laugh

[BCKRIDER]

Below is the revised article for the ON. (I'm emailing it to Roger Miles tomorrow.) I reviewed every response to the original article posted on this forum as well as the PM's before doing the re-write. Then I let days elapse before re-reading, just to be sure I didn't want to change anything. I trust you will see your "hand writing" in some of the changes if you made a contribution to the discussion.

I tried to make this article as concise as possible while still making it readable - and suspect it is too long for a single "Motosafe" article. If any of you reading this have Roger's ear, perhaps you could make suggestions to him.

He will probably also ask for some appropriate photos - which I can also not provide. Again your help is requested.

I like to think I am the person who "got the ball rolling" on a mostly ignored topic that effects almost all riders. But if this article is ever published, it will be a co-operative effort. I think the information, not the credit, is what is important.

My thanks to all of you who dared to admit your stupid mistakes, and consequently made this article as comprehensive as it is.

BTW, while I am done revising the article, comments on it and additional "unfortunate experiences" can certainly be posted on this forum.

REVISED ARTICLE:

Don’t Drop the Bike

Let’s define dropping the bike as “a motorcycle accident at 0 – 2 mph.” These accidents inevitably cause elevated blood pressure, fears about how to raise the fallen beast, at least some damage to the bike if not the operator, and acute embarrassment. The otherwise excellent books and articles about riding safely mostly ignore the causes of these accidents and the preventive measures one should take to avoid them. My qualifications for writing this article are simple: in twelve years and about 60K miles of riding I’ve made several of these mistakes and also admitted them in campfire conversations. Virtually every rider I talked to told me about a time or two that he also dropped a bike. Some of the ideas come from these conversations. Even more come from the Just Ridin’ MOA forum where I posted the first draft. The candid admissions of these mostly very experienced riders helped fill out this article.

There is a myth that these are problems which only plague beginners. I wish! Sure, beginners make these errors more often, but I believe it is a life-long problem. Most of us don’t repeat too many of our previous errors, but learning through print how to avoid any type of accident is definitely better than learning through experience.

Side Stands: While taking the MSF beginner course I once dismounted the bike without putting the side stand down at all. I thought I had put it down! Moral: always be sure the side stand is down and will take the weight of the bike before dismounting. On flat concrete you have no worries after you are sure the side stand is really fully extended. On every other surface, beware. Make sure the ground is not too high or too low or too soft before you commit yourself. Before you leave the bike, ask yourself if the side stand could sink into the asphalt - quite possible on a hot day - or if the weight of the bike could push the stand deeper into sand, gravel, or grass. Carry some sort of pad to place under the side stand whenever there is a question mark. Make it standard practice to always use the side stand before dismounting. When your right foot encounters that forgotten duffle bag as you dismount, you will be glad that the side stand is taking the weight of the bike.

I guess it is obvious that parking a bike with the front wheel pointing downhill is inviting disaster. Occasionally it is unavoidable. Shift to first gear, use the rear brake to hold the bike in place as you shut off the engine, let out the clutch and release the brake to engage the engine. Then put down the side stand and dismount.

Center Stands: There is a knack to putting a bike on a center stand, but it is easily acquired (with most bikes) if your bike doesn’t have a lowered rear suspension and the ground is hard and flat. Remember those words, “hard” and “flat.” If that bike tilts ever so slightly to the right because the ground under the two center stand contact points really wasn’t flat or the right leg contacted softer ground, gravity will yank that bike out of your hands. I think it was Voni Glaves who labelled the center stand as “the mechanic’s stand.” Great for checking oil level, removing the rear tire, etc. Not so great for most parking situations.

