What was your closest call?

[80GS1000]

At least he saw you in time! Wow.

Did the 'search' for 'Close Call' and decided to add my own little lunch time story from today.

Leaving the plant and get to the intersection to make a right (it's a four laner both ways, and I'm going from moderate traffic to the busier street). I make a right into the right lane and I've already scoped out the much clearer left lane. I make a quick helmet check to my left and I make the lane change.

Something in my brain clicks and I just nail the throttle on the GS1100E in second gear. A split second later I hear a car locking up behind me as I'm hitting 6 grand. The screech of tires continues for another second as I hit 7, then 8 grand. I am clear and also scared $hitless! Either I miscalculated his speed in the left lane from far back, or he was coming up fast on the rear, not planning to stop and made the change through the intersection, nearly right into me.

After 25 years off've a street bike, I am in agreement of the statistics, that it's way more deadly out there, than back then!

[Regis]

Thanks GS1000! It's a good thing too. This morning's ride, found me far more cautious than I was yesterday morning, that's for damn sure! Your weekend misadventure was something else too! Mine was my stupidity and I got away with it. Yours was pure fate. Glad you escaped that one too! I read the whole thread and some of the things our fellow GS'rs had to do to escape death or serious injury were pretty radical!

[82GS650GZ]

I've got a few myself.....

I have only been riding for about 2 years and have had my share of run in's with "cages". The first time was Less than 2 months after I bought my first bike.
I had beed over at a buddy's house helping him prep the engine for his race bike ('01 R6) to go into the shop for finial tuning before it went back into his bike for next season. Loaded the engine into my truck and took it to the mechanic. We get back to his house a realized we had forgot to take all of the parts. Rather than waste more gas in one of our trucks, we got on the bikes and headed for town. He has a '01 Buell X-1 Lightning with a V&H pipe and I have a '04 Buell XB9S that at that time was still stock. As we approached town, we got off the main road and hopped to a frontage road that ran past the lake. I was comming up to a 'T' intersection (we were going straight through and had the right of way) and spotted a LARGE balck Tahoe-esque vehice approaching the same intersection. Keep in mind, I was less than 50 feet from the intersection running about 30mph. Well the SUV didn't stop at the sign. He pulled right out in front of me. I cut as far to the side of the road as I could without hitting the row of mailboxes that was there. Some how I managed to keek the bike upright and both tires on the ground as I locked up both tires and shoulder checked the SUV about the second row passenger door. Talk about making a "Newbie's" Butt-h*** pucker!!!:shock:

That was my first close call and have had a few more since then, but I will repeat what I have seen in a few other various posts. Most of the time the offending cage is being driven by a woman(-1) with kids(-2) holding her cell(-3) in broad daylight with me wearing my orange Icon vest(-4). That alone is why I put over $1000 into that bike last winter. Airbox mods, exhaust, ECU, and now she is LOUD! ( but not obnoxious!) I've had alot fewer problems this year and it goes to show, Loud Pipes Save Lives!:-D If you are not going to make a effort to look for a bike, You are going to hear me and look to see where it is comming from!

I'll post more of my stories later, and it just goes to emphisize that you really need to pay attention to your surroundings, because no one else is.

[N56629]

Doing about 100mph the front end started to shimmy. I thought sure I was going to lose it but it stopped when the speed dropped to about 80. That was over 20 years ago and I haven't done it since, at least not on a motorcycle. My Dakota has GPS'ed out at 137.5 mph.

Has anyone installed a shimmy dampner on their bike? What kind and how well do they work?

[earlfor]

I had a squirrel run across the road in front of me last week. I had to use almost all the braking of the CBR to give the little fella time to make his dash without getting run over. LOL

Earl

[1980GS1000E]

In the years from 1982 to 1986, I rode with a bunch of crazies who liked to ride at over 100 no matter where they went. We used to ride from NYC to Marcus Dairy in CT at 120-140+ on the interstate almost every Sunday. Don't know why we were never pulled over. Anyway, more than one time we came upon other motorists that were obeying the double nickel and sometimes we would pass on either side of these "slowpokes". I recall one time when I was setting up to pass a car on the right when I saw the driver suddenly make a move like he had just realized he was about to miss his exit. He started to move right, saw me coming up fast, swerved a little back to the left, which allowed me to make my illegal pass, then he exited the road. Had he not seen me, I most certainly would have impacted his car at around 120 mph.

