[Rory_L]

. . . and even though I'd never(seriously, NEVER) done this before, I've lived with the thought that this day might come. And, it did, today while on my regular Saturday morning ride.

I'm pulling in where I normally park and take a break from the ride for coffee. I overshoot the space a little so I turn sharply, accidentally grab a little too much front break and down I go at 1mph. Yep, I dropped the bike in the parking lot. Not the most glamorous accident; a low speed high side crash.

So, what's the damage?

- My Pride for a few minutes
- My right wrist is a little stiff and sore

Yes, I was wearing all the gear, no, my head didn't hit the pavement.

And the bike? Well, keep in mind my bike is all stock . . .

- a little bit of rash on the back of the right hand mirror at the edge (it collapsed and slid on the way down
- a tiny bit of rash on the edge of the right hand turn signal (you can feel it but hardly see it,
- The heat shield on the exhaust has a scrape and a small ding in the paint (the ugly exhaust is just a little uglier today.)
- NOT A SCRATCH on the fairings, foot pegs or axle nuts.
- The bar slider are unscratched as well even though it landed on it.

I made a mistake while riding. I was fortunate.

I'm sure some of you think it's funny. Keep in mind I NEVER laugh when I hear of anyone having a motorcycle accident, however serious.

In the analysis, what I did wrong was I was in a sharp turn and I over-applied the front brake. Of course in that turn any front brake was probably over-application. It was a 'DOH!" moment . . .

Sure, old guys like me are always overly preachy about safety but you've never heard me say I was immune to having an accident . . I'm just trying to do my part to make it less likely.

On another note; yeah, that engine-cutoff lean switch does work.

 

[jsonder]

Good to know that the cut-off worked.

Having broken a collarbone last year playing "how slow can you go" in deep sand, I sympathize with you.

P.S. The older we get, the easier we break.

 

[TheoR]

Glad to hear that you and your ride made it without much damage.

I sympathize with you, as I've done something similar to you in a parking lot of all places, also at a very low speed.

In my case, I leaned my bike for a turn w/o forward momentum, so obviously, the bike tipped over. The problem in my case was probably that, due to being in a familiar environment, I wasn't really focused.

Yeah, the ego was bruised pretty bad. Sure was a good lesson, though. And, yes, engine kill switch worked!

Yup, in the past, I've broken my clavicle as well. It has gotta be one of the wimpiest bones in our body. Breaks so easily.

 

[shisoshin]

it can happen to anyone, especially as you must to some extent
let down your typical on road guard and riding habits..

interesting point [i thought, similar drop parking to rear, nothing]
that as your drop confirms, the bike has been dropped as part of
its design refinement process as like yours mine absorbed impact
thru moveable indicator stalks, exhaust shield ['hip' panel left side]
footpegs plus front indicator stalks, mirrors, clutch [or brake] levers
[which bend taking impact] bar end sliders..

came out recently to find black beauty on her side on the road
after someone had dropped her for me.. ive found the kill switch
changed twice before so knew someone had been sitting on her..
anyway, aside from similar marks on projecting body parts
nothing else took impact damage..
even her 'hip' panel [projecting outward beneath seat to rear]
which took the brunt [downhill as well] with an obvious scar
still didnt get thru the black paint so still looks ok first glance..

this incidentally activated my intention to get a cover for her
to discourage those who see a parked motorcycle as their toy,
so i got an oxford cover medium for about $50- delivered to
my door 3 days later.. fits perfectly, camouflage pattern,
grey blends into streetscape.. fits very nicely as well
[not like a sheet thrown over the bike] and has been
cut to fit, with air flow vents and under strap clip,
covers the whole bike incl tires to the road..

its the unexpected that gets us, or is more likely to,
and if you were concentrating on say practicing short
front wheel locking in gravel at very slow speed
no doubt you would have continued in balance
and response to the changing situation,,
thus, the importance of practice, for anyone,
in any situation that arises such as yours..

if for any reason i experience something potentially
negative [avoid bump in roundabout say] then i will
simply repeat that event over and over again..
doesnt take that long but brain is ready this time
and ingests the experience thru body and
nervous system, ready for next time

mate i dont think its funny, or to be ashamed of,
its just something that can happen to anyone..
i dropped mine soon after getting her, parking,
after 4 previous hondas over many years
and never dropping any of them like that..

a point you underline in this experience
is switching on the motorcyclist mind
with the engine, remaining with that
until after the sidestand goes down..

 

[Rrider]

The most important thing is that nothing serious has happened to you! Thank to your comment many readers will know, generally: do not brake in bends! (Your situation was something like a small and slow bend, different physics from braking in a fast bend, but the same consequence).

 

[Rory_L]

It was kind of a strange morning anyway, dropping the bike was never in the plan.

To add to this, once I determined that I was OK I now had the bike lying on it's side to deal with. When you have a history of lower back problems this may seem like a daunting task but as it so happened, I was watching someone's You-tube Video (can't find the link) last month on "How to pick up your motorcycle after you've dropped it".

