Ever had an accident?

[Luke Flegg]

Almost everyone I try to excite with prospects of me getting a motorbike either gives me a solemn glare and tells me horror stories, or gets emotional and upset telling me how stupid it is.

I'm scared about getting a bike, I know it's much more dangerous than a car.. But I wondered how much of that was the motorcyclist being cocky or stupid on the road.
Have you ever had an accident on the road? If you have, what happened, and do you think you were being an arse or was there nothing you could've done better?


Edit: Also, How many years have you been riding, and what protection were you wearing?

[Irezumi aka Reuben]

Yep, I had an accident. Was completely the old mans fault. Was completely avoidable but I put it down to lack of experience/bad reading from my part (even though I shouldnt have to). I was more pissed that I didnt read the situation better than annoyed with him to be honest.

WAs like a bad bicycle crash but fewer grazes and more costly!

Most accidents are caused by drivers not paying attention.
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Pictorgraphicalfantastical

[Chriss]

Two crashes, one totally avoidable, one not so.

First was a motorway service station, and approached the corner, leaving the motorway, into the carpark type thing, and the road was tighter than I first thought, I started to turn, got target fixation, and hit exactly where I was looking!

Secondly was diesel on a roundabout. Plainly didn't see it, but could when I went to see why I crashed.
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TheShaggyDA: I've got 3 or 4 pairs that predate my wife, so at least 11.5 years old.

[Suzuki]

I've fell off a few times. All of which were avoidable, had I been riding more slowly/carefully.

The worst one ended up with me having a broken collar bone, 2 broken ribs, severe bruising and concussion. The bike was broken in half behind the headstock. Click for pics: | Before | After 1 | After 2 | After 3 |

Quite honestly, if you're scared of getting a bike, don't get one. You will fall off at some point. Everybody does. And it invariably hurts.
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<Simple> it is a big enough hole.. I'll leave it now
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[Mockey]

I came off two days after passing my CBT, came round a gradual bend too quickly and veered onto the otherside of the road, luckily car on the other side saw me well in advance and stopped. I slammed on the brakes and locked them up, bike went one way I went the other. I recieved a hairline fracture in my elbow, an extremely swollen arm and a huge gash in my right knee. I was only wearing jeans

I'd rather have not come off but it sure taught me a few things, the hard way!
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04/05- Kawsaki Eliminator 125, 05/06 - Kawasaki EN500, 06/present - Triumph Thunderbird 900

[paulthewitt]

to be honest tacky phrases like the one from the film bikerboyz (yes i've watched it ) ring true:

"there two types of bikers, those who have been down and those who are going down"

https://www.bikechatforums.com/viewtopic.php?p=539565#539565

that link shows some of our experiences, in a rather more humourous light. as has been said tho, if your scared of crashing, and not willing to do so for the greater good of biking then in all seriousness, don't get a bike as you probably will come off at some point.

Paul

[MikeyC]

I know where your coming from... when I first told people I was gettng a bike, almost everyone's response was "I know someone who's died on a bike".... What do you respond with to that!!

Had a few offs, only 1 proper accident last year, of which the claim is STILL ongoing! Ended up in hospital as a result, came out on crutches and had 1 written off NSR to my name!

[Bendy]

Not on the road, no.

[feef]

had one accident since passing my test in '02

hit a car head on, ended up with split pelvis needing a plate put in, crushed distal radius (in my wrist) needing pinning and a cast. Pins are out, the plate is in there for good.

can't be sure if it was avoidable or not. Driver said I crossed the whites into his lane on the bend, and it certainly appeared that way from al the evidence. Can't remember most of the afternoon tho, so only have that to go on.

mate of mine hit a car that pulled out on him (car pulled out from his left, to turn into lane going opposite direction)

he's still learning to walk properly after 2 years. He'd doing bloody well considering the doctors said he'd never even live tho.

he hit an almost stationary car at 50. my combined speed of 2 vehicles travelling in opposite directions was between 70 and 80. I was walking within a fortnight, he's still learning and the brain injury makes it highly unlikely he'll ever be quite right.

It#s all down to what you perceive as acceptable risk.

The risk of having an accident on a motoprcycle is higher than in a car for various factors (not being seen by cars, being more susceptible to road surfaces and other conditions etc) and if you have an accident it's more likely to cause a more serious injury than the same accident in a car.
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Mudskipper wrote: feef, that is such a beautiful post that it gave me a lady tingle
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[G]

Pretty much all off the bike acidents I've had I would classify as 'my fault'. The worst accident I've had on the road has been in a car.

As far as bike accidents go, so for the only time I've actually done anything bad was when a wheely went wrong and I rolled down the road at around 60mph or so.
A not-perfect fit helmet left me with a nasty concussion.

[natv4]

I've had my fair share, tends to be around 1 a year so far.

I can honestly say that I haven't had an accident when I have been "fully concentrating". So I guess that means that all my accidents have, to some degree, been my fault.

I've had cars pull U-turns (without indicating) in front of me. But that taught me that filtering is to be done very carefully.

I've had a car switch lanes, clipping my rear wheel on dual a carriageway. I learned to watch out for traffic that is tailgating, and avoid it.

I've had a taxi turn right accross my path through a lane of traffic. I learnt that even when you have right of way, it won't help if someone hasn't looked/seen.

You can learn from anything that happens on the road. Very few accidents cannot be avoided/minimised. Its up to you whether you choose to accept that you play a part.