[spyug]

Touch wood, I haven't had anything happen in my 4 years of riding.

I did have an incident away back that was kind of like 1980GS1000's. I was driving on our cross town highway in my Ford van in the right hand lane. I was just passing the first on ramp which is a great 290 degree decreasing sweeper. I didn't see anyone on the ramp as I passed and was driving along listening to the tunes with not a care in the world.

All of a sudden, I heard a big sport bike accelerating like a bat out of hell. The sound startled me and I immediately swerved toward the shoulder just as numb nuts went by me at about 100......on the right hand side. I didn't ever see him behind me and only reacted to the sound. Lucky for him he was by me before I could even make the swerve. Scared the poop out of me.

I don't like riding on the highways likely because of this incident. It still gives me the willies.

Ride safe gals and guys.
Spyug.

[t3rmin]

Almost hit a deer yesterday. Was dusk (the right time of day) and September (the right season), so I *was* keeping an eye out, but he still came up awfully quick. Luckily the 700 stops quick.

Same ride I went into a 15mph curve too hot and almost had to go wide into the other lane, except the old folks in the Mercury coming at me made that impossible. Leaned 'er over hard, scraping my boot, and made it through. Definite pucker moment.

[crag antler]

Riding Connie down to the hardware store this AM in mild traffic,when I had a couple step onto a crosswalk right in front of me.
Right under a shade tree, hardly saw them, I guess they were expecting me to stop.
Well stop is the law, so I did.
Locked up the rear and did a nice slide right up to them.
Stopped and the ole guy nodded.
Took off and noticed those da mn cagers weren't keeping close to me anymore.:shock::?\\/

[chef1366]

There is a bridge in Pittsburgh that has a curve in it. I was crossing the bridge during a rain storm going to my house in Bellevue. The roads pavement is seperated with steel girders. My rear wheel slipped out from underneith me on a girder. My Kaw LTD 1000's peg bounced off the roads surface but because of my many crashes on dirtbikes I was able to pull the bike back up with all my might. As I drove on, caught my breath and my heart stopped racing I went home and changed my underwear.
If that peg would of caught the road surface I'd be dead.

[Pharkmeh]

fair stories all - but geebuz how lucky was I.....


asked my current missus to marry meh 3 years ago...... and she said NO !!! \\/

now thats a close call.....:shock:

[Ninja_Lancer]

fair stories all - but geebuz how lucky was I.....


asked my current missus to marry meh 3 years ago...... and she said NO !!! \\/

now thats a close call.....:shock:

Yeah, you win......

[GS1000SNKS]

Two accidents in 26 years of riding. Neither was a close call.
1. 1987 Car merged left into me and run me into the concrete barrier between the lanes. Some rash and no broken bones. Destroyed my 1979 GS1000E. I did rebuild it a few years later as a drag bike and plan on doing a cafe resto on it next year.

2. September 3rd 2006. Head on into a car that crossed into my lane. it was on a county road. I turned to get out of the way but the car caught the left rear of the bike. I run down a road sign and took out 60' of barbwire fence. 2 months in the Hospital and several operations later, I got to keep the leg.


The bike took 7 months to rebuild but turned out great:


My last "close call." Was a couple weeks ago at Hallett Circuit. Shifted the bike from 4th to 2nd going into turn one from the front straight. Almost Highsided.


I ride evryday to work still as long as weather permits. The Guzzi is the workhorse for now.

Richard Z.

[Regis]

Two accidents in 26 years of riding. Neither was a close call.
1. 1987 Car merged left into me and run me into the concrete barrier between the lanes. Some rash and no broken bones. Destroyed my 1979 GS1000E. I did rebuild it a few years later as a drag bike and plan on doing a cafe resto on it next year.

Richard Z.

I was just thinking about that while riding home last night. Next to one and behind another and wondering what I'd do if the car next to me merged. I have the thought lately of deliberately keeping it in a lower gear than necessary in 'squeeze' areas to possibly give me an acceleration 'edge' if somebody tries to do that. Though, you'll either be riding the bot-dots next to the 6" inch high, beveled barrier. What was the height of the barrier that you encountered?

[GS1000SNKS]

The barriers are about 3 feet tall. The bike struck the barrier and crossed over the top and into oncoming traffic. No one else was involved. It was a hit and run.

Richard Z.