A personal example of how full gear can save your ass!

[njchopper87]

Originally Posted by Triple

You mentioned having recently installed a new set of forks.

Have you ever done this before? Improperly torqued steering head bearings can create the vagueness in the front-end you described. I had a few mid-corner "oh shit" moments after swapping GSXR forks onto my SV and this was why.

I'm also thinking this is the cause.

Originally Posted by OTB

First off, SHit! how did i miss this thread... and DLIT, I am so sorry.

I am going to take a WAG (wild-assed guess) about the cause of the crash.

You said that in the transition from left to right the front end just "went away"; without more details it's just a guess, but bikes like the R1 (short wheelbase, little rake, short trail) can do a little "pogo" type thing where when you've popped from full lean to full lean side-to-side the suspension unweights for a second at the top of the transition.... a lot of it has to do with if you are trail braking or on throttle and in that photo, it appears that the direction of travel is slightly downhill which also contributes to the unweighting on the front.

Doesn't take much at racetrack speeds. Rushing even slightly downhill causes the vectors to change NOT in your favor.

Just guessing without more data. But I've lost the front in similar situations on bikes i was familiar with, on roads I "Knew".

This would be the runner up. Best to start with the more obvious causes.

[DLIT]

Here's the shiner on my hip.

[DLIT]

My right hip/upper thigh. No holes, leather held up great.


Other pics...
Right shoulder, also hit the curb. The armor protected my shoulder well.


Right elbow


That's the worst damage. The paramedics had to cut the suit off me. Sucks.

[Trip]

wow, you went for a quick slide.

[Ninjakel]

wow dude. Very glad that you are ok,......that's some crazy shit!


Heal up quick!

[OneSickPsycho]

Originally Posted by Particle Man

First: holy crap - heal up fast and glad you're okay(ish)

Second: dumb question maybe, but why the hell is there a curb in the middle of freaking nowhere...??

That was my first thought as well, but I'd imagine it has something to do with water run off to avoid the road flooding in those torrential downpours that cause flash floods in the desert. Or I could be making that shit up.

[z06boy]

Looking at the bike...


Reading your post......glad you pretty much came out ok.

[dubbs]

So how fast were you actually going? Kinda scary that the front end just washed out like that. Makes me a little nervous now to go out especially in these below freezing temps..

[z06boy]

Originally Posted by dubbs

So how fast were you actually going? Kinda scary that the front end just washed out like that. Makes me a little nervous now to go out especially in these below freezing temps..

Originally Posted by DLIT

Well, my buddy that picked the bike up said there was a bit of gravel in the road, like the shit that falls out of a dump truck. I was probably going between 110-120. There had to have been something in the road, man. It felt too damn weird.

[dubbs]

woops.. I knew i missed it somewhere, just couldn't find it.