What was your closest call?

[Guest]

I have been reading posts from crash survivors as well as pictures posted of those who did not survive a crash. I am not necessarily a "new" motorcycle rider, I used to own a 1982 Honda Nighthawk 450 when I was 19 years old and I rode that bike everywhere and in all kinds of weather. My best friend nearly lost his life on it (he was doing 45 when a landscaping truck pulled out in front of him) and was in the hospital for 3 months before they let him recuperate at home. When I was with him in the hospital those 3 months - I vowed to never buy another motorcycle again. But I did. Over a decade later.

Hopefully, these stories can serve as a stern reminder to new riders that motorcycles are not safe and our fragile bodies are far from invincible while riding them.

My closest call was a few weeks after I had purchased the Honda Nighthawk while I was living in St. Pete, Fla. At the time, I was hanging out with one of my uncles who is a professional rodeo cowboy, and he was "teaching" me the fine art of bullriding. In any case, I had gone to a rodeo event in Tampa, Fla. on my motorcycle. When the event was over, and my uncle and I decided to go back to our homes, I left the arena and made a wrong turn on 2-75 (I think) heading north instead of south. When I realized I was going the wrong way, I noticed that there was no one sharing the highway coming or going (it was about 1 or 2 in the morning). That was when my young mind thought "This means no cops!!! yay!!!" and I proceeded to see just how fast my bike would go. My closest call was a result of my own stupidity and ignorance.

When I was roaring down that highway, full throttle, I noticed two lights reflecting in my right side mirror. I thought a cop had pulled up behind me and was tailgating me. I looked over my right shoulder, only momentarily, to glance behind me. I noticed a faraway street light and at that instance realized my right side mirror had been shaking making it appear as if it were headlights behind me. When I turned back around to face the front, I met a horrible discovery. I was headed straight for the ditch seperating the highway. I went into the ditch, and the bike bucked much the same way a bull would. The grass was so high in the median the only thought that entered my mind was, "If I die out here, no one will see me". I gradually slowed down - after putting the bike in neutral. I decided at that point since I was already in the middle of the median, and I had been going the wrong way, I would just go to the other side and head home. And I did, without ever giving that incident a second thought or losing sleep over it until many years later.

I know, what I did was a very stupid thing to do. But, it was a very "typical" thing for a 19 year old kid to do too. If I had lost balance on that bike, I could have been lost in those high weeds for hours dying and no one would have seen me.

[bonanzadave]

We are all smarter because of it. My first attempt at headphones in the helmet somehow got me so distracted I went to pass a car with one coming toward me. It was so close I had to split em with me in the middle. Wont ever try that again.

Also tried to draft a semi for a 100 miles. When I finally decided to go around him my throttle hand brushed the trailer. Dumb kid.

[trdhrdr007]

Like a lot of people that started riding in their late teens I've got plenty of stories about close calls. Most of them involved too much speed, too much alcohol, or a combination of both. I've also got 2 stories that didn't involve either.

In the first I was driving at the speed limit, with 2 cars in front of me. The car at the front was a big ol' boat that didn't have a gas cap. Every time they hit a bump I could see gas sloshing out onto the road. We came up to an intersection, the gas slosher went through, then the car in front of me hit the intersection. I don't know how the guy even saw it, but when he was fully into the intersection the light turned yellow & he hit the brakes. I hit my brakes & a patch of gas at the same time, the bike went one way & I went the other, sliding across the intersection on my back until I hit the curb on the other side.

The other one was when I was riding on I-10 in Mississippi, over some bridges, during morning rush hour traffic, in the right hand lane with a semi in front of & behind me. The lane I was in was flowing at about 75-80, with people steadily flying by in the left lane. All of a sudden the right rear tire of the tractor blew out & almost immediately fragmented throwing huge tire chunks in my general direction. Nowhere to escape on the right because of the bridge, but I managed to accelerate into the left lane without getting creamed.

[Jethro]

Well, I've had three incidnets that were not close calls, rather full on contact. But, as far as close calls, two stick in my mind. One was just by chance, the other was purely my own stupidity.

About 4 years ago I was travelling down Route 202 in NH, heading west. It's a two lane State highway, posted limit of 55mph, but no one travels it less than 65. You can drive right by a cop at 70 and will not get pulled over. I'm all alone, not many cars within sight and moving about 65-70. A deer shot out of the pucker and leaped right across the road maybe 20-30 feet in front of me. I was past him on the side of the road before my hand eye coordination caught up and applied the brakes.