Front Brake Mistakes: I guess almost everyone realizes by now that it is the front brake that provides most of the stopping power in most situations. The old fear of flipping the bike is almost groundless. The fear of locking the front wheel and falling down is not groundless! One problem with the front brake occurs on sand or gravel roads, or worse still, sand or gravel on hardtop. The instant that front wheel locks you will suddenly find your bike horizontal. I’ve twice dropped a bike making a very low speed turn when there was gravel on pavement. Both times I saw the gravel, did my serious slowing before reaching it, but I think failed to get completely off the front brake before the wheel touched the gravel. Riding on sand or gravel roads, favor the rear brake and use the front brake very judiciously if at all. On wet pavement (maybe all pavements) ease off the front brake lever when you are almost stopped and use the back brake for the final stop. Yes, I’m afraid this is the voice of experience. The road was wet, my wife was the passenger, and all of a sudden there were two very unhappy (but unhurt) people and another scratch or two on the bike. And this was just a simple stop sign, not a panic situation at all.

David Hough preaches that in an emergency your reaction will be your usual riding practice. I think this idea can be extended: in an unusual situation (for many of us, riding in the rain qualifies) you will probably apply your dry road habits, though you certainly won’t brake as hard unless you have and trust anti-lock brakes. If using only the back brake for the last bit of a stop in the wet is a good idea, I think doing the same thing on dry roads is also a good idea, even though easing up on the front brake certainly works just fine on dry roads. Build good all-weather habits

Yet another front brake error that often ends badly is a low speed application with the bars turned. While this can occur at a stop in a turn, more frequently it happens at a stop sign or light. You make that full legal stop, turn the bars, start moving, and see a vehicle on a collision course. A light touch on the front brake and you are down. I believe the better idea is to get moving with the bars straight, just a few feet, and then make the turn. If a second straight ahead stop is required, there shouldn’t be a problem with either brake.

Modifications: I had just installed a new windscreen and took the bike for a short test ride. When I pulled into a gravelled church parking lot and made a slow left hand turn, the bike again was suddenly on its side. The proximity of the church did nothing to improve my language. It took me awhile to figure out the cause of that accident. With the bar turned fully to the left, the windscreen touched the front brake lever. Rotating the clutch and brake levers a bit provided the necessary clearance. This is definitely something to check before you ride off with your new screen.

Flat feet: I think it is a very good idea to be able to put both feet flat on the ground while sitting on your bike. It can be tough for people with shorter legs on some bikes. Tippy toes are ok on flat concrete. Every other stopping situation puts you at much greater risk of dropping the bike. There are some very experienced and very skilled riders with shorter inseams who disagree. This advice is for us lesser mortals. I recently spent three weeks riding a rented KTM 990 Adventure in New Zealand. That bike is just slightly taller than my K100RS and on a perfectly level road I could flatfoot it. Twice, I nearly dropped it backing into a parking space on sloping pavement. Twice, I mounted the bike and couldn’t right it from the side stand because the pavement sloped just a little to the left. Leg leverage, not bike weight, was the deciding difference between the two bikes. If you ever come to a stop and put your left foot down on something slippery, or have something slippery on that boot, a small difference in lean angle could well be the deciding factor in whether or not you go down.

Check it out: A few years ago I was examining a friend’s quite new F650. Though this man has ridden many more years and miles than I, his right saddlebag bore lasting testimony to a drop. “We pulled into this gravel parking lot. I put my right foot down and it just kept sinking. Couldn’t hold the damn bike up.” I had a similar experience. After a weeklong trip with not a single scary experience, I confronted my formerly paved road just two miles from home. The road was now rolled gravel. I could have made a left turn, stayed on pavement, and added maybe 15 minutes to my journey. But, hey, the bike is already dirty, so what’s a little more dirt. Before I had gone ten feet I knew I had made a serious error. As the tires sunk into this wet gravel, I knew my only hope was to stay on the throttle. Somehow I made it through to pavement with a totally sweat fogged face shield.

Maybe you should park the bike and check out suspect parking lots (or roads) on foot before committing yourself. That, of course, is for wimps. But being a wimp can save you both money and pain. I’m now old enough to take the kidding.

Ramps: If parking your bike involves riding up a ramp, make it a very wide ramp. Yet another time I dropped the bike, the ramp was pretty narrow because the rise into the open shed was only a couple inches. I managed to kill the engine and that extra two inches before my foot touched ground was more than enough to put the bike on its side. And also into my wife’s scooter. Our bikes are now housed in another building that requires a ramp. That ramp is 4.5 feet wide.

