Dropped my bike again. :-(

[shpanky]

It seems to be a common behavior...every month or so, I end up in a situation where I drop my bike. It seems most common when I'm slowing behind a person in front of me, check to my right or left for oncoming traffic and begin to merge. I'll then see a car closing in on the merging lane and I hit the brakes, causing me to tumble off the bike. No damage to me at all, but I just had some damage replaced on my bike and now it's scraped up again. :-(

I'm getting a little discouraged, this makes 5 drops since I got the bike in March? I don't want to give up on riding, but if this is telling me I'm a bad rider maybe I should stop. I do love riding my bike tho. :-(

 

[dxh24]

Is it because your going over the handlebars or just can't get your feet back under you in time? either way you can work on it... find a parking lot and practice the same situation :thumbup:

 

[Ransom]

Sorry about your luck.

It is possible that you are just going to heavy on the front brakes while trying to maneuver. Start to so some research on different braking techniques and find a nice place to practice them and see what works for you.
Good Luck:thumbup:

 

[agf]

I agree practice your braking in an empty parking lot, and allow more room when merging if you are not feeling confident of ownership of your lane space, I know it can be daunting. Practice your slow riding too, feather or drag your rear brakes while you keep some gas on in1st or 2nd, you should be able to move at a little faster than walking pace, without wobbling after a little practice, good luck

Sent from the phone: sorry 'bout my spileng, fat fingers...you know!

 

[GTPAddict]

Have you taken a motorcycle safety course? I would strongly suggest this if you have not. They will teach you how to stop the bike quickly without dropping it, as well as many other things you don't even know you need to know.

 

[Erci]

Have you taken a motorcycle safety course? I would strongly suggest this if you have not. They will teach you how to stop the bike quickly without dropping it, as well as many other things you don't even know you need to know.

+1 million! If you have taken it, take BRC2!
Can't know for sure without watching you ride, but I'm willing to bet you're not looking straight ahead/up and/or you're not squaring your handlebars when you're coming to a stop.

 

[ChevyFazer]

what exactly do you mean a car closing in on the merging lane? i ask because im wondering if your about to take of and then hit the brakes or see someone coming behind you or what exactly? either way i agree with everyone else keep your chin up and find somewhere to practice the situation, it will take time but soon riding will be second nature!

 

[greg]

observations and keeping your distance should give you more time to react, you should never need to emergency break under normal situations

also at slow speed try and use the back break, you can use the front as well, but you need to be careful with how hard you apply it

if there's any motocross type events where you can get out on the dirt that may help you learn how to control skidding and braking in a safer environment

i use the front to scrub off a lot of speed, when emergency braking i use front and a little rear, for slow speed i use mostly rear and a tiny amount of front. in corners i try to avoid using the front.

but i think one of the main things you need to work on is observations to prevent these situations (shoulder/lifesaver checks, using the mirrors, monitoring for hazards, etc), and giving suffficient space (don't tailgate). On multi lane roads it's also good to plan escape routes in case a car tries to drive into you, and try to avoid riding in their blind spots.

i also trust you have proper safety gear too

 

[FIZZER6]

If you are turning your head completely around to check the lane you are merging into before making your move there is no way a car can suddenly appear in it. Also you live in CA...you can lane split out there! :thumbup:

 

[Motogiro]

+1 million! If you have taken it, take BRC2!
Can't know for sure without watching you ride, but I'm willing to bet you're not looking straight ahead/up and/or you're not squaring your handlebars when you're coming to a stop.

That's exactly it. When your front wheel is turned left and you apply hard front brake the mass of the bike will push over to the right. Opposite way if the front wheel is turned right.

You need to go to MSF. If you've experienced this many times there is more than one problem. MSF might help you discover why your ending up in this situation so often as well as keep you out of more serious situations.
Riding is much more than the mechanics of piloting the bike. It's also a great place to discuss and get a better understanding of how to stop this habit.

If you're repeating this in traffic it means you're putting your self in this situation because you're not assessing traffic and executing your movements with confidence. You may also be anxious in traffic near cars which also detracts from your minds ability to quickly and accurately execute movement in traffic.

Don't feel bad because many of us have experienced this same scenario and it is probably the most experienced type of fall on a bike. If you have a bicycle you can experience the same thing. While slowly riding turn the wheel and apply the front brake. Try it both ways with the wheel turned left and then right. Go to MSF!

 

[Susan]

It sounds like you need an experienced person to watch you in that type of situation and help you understand what you're doing to make you drop the bike. Then once you know what you've been doing to cause the bike to go down, and what to do differently to keep it up, practice, practice, practice. (I'm a grandma who sits at a desk all day, 5'4", no big bulgy muscles anywhere on me, so if I can keep my bike up, you can learn to keep yours up.)

You might consider practicing on a lighter, less powerful bike, too, until you get the idea of it.

And taking the MSF course is definitely a great idea.

 

[FinalImpact]

Sorry to hear that and I can understand your disappointment.

Practice, practice, practice and confidence knowing where everyone is really helps! Off hand it sounds like a panic reaction finding someone where you didn't expect them to be so try adjusting those mirrors to cover the spot your missing OR get in that lane sooner so as to NOT have to make last minute lane changes?? Me personally I spend a good deal of time looking in my mirrors. Granted I find them feeble on the bike as I have 99% confidence in my cagers mirrors (Left door, cabin, and right door) where as the bike you just can't triangulate to cover all areas so you have to scan allot!
Do you checks and keep track of all you can.