This one is pure stupidity and completely irresponsable. 2 years ago the Rally up in Moosehead Lake (4th annual upcoming, see meetingplace) was completely rained out. It poured all weekend. But on Saturday, a group of crazies went out for a jaunt in the torrent. I'm on the GS, big, heavy and bias ply tires and I have it pinned at an indicated 140 on the way out of town. That's about the time when Andy and Skip blew past me like I was standing still. Anyway, later in the ride, a few had decided to turn back while a few of us pressed on for a loop. On the way back to Greenville, we were behind about 3 cars on a very long straight-a-way. You could tell it's about a mile long straight, but in the rain the visability wasn't that great. My buddy Sean is in front on his ZRX, which up high beats the snot out of my GS. I see him pull out to pass the 3 cars, and whoever was just behind him pulled out as well. I take a quick look and see no oncoming cars, so I pin it and pull out for the pass. I'm passing the rear car and notice that horror of all horrors, the lead car has his left directional on and a car is oncoming that I couldn't see becasue it was grey and didn't have his headlights on. In the rain I failed to see all this, as well as the side street the lead car was planning on turning onto. It was obvious that the lead car was planning to beat the oncoming car to make his turn, if he saw him at all. The right thing to do would be to cut off the rear car and drop back into line until the lead car turned and the oncoming car passed, but something inside my head wasn't clicking, pack mentality, thick head... whatever. I pinned it and passed the lead car at the very instant he started making the turn, at which point I had to hammer the bike over back into my lane to avoid the oncoming car. He probably missed my rear wheel with his front bumper by 6" and I was probably doing about 100 in the absolute pouring rain. It's lucky the cars didn't get creamed by themselves, and me in the middle of it all. That was a moment of certain death that I escaped by a millisecond. If I come to an end on my motorcycle, I'd sure hate it to be at a time when I am riding like a complete azzhole.

[skreemer]

On the way to work one morning the bike coughed and sputtered. I knew we were all moving along at 40mph and I was going a bit slower because of the sputtering engine. I looked down to see if I had it in reserve, when I looked back up all the traffic had come to a halt backed up further than normal at a light. I hit the brakes and swerved about a foot from the back bumper of a pickup truck and literally brushed the truck with my shoulder as I went by.

Ever since then I learned where everything was by feel... That petcock lever is tiny when i have my gloves on.

[marvinsc]

Recently? http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum...d.php?t=110989

[MelodicMetalGod]

DC, 1988, north on 14th St NW. Noticed a cab stopped at a stop sign on a side street on my right (heading west) and waiting for south bound traffic to clear so that he could turn left to go south as well. I kept watching his head to ensure that he would be able to see me...never happened. All I ever saw was the back of his head. He never checked north bound traffic (me). Fortunately I had noticed him and his lack of vision. Even so, I really expected him to look to his right at LEAST once before he pulled across an intersection at which he had a stop while the cross traffic did not. Like I said, he never did. Just pulled right on out. Even though I had planned an escape route for this, I still was in disbelief when it actually happened. It took everything I could muster to countersteer to the right and behind his vehicle (he still had no idea I was there). I passed so close that I had to lift my left leg up over his bumper to avoid hitting my knee on it. As I finished the pass my left rear turn signal smacked his rear bumper (or something near it). Although the speed was low (25-30mph), if I'd have caught that bumper with my knee, that would've ended my days of limp-free walking and running.

Furious, I pulled a 180 as soon as I was clear and I chased the ba$tard down. At the first stop light I laid into him (verbally). Told him how his "inattention" had just about cost me a leg, etc. and I demanded an explanation.

His response: Please, please...no green card! No green card!

At the time his response had me so completely disappointed in humanity (he was completely unconcerned that he had almost seriously injured another person) that I just dropped the whole thing and drove away without another word. These days, he'd have to empty his cash box to me and I'd still report him to INS!!!

[MelodicMetalGod]

Just posted this yesterday in another thread. This was probably my closest call ever.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Billyboy
TANK SLAPPER: Head shake or speed wobble so bad the steering goes from left lock to right lock violently. Usually results in a crash.

Never heard that term before, but it happened to me once on the Capital beltway at about 75 mph. It showed up in an instant. It is 100%, abSOLUTELY, withOUT a DOUBT, the MOST scared I've ever been on a motorcycle EVER! It seemed that a harmonic vibration had setup in the front end and I had zero directional control. All I was doin' was looking over my shoulder to see what was gonna run over me when I went down and backing off the throttle. In one of the luckiest moments of my riding career, I somehow stayed upright, and even in my own lane, as my speed dropped under 70 at which point the wobble vanished as quickly as it had appeared. I NEVER took that bike (1985 (or so) Yamaha Seca II) above 70 again.

