Hitting gravel around a turn...

[ShinyPartsUp]

Pros let go of the handlebar and try to get rid of as much unsprung weight as possible by getting their butts off the seat.

Not to be picky, but... Unsure if Cameron said the above or if that was your paraphrase, but technically this it is an incorrect term.

"Unsprung weight" is only the weight of the wheels, tires, brakes, etc. that bear weight on the road without the benefit of suspension. So whether your weight is in the seat or on the pegs it is never "unsprung weight".

I think what was probably meant was to get the weight supported as low on the frame as possible to lower the center of gravity?

You are correct Fred. He specifically wrote riders take their hands off the grips and stand on the pegs. Some aren't comfy with that and put their fingertips on the grips lightly and put their weight on the pegs as much as possible.

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

Wife just finished the NH MSF training (freshly minted motorcycle license in hand). She was told by the instructor that if you are leaned over with the rear wheel locked that you are usually better off to keep the brake locked and take your chances. For some reason the instructor did not go on and tell the class about high-siding if you release the brake and the rear tire regains traction.

BTDT too. The lessons I learned the hard way... :bigeyedsmiley: My MSF and Team Oregon classes didn't stress or I didn't remember that little tidbit either.

Thanks to you and Fred for the lesson on unsprung weight.

 

[Warchild]

It's why you are supposed to ride "within your vision", ie only as fast as you can avoid what you can't see.

The above is the key take-away from this discussion.....

You were mighty lucky, Sam... but you know that already. Unless you have *just* finished that section of road and know for a fact what is and isn't lurking just around each bend, it is extremely problematic to "out-ride your eyes" when dealing with tight twisties.

I am glad you kept the bike upright.... because it could have gone the other way. For example... Iggy and I have a co-worker who, under our guidance, just purchase a 2010 silver FJR, and took it down to the San Fran area this weekend.

He low-sided on gravel in a right turn and went down pretty good.... good enough to destroy the throttle tube and badly **** up right-side tupperware.

Don't out ride your eyes, folks.... 'cuz Badness can easily lurk just around the bend...

 

[painman]

As one rides on a race track there is usually pleanty of wide track space with pleanty of run-off with cushioned wall areas, no on-coming traffic, pleanty of visual line of sight through the turns, no rocks/gravel in the roadway and no forest rats or moose or other wildlife to collide with. The only real issues are staying on the track, staying upright and not running into your fellow racers.

On the road especially in tight winding turns that usually occur in mountainous terrain, we deal with very narrow road space, roads that lack maintainence that have bumps and or potholes, no run-off areas, no cushioned areas in case of a crash, on-coming traffic that can come into our lane, very little line of sight through the turns, rocks/gravel streawn across the roadway, forest rats, moose and assorted other wildlife, all resulting in no second chances if you make a mistake and if you do can result in distaster.

Seems like the main theme to the answer of this thread is look well enough ahead as one can, slow down and ride your own ride, and be safe doing it, and hopefully avoiding disaster. With the main objective to have fun but be able to ride home to your family at the end of the day. PM. <><

 

[mcatrophy]

...In theory, I've finally come to understand the best approach is to do NONE of the above, and "ride through" the problem, trusting the bike and your tires, even if the rear tire slides out what feels like six feet, but really is probably not much more than a very few inches. Hard to do when you're panicking like a M-F'er and see your life flashing before your eyes. ...

Generally agree here. I've been through a couple of slippery occasions and survived.

Couple of thoughts. If your rear wheel is going sideways, there is always a likelihood of a high-side if the wheel recovers grip suddenly. Hanging on the the grips may enable you to catch and stay on the bike. But, if there's a tank-slapper in progress, you're between a rock and a hard place. (Possibly not the kindest metaphor .)

My only suggestion is to wrap your hands round the grips, but keep your arms loose. This way you will tend to damp down the tank slapper with less risk of encouraging it, but still hanging on to the bike while the rear end (hopefully) sorts itself out.

One thing that's always been drummed into me (and has been re-iterated by others in this thread) - you are almost always better staying with the bike and trying to ride it through, rather than "putting it down". But don't "try" too hard. Most importantly, look where you want to go, and keep reasonably loose.

It's something you can't practise in normal riding (unlike hard braking, counter-steering etc.), but thinking through various dangerous scenarios can enable you to react better to them if they do occur.

Again, drummed into me, "trust the bike".

 

[BlueFJRider]

Sam,

Glad to hear you made it through. How are your tires? I remember the last couple of times we went riding you were commenting about your tires reaching the end of their life. My front was badly cupped, the back just at the wear bars, and I wasn't feeling the groove on our last trip. I got new ones and the bike feels so much more planted and responsive to smaller inputs. I don't know if that had anything to do with either part of your drama. Sure glad I'll still be seeing you at WFO!!

Brad

 

[puppychow]

Sam,
Glad to hear you made it through. How are your tires? I remember the last couple of times we went riding you were commenting about your tires reaching the end of their life. My front was badly cupped, the back just at the wear bars, and I wasn't feeling the groove on our last trip. I got new ones and the bike feels so much more planted and responsive to smaller inputs. I don't know if that had anything to do with either part of your drama. Sure glad I'll still be seeing you at WFO!!

Brad

Brad,

The tires are end of life - down to the wear bars now, once I head back to Folsom tomorrow (400 mile day) they should be done and would be replacing them with fresh rubber. My front tire is doing fine, but the rear is badly cupped.