Ojai ride + crash

[grommit]

Glad you are OK.

Looked like a nice day/ride till the end.

Still April folks, be careful out there.

 

[Wavex]

Good to have you back safe! How fast were you going?

Speedo reads 71mph right after the downshift, and 56mph entering the dirt... the speedo refresh rate is fast, but I believe it takes about a 1/2 second for it to refresh... I am estimating 65mph entering the corner around 40mph entering the dirt... and finally hitting the dirt mount at around 25mph.

 

[Wavex]

David - I'm just glad you are okay.

Look at it pretty close, looked to me like you set up too late, didn't commit quick enough and fixated. One of those "AH! SH*T" moments.

Fred seem to have it right, the down shift wasn't as smooth as your others, did you chirp the rear wheel and up set the bike?

Looked like you almost had it at the end there.

Oh, nice cliff avoidance too!

If you look at the vid, I never even tried to setup lol... just one moment of inattention.

I gotta say, I went from feeling really angry at myself for such a stupid mistake, to feeling very lucky and happy... I still don`t understand how I managed to come out of that without a scratch, and I am even more puzzled by how the bike made it out with close to nothing other than a boken bellypan/headlight/seatcowl.

 

[Wavex]

Good Lord! Another one!?!? So glad to hear you're OK!!! Talk to us... tell us what you could have done to avoid it. Were you getting your arse off the seat enough?

Please post some pics of what the damage was too. Nice to hear it wasn't a mess like the last one!

Thanks for sharing and again.... Happy to know you're alright!!! Take care!

Thanks bro... yes another one

As I mentioned above, we had been riding all morning more aggressively... going up the mountain and going down as well... that was the last part of the day and we were actually going slower... the only thing I could have done to avoid it would have been to keep my concentration level up... one thing for sure is that I am going to leave the camera off the bike for a while... I believe it participated in my lack of full concentration.

I also had not eaten anything all day... I left my house at 6:45am... met up with Moldmaker at 7:15am... rode up to Ventura and Ojai and got there at around 11:00am I guess... spent 2hours in the sun... went back down at 1:00pm and the accident happened at around 1:30pm I guess... maybe 2pm. We had lunch at 3:00pm lol... bad bad idea as well to ride with nothing in the stomach.

I`ll post more pics later, but here is the bike before and after the crash:

- up Ojai, where we stayed a couple hours cooking under the sun:

- after the crash, back home after cleaning the dirt that was covering the entire bike:

 

[Wavex]

Here is the new headlight I ordered this morning (will be the only thing I do to the bike for now... no more plastics for me!):

View attachment 3389

 

[pchbreeze]

looks like you were doing ok on the side until you hit the yellow pansies

glad you're ok lil puppet...glad to see you're not treating you hot bike like a show bike either...props for riding it.

 

[Nelly]

Damn, as far as I'm concern, it was still a great recovery. By the time you dumped the bike, you were pretty much almost to a stop. In my opinion, it was a great save by making the correct decision! That particular situation could have been disasterous. Meaning that a natural reaction to correct the turn in the soft gravel, or hitting the brakes at the wrong time could have meant major wipeout. I bet ya 9/10 riders wouldn't have the same outcome.

I am in agreement with you Vegas, once you get on the gravel you are really in the sh1t.
David I am gutted for you, fair play that you didn’t lock up the front or rear wheels and end up sliding over the edge of the cliff. That is a testament that you were still thinking during the crisis.
What speed were you doing when you did drop it? David I am so glad you are ok.
I guess what really hurts us the most is that you have spent so much money, time and effort on your bike. Anyway its meant for riding so fair play to you. I have seen some beautiful showroom bikes that don't see any miles unless its on the back of a trailer.
If its any consolation to you I have also done the same thing, a split second loss of concentration then having to commit to going off road. Actually I think your video demonstrates probably the most common mode of coming off.
Again I am glad your ok.

Nelly

 

[Wavex]

David I am gutted for you, fair play that you didn’t lock up the front or rear wheels and end up sliding over the edge of the cliff. That is a testament that you were still thinking during the crisis.

Yeah the only moment I wasn`t thinking straight was for a second there while entering the turn...

What speed were you doing when you did drop it? David I am so glad you are ok.

Seen on speedo in the video: 71mph after the downshift, 56 entering the dirt, 20mph when the bike is in the air (when I got ejected). The koso's speed is very accurate (I calibrated it) and its refresh rate is fast, but since it all happened in like 3 seconds, I would take about 20% off these speeds due to the 1/2 second refresh rate.

I guess what really hurts us the most is that you have spent so much money, time and effort on your bike. Anyway its meant for riding so fair play to you. I have seen some beautiful showroom bikes that don't see any miles unless its on the back of a trailer.
If its any consolation to you I have also done the same thing, a split second loss of concentration then having to commit to going off road. Actually I think your video demonstrates probably the most common mode of coming off.
Again I am glad your ok.