[earlfor]

This happened to me about a year ago.

There's a narrow, two lane, back road I frequently ride because it has a lot of hills and curves. On one stretch, the road goes over a hill about 100 ft high. As soon as you reach the top, it turns downhill and 90 deg to the right, then runs more or less straight for a quarter mile and then goes uphill with a turn to the left on the crest of that hill. Hill to hill, the distance is about 1/4 mile. At the midpoint between the two hills, on the straight section is a ravine. The road drops into a large dip, large enough that a car in the dip will not be visable to traffic in either direction. The speed limit along this stretch is 45 mph, but most people are going about 50-60 mph. I was going 55. As I crested the first hill and made the 90 turn to the right, I glanced as the 2nd hill and noted three oncoming vehicles. They were bumper to bumper. There were two cars in the lead with a black F250/350 bringing up the rear. About then I dropped into the dip and lost sight of the oncoming traffic. A second later, as I "popped" up from the dip, the first thing I did was reacquire the "incoming" The picture had changed drastically. The F250 had decided to pass the two cars and was now alongside the lead car. I had a headon collision coming my way in both lanes in about 1 second. There is no shoulder more than an inch or two and both sides of the road are heavily lined with large oak trees. Leaving the road is not an option. The distance remaining between me and the F250 was much to short to stop and if I could have, all it would have accomplished would be me sitting still while a truck ran over me at 75 mph.
I took the "tunnel", it was the only choice I had. I flicked the Bandit exactly onto the yellow centerline and split the traffic head on with a 130 mph closure speed.

After that, I considered quitting riding, but
as I said when it happened and I first posted the experience, the only vehicle I could have had that I would have survived the situation in was a motorcycle.

Earl

[Eli69]

close calls suck, i've had too many of them to count. i don't know why i keep riding, i should be dead. i'm an idiot. thanks for caring.

[Sandy]

close calls suck, i've had too many of them to count. i don't know why i keep riding, i should be dead. i'm an idiot. thanks for caring.

I resemble that remark, except that close calls can make some good stories and crashing really sucks because it can bring an otherwise good ride or story to an abrupt halt. One such story happened in the mid eighties on one of our bizarre sport bike rides in northern California. We were headed from Lake Tahoe to Santa Cruz as usual by the most indirect route, California roads do that to you. Our route took us across 50, down 49, west on 88, down 99, east on 4 to 49, down 49 to 108, and west again on 108. If you've ever been on Hwy 4 you know they use that term rather loosely, it looks like someone drove a D9 Cat through the bush while towing a paving machine. There were a few of us but the main players in this story were myself (FZ750) and a buddy (RZ500). It was midday and by now we were feeling real perky and were going waaaaay faster than we should have been for that road. With lots of throttle we were able to get over 100mph in spots and were having the time of our life. My buddy was out front a hundred feet or so and setting the pace for a change and I was pacing him. Anyway we approached what looked like a small dip in the road and I hear my buddy roll off the throttle (made note to self that two strokes don't slow down when the throttle is chopped so the brakes are used lots) and his brake light comes on, no big deal and didn't seem like he was slowing down much. As I just about got to spot where he braked I realized he wasn't slowing down because his tires weren't on the ground and there was a fairly abrupt turn around a grove of trees about two hundred feet ahead, he was about a foot off the ground for a good hundred of those as the road dropped away. I was able to grab some brake just before I got airborne which was the worst thing to do as it caused the front to dive and I guess I did what would look like a brakie but with both tires off the ground. Anyway, I managed to keep it straight somehow and we both got back on the ground with time left for some braking and lots of puckering. Yeah somehow luck prevailed and we made it to Santa Cruz that night.

[MelodicMetalGod]

This happened to me about a year ago.