The technique is very simple:

1. If your bike fell on it's right side, put the kick stand down.
2. Squat next to your downed bike with your back to the seat.
3. grab the handle bars in one hand and the passenger grip in the other.
4. Holding your back straight, lift with both legs.

Once I determined that the bike wasn't unrideable (and neither was I), Had my coffee, came back and continued my ride. I had to get home somehow. Dropping the bike was an unhappy experience but not bad enough to be unnerving.

I'll have to stop at O'Reilly's and see if they carry Honda Ugly Exhaust Shield paint in silver.

 

[Jme250RA]

it's the slow speed, mundane stuff that usually gets us as our brains aren't fully engaged. Both my motorbike drops, 20 years ago, were under 10 kph. my worst crash was on my mountain bike at 1 kph hopping a parking curb which resulted in going over the bars and fracturing my elbow. Just think of it as a gentle reminder to always be alert.

 

[live_to_ride]

Thx for sharing my friend, and yes, it can happen to any of us. My momentous and glamorous 15 minutes of fame was 5 yrs ago and I broke my leg. I was riding an old Ninja 250 which was made of bridge grade steel, I swear, lol. Yes I was geared up and yes I was mortified but I now have a war story with the notoriety of snapping a tib/fib traveling a whopping 5 kph. I actually stood up, wiped the dust off me, took a step then POP! The rest is history.

 

[Metalstorm]

I'm glad you were alright Rory L.
On the the bright side of things, you figured out the why & how of it.

How many riders today make mistakes without ever figuring out the why & how only to keep repeating said mistakes over & over?

We've all had our D'oh! moments. I know I've had my share of them.
We older riders are alive to be older riders because of our ability to figure out the why & how of our 'D'oh!s' so we don't repeat them.

 

[pricelister]

i'll have to stop at o'reilly's and see if they carry honda ugly exhaust shield paint in silver.

yes!!

 

[Jme250RA]

here's my best. post #75 and I do think it's funny.

http://www.cbr250.net/forum/honda-cbr250-general-discussion/3848-most-embarrassing-moment-8.html

 

[Rory_L]

here's my best. post #75 and I do think it's funny.

http://www.cbr250.net/forum/honda-cbr250-general-discussion/3848-most-embarrassing-moment-8.html

What a recovery!

I'm sure I was being watched on the security cam in the parking garage. The guys in the office must have had a good laugh.

 

[Mayhariu]

oh the memories

Ahh, this reminds me of around the third time going home to park, and I dropped the bike going 1mph because I braked during the turn, since I was going ever-so-slightly too fast. Turns out, bikes don't like that, and they fall in the turn. D:

I attached a photo of my situation. It's sort of difficult to park. I need to park right at the back of the parking spot as the car goes in front of my bike.

 

[grynchmeister]

I dropped mine during the msf course. So embarrassing! During one of the drills where you stop at the instructor for comment/guidance. It happens.

 

[Phil A]

Glad you and your bike are ok...except for a few scratches and dents and a bruised ego...I haven't actually tipped over, but have almost had the same experience when my girlfriend was on and decided to adjust her weight as I came to a stop at an intersection...sometimes all we can do is hope someone got a video and is willing to split the money won on "Funniest Home Videos"...stuff like this happens to all of us...just part of being human...

 

[TrueFaith]

At least you weren't riding one of those 1300cc touring behemoths that come with 3 pages of owner manual space devoted soley to uprighting it without personal injury if it falls over.
Now THAT would be embarrassing.

 

[Conundrum]

Ahh, this reminds me of around the third time going home to park, and I dropped the bike going 1mph because I braked during the turn, since I was going ever-so-slightly too fast. Turns out, bikes don't like that, and they fall in the turn. D:

I attached a photo of my situation. It's sort of difficult to park. I need to park right at the back of the parking spot as the car goes in front of my bike.

I have to park the same way, but typically I just hop off in front of the spot then walk the bike in. Doing so not only prevents a drop, but also lets me 'whittle' the bike back and forth to get it as close to the wall (in my case) as possible, giving me more room to keep the car from extending beyond the spot.

 

[AkKnight78]

Hope your wrist feels better and no permanent damage, parts on the bike can be replaced.... You can't.

Sent from Motorcycle.com App

 

[djsb]

Glad you or the bike did not have too much damage. I've noticed that the brakes on these bikes are very sharp and need to be squeezed rather than grabbed. Not something you tend to do in a panic. I've come off previous bikes a couple of times at low speeds because I've grabbed the front brake. That's why I chose an ABS model this time. I'm gradually getting used to modulating the front brake with a bit more care.
If you find out what the part number for that silver paint is can you please let us know? I'm going to have to touch up a scratch or two on the heatshield myself.

Take care.

David

 

[lewiCBR250R]

- NOT A SCRATCH on the fairings, foot pegs or axle nuts.
- The bar slider are unscratched as well even though it landed on it.

that answers your question on your other thread about whether you need frame sliders, i was right; you don't

anyways glad you're ok and yes my bike has been dropped a couple of times but luckily no one witnessed it on both occasions and it was a bit embarrassing but meh, you get over it