I have transported motorcycles a few times in the back of my pick-up and remember getting the bikes in a rather scary experience with narrow plank ramps. The better ideas deserve another article.

Pushing and pulling: A lot of bikes topple while being pushed or pulled. Hasn’t happened to me yet, but boy am I ever careful. These accidents frequently involve less than ideal footing such as gravel or wet grass, a slight grade (slight, because nobody expects to push or pull a road bike up anything greater) or else you bump into something. At home, figure out a safe routine for moving your bike in and out of where you store it. At a campsite you might want to park the bike and then figure out how you can park it under power so you can also ride out under power with no manhandling. Brainpower beats muscles in this department. If you err and there are people around, ask for help. I assure you they would rather help push and pull while you steer than help you pick up the machine. These efforts always involve both hands on the grips with a couple fingers over the front brake lever. I’ve heard that some more modern BMW’s have almost no front braking with the engine off. If that is the case on your bike, be sure to find it out before you have it pointed downhill with the engine off.

Snags: I heard about a low speed catastrophe in Spokane at the 2004 rally. The guy’s pant cuff caught on the footpeg as he tried to plant his left foot. The foot peg severely injured his leg as the bike toppled over. Could this happen to you? Do you ever ride with loose cuffs? Lately I’ve started riding with my pants over my boots. Must make sure that the velcroed pants don’t present this very problem as they deflect the rain outside my boots. Before I bought my first BMW, a friend let me ride his K75RT. A fine bike and I almost dropped it, because there was fairing exactly where I was used to putting down my foot on my 1980 Honda CB750. Before you ride a different bike, be sure you can get your feet down.

It’s going over! The advice of many was “get out of the way” when you realize the bike has passed the point where you can save it. Yes, you screwed up, and there is going to be cosmetic damage (maybe expensive) to your bike. Minimising that damage at the possible cost of a broken leg or wrenched back probably isn’t worth it. A tough, split-second decision which I hope you can avoid by not encountering the problem because you anticipated it.

Getting it back up. First, turn off the kill switch and then the key. If fuel is spilling out, do something about that if you can. Then step back and take several deep breaths. If your dropped bike poses a hazard to other vehicles, your first priority is to warn them. Soon you will have help (I hope) with traffic control and help to raise your bike. When your bike is upright and safe from other vehicles, take some time to examine it. Scratched Tupperware is one thing: a missing shift lever, brake pedal, etc. something else. Don’t ride off until you are satisfied that both the bike and you are fully operational.

If the drop occurs in a much more private setting, don’t rush to get the bike upright. Swallow your pride and get help if at all possible. You really NEED to look at pinkribbonrides.com/dropped.html. Carol Youorski, AKA “Skert” site if you need to ever raise a heavy bike yourself. The only criticism I’ve read of the technique is that it is much more difficult if you don’t have cylinder heads (R-bikes) and hard luggage keeping the bike from lying really flat. Even fairly strong men may then have a problem.

Summing up: It seems that having a serious accident has a certain cachet. Dropping your bike because you backed it into your car, etc. just seems (and is) stupid. But most of us have done a few of these really dumb things and only realized after the fact that the accident could have been avoided with a little thought. One of my thoughtful forum respondents summarized it all: “the common denominator in all these drops is a momentary lapse in attention.” I agree; you do have to pay attention. Always. The whole point of this article is things you may not have realized required your attention.

Anyway, I hope this article saves some scratches on both you and your pride and joy. If you would like to add your experiences, or criticisms of this article, please do so on the MOA website in the Just Ridin’ forum. I have no illusions that this is the last word on the topic.

Doug Sonju
#95998

[Professor]

Nice article. You covered the topic well and made it personal and interesting. It is both interesting and entertaining. :thumb

My only suggestion is that you email it to Roger Wiles instead of Roger Miles. :)

[kellyhanley]

Great article! thanks for sharing your experiences.
kiki

[Greenwald]

Lots of thought-provoking information we all can use.