There's a narrow, two lane, back road I frequently ride because it has a lot of hills and curves. On one stretch, the road goes over a hill about 100 ft high. As soon as you reach the top, it turns downhill and 90 deg to the right, then runs more or less straight for a quarter mile and then goes uphill with a turn to the left on the crest of that hill. Hill to hill, the distance is about 1/4 mile. At the midpoint between the two hills, on the straight section is a ravine. The road drops into a large dip, large enough that a car in the dip will not be visable to traffic in either direction. The speed limit along this stretch is 45 mph, but most people are going about 50-60 mph. I was going 55. As I crested the first hill and made the 90 turn to the right, I glanced as the 2nd hill and noted three oncoming vehicles. They were bumper to bumper. There were two cars in the lead with a black F250/350 bringing up the rear. About then I dropped into the dip and lost sight of the oncoming traffic. A second later, as I "popped" up from the dip, the first thing I did was reacquire the "incoming" The picture had changed drastically. The F250 had decided to pass the two cars and was now alongside the lead car. I had a headon collision coming my way in both lanes in about 1 second. There is no shoulder more than an inch or two and both sides of the road are heavily lined with large oak trees. Leaving the road is not an option. The distance remaining between me and the F250 was much to short to stop and if I could have, all it would have accomplished would be me sitting still while a truck ran over me at 75 mph.
I took the "tunnel", it was the only choice I had. I flicked the Bandit exactly onto the yellow centerline and split the traffic head on with a 130 mph closure speed.

After that, I considered quitting riding, but
as I said when it happened and I first posted the experience, the only vehicle I could have had that I would have survived the situation in was a motorcycle.

Earl

Wow! That may just be the definition of intensity.

[mark]

Locked up the front end and went down on I-5 in Seattle at about 60 mph. It was pouring rain, landed in a crouch position and slid on hands and knees for a while, going around and around. Remember bumping over the "turtles".

Picked up my bike and rode to the UW, handlebars cocked at at 45 degree angle and what little of my fairing I had left.

[UTCiv]

When I had my ZX6R and my brother had his Z1000, us and a buddy of mine went down to Hocking Hills in Ohio near Athens. Lots of twisting roads, some in good condition some not, with very steep grades and cross slopes in some areas.

We were exploring and my brother was leading. His bike would pull mine in a straight line, but my Ninja was very nimble and I was better at quickly transitioning and taking corners at speed. I got a big head and started to close on him through some twists that were downhill and pretty soon I'm on and off his back wheel with the ability to pass him if I wanted, so I was kinda playing around and tucking under him in the corners and falling back every so often. We really didn't run that hard in the straights and for the most part I thought we were running somewhere around 75%.

We take a few turns in one section, and I close pretty quickly on him as we go around a downhill, off camber, right sweeping turn. I was too close to him to duck to the inside after running up on him from the previous left turn, and just about half of my front tire is in front of the back half of his rear tire once we get settled into the turn. The bad thing is the turn just keeps getting gnarlier and gnarlier as it twists tighter and becomes more downhill. He starts to panic a bit and lays on his brakes a touch which straightens him up a bit and and starts him in a slow transition towards me and the center of the road. I can't brake harder or I'll straighten up and cross the center, and I can't lean any further or I'll rub into his back tire.

I take a quick glance up ahead and see the turn continuing and an SUV in the left lane that I am quickly being pushed into. I remember chanting three distinct times for him to get it together and get back to the inside of the road as the SUV approached. Just as the SUV was about to reach us, I was a handlebar over the double yellows, and he quits transitioning out. I tuck within and inch or two from his bike me outside double yellow and him on it as the SUV somehow passes me without touching me (the road wasn't too wide). I got the shakes after that and had to take a break for a bit.

I was dumb of me to ever push even 75% on roads like that, close to another bike. It quickly became a 100%+ situation and something I never want to feel again on public roads. I was completely helpless and very thankful that my brother made it through the turn which scared him! (I don't think he even realized I was stuck outside of him and that close until we talked afterward.)

I usually ride pretty conservative and that was probably the one time after riding for a few days straight on those roads we just got too comfortable on the bikes and I got too big of a head.

[gremlin]

i have had two that serve my memory well. one was a soccer mom who pulled out in to my path and stopped dead in her tracks blocking the hole road, when see seen me. I was on the main road she was on a side street. i started to lean in to a turn, then she takes off and pins me behind a parked truck and stops cutting my escape path off. all of this was done at about 15-20 mph. then she takes off giving me just a bit of room to get by the truck and slams on her brakes agen. I dang near hit the rear of her van. I chased her down and yelled at her till her husband came out. then i yelled at him. found out from the husband she has crashed many times.

the last one, i pulled up to a stop sign. lit a smoke waiting for the traffic to clear. my turn to go let off the clutch and a Mexican laying down in the seat, voided the stop sign. passed me on the left to do a right hand turn. if he would of had a rear bumper i would of been under his car. left a tread mark down the side of his car from my front tire. the Mexican had the balls to tell me cars have the right away over motorcycles. when a girl that seen it happen told him she called the cops he ran.