BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

Happens to the best of us. You are definitely one of our board's BEST.

Glad you are still in one piece. Thank you for sharing the bad news, we need to check our heads sometimes. You went Far above and beyond your duty to remind us to WEAR THE GEAR.

quick recovery wishes for the bike and bruises.

DJ,

Has the shop given you any idea on parts wait? and are the instrument mounts ok?

The Jeans held up well... certainly considering a pair of those, they do seem to work well...


Bry

Bry...no idea yet about the parts..the tank was damaged and I'm hoping they'll replace it rather than repair it..also I think repairing it will take longer.

After my bike side towards the gutter (and cyclist)..it then slid along the gutter and bounced off the tree spinning my bike around..denting the tank and smashing the headlight and instrument panel.

Here's a pic of the tank damage.. http://members.optusnet.com.au/~djp1/mypic2640.JPG

Also the header must have slid along the curb.. http://members.optusnet.com.au/~djp1/mypic2638.JPG

It's all come back to me now what happened.

After putting myself in the bad situation of being between the tracks..it gave me very little room to cross the single track to get off them..I could not get enough angle.

I remember thinking careful..a front end loose is very possible here..consentrate..I slowed a little and crossed as sharp as I could..and once the front wheel was across thinking..phew!..that was scary..and maybe relaxed a little only to find the rear was stuck in the groove and not coming out..I was going sideways with the front turned in a sort of opposite lock slide..it seemed to go on forever before I got tipped over..and dived off to the right side..I did a roll and slid mostly on my back and side...(really just fell on my side..no roll)

It was so wet and smooth it was like a slippery slide...while sliding along I could see my bike heading towards the cyclist and hit him..it was like knocking down that single pin and getting a spare in bowling..

I think that's why my Draggin jeans faired so well..if it was dry conditions..and a rougher surface..I'm sure they would have worn much more..still..they're much better than normal jeans.

Because I was not braking..I don't think ABS would have helped.

If I'm ever in that situation agian..I will slow right down..maybe even have the outriggers out..and tippy toe across the track...I though our tires were wide enough to not get caught like that...I thought wrong.

DJ

DJ.........strangely enough, I just happen to be browsing the site and read about your mishap......

First and foremost, aside from a few sores, I'm glad that you and the cyclist are OK.

Over the years I have come to know you like we lived next to each other, even though we never met. That being said, I also recognize that our bikes are the extension of our personality but loosing a bike to a crash is nothing remotely compared to seeing a friend get hurt.

I think that you will take this little pecadillo and add it to your ample collection of life experiences.....fix that babby and get right back on the saddle....like we say stateside.

Cheers and good health to you my friend..........

DJ,

I feel compelled to offer condolences on the R's black eye and an expression of relief that you weathered the mishap as well as you did---both physically and mentally. I have read and enjoyed your posts and have benefited from the loads of info you've provided from the very day I signed onto the forum. Like others who have mentioned in this thread, though we've never met (I live way across the water in Oklahoma--USA's Indian Territory) I feel I know you through your posts as well as any other riding buddy I have made acquaintance with. The wonders of the internet are quite amazing in that regard.

I look forward, as I know we all do, to the complete restoration of your beautiful R to its former glory and know that you will continue to post with your delightful wit and great pics. You've already done that throughout the event and again have contributed much pertinent and entertaining info that we can all consider and apply to our own 2-wheeled excursions. The "R" is more than just a bike and "DJ" is so much more than a screen name on a web page.

So get better, get the R back in shape, keep posting, and it's good to "know" you, mate.

KMACR (Kevin)

Thanks Kevin and Boxermania.

In the last five years that I've been on this forum we've only had a few crashes reported (more than a few little drops though. .).

I'm glad about that..the odd time a crash has come up it's made me wake up just a little..maybe slow down a little..and be more aware of the dangers.

