Joined the drop club today

[Goodman4]

Dang it, I made it a year and 2 months and 10,000 miles. After the many times of "almost" dropping my pristine 07 in the garage, driveways, parking lots and other turn around situations I dropped her today.

I'm riding around Ozark MO this week on a family vacation and was exploring this morning when a road turned to gravel. I realized it wasn't going anywhere so I decided I'd better turn around. I pulled onto a side gravel road and the angle of the hill was more than I had thought. But I'd been in this situation before. Being patient and making small adjustments, keeping the balance at center always gets me through it. I almost had her maneuvered around the other direction and it started sliding backwards even with the front brake on. I gave it a little gas to try to get back to moving forward and before I could blink I laid her over on the right side. ATG(M)ATT (most all the time) saved my knees and my hand in the gravel. Bruised my palm but no cut due to the gloves. Pulled a muscle in my leg from trying to hold it up to where it hurts to walk but it doesn't hurt when sitting on the bike so I still got in a 200 mile ride around Bull Shoals Lake.

Anyway the good news is that I didn't have the sidebags on since the family is here in the van. The long frame sliders kept me from doing hardly anything to the fairing and only scratched up the right mirror. Some dings in the exhaust, but not too bad. I think it would have been much worse without the sliders, so I strongly recommend them.

Where can you order some stronger legs? Oh well, how do I get the stupid drop club logo for my signature?

 

[RossKean]

Once its past the "tipping point" it doesn't matter how strong your legs are; its going to go over! I dropped my '07 a few weeks ago while parking at a campsite. The ground felt firm enough but the sidestand decided it wanted to do a little drilling for oil and that was it. Rashed the left mirror and the lower part of the left bag. Was a bitch to pick up on a mild slope and soft ground. After nearly 100,000 miles, I'm not terribly disturbed about it. Wouldn't get anything for it if I decided to sell it so I will ride as long as it remains mechanically reliable. Minor cosmetic stuff doesn't bother me (much).

 

[El Toro Joe]

Welcome to the club

 

[gixxerjasen]

Yup, you learn with bikes that once they reach a certain angle, they ARE going down, and you just do the best you can to set them down gently without hurting yourself. It's easier to pick it up standing next to it than it is to keep it up sometimes, and you don't want to hurt yourself so bad you can't pick it back up.

On another note....next time stay on the gravel and enjoy a little loose goosey. These bikes will handle that kind of surface better than most people think they will so long as you don't go crazy. I mean, what's the worst that can happen, you drop it?

Just dropped mine a little bit ago, got the logo in my sig. Copy and paste the link below with some [ IMG ] on the left and [ /IMG ] on the right of the link without the spaces.

https://penetrode.net/scott/webpics/dropfinal.gif

 

[wnyfjr]

It's a rather large club. You'll fit right in. We don't have jackets or shirts though.

 

[Fred W]

It's a rather large club. You'll fit right in. We don't have jackets or shirts though.

Even without the tee-shirts, it's pretty easy to ID the members at any FJR gathering by looking at the sides of their bikes. There are some "dues" to be paid to join, and they do kind'a suck.

Mine's been down 3 times in my 7 years of ownership. Only the first one really bothered me. I did that one by forgetting I'd put up the kickstand.

The second one was my own fault for trying to ride it up onto a sidewalk to get under the overhang at a motel (FJR is not a trials bike), and the last one was in trying to make a 180 on the side of a steep (and I mean steep) hill. After it went over the wheels were up above the fuel tank. That one made the right side match the left a bit more.

None of it matters unless you plan on selling the bike. I don't, so it doesn't.

 

[gixxerjasen]

None of it matters unless you plan on selling the bike. I don't, so it doesn't.

Bingo!

 

[ionbeam]

...I dropped her today...a road turned to grave...and the angle of the hill was more than I had thought...it started sliding backward...and before I could blink I laid her over on the right side...

If nobody was there to see, it never happened

 

[jmgrif]

It's been said, Welcome to the club! My last tip over was on a trip in California hwy 128? I think. We had stopped on the side of the road for a confab and decided to turn around...I said lets keep going and look for a place to turn! Notice "I" said that! Everyone except me went on ahead while I thought I could make the turn while on gravel and onto a steeply banked away from me road, the embarrassment hurt much worse than my body. Rashed my bag and the mirror a little but otherwise OK. On the other hand while a friend and I rode locally we were stopped at a light waiting to turn right. My friend in front started to turn when his bike stalled and he fell off to the right side and rolled onto the sidewalk. Not too much traffic so I was able to stop right behind him and help to pick the bike up. Not even a scratch anywhere, some people have all the luck. I even saw a "revered member" of this exulted forum try and do a stoppy? in a motel parking lot in Fort Bragg without so much as a scratch? Must have been the scotch? The pain goes away. Take care; Mark

 

[Fly Bye]

I joined the club last year on my way out to So Cal. I pulled into a gas station in Marsing Id. to top off, when I put the FJR on the center stand I noticed it was a struggle to do so but I managed. After filling up I proceeded to take it off the center stand and guess what, to the right side she went past the point of no return.