Looking forward to seeing it in print in an ON issue! :thumb

[BCKRIDER]

Professor - thank you for your kind remarks and also correcting my "brain dead" thought on who to send it to. (Actually, I sent it to editor@bmwmoa.org as requested in the ON note on submissions. Not sure who reads those emails but expect it will be forwarded to the right person.)

Again, thanks to all who revealed their embarrassing goofs in the interest of helping other riders avoid the same errors. Only quality people would do that.

And thanks to all of you who offered encouraging words about submitting this article. Without them, I doubt that I would have done the re-write.

We'll see what happens.

[dbrick]

Doug,

I just received my August ON, and read your article. It was excellent. Thanks.

[Pepeps]

I call slow speed dropping of the motorcycle a "clown fall." I was very distracted (another way to have accidents) one day. Forgot to unlock the bars. The moment I accelerated and leaned right I had a spectacular slow speed fall. Now I never get moving until I have "wiggled" my handlebars first.
Thanks for an excellent article!

[From MARS]

Good job on the article.

Tom

[JohnM]

+1 to Clown Falls

Two weeks ago Sunday, leaving the Mt. Olympus apartments at Bloomsburg U. Slowly riding down the road b/w the apts to the "T", and making the right-hand turn. Two buddies were parked on the right, just after the "T". Wanted to talk to them before we took off.

Grabbed too much FRONT brake while the handlebar was still cocked right. "Laugh In" splat!


Fortunately, got off easy and only broke a turn-signal lens on my R1200R. Bag scuffed too. Bruised ego the worst effect.

Just forgot that there is a time & place to use the front (linked) brakes. That scenario was not the time.

Before we righted the wallowing R1200R, I should have taken a pic, just to remind me what inattention can do.

[jimbob1960]

Have had LOTS of these over the years, most of which have been described here. Sand/Gravel, new mods (new case guards on my Yamaha Turbo took me to the ground in front of close to a hundred of my peers in Mobile, AL once...). In the early '80s, I was leaving an establishment south of Houston. It was about 5 in the evening, and there were lots of attractive young ladies watching as I saddled up (on the same Yamaha Turbo). Did I mention that this was shortly after I bought my first Kryptonite lock, and it was neatly positioned around the front forks and through the front cast spokes? Hm. Started it up, and rocked it off the center stand with my feet on the pegs and gunned it. Oops.
The only GOOD thing was one of the girls was very sympathetic (and had wider shoulders than me..). Lifted it up enough for me to get my leg out. Stood the bike up, got the lock off, and tried to leave. In a hurry. On failed attempt #2, I still had the kick stand down. Interlock switch killed the motor the instant I let the clutch out. Put my foot down, slipped in the gravel, and there I was again. Even Miss Sympathy 1983 was laughing too hard to help that time. There are two kinds of riders. Those who have done something dumb and fallen over, and those who someday will.
:doh

[JStrube]

Just finished the article in ON. Great one!

One item I did not see mentioned, but almost experienced myself & watched another guy do is the "engine killer" drop. This is where you go to start out & let the clutch out too fast, killing the engine, dropping the bike. I am pretty sure this is always caused by initiating a turn at the same time as starting, as I had my bike leaned a small amount when I did mine. I hurt my ankle doing this & saw a guy drop a new Kawi Connie 14 when he killed his bike starting out on an uphill, leaving a stopsign.

John.

[dpeterson1952]

Doug,

In response to your article in the ON, I thought I would share an incident which convinced me that you should ALWAYS be COMPLETELY ready for the road when you throw your leg over the bike.

I spent a night at a motel on the way to the Land of Enchantment rally at Sipapu, NM around 2003. When I got ready to leave that morning, I happened to have all my riding gear on, ready to ride. (I point this out, because before this I might not have had my gloves on, or even my helmet!)

As I pulled the bike off the centerstand, the side stand -- which must not have been fully extended -- folded up. The bike proceeded to fall towards me. As it did, the centerstand trapped the toe of my right boot, and then the bike slammed me to the asphalt.