Learning by others mistakes is a good way to learn..it's less expensive..and less painful ..so I hope we don't hear of anyone else slipping on tram tracks.

I can't wait to get back on the road and riding again....and taking pics.

DJ

DJ
Lo siento mucho ! !

I though our tires were wide enough to not get caught like that...I thought wrong.

Yes! David Hough talks about this ad infinitum. Edge traps! My take on it is this: Your tire comes to an edge and naturally wants to follow it. If there is ample tire surface/tread extending past the exact part that touches that edge, and ample friction (rough surface) on the surface adjacent to the edge trap, then you will usually roll on over the trap (if it's not too high). But what happened to you was the surface immediately adjacent to the edge you contacted was rain slickened steel. So your nice tire continued along the edge while you and the mass of the bike so wanted to keep going across at 30 mph or so. KAPOW! Down you went. I don't believe it had much really to do with how wide the tire was.

You guys with more knowledge and experience than I have may want to correct me on that. But I believe that's what happens.

I too have been away from the computer with sick kids, only to learn of this at 4.50am this sunday morning.


DJ - Glad you are ok, bikes can be replaced, but people can't - again, glad you got through it.


i hate Melbourne tram tracks - and i feel your pain

It's amazing how well your gear survived after the slide, it just goes to show how far we have come in the development of rider protection.

Keep your chin up, brother - we are all thinking of you up here, and hope for a speedy recovery of both yourself and your magic machine that inspires us all.

Cheers,

Phil

Boxer,

I also thought of David Hough's advice on wheel traps. Notice that DJ was aware of the danger of those tracks, was being careful, and still fell.
In the midwest where I grew up a common practice was to pave right up against abandoned rails rather then go to the expense of removing them. I hit one of these with my 350 Honda where it kind of curved though the street I was on. Bright sunshiny day, I crossed that clean dry steel rail and was down before I could blink.
I hate `em.

One of my biggest fears is encountering railroad tracks while traveling through a place I've never been before in heavy traffic. Time to plan/respond to such encounters is very short, and how I fare in such situations is heavily influenced by circumstances around me. Given my propensity to ride long distances, fatigue too will affect my ability to process information.

The art of buildling bridges was perfected by the Romans. It's best to build one to traverse automobile roads over railroads!

DJ,

You are a great contributor to this board. You pictures are awesome. I'm very sorry to hear about your mishap. I guess it happens even to the best of us. The bike can be fixed or replaced easily enough. Hopefully there isn't any pychological damage. Get back on that horse!

DJ I just heard about your mishap yesterday from Biffs_R. SO glad to hear you're physically in good shape and so sorry to hear that your beautiful black bike didn't fare so well. Here's to hoping the insurance company gets 'er put back together quickly.

Chris

DJ,

I had a similar problem 2 winters ago in my truck returning home from work. The road was completely snow covered and I had just taken off from a stop sign, accelerated gently down a steep hill, shifted into 2nd gear and lifted off the gas pedal going very slow, low rpm's in 2nd gear. The truck immediately went into a full 90 degree left/right/left slide with me countersteering like crazy trying to recover. Then I realized why it wasn't recovering at all and I pushed in the clutch, got it quickly straightened out and gently used the brakes to slow down enough to stop at the stop sign at the bottom of the hill. It was a good thing there weren't any cars or there would have been a head-on crash. As it was, I went all 4 wheels onto a lawn, barely missing a mailbox and telephone pole. The off-road tracks thru the snow lasted 3 days, so my trips home from work twice allowed me to annonomously see the adventurous route I was forced to take. I had a similar downshifting in the snow, slide sideways scare-a-thon when I was 17 in my (sic) seven year old 1959 chevy. Realizing what caused it I did the same thing then too. Push in the clutch, recovered and avoided an accident.