After righting it with some assistance I noticed that the pavement was not level, it had a right side bank. Lesson learned, never attempt to put it on center stand unless the ground is level.

That was not a good way to start on a long journey, and yes I did feel like an idiot.

 

[stevec677]

All riders fall into two categories:

Member of the Drop Club

or

Future member of the Drop Club.

Note: I belong to the first one.

 

[palerider]

Dang it, I made it a year and 2 months and 10,000 miles. After the many times of "almost" dropping my pristine 07 in the garage, driveways, parking lots and other turn around situations I dropped her today.
I'm riding around Ozark MO this week on a family vacation and was exploring this morning when a road turned to gravel. I realized it wasn't going anywhere so I decided I'd better turn around. I pulled onto a side gravel road and the angle of the hill was more than I had thought. But I'd been in this situation before. Being patient and making small adjustments, keeping the balance at center always gets me through it. I almost had her maneuvered around the other direction and it started sliding backwards even with the front brake on. I gave it a little gas to try to get back to moving forward and before I could blink I laid her over on the right side. ATG(M)ATT (most all the time) saved my knees and my hand in the gravel. Bruised my palm but no cut due to the gloves. Pulled a muscle in my leg from trying to hold it up to where it hurts to walk but it doesn't hurt when sitting on the bike so I still got in a 200 mile ride around Bull Shoals Lake.

Anyway the good news is that I didn't have the sidebags on since the family is here in the van. The long frame sliders kept me from doing hardly anything to the fairing and only scratched up the right mirror. Some dings in the exhaust, but not too bad. I think it would have been much worse without the sliders, so I strongly recommend them.

Where can you order some stronger legs? Oh well, how do I get the stupid drop club logo for my signature?

Always makes me feel better when someone else drops there's too.

I've dropped mine a couple of times when riding alone, but once I had my wife aboard and we were pulling out of a parking lot. The driveway fell away to the left more than I thought it did, and we started to go down. That wouldn't have been good. Dumping the bike with me on it is one thing; dumping my wife is a whole other ball game. I worked so hard to keep it up--successfully, thank you Jesus and adrenaline--that I partially tore a tendon in my left elbow. Hurt like a bastard for weeks.

 

[tigerpaw78]

I'm glad I joined the club in the first week. Takes all the stress out of it! And a second time slamming the top case too hard at Yosemite. Fond memories...

 

[Bustanut joker]

Everytime I got drunk I tipped over.

I lost count at 597.. and that was the FIRST year.

 

[Fly Bye]

Everytime I got drunk I tipped over.
I lost count at 597.. and that was the FIRST year.

Practice makes perfect.

 

[ericboutin]

[quote name="Goodman4" post="1083638" timestamp="1374819220"
I've dropped mine a couple of times when riding alone, but once I had my wife aboard and we were pulling out of a parking lot. The driveway fell away to the left more than I thought it did, and we started to go down. That wouldn't have been good. Dumping the bike with me on it is one thing; dumping my wife is a whole other ball game. I worked so hard to keep it up--successfully, thank you Jesus and adrenaline--that I partially tore a tendon in my left elbow. Hurt like a bastard for weeks.

I feel your pain...my only drop came with my 13 yoa daughter aboard! Thankfully coming to a stop, put my foot down on some gravel and seemed to be at that "point of no return" almost instantly! As I was trying to ease it down gently I blipped the throttle instead which kinda flipped her off, ( can lol about it now lol), this was actually a good thing and then I commenced to set her down. It looked and sounded worse than it was I'm sure but not an excercise I'd like to repeat!!

 

[johnww]

I did the same thing to my 07 FJR at Big Bend National Park last year. I was having trouble picking it up against the slope of the road when a park ranger pulled up. I was somewhat embarrassed when a female ranger got out of her car. She was pretty good natured however and help me right the bike. I was lucky, I only scratched the left hand mirror, saddlebag and bruised my ego.

 

[wheatonFJR]

Drop club is much better than the crash club.

Better bennies....

 

[weekend rider]

Does that count as a controlled crash ?