My helmet hit hard on the asphalt, enough so there was a complete ring at the impact site, which required me to replace the helmet as soon as I could. Also, the center stand tang left a deep dent in the toe of my right boot, which persisted for several years.

I am convinced that if I had not had full riding gear on, ready to ride, my ride would have ended right there, with a trip to an emergency room! Instead, I got to do the embarrassing hunt for someone to help me right the bike.

My pre-ride checklist now includes having ALL my gear on (ATGATT!), and checking that the side stand is fully deployed before bringing the machine down off the center stand -- every time!

Food for thought...

David Peterson
BMWMOA # 35271
BMWRA # 12729
'79 R65 'Grey Ghost'
'86 K75T 'Black Beauty' (Gone, but not forgotten)
'99 R1100RT 'Greenbike' (RIP)
'99 R1100RT 'Greenbike II' (the sequel)

[BCKRIDER]

Most of us pull our bikes off the center stand from the left side of the bike. Our left hand is on the left grip, the right hand on on the lifting lever or some other part of the bike. We can't cover either brake. Unless the ground is slightly uphill or truly flat, there is a good chance it will keep rolling. A fully extended side stand will very likely retract when it touches the ground.

Solution: (This assumes that the rear tire is off the ground when the bike is on the center stand:) Put the bike in first gear before you leave it. When you pull the bike off the center stand, it will come to an abrupt halt, even if it is pointing down hill. That is the time to deploy the side stand. Then you can mount the bike, start the engine, and are good to go, after remembering to snick up the side stand.

I'm very grateful for the previous post. I just had not thought of that. I usually back my bike out of the shed in street clothes, park it in the level drive (sometimes on the center stand for cleaning or packing) but usually leave the bike in neutral. While that has always worked at my home, there are clearly scenes where it would not work. I think leaving the bike in gear when you use the center stand would be sound advice and good general practice.

I'm sure we would all agree that avoiding accidents beats surviving them with damaged gear. That's the reason for this response. We all have more that we can learn from each other.

[ExGMan]

I have had a couple of experiences riding on ferries with my R200RT...and they pertain to this thread on not dropping a bike. I have found that most of the time, metal parking decks on ferries are wet. As a result any movement is a little perilous.

One ferry (Lewes, DE to Cape May, NJ) had a crewman who gave me precise instructions in parking the bike...90-dgrees to the rail, on the side-stand, in first gear, bars canted to the left. He chocked in the front wheel, and on a pretty rough passage, the bike didn't quiver. I wanted to tie it down, but he would not let me. Here's how it looked:

http://i258.photobucket.com/albums/hh276/ExGMan/DSC_6956.jpg

On another ferry (Orient Point, NY to New London, CT), I and a bunch of Harley riders were left to our own devices. I ended up about 45-dergrees to the rail, on the side-stand, in first gear but with a ratcheting strap securing the bike to the side of the boat. Again, an OK passage. The Harley riders either sat on their bikes, or borrowed rope from the ferry. Here's how that ride looked and note the wet, slippery deck:

http://i258.photobucket.com/albums/hh276/ExGMan/IMG_0462.jpg

Finally, on a very rough passage from Martha's Vineyard to Woods Hole, MA, a group of about 20 bikes was parked on the back end of the deck. When it became apparent how rough the ocean was, all riders were instructed to sit on their bikes. Most did so with the side-stand down.

[Visian]

Solution: (This assumes that the rear tire is off the ground when the bike is on the center stand:) Put the bike in first gear before you leave it. When you pull the bike off the center stand, it will come to an abrupt halt, even if it is pointing down hill. That is the time to deploy the side stand. Then you can mount the bike, start the engine, and are good to go, after remembering to snick up the side stand.

that is a really good tip!

a corollary... hopefully it hasn't been mentioned above, put the bike in first gear when backing it off a trailer. yes, you can trailer your beemer from time to time, we won't laugh.

the front brake is very ineffective when backing down a slope.

