Dropped my GT two days ago.

exavid

Member
I can't believe I managed to screw up and drop my bike last Tuesday. I was on a steep hill and found the road blocked off. The road was well paved buy pretty narrow with curbs on both sides. Instead of backing the scooter back down a quarter mile or so to an intersection on flatter land I decide to make the U turn. Unfortunately the road was narrower than I thought. As I turned I realized I wouldn't be able to clear the far curb so tried to stop. I barely got the scooter stopped when it began to fall toward the downhill side. My leg was about two feet sort to be able to reach the ground and down we went. The bike ended up with the wheels higher than the rest of the bike laying on it's side. I couldn't lift all the way vertical so called for help from my daughter who lives about three miles away. With her help I was finally able to raise the bike and turn it downhill and rod it home.

The damage looks like about $400 dollars, $325 for a new left upper front panel and about $75 for touch up paint and some materials to fix a couple small scrapes. Not as much damage as I expected though the cost of that panel was a shocker.

It makes me mad with myself for attempting that U turn. I'd never had tried it with other motorcycles I've owned. The ease of handling this machine at low speed apparently made me over complacent. I'll keep that in mind from now on, it's still as heavy as a motorcycle.:eek:
 
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exavid

Member
If I'd been sensible I'd have rolled the bike downhill backwards until I could find a place where I could have backed into a driveway or some other more level spot. Rolling backwards on the bike controlling with the front brake is about the best way to handle the situation. If I'd have backed up to the curb with the bike 90 degrees to the road I could have made the turn, dicey but could have done it. My error was complacency, too used to the ease of handling this bike with it's light weight and low center of gravity. I wouldn't have made the mistake on my Goldwings one has to be very aware of difficult conditions with such a large heavy motorcycle. I won't have that complacency in the future with this one. The new front panel just lightened my wallet by three hundred plus. I'll see how the rear panel looks after a little bit of Bondo and touch up paint.
 

SteveADV

Active member
Drops happen. And, yeah, often when we get a little complacent. Glad you weren't hurt. I dropped a big dual sport while practicing slow tight figure eights and injured a knee to the extent surgery was required.
 

exavid

Member
I definitely prefer to drop a GT than one of my previous Goldwings. Although the Goldwings seem to take a drop better, never damaged any plastic on them.
 

exavid

Member
Ride like a pro is a very good series of videos. I can ride my scooter in lock to lock figure eights, I could do it on my Goldwings after watching Jerry's videos. It's a wee bit different with the scooter since you don't have a clutch but you can adapt the method to the CVT bike pretty well. Jerry never said much about doing a tight U-turn on a steep slope though.
 

JaimeC

New member
Took the "Staying Safe" course with my C650GT last year and discussed with the instructor the technique of doing tight U-turns with a CVT. We both agreed the secret was to drag the rear brake to keep "tension" on the transmission so it remains engaged. If you don't do that and the revs drop too low, the clutch disengages and then you're coasting (and probably stepping off the scooter to pick it back up). It worked just fine on the exercises we performed on Day 1 (before we hit the road).

If you're not familiar with "Stayin' Safe," here is a VERY good write up of it from Asphalt & Rubber:
http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/reviews/stayin-safe-rider-training-motorcycle-school/
 

exavid

Member
Using the rear brake to keep the transmission pulling is what I've been doing too. It's the closest you can get to Paladino's technique and it works almost as well as it does with a standard motorcycle.
 

TN_Sooner

Member
I just signed up for a two day session with MotoMark1. One day for maximum control level 1 and a day for Stayin Safe in Burlington NC. I took MSF courses (beginner and advanced) and have done all the Ride Like a Pro exercises on my scooters, but need work with my Indian. I've been looking for something to do with it and this sounds like the ticket. Plus, riding in NC is never a bad thing! Thanks for the recommendation Jamie.
 

exavid

Member
Got a new left front upper panel today. I thought the old one was only scratched but turned out that the inside leg that hold the tinnerman nut for the bolt that goes in at the bottom of the cubby was broken off so I feel better spending the three hundred for the new panel. It only took a little sanding and application of Mother's back to black to take care of the scrapes on the edge of the floor boards. So now there's only a small scratch on the rear panel left. I'll eventually take care of that but it's not all that noticeable. On the order form it looked like the panel came without the roundel but when I got it the roundel was in place. That saved me $36.
 

TN_Sooner

Member
So, this thread has officially been hijacked, but I just got back from my classes with MotoMark1 in Burlington NC. Mark (owner) is a Marine and a career moto officer (ret) for NC Highway Patrol. Super guy and a great experience. I took the class on my Indian Chieftain.

Day 1 - motor skills. This is parking lot drills. Cone weave, which has a far more important purpose than I ever understood before - it is all about setting up the next turn. To turn left, you first need to set up right. Yes, we did the dreaded box, left and right turns in a tight area. Control at low speeds is all about friction zone and weight shift (counter balance skills, which I need more work on��).

Day 2 - Part 1 of the StayingSafe school Jamie described. This is all about situational awareness on the road and reacting to put yourself in the correct lane position. Move away from traffic (within your lane, there are three different motorcycle lanes). Shake your headlights when there is a car waiting to turn across your path. Slow down when you can't see over the Hillcrest. Read the tree line to anticipate the curve direction and move in your lane to get a better view.

All in all, a great experience. Day 1 was 2 instructors to 3 students. Day 2 was 1 on 1 - just me and Mark. Highly recommend you check out Marks web and try to take one of his classes.

http://www.motomark1.com
 

tlippy

New member
Me2 !!!!

I've dropped mine twice in exactly the same situation as you described. Both times it cost me $100 to get a panel unscratched and repainted. Next time, and I believe there will be, I'm going to go to a guy who does 3M film and cover the scratches with some graphic. I came from a Harley Road Glide to this scoot. I just gotta learn to apply throttle and brake during slow maneuvering.
 

Snowdog

New member
You could have made a turn to the opposite curb , while staying slightly up hill then backed to the behind curb, then a turn down hill.
 

TwoPort

Member
IMHO rear brake friction stability is fantastic on our BMW's. And thank you for talking about the safety courses as it has pushed me out of complacency. Every improvement helps avoid accidents.

(Sorry for another thread hijack)
 
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