Now comes the important part. Your recollection that the front wheel crossed over the rail but the rear wheel got caught in the groove fit the guesstimation I made, based on my snow rides and wet woods riding dirt bikes. The reason why the smaller radius front tire passes over the groove while the larger radius rear tire gets stuck in it is a forced loss of traction. Your front wheel was coasting with no brakes or engine power applied. With tire traction very weak on wet, shiny, smooth steel, ANY driving or decel torque will cause the rear wheel to loose traction and never get it back. Just letting off the throttle a little bit, as anyone would unconsciously consider normal crossing wet tracks, is enough to break rear wheel traction.

Next time you (or anybody else) have to cross tracks at a very shallow angle in the rain - - - pull in the clutch before you make the lane change across the steel. It'll cross no sweat, just like the front wheel did.

BTW, I didn't know the fuel tank was trashed. Those babies new are well over $1000 in your color.

WOW that bruise looks HUGE and painfull !!!! Without good riding gear like the shorts-n-Teeshirt crowd wears that would also have been new skin grafts and lots-a-stitches.

DJ,

I feel for you. I am pleased that you are ok - that is the most important thing. Your gear did a good job.

Tram/train lines always concern me and Melbourne has quite a few tram limes. Real scary in the wet I suspect - slippery as a butcher's block!

Hope all is back in place real soon.

Regards

Thanks boxer04...yes they're everywhere down here..I hear stories all the time of people slipping on them..I sometimes think to myself..'that'll teach ya'..you have to watch out for them or you'll go down..and also thinking that it will never happen to me.

CycleRob...your comment makes a lot of sense..I think I was backing off ever so slightly trying to coast across..but didn't have the clutch pulled...I was worried more about the rear wheel spinning up on me..and I know it didn't do that.

BTW..here's the latest.

Crash on Wednesday

Bike to dealer on Thursday

Gear to dealer on Friday and bike gets quoted..about $7,000 (Aussie) plus gear replacement.

Monday the insurance company does inspection and gives the ok to start repairs...and they say I don't loose my rating 1..they say I've earned the right to a rating 1 for life..

So...it's all happening and I should have it back on the road soon..

Oh yeah..the tank..they are going to repair it..they say a new tank is about 2 grand (Aussie)..I'm not happy and would rather them replace it but they say it will be perfect...we'll see.

DJ

As has been said by me, and many others here, I am just glad that you are okay. I thoroughly enjoy your ride reports & pix with the hotties

Your bike will be sorted, and I'm sure that you'll be fine with it, no matter how they do it. There's no substitute for riding though, so here's to a speedy recovery for bike & rider.

Afterseeing that heart stopping 7K Parts+Labor figure I went to the currency exchange rate site to put it in perspective.

7,000.00 AUD Australia Dollars = 5,317.50 USD = 4,178.45 EURO

1 AUD = 0.759643 USD
1 USD = 1.31641 AUD

That is very close to being totaled and prolly why they elected to repair the tank rather than replace it, to stay under the 70% or 80% rule insurance companies use.

Good luck on the repairs DJ. I guess my advice is don't expect it to be perfect & you won't be disapointed.

I HATE things in my path that are parallel or nearly so with where I am going. I've been doing an extended commute through the middle of LA county for the last couple of weeks, 55 miles each way. There are areas of pavement regroving going on where they leave little ridges of maybe 1/2 inch high, there are old freeway bridges that got widened that have 2 inch wide expansion joints parallel with the lane right where I ride, there are old sections of pavement at interchanges that the trucks have pushed up "waves" of pavement at least 3 inches high between wheel travel areas in adjoining lanes (that last on almost pushed me into a car I was "lane sharing" with, not to mention the lane joints in concrete pavement right where we here in Cali lane split. When I hit Orange County the freeways are heaven, wide, smooth & modern. Maybe I should move. At least going the same way each day I learn where the crap is, its on those rides in new areas that these things can really give the pucker factor.

And all my problems are dry. I know its even tougher in the rain.

I have no doubt that the repairs will be done to perfection and they will be undetectable.
Let's see you back on it soon.