As for going down, do your best to replay the events and paint us a picture of what happens. It sounds like a sharp angle and too much brakes applied are bringing you down???

Do you have a friend you can ride with? Someone to observe your style?

Take the rider course, ride with a friend, watch them do some panic stops, turns, lane shifts.
Best of luck and glad you're OK!

 

[VEGASRIDER]

+1 million! If you have taken it, take BRC2!
Can't know for sure without watching you ride, but I'm willing to bet you're not looking straight ahead/up and/or you're not squaring your handlebars when you're coming to a stop.

Ahh, you beat me to this one. Agreed, classic case of not having your handlbars squared or in other words, not straight while the rider is also looking down!

This is the most common type of drops for new riders, and I see it happen almost every class. Whenever I see a rider using their front brake while their handle bar is turned, I warn them what will happen if they continue to do so. Just a matter of time until I say I told you so.

This is the primary reason why we teach our new riders not to cover the front brake while riding. It's a very bad habit to acquire for obvious reasons.

Taking the Basic Rider Course (BRC) is recommended if you have not taken it. Do not take the advanced course. At the very least, you need to go to an open parking lot practicing developing your motor skills by using muscle memory for braking. You never want to grab your front brake, you need to progressively squeeze them. This muscle memory becomes even more critical during emergency situations. Most riders will grab a hand full of brakes and result in a front tire skid and a low side crash before they even reach the hazard that suddenly appeared in front of them. Not only does the BRC show you how, we explain why.

 

[LVNeptune]

It seems to be a common behavior...every month or so, I end up in a situation where I drop my bike. It seems most common when I'm slowing behind a person in front of me, check to my right or left for oncoming traffic and begin to merge. I'll then see a car closing in on the merging lane and I hit the brakes, causing me to tumble off the bike. No damage to me at all, but I just had some damage replaced on my bike and now it's scraped up again. :-(

I'm getting a little discouraged, this makes 5 drops since I got the bike in March? I don't want to give up on riding, but if this is telling me I'm a bad rider maybe I should stop. I do love riding my bike tho. :-(

Never turn and brake and the same time. Brake before turn or brake after turn. Never brake IN a turn.

 

[mikw73]

I had two near drops recently similar to what it sounds like you're doing. The first was making a right at a stop with a brain amputee at another side if the intersection pondering his decision at his stop sign while fondling his brake pedal. I was so distracted by the idiot that I didn't look ahead of me to see, when I finally made my turn, that a more profoundly idiotic driver was driving on the wrong side of the road toward me after I made the turn. He did not veer back to his side of the road, but did slow so I swerved right and stopped. The bike was still leaning right kinda hard when it stopped but I got a foot down in time and managed not to throw my back out pulling it upright. I did not harm any of the idiots involved.

The other near drop was just coming to a stop on a road with a banked turn on a much taller and heavier bike than I'm used to riding. I was still leaned into the turn a little when I stopped for a construction road block and wasn't ready for all that weight.

I would guess that an instructor can probably spot what you're doing wrong. The sooner, the better; you don't want a bad habit to settle in too deeply. I've done a lot of low speed practice thus year, but I still don't always transition from speed to slow turning smoothly or perfectly accurately. I'd suggest a class, watching some police bike rodeo videos and parking lot practice.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

Never turn and brake and the same time. Brake before turn or brake after turn. Never brake IN a turn.

Not necessarily true. You can still brake while turning but this requires more skill and finess and is reserved for more advanced riders. Yes we initially teach you and the proper cornering techinique which is to do your braking before you begin your corner, but if you take more advance classes, you will also learn how to brake while turning or cornering.

 

[shpanky]

Hey folks, I actually have taken the MSF course, but I'm a new rider still (only been about 6 months since I've been on an actual bike). I think I need to practice my rear braking as I rarely use those. Thanks for all the tips everyone, I was just getting really discouraged and wondering if this was even the right thing for me anymore, which was really bumming me out. I love riding my bike and do so any chance I get (I even commute to work on it when I don't have to).

 

[2006_FZ6]

Well, you did the right thing by taking the class! Now all you need is some more practice and experience. Other folks have suggested practicing in a parking lot and I agree. Try some slow speed riding as well.

Maybe one of our fellow riders in your area can lend you a hand and ride/practice with you?

Hang in there and don't get discouraged. It takes a long time to become proficient BUT you never really stop learning, even after years of experience.

 

[FIZZER6]

Not necessarily true. You can still brake while turning but this requires more skill and finess and is reserved for more advanced riders. Yes we initially teach you and the proper cornering techinique which is to do your braking before you begin your corner, but if you take more advance classes, you will also learn how to brake while turning or cornering.

^ Yep. It's called "trail-braking". I do it all the time, I also keep one finger on the front brakes while entering a blind corner...if you have to slow/stop mid-corner the key is to apply LIGHT brakes while bringing the bike up and square before applying more brakes.

Also dragging the rear brakes when making a 90 degree turn at an intersection can steady your drive chain and on/off throttle for a smoother, safer turn. It does take practice. :thumbup:

 

[hk_fz6_05]

Also dragging the rear brakes when making a 90 degree turn at an intersection can steady your drive chain and on/off throttle for a smoother, safer turn. It does take practice. :thumbup:

huh, interesting. I do that instinctively, and always thought I was doing something wrong since I needed to feather the breaks to smooth the turn out. whaddayaknow.

great thread - interesting read for other newer riders :thumbup: