My turn to go down...

[CHEMIKER]

On a ride through the Santa Cruz mountains with Cali Rider on Thursday I had the opportunity to try out my frame sliders and leather jacket. An 8-inch wide by probably 30-foot desiel fuel spill appeared in the middle of a tight, blind turn. I was going probably 30 to 35 mph and just didn't see it. I had no warning, just turning then sliding down the road. I'm fine and the bike is fine except for scratches. We slid about 20 or 25 feet across the road and came to rest just off the road in the dirt. I skidded on my right leg and right forearm/hand. Aside from a small burn on my forearm from where the leather got hot and a bruise on my hip where I hit the ground, I'm perfectly fine.

Cali Rider was right behind me and might have more to add; I really don't remember much. Here are some pics. My frame sliders did exactly what they should have done; saved me lots of money. We had a mystery antifreeze leak that we couldn't find at first. It stopped after a couple of minutes after we got the bike up so it might have been from the bike being in its side. I'll wash the bike and keep an eye on it but it's probably nothing.

Here are some pics:

This is a look back at the fuel spill

This a look forward where I went down. I fell about the lower left of the pic and my bike and I ended up by the guardrail in about the middle top of the pic. Good thing that no one was coming in the opposing direction.

Here is a closeup of the fuel exactly where I went down. You can see where my rear footpeg gouged the ground.

The frameslider that I will replace but not throw away. It's MOTOVATION by the way, almost all delrin, no metal. I'm going to send them these pics too.

Pics of the minor, cosmetic damage. You can see that overall the bike is still in fine shape. If I had to choose a crash result, it would have been this one.

 

[teeter]

Wow. Glad you and your steed are OK.

It's those unknown variables that can put us on our butts. Good call on proper gear and sliders!!

 

[mdr]

WOW. Really glad you're ok. Need to link this thread to the other one which argued against frame sliders. I'm sold. Thanks for the detailed pics!

 

[thulst]

Glad to hear you and your bike are ok except for some small scratches. It's good to see the sliders did their job.
Now you can see the red FZ6 is not only the faster one but the stonger one as well.

 

[grommit]

Good to see you are in one piece and your gear worked.

The slider pictures are very interesting, did their job perfectly.

 

[abacall]

Glad you're ok man. Oncoming traffic would have been a nightmare..
I am so impressed with the minimal damage. Glad I got some motos also.

 

[mdr]

Since you're ok we can now ask the important question .... repair or "badge of honor" for the fairing & tail ... :Sport:

 

[lazamus69]

Good to see all is mostly well.....Take care

 

[tolgatt]

sorry to hear the incident,,glad to see you are ok,,,
i was wondering what would happen with the motovation's,,,looks like they did their job perfectly,,,,any damage on the front brake lever?

 

[Zack]

I think that frame sliders are kind of ugly on that beautiful bike but the right one did the job. Can't argue much about that, will probably get a set.
By the way pictures are very good.

Zack

 

[sideslider]

wow! thanks for the pics?

 

[Cali rider]

I was about 30 ft. behind when Chemiker hit the spill. I saw the sheen of the fuel on the road just before Travis' front tire touched it and his front end tucked under instantly. He slowly slid and spun simultaneously, doing a 180° before coming to a halt. His right pant leg made contact with the fluid on the road, allowing it to slide cleanly without shredding the fabric, this is what saved him from a possible nasty leg wound.

I have seen a few crashes before and I am still surprised at the minimal damage to his bike. During the slide along the pavement the slider and center stand must have supported the weight of the bike until the last fraction of a second. Witness the absolute melting of the slider material vs. the token scratches on the front cowl and handrail.

What we have learned today:
- Be prepared to react to something unexpected. We had passed through this same turn, in the same direction, about 1 hour earlier and there was nothing on the road at that time.
- Wear quality riding gear. No need to elaborate.
- Look way ahead on the road. I saw the fuel on the ground before Travis made contact and was able to take corrective action.
- Install frame sliders, they make a difference in a crash.

Oh, thanks again Travis for riding with us!

 

[FZ1inNH]

Very happy to hear you are not hurt and the bike has such minimal damage! Those sliders are priceless at this point. Your experience is a true testiment to what proper gear and safety-oriented mods can do to minimize injury and damage!

I'm guessing the fluid was merely from the overflow bottle and tube. No worries!

Take care and ride safe Travis!

 

[ROACH1111]

They say it happens to everyone. I'm starting to believe it Glad you're ok man.

 

[Stumbles06]

Glad to see you're ok, and the ride with minimal damage.

The sliders did exactly what they're supposed to... Must get off my lazy butt and get a set, have come across similar spills on the road to work.. haven't put it down though... *touch wood*.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

Travis,

Glad you and your bike came out okay. Like you said, if you had to pick a time to go down, that was it. I'm absolutey shocked what minimal damage your bike has. As mentioned, you were very lucky that there was no oncoming traffic ahead, and you stopped before the guardrail. As we all know what guardrails do to motorcyclist.

I too have frame sliders, from Uncaged as I need some replacement tips. But it appears that Uncaged Frame Sliders is going out of business, I am seriously considering purchasing Motivations after your expereience.

What did the Mrs. have to say about your experience?

Once again, another safety oriented rider wearing proper gear and is able to not just walk away from the crash, but ride home!:thumbup:

 

[dako81]

Man that sucks about the spill. I have a friend who went down on his r1 several years ago on an off ramp because of a grape spill that cages had been running over and mushing up all day. Glad the slider worked well. Gives me more reason to get some....Glad you're ok!

 

[oldtimer]

glad you're okay and the bike is in great shape for that slide.

Got pics of the gear to drive the point home even more?

 

[Troubl]

Glad you're alright and that the bike isn't too bad off. Thanks for posting the picks, and thanks to both you and Cali for telling us about it!

 

[CHEMIKER]

sorry to hear the incident,,glad to see you are ok,,,
i was wondering what would happen with the motovation's,,,looks like they did their job perfectly,,,,any damage on the front brake lever?

Yes, a light scratch on the lever but not worth photographing. I have the Pazzo shorties so the length might have kept the lever from sustaining more damage.