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Finally happened... my first real crash on my SFV650 Gladius

6K views 56 replies 22 participants last post by  street1212 
#1 ·
Was driving to work going 65 or as they say, the flow of traffic. I couldn't see beyond the car in front as I was going up hill. Guys ahead were all tail gating each other. I couldn't bank left, couldn't bank right, and I ran out of time to do anything except for slapping on the breaks. Maybe someone can learn from this.

I can not express to you all enough, wear your gear. My boot saved me from the peg going through my ankle like a harpoon. Ankle still got damaged, my knee is purple, nothing got broken at the very least.

I know opinions on "who's fault it was" will run while but I am in the belief that the cars in front, because they were tail gating each other, caused unsafe driving conditions which caused me to collide. I'll know next week who they will determine who's at fault. It will either be 50 50 or their fault.

Thought I share.

 
#45 ·
You should have been able to not only out-brake the car in front but easily maneuver the bike into the gap between the cars. This event should have been a non issue. Do yourself a favor and practice emergency braking, maybe even book yourself a trackday so you can understand what the bike's capable of. Your bike is extremely agile and that agility can used as a safety net at times like this.
 
#52 ·
Back in the 60's and 70's the motorcycle rags used to always do brake testing as drums were the norm and discs were just coming into regular use. They mostly stopped doing it because the brakes became good enough that they'll do only what the tires can get to the ground and the CG of the bike can prevent from flipping over. Plus the riders crashed a LOT during the max braking tests because when doing such things you ARE right on the edge of crashing.

On a test pad or racetrack it's possible to push braking right to the limit as you have multiple attempts to creep up on the edge and a clean surface to work with. Nothing like this exists on the street where the surface is constantly varying and when you need max braking...you NEED max braking so the element of surprise and sometimes panic can set in with adrenaline thrown into the mix.

Having been a competitive shooter we know for sure that adrenaline absolutely destroys your fine motor skills and coordination as well as messes with your eyesight....not the things you want happening when trying to manage braking or shooting to save your life. It's hard to remain calm when the crap hits the fan in front of you...so simplification has worked for many people.

Simplification you ask? Yes...we know that using both brakes is the quickest way to stop the bike, but the rear must be used exactly right or it becomes a liability. It must be applied first then released as the weight transfers to the front or it'll stop the wheel. The front must be applied quickly and hard enough to cause the weight transfer but not lock the wheel.....then once the weight has shifted forward the pressure is increased as you now have lots more traction to work with. Doing this under the gun is HARD...and too hard for most people to do reliably.

This is why some advocate abandoning the rear brake entirely at speed and just concentrating on using the front as effectively as possible. Leave the clutch engaged during the first few seconds of braking as the engine will automatically supply all the retardation the rear tire can use and work that front brake! If you lock the wheel...it'll slide and so long as you don't also lock the rear you have a couple seconds to react and get it spinning again but it's really hard when your brain is screaming STOP!! to release even one brake due to sliding so practice and maybe only using two fingers on the lever to reduce your power can help.

Oh....I've seen (and now own) cars that can pull the rear wheels off the ground during a stop and will outstop pretty much any bike, plus any joker behind the wheel can just smash the stop pedal and do it with no skill whatsoever....so following them too closely is very dangerous. Two seconds following distance minimum, three if possible is a good rule and even then if they jam on the brakes you're going to have a hell of a time not hitting them. Ride safely!
 
#53 ·
Having been a competitive shooter we know for sure that adrenaline absolutely destroys your fine motor skills and coordination as well as messes with your eyesight....
[OT]
Competitive shooter here as well, what kind of shooting did you do?
[/OT]
 
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