But with the bike in gear, you get much better control using the clutch, letting it out slightly when needed to allow the engine's compression to act as a brake.

ian

[Rod Sheridan]

In my experience, the absolutely fool proof method of not dropping a bike is to only ride where there are no other BMW riders.

It's kind of like the airhead gearbox crunch, you can ride 30,000Km without a single crunch, however the first time you pull up to a rally with a bunch of riders standing around you'll make the world's loudest shift.

In support of this theory I offer the time my airhead was over on it's right side on the grass at Finger Lakes and there I was standing upright with the left handlebar grip in my hand........Obviously needed a better glue.......Of course there were also a bunch of BMW riders to witness the event.....Regards, Rod.

[BCKRIDER]

I've told numerous people that since I wrote the original draft of "Don't Drop the Bike" it was great advice for at least one person. Me. Not a single drop since I wrote the first draft a few years ago. That record ended yesterday.

What I SHOULD have added to the article is "don't ride the bike when you have been drinking." Well, you know that. I know that. But how hard can it be to ride 20 feet from where you have just washed the bike in your driveway to the shed it lives in? Answer: too hard.

I'm not exactly sure how the bike ended up on its left side at a weird angle to the ramp (which possibly tells you something about the ratio of wine to wash water.) Then, contrary to my own advice, I did try to lift it. No go, though my back today attests to the effort. Then I did the smart thing and called my neighbour.

We got it upright, got the mirror back in it's holders (K RS mirrors always fall off in a tipover) and I then did get the bike in the shed under power. Don't think there is even a scratch on the bike. Just another lesson learned at no cost except to my pride.

Today, I thought very seriously about keeping this dumb little event to myself. Then I thought about all of you who contributed your own dumb little events to this thread, both before and after the published article, in hopes of helping someone avoid your mistakes. I decided I would feel more ashamed by NOT revealing my idiocy than by sharing it.

[RICHARD MOORE]

Loved the list of low-speed drop styles. Let me add another about which I'm entirely serious since it very nearly killed me. After a fly-in buy of my beautiful R1150GS in Tahoe, I rode it 6000+ miles of bliss through the West EXCEPT for a nearly zero mph drop in a traffic snarl in Santa Fe NM. Stopping in traffic, my left cuff caught on the weirdly mis-engineered black throttle controller box, and I lay the bike down and rolled bodily into the on-coming lane, right in front of an approaching semi. Since that remarkable moment, I've caught a cuff on that damnable object half a dozen times. Wunderlich makes a plastic (!) cover for $159!!!! The wonderful people at BMW should make the part and install it on every bike they've made with this crash waiting to happen.

[mariettaman29661]

The above article and personal stories. They were very educationally informative and interesting, and everyone had/has their 'drop' story. So, this is mine. Moral of my story: don't raise the kickstand and get off the bike. Have you done that?

After a hot July ride from Seneca Rocks, WVa, to Bloomsburg and the BMW Rally, I arrived found where I wanted to camp, put the kickstand down, surveyed the campsite a bit more from the bike's seat, and relaxed a bit as I sat astride of the bike. Then, I put both feet on the ground, raised the bike and kickstand, and "got off" the bike. The GSA 'followed' me to the left with a crash, and with me bounding off toward the left.

Red-faced from embarassment, I cursed myself for stupidity, and wondered how in the world I'd get the heavily laden bike up by myself, since I was tired, and really have problems lifting the heavy GSA. Fortunately, there were many helpful peers there who helped me lift the bike. Peers because they all had dropped a bike, and peers because we were all Rally siblings.

But, none of them had ever dropped a bike so stupidly. After a good hard, long laugh together, we shook hands and went our separate ways. I try not to relate this stupidity story to many others, and think quite often that maybe this heavy bike belongs to a younger guy who can lift it!!

[beemergirl]

Nice article! I attribute most of my drops (0-2mph drops) to fatigue, the rest to SLS (short leg syndrome) and dirt & gravel where I don't expect it.

I almost always fall on the right hand side....the damage to my side case is a reminder of lessons learned. No reason to hide the reminders.