"Had to Lay it Down"

[RossKean]

We have all heard the "Had to lay it down" excuse for poor riding control etc. Usually by a rider that shouldn't even be riding.

Not in all cases...

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/video/watch/motorcycle-rider-bails-at-the-last-second-to-avoid-collision/vi-AAo4lgS?ocid=HPCDHP

 

[SkooterG]

That was pure luck. Dumbass would have avoided the truck and stayed upright if he just would have braked properly and/or swerved a little.

Of course to do that he would have had to actually be *seated* on the seat.

And stupid MSN, he didn't "bail". He CRASHED due to poor braking skills. And it wasn't a "head on collision" situation.

And why the Hell did he just ride away afterwards?

 

[RossKean]

That was pure luck. Dumbass would have avoided the truck and stayed upright if he just would have braked properly and/or swerved a little.
Of course to do that he would have had to actually be *seated* on the seat.

And stupid MSN, he didn't "bail". He CRASHED due to poor braking skills. And it wasn't a "head on collision" situation.

I thought he did pretty well although situational awareness could have been better. I believe he was on the pegs because of a very rough patch just before. A lot of dust reduced visibility as well as the car turning right. Certainly not perfect but he ultimately did what he had to do.

 

[SkooterG]

He crashed pure and simple pure and simple because of standing on the pegs, and poor braking skills.

 

[RossKean]

Whatever...

 

[smithpa68]

I disagree it was because he was standing on his pegs. Poor braking.. and turning.. yeah.

 

[TomInPA]

It's Russia. This shit happens.

You'd never see a U.S. rider walk way from a failure to yield.

 

[puppychow]

In mother Russia...

 

[wfooshee]

Well, standing on the pegs definitely affected his braking ability... He locked the front TWICE, only recovered it once. And I gotta thing standing puts a lot more wait towards the front, as well.

There was rough pavement before that, but he was well past it, should have been seated. Unless.... he thought standing gave him a better view of the upcoming intersection.

(Still missed seeing a big-ass truck, though, didn't he?)

 

[HotRodZilla]

I'm with Skooter. Look at the bikes reaction when he hit the brakes. He had absolutely no control. He didn't lay it down, it fell down. There was no reason to stand. Yet another clown trying to act cool on a motorcycle and learning a fast lesson. Any skilled rider at that speed would have been able to stop. They were only running around 35mph.

 

[hppants]

I take issue with the term "had to lay it down". I'm certainly not proud of it, but I've "laid down" a motorcycle a total of 4 times on the asphalt. That doesn't make me an expert, but one undeniable fact I've learned is that you do not have time to cognitively decide anything. When an immediate emergent situation appears, you either have the skills and luck to instinctively (without thinking) perform and evasive maneuver....

.... or you don't and the bike will lay itself down, hopefully without you underneath it.

I believe I now have the skills (and the ABS) to do a better job of avoiding the root cause of 3 out of 4 of my crashes. The 4th would happen the same way and I just have to accept the risk associated with that.

 

[RossKean]

Silly me for thinking that this guy made the best of a very bad situation - one in which many (most?) motorcyclists would have died. The Internet is a truly wondrous place where everyone becomes an expert and can always do better. I see this more in motorcycle forums than almost anywhere else. Someone posts a video of a rider in a fantastic elbow scraping high speed corner and ten people are saying that it wasn't necessary, form was poor, bad technique, how they could/would do better and a bunch of other comments to minimize the rider's skill (and maybe some luck)!

Who has had an accident that was entirely their fault? Certainly none of the "experts".

Who has had one that was someone else's fault? This is the only kind of accident that an expert is involved with. And, of course, there was nothing that anyone could have done...

Can an accident be avoided? The answer is yes in 99% of cases; whether or not the victim is technically at fault. Is it reasonable (or even possible) to constantly maintain a level of vigilance that will prevent that accident every time? Nope, but some people seem to do it better than others - maybe they are just lucky (or are able to make their own luck). Believe it or not, skill might even have something to do with it!

I fully expect that there will be vehement disagreement with the above. Don't really care. If it matters, I am a "lucky" (although moderately conservative) rider who does over 20,000 miles per year and have never been in an accident (my fault or otherwise).

Edit: I expect the "Moderately conservative" notation, above, will garner comments to the effect that I'm not a "real" rider or that I cause accidents. I'm not "slow", just "not stupid".

 

[dcarver]

Luck, skill, not his day to die and he rode away? Ross, don't let Skooter get under your skin. That boy has crashed more times than I gots fingers on one hand....

JSNS and

Hugs n' Kisses

 

[Madmudder]

Luck, skill, not his day to die and he rode away? Ross, don't let Skooter get under your skin. That boy has crashed more times than I gots fingers on one hand....

JSNS and

Hugs n' Kisses

Is that what makes him an expert?

 

[SouthernCruizer]

crash was avoidable, unless there's something that is not visible in the video. Those of us that ride daily in traffic see this scenario on a fairly regular basis. Looking down the road would have helped this rider start evasive maneuvers sooner and he would have time to stay upright and ride away. Just my $.02 worth. That is all.

 

[Old Guy]

Well, after watching the video I'd say he crashed while trying to stop and turn at the same time and got danged lucky it didn't go under the rear wheels. Standing, for whatever reason, didn't help. Sitting on the saddle may have allowed enough weight to transfer to the front to avoid the front tire locking. But, since those were probably not the best tires for the street, maybe not.

Would I have done better? Maybe.

Monday morning quarterbacking is always spot on, but when you're in the game the correct decisions in and instant aren't so easy.

 

[hppants]

Ross - I get your point. And I agree with it contextually. I'm certainly no "expert" as you have described, or even implied. Not by a long shot.

For the record, all 4 of my crashes were 100% my fault, and the root cause of all four was my ridiculous stupidity. I wasn't 100% in the game, I lost focus, and I paid the price. Somehow, I'm still alive and riding even though I've now had 4 chances to get my head out of my ass and fly right.

As for the rider in the Russian video, I couldn't say. I can guess, but that's all it would be.

But I'm telling ya - nobody decisively makes a decision to "lay a bike down". It just doesn't happen that way. By the time you realize that something is not right, you are sliding down the belt sander. When I hear a rider tell me he "had to lay it down", all I can think of is "bullshit".

I applaud your present accident free record. Nobody rides that long and that far without an accident unless they are a very good, alert, and attentive rider. I hope your streak last forever.

 

[RossKean]

... I hope your streak last forever.

Me too! I won't say that there have been no butt-clenching close calls (some my fault, some the fault of someone else and some just because "shit happens") but so far I have managed to avoid breaking my motorcycle or myself.

 

[Pterodactyl]

Voni Glaves is nearing 1.1 million miles and hasn't had an accident. It can be done. Artis Kellerman had over a million accident free miles when she was hit and killed by someone driving on the wrong side of the road. So a long history of accident free miles offers no protection during your next mile.