monkey see monkey crash

[oldbike54]

Many members here are fast and smooth riders , I have had the pleasure of chasing Rocker , Luap , Kirby 1923 , Guzzistajohn , CJ750, Michael D , Delrod , and many others on a twisty road . Sometimes they even let me lead  :o :D The one thing we all had in common was a willingness to ride at a spirited pace W/O getting into a hoo hah waving contest . Kirby points out what we all know but sometimes forget to pass along "look where you want to go" . Telling a rider to just lean more doesn't work if they are looking at the ditch , or a tree , or an oncoming car .

 Slow in                                       
 Fast out
 Eyes open
 brain engaged

 And of course , don't panic and forget the laws of physics  ;D

  Dusty

[skromfols]

I frequently go on group rides and the best advice that I've ever received and willingly pass along is to "Ride at your own pace".  I ride faster than some, and slower than many others, and have no problem letting faster riders know that I'll meet up with them at the next butt break. 

If I'm leading a ride I ask anyone who wants to ride at a faster pace to pass safely and just wait for the rest of us at the next intersection or butt break.  I had one idiot ignore the "safety" part of the instruction and was passing other riders on the inside of curves.  I'm sure he was an excellent rider, but passing on the inside on a curve exposes the person you're passing to paying a penalty for any mistake you might make.  And not unexpectedly that rider wasn't invited to any future group rides.

[John Ulrich]

Neil,
If you had been riding your white Bassa I would have attributed the "get-off" to being........ blinded by the shiny object in front of him!   

[Kiwi_Roy]

REALLY?

Do people really look at those signs, then look at their speedo, all while setting up for a curve?

I mean, I HAVE compared the two now and again when I was curious or bored.

But USUALLY I set up for a curve by sight line and adjusting speed from feel based on that.

And if I don't have a clear sight line, I slow more...

Well I guess some of us do otherwise why bother putting them up on just about every corner of the road, but I rarely look at the speedo, I know how fast I am going, if I'm doing 60 and I come across a turn that says 30 I know I have to slow down a tad. I suppose you don't see "end of pavement" or "bump" signs either.
No, I don't ride by the road signs alone, it's just additional information.
Hey, I never said I was the greatest rider but it wasn't me in the ditch.
Cheers
Roy

[RickTReloaded]

1.  Ride your ride.
     - There will always be someone faster and someone slower than you.  Figure out where you fit in and stay there.

2.  Lead if the other guy is slower.
     - Following someone slower always puts pressure on the rider in front to go at your quicker pace, not theirs.  Arguable, but this is from my 30+ years of riding experience and seeing guys go in too hot because of a quicker rider behind them.

3.  Pick better rider partners (friends).
     - He blames you for his F-up??  C'mon now...

4.  Talk to him once (maybe twice), then leave it alone.
     - Some people listen, some don't.  Do your part (by discussing the incident with them) and let them be accountable for theirs.

Sorry to hear about the getoff...

[Kev m]

Well I guess some of us do otherwise why bother putting them up on just about every corner of the road, but I rarely look at the speedo, I know how fast I am going, if I'm doing 60 and I come across a turn that says 30 I know I have to slow down a tad. I suppose you don't see "end of pavement" or "bump" signs either.
No, I don't ride by the road signs alone, it's just additional information.
Hey, I never said I was the greatest rider but it wasn't me in the ditch.
Cheers
Roy

Never said I don't see them... And I guess I often don't know what speed I'm going when I'm approaching a turn, especially once I start braking ...

[savagehenry]

It's been a while, but I thought "The Pace" talked about riding FAST in the curves and slowing down/regrouping on the straights?

Didn't this guy have trouble with a curve?

I seem to recall the basic message was "ride your own ride, not the other guy's ride" and what you've mentioned was details on how to do that best in a group, safely. Of course, I could be off on that, it's what I remember of that article.

[Kev m]

I seem to recall the basic message was "ride your own ride, not the other guy's ride" and what you've mentioned was details on how to do that best in a group, safely. Of course, I could be off on that, it's what I remember of that article.

You're probably right. But I was left with the impression the author and his friends totally bomb the curves.... Maybe a mistaken impression....

[GuzziPilot]

Just a Blame Game.

He's avoiding responsibility for his own actions.  Therefore if not him...musta been your doing.

He needs to reevaluate his involvement with all things motorcycling.

I read that Subaru's are quite a bit safer, and require less overall skill to operate.

Hopefully its only his ego and bike that are truly injured.

Lee

[JBBenson]

He taught me how to focus on where I want to go and not look were I don't e.g. the ditch.

This^

"Target Fixation".

I learned it flying hang gliders (it applies especially when landing). Whenever I find myself riding into a corner, and it feels all "wrong", it is usually because I am not looking far enough ahead, i.e. where I want to go, further around the curve. I find myself looking just ahead of the front wheel, which of course is an ever-moving spot, and I end up wobbling all over.

This usually happens when my mind is not on my ride, but somewhere else.

[Lannis]

If he is riding one of those 1500 CC Intruders he has no business even attempting to hang with any Guzzi built since 1967 . Seriously , those things are a pig on roller skates . Not much you can do about someone having a false idea of their riding abilities , except let them scare the fool out of themselves a couple of times. Well , maybe a good riding school like FG suggested , but I have known that to create an even more over inflated sense of skill in some riders .

  Dusty

This is something that we as Guzzi riders don't remember sometimes.

It was brought home to me a few years ago when (due to an unfavorable conjunction of planets or something), ALL of my bikes were down, and there was a weekend ride I wanted to take.   I was moaning about my ill-luck and ill-planning to a neighbor, who I didn't even know OWNED a motorcycle, and she offered me her Kawasaki Vulcan 800 to ride - she wasn't riding it, it still had tags and insurance on it, and needed a few miles put on it anyway.

So I picked it up and brought it to my house, checked and inflated the tires, checked the wheels and steering to make sure they were tight, adjusted the bars and mirrors to suit me, lubed up the cables, put fresh gas in it, and took off.

Several times, I thought I was going to fall down.   It handled AWFUL compared to any of my Guzzis, especially including the Cal III.    I eventually "got used to it" and made the ride, but I realized that although Japan probably makes some excellent handling sport and sport-touring bikes, if this Kawasaki cruiser was an example, a Guzzi rider really has to make some adjustments on one of these things .....

Lannis

[Kev m]

I read that Subaru's are quite a bit safer, and require less overall skill to operate.

I know a guy who managed to roll his STI something like 5 times, at over 100 mph... just saying.  :BEER:

[Bill929]

This^

"Target Fixation".

I learned it flying hang gliders (it applies especially when landing). Whenever I find myself riding into a corner, and it feels all "wrong", it is usually because I am not looking far enough ahead, i.e. where I want to go, further around the curve. I find myself looking just ahead of the front wheel, which of course is an ever-moving spot, and I end up wobbling all over.

This usually happens when my mind is not on my ride, but somewhere else.

Target Fixation is a huge issue - one that I believe is sadly lacking from many driver and rider education programs.  I see drivers do it all the time - especially when they see a road side distraction (stopped car, etc.).  Really dangerous on a mountain bike or riding enduro, when you are maneuvering in and around trees.  You learn pretty fast to look where you want to go, instead of the tree you are trying to avoid.  Same thing with corners - look through the corner where you want to go - look elsewhere and you just may end up there.