Nelly

After checking myself and realizing I was completely fine, the next thing in my mind was anger for my bike After everything was said and done I did not spend that much $$ in that bike (less overall than buying a brand new one), but definitely the time and efforts.... + I just loved it hehe
Anyway, even if I take care of my bike and put a lot of efforts into it, it doesn`t mean I won`t ride hard... maybe I`ll stick to riding hard at the track though, and tone it down a couple notches in the twisties from now on.

Again, the good news is that the bike is doing great and the new headlight is on the way. I have to admit I am excited to have a new project in my hands :thumbup:

 

[madmanmaigret]

well again we're glad you're safe, and that new headlight is gonna look good! are you going to paint it all black, or leave it bare for a while? also how did the seat cowl get messed but not the side pods (did the bike actually flip over?)? it just seems like more would get bashed. Probobly the last bike I wanted to see crash besides my own good luck on the "re-build"

 

[Numpty]

Glad to hear you got away unhurt and the bike is on the mend mate.I was on the edge of my seat entering every corner with you with fingers crossed.Thanks for sharing your ride all be it the unfortunate ending.

:iconbeer: to you for keeping the damage to you and the bike to a minimum.

The new headlight will look very cool :thumbup:

 

[Nelly]

Yeah the only moment I wasn`t thinking straight was for a second there while entering the turn...



Seen on speedo in the video: 71mph after the downshift, 56 entering the dirt, 20mph when the bike is in the air (when I got ejected). The koso's speed is very accurate (I calibrated it) and its refresh rate is fast, but since it all happened in like 3 seconds, I would take about 20% off these speeds due to the 1/2 second refresh rate.

Thanks David,
My video viewing quality is not that good, I knew you were going some by the engine note.
The bushes probably did you a bit of favour (bit like a tyre wall) in reducing the impact.

Nelly

 

[Wavex]

well again we're glad you're safe, and that new headlight is gonna look good! are you going to paint it all black, or leave it bare for a while? also how did the seat cowl get messed but not the side pods (did the bike actually flip over?)? it just seems like more would get bashed. Probobly the last bike I wanted to see crash besides my own good luck on the "re-build"

Thanks bro! I really like the white vertical stripe splitting the headlight, but I think I am going all black to start with. If I ever go with the white stripe, I`ll continue it along the tank as well

After reviewing the video carefully and remembering how the bike looked after I stood up from the crash, I think the bike landed on a big pile of soft dirt upside down, on the front... so basically it landed on the headlight, which cushioned the impact, and then rolled on the seat cowl and basically fell on its side. The dirt pile was 2-3 feet high and very soft, so it helped preserve the bike A LOT (I landed there as well, so it helped preserve myself as well lol).

Taking a close up look at the bike last night these are the only things I could find:
- light scratches on the tank, left stator cover and left side cover (we're talking very light scratches, not even through the clear coat for most of them),
- small dent on top of the tank, next to the gas cap.

Honestly (I am repeating myself) I feel really lucky (like "wtf" lucky) to have come out of this crash intact... that the bike took so little damage puzzles me as well, but hey, I won`t try to understand it too much!

 

[Wavex]

Thanks David,
My video viewing quality is not that good, I knew you were going some by the engine note.
The bushes probably did you a bit of favour (bit like a tyre wall) in reducing the impact.

Nelly

Yeah the video quality sucks after uploading to youtube... I uploaded a better version last night I don`t know if you saw. In any case, in both versions, you can`t really read the speedo... I can read it fine on the DVD version I have at home though You should see the crash on the projector screen... pretty fun (when the wife is away of course)

I think the dirt did me a favor more than the bushes... but the bushes coming up from the side of the cliff reminded me I did not want to go straight

 

[Nobby]

Glad your OK dude

 

[pchbreeze]

is this the new headlight you were looking at getting?
[nomedia]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmB7uUHYgBE[/nomedia]

 

[madmanmaigret]

that the bike took so little damage puzzles me as well, but hey, I won`t try to understand it too much!

it is the fz gods thanking you for that sick A$$ bike!

can't wait to see the new version!

 

[Cloggy]

is this the new headlight you were looking at getting?
YouTube - Marty Endo crash

I first thought oh no stupid squid, but to make it worse it's a Dutch squid

 

[staticghost]

Wow.... I am so glad you are OK. I was just watching this on youtube last night... when I've seen this I was thinking OMG let this rider be OK after this. And surely enough, you are. Great.
Let this all be a lesson for all our fellow riders, to be safe and focus on the road 100% of the time, at all times. Ride on ... Ride on...