For those that like remembering close calls...

[smileyman]

Itgirls crashing thread made me think about all the close call stories...You know the almost happens that you either managed to ride out or save. I know we all experience that more times than we crash so what's your tale?

My scariest was commuting from work on a 4 lane w/ turn lane and a full size Dodge Quad cab that I am meeting decides to turn left in front of me. I hit the brakes, slid the rear, countersteered as quickly as I could and missed the trucks bed by inches. Fortunately the truck never saw me because I am sure if he had he would have braked or straightened up and we would have collided for sure. I was so full of adrenaline after that incident I could have torn his truck in half!

[DLIT]

It's crazy how cagers drive along like nothing happens, meanwhile there's a dude on a bike struggling to keep it on two wheels because of something he did behind him.

Driver: whistling away, maybe lip-syncing hip-hop

Rider: franticly trying to stay up and shitting his pants from something stupid the cager did

[the chi]

1) Was coming down a rural road, was still a straightliner at the time, it was fairly curvy, hit a tree branch in the road, both wheels came off the ground, instinct kicked in, grabbed the clutch, hit the ground and kept rolling.

2) Coming into a 90 degree left turn, hit sand or dirt on the road, completely tucked the front end, brought it back up, road to a stop and freaked out. My big brother came back to get me as he saw the headlight tuck and thought i was done. Scary, but I made it!

3) City street, coming in too hot for a sharp sweeping right, not sure if I hit sand or oil, lost the angle, flew wide, came so close to the oncoming traffic vehicles stopped at the light I could read the VIN numbers on the dash of the honda I almost hit as well as the guys facial expression! I was shaking so hard when I got to the house right up the street I couldnt get off my bike.

Thats just a couple of the most memorable...

[NONE_too_SOFT]

Originally Posted by Rae

1) Was coming down a rural road, was still a straightliner at the time, it was fairly curvy, hit a tree branch in the road, both wheels came off the ground, instinct kicked in, grabbed the clutch, hit the ground and kept rolling.

2) Coming into a 90 degree left turn, hit sand or dirt on the road, completely tucked the front end, brought it back up, road to a stop and freaked out. My big brother came back to get me as he saw the headlight tuck and thought i was done. Scary, but I made it!

3) City street, coming in too hot for a sharp sweeping right, not sure if I hit sand or oil, lost the angle, flew wide, came so close to the oncoming traffic vehicles stopped at the light I could read the VIN numbers on the dash of the honda I almost hit as well as the guys facial expression! I was shaking so hard when I got to the house right up the street I couldnt get off my bike.

Thats just a couple of the most memorable...

I've hit gravel and lost traction too many times to count, only one time ended up in a crash.

tar snakes were quite a shock the first HOT day i rode the twisties. and howabout when you first get stuck in a highway rut and it feels like you're loosing control? ha, i love all that stuff.

[Gunther1000]

Two that come to mind... not crashes but saves.

1. Stoppie attempt #1000000, Was comfortable doing them and was going for "the all time longest ever" Ran it up to about 110 and grabbed as much front brake as I could after getting the front forks to dive, Back off the ground at about 70mph front tire locks up for a split second and washes out. Back slams down to the side just slightly, I let off the brake then reapplied to try and keep the front under me. The bike went so low to the right side my knee hit the ground and burned a hole in my pants, I put my knee down so hard to push the bike back up and saved it. Never tried another stoppie again... Well maybe I do one every once in a while but its just to a stop sign and never 70-80MPH rollers like before...

2. Way back in 01 I had the new 1000 and my buddy had the 600. We went thru a construction zone with some of that nice tar they lay down before covering it with pee rock. Well it coated both our tires and I zig zaged mine off and he was like "could you do that to mine?" sure, Almost an instant replay of the stoppie insident. Bike washd out and I saved it after a mean left to right, both leg's dancing like a monkey on a bike with ants in his pants! Longest almost crash in history! Of course my friend standing there watching was shitting his pants and The first thing he says was "how did you save that?"
Funny think was he said the same thing after he watched the first near crash above!

Ahh to be young and overly confident again....

[smileyman]

I was foolishly (on the street) racing (again) an RC51. I had the lead when a white Corolla ahead stops to turn left. I was in the middle of the lane and had to brake hard to miss it, while RC51 boy slides by on the right shoulder going for broke. I lined him up down the next straight and was going into the next left on a outside inside late apex pass when I see him brake and pull way inside. I am already committed and he has teh space I need to be in to avoid a huge patch of sheetrock or concrete dust (never figured out what) and I run through it leaned over, tuck the front, slide the nose all the way into the oncoming lane (whew, nothing coming) and then the tires catch clean asphalt, sending me over the side. Basically hanging on with my hands and right knee pit. I managed to drag myself back on before I go off roading and make the corner.

I never race where I havent seen the road surface since...

[Phenix_Rider]

More than I care to remember- and that's in the first year!

First time going down (what I thought at the time was) an extremely steep downhill. Ragged road, with gravel and huge chunks of asphalt right at the outside line. Some sort of sign on the right. I target fixate because I'm a noob, but hold a straight line. Road veers ever so slightly to the left. I end up right on that outside line, not 2" from the chunked up asphalt and gravel, praying I don't lose it on my brand new bike. Eyes locked on the center line, not daring to make a steering input till I drift back to the right side tire track. Slowed down even more than the crawl I was at (probably 30 down to 20). Found a side road after a while, turned off and found a driveway. Of course, this bitch is gravel and downhill... Managed to stay upright, and decided to call it a day and head home.

Coming out of a 35mph town road into a 5mph country road. Big blind sweeping uphill right. Snack through a gear or two, smoothly on the throttle. One second everything is beautiful, the next there's an Amish buggy with two kids in the back looking at me after I come full stop not 10ft behind them. Gave them a little wave, unclenched my cheeks, managed to get back to first gear without rolling backward or stalling, and eventually passed them.

More recently, I got into some invisible pea gravel on a little used back road. Didn't see it of course, lighting was bad through all the trees and dusk, going too fast. Hit that stuff on the brakes, front end shimmies, forcing my arms not too crank down on the bars. Came out the other side on about the same line I had planned- amazing because I though I'd be feet off from all the front end shake. Didn't really lose traction on either end, but it was like marbles.

[the chi]

You know I was thinking about this the other day, the longer i ride and the more years I get in the saddle, the less things like my close calls or stupid cagers exist in my memory. Like when someone cuts me off and almost kills me in a cage, when I was a new rider I would stew and work myself up, and now, I just shrug and forget about it...

[MikeSP1]

Originally Posted by Rae

You know I was thinking about this the other day, the longer i ride and the more years I get in the saddle, the less things like my close calls or stupid cagers exist in my memory. Like when someone cuts me off and almost kills me in a cage, when I was a new rider I would stew and work myself up, and now, I just shrug and forget about it...

Now you're coming into it

The only one recent that I can even come close to remembering. I was headed up to Hooters to host the booth for a poker run. Had the RC. Turned left at a light, everything got straightened up but I couldn't buzz through traffic because 2 cages were side-by-side. In traffic I ride VERY cautiously and don't like being next to cages. But I was at the door of a Dodge Ram who was pulling a drag car when he starts coming over without looking or warning. Hit the brake very hard and started moving toward yellow line. Missed the back edge of the trailer by an inch or two. Dropped two gears and changed into the right lane and buzzed by him right quick.