I think there is a reason Bendy has not had an accident on the road (touch wood). From what I gather she is quite a defensive rider, on the road.
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Travelling around the world...a bit at a time. Where am I now? / Visit my BLOG
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[EDBANGER]

I had this aswell, I got fed up of hearing all the horror stories from people who had never riden a bike in their lives. The way I see it you're as safe as you want to be (to a certain extent), if you ride like a nutcase then you increase your chances of an accident. I wanted a bike more than anything and the horror stories didn't even slightly put me off & i'm coming up to 3 years now with only one very minor accident. Considering i've been on the road practically everyday through rush hour traffic, I don't think that's bad going.

[JonB]

Never had an accident. At all. Never.
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[biggerjohn]

none so far

here hoping i can say that this time next year

[Kickstart]

Hi

Had a few.

Went straight on at a corner. My fault entirely. Silly thing is I was not even going quickly, just lost concentration.

Hit by a car on a roundabout. Not my fault. Car came straight onto the roundabout into the side of me. I had tried accelerating out of the way, but not managed that. Braking would certainly not have prevented the accident (just stuck me into the side of his car). Only thing that might have got me out of the way was going round the roundabout again.

Ran a sheep over. My fault. Didn't come off the bike, more by luck than judgement. Makes you realise just how fast a sheep can turn around and run.

Dropped the Bimota on mud and cow sh1t on the road. My view is it was the farmers fault as he had left the road unpassable (I was doing about walking pace, and dropped the bike when the front wheel locked up without touching the front brake). Only way I could have avoided it was to do a U turn (just after a blind bend, on slick mud, on a B road, yeah, right) and gone a different route.

Went straight on at a corner on the FZ750. My fault. Something on the road made the front end give as I turned in. Caught it, but did not deal correctly with the situation and went off the road. No damage to the bike somehow, and I didn't actually come off.

Few times I have dropped bikes at very low speed (once hitting a pothole in snow, once on a non opened bit of road, once jumped off the bike in a hurry and the stand was now down properly so the bike fell on me), and again they are pretty much my fault.

Known a few people who have been killed on bikes. Being honest, in those cases it was the riders fault.

As mentioned above what is needed is experience (while you learn paranoia), and that is one reason I advise people to avoid fast or sporty bikes when they have only just managed to pass the basic bike test.

[Slickfish]

I've had one, I stopped at a giveway, the woman behind me was looking at the car I was giving way to not at me, she though if she booted it she could get out in front of the car.
However I was being all nice and giving way.

Next thing I knew my bike just went from under me fell on its side and i landed so I was sitting on the back wheel with my feel on the tank, being pushed up the road!!!, I even had time to look over my should at the driver before she stopped!.

I didnt even get a bruise, but I was luck a 2lt sierra up your arse at 30mph when your not moving is abit of a shocker!

Bike was written of and she admitted liability, odd that!


Most accidents are caused by rider error!, alot are caused by car drivers but from my experiance alot more are caused by rider error.
I've seen first hand 5 crashes this year alone, all rider error and they where all people I wasnt riding with, I've been involved in one and seen 1 other where it was a car drivers fault.

[Weed]

Came off once. Car driver pulled out from a car park straight into my lane, would have hit me if I hadn't have swerved, hit the kerb in the middle of the road and skidded along face down for a while, stood up, couldn't walk, got taken to hospital, chipped a bone in my hip, nothing they could do so they sent me home, make a point of avoiding that road now.

Still have pain in my leg and that happened a week before xmas just gone. Getting a 500 soon, didn't put me off.
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"Just Believe"

[Bendy]

[Keen]

Came off twice on the road:

first time it was raining and I lost the front on a tight bend, oily road so as far as I'm concerned it wasnt my fault but technically if I was being more careful (which I should been cos it was pissing down) and going a bit slower I wouldn't of crashed.

Second time wasn't my fault at all, the front brake locked.... the pad had slipped out so when I braked lightly for a zebra crossing the caliper just bit the disc hard and locked instantly, throwing me over the right side, I was on the floor in a split second wondering what the hell had happened.... I just got the bike not long before so technically it was the dealers fault, but I should of taken responsibility and checked it over myself.

I've been riding about 4 years on the road.

If you ride slowly and sensibly, obviously the risk is alot lower. But even the safest rider has mad days.... I'm reluctant to tell you its safe because as hobbies go its not, but its not nearly as dangerous as most people think, it is fun and it is rewarding.

Have you started learning to ride yet? I suggest you do your CBT, its a good intro to riding, its really good fun and might help you make your mind up about whether biking is for you or not
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"he who makes a beast of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man"- Dr. Johnson

[jimster]

[Josh|RD125LC]

I had an off last night. Totally my fault. In the rain. Went to turn up a street with a man hole cover in my turning circle, so I cleared it with my front wheel, but must have turned too tight and my rear wheel went over it and lost all traction so I lost the back end and bike smashed down. But I got back up, picked up the bike and rode off like nothing happend. No serious damage, just bits here and there.

I also had a worse accident in January where I was filtering during very heavy showers. Going a bit too fast and gap between cars was getting smaller. I worried and stupidly pulled the front brake, resulting in losing the front wheel and me sliding along the road between cars and bike ends up lodged under a car. Bike was very messed up, but after 60 pounds of parts, it was back to normal.

I really got learn to ride better. Both my offs have been my fault, me not thinking properly. If that had been my RD, I would have cried. And I ain't lying.
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Honda MBX50 | Yamaha RD125LC | Suzuki RG125F Lucky Strike | Suzuki GSF600S
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[Kickstart]

[jimster]

[Chriss]

Did you tell the farmer and report it to the police like I belive you're supposed to?

Poor little critter, at least it didn't suffer.
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TheShaggyDA: I've got 3 or 4 pairs that predate my wife, so at least 11.5 years old.

[Kickstart]