Close call!!!

[cbzdel]

Thought I would share my story...

I went riding north about 70 miles the other day and when I came home I took a different route so I could go across this floating bridge which I had never been on before.. Traffic getting to the bridge was CRAZY not moving at all pretty much, but I was able to go in the car pool lane so it didnt effect me at all.. I get on the bridge and the car pool lane goes away and traffic speeds up. What an awesome feeling, to ride a motorcycle on a floating bridge and being so close to the water hahah, I am weird like that haha!

Right as I get off the bridge I see an accident happen right up a few cars in front of me, everyone slams on their brakes along with me, I knew a semi was riding my tail so I was watch for that as well.. I am slowing fast but have a huge backpack on full of stuff so it throws me off balance because I am so much more top heavy.. I end up locking the rear wheel and it starts to slide out, while I am looking in my mirror and see the semi getting closer and closer and I am getting closer to the bumper of the car in front of me!!! I decide I need to do something because there is a high chance something bad could go down, so I am in the right lane and my tail end is sliding out to the left, and I decide to let go of the rear brake and hit the gas.. I unlock the rear and it jults me and I almost lost it but I had to hit the gas and get over onto the shoulder, almost seconds later the semi smashes into the car that was in front of me.. Not super hard but it would of been enough to squish me!!

I found it so strange how in a tight spot how many things you can think about doing at the same time.. Most people panic and do nothing and crash, I was doing about 20 things at once and saved my butt!!

In this suituation what would you would of done?? I did all I could think of, but there may have been something better to do..

Dont lock the rear wheel for one hahaa.. The backpack just threw me off, I almost went over the handlebars because i was so top heavy which made me push harder down on the lever...

 

[area]

I probably would of darted to the shoulder if I knew the semi was on my ass hard...weren't you in the carpool lane? wtf is a semi doing there?

edit:
glad to know your ok tho!

 

[cbzdel]

I probably would of darted to the shoulder if I knew the semi was on my ass hard...weren't you in the carpool lane? wtf is a semi doing there?

edit:
glad to know your ok tho!

the car pool land ended right before the bridge, and went from the (3) lanes down to the (2) standard lanes..

edit: I also want to add, I didnt dart over to the shoulder to being with because I was going 60+ and the shoulder was FULL of derbies and sand and gravel, so I figured that would of been worse!

 

[99vengeur]

Man, that is way too close for comfort. How many washes will it take to clean your britches? I am glad you came away safely.

In this case, you saw the accident happen, so it's not like you weren't paying attention. In fact, you were observant enough to realize the semi behind you was closing in quickly. Locking the rear wheel sucks, but you managed to use it to your advantage. The biggest thing when locking the rear wheel is that when it regains traction, it catapults the bike. But you were needing to got out of the way, so releasing the rear brake and gassing it allowed you to move the bike in a semi-controlled fashion.

One thing that I would have done differently would be to secure the backpack to you better. I'm not entirely sure, but the bag was either too loose on your back or too high over your shoulders. If you are going to ride with a backpack, get one that has a waist strap to keep the center of gravity lower on your back, or have someone stitch one on for you. This will help keep the bag centered on your back and in place when leaning and stopping the bike.

Again, great job keeping your situational awareness!! This is what truly saves lives. :thumbup:

 

[cbzdel]

yeah i had a waist strap but wasn't using it I had the torso strap though.. when I hit brakes the bag just wanted to slide up my back.. I think a tight waist strap could of prevented that..

 

[GoGreen09]

Quick thinking CB! I take it you've practiced some of your emergency moves to get out of this unscathed.

I'm not really sure on what spacing you had to work with, but it sounds like you found an opening to get to the shoulder quick. If it was any tighter, maybe you could've split the lanes in between?

You're here and telling us about it...I guess there's nothing to change from that situation. In the future though, there may be some things that you'll be more mindful of. Glad you're okay!

 

[cbzdel]

I'm not really sure on what spacing you had to work with, but it sounds like you found an opening to get to the shoulder quick. If it was any tighter, maybe you could've split the lanes in between?

the only reason I went to the right to the shoulder was because my rear end was sliding out to the left, so I figure it would be easier to unlock the back wheel and go right than turn all the way around and go left...

The car was maybe a good 3-4 car lengths in front of me, I think I was traveling to close for the situation I was in, I think if the accident happened 30 prior, i would of been on the bridge with no shoulder at all!

It make me want to practice emergency drills, I have only been riding for like 2.5 months now and yet to practice anything other than cornering lol...

 

[xplodnstar]

Great thinking!!! Glad you're okay and you kept your head. There are probably a couple of choices you could have made, but without seeing the full picture, i can't say what they'd be. Either way, you're here, you're safe and the bike is not scathed. You did a great job. :thumbup:

 

[flyingminno]

Wow yeah those close calls get you shaken. On my previous bike I was riding on the freeway carpool lane doing about 75 and getting ready to pass a slower suv. The moment I start drifting from the left side of the lane to pass, about 2 seconds away from the suv, the driver's side rear tire disintegrates and I am pelted by tire debris. The driver does the wrong thing and slams on the breaks while drifting right, directly where I was headed. I ended up locking up the rear and skidding sideways doing about 60 at that point.

 

[dart1963]

Reason to always use both brakes!

Glad you made it out, it's amazing how many things can go through your mind in a short time. You made it and probably could have made it with a couple of other options/moves, but you found one that worked.
Just a note on locking the rear brake, it can happen, it is better to know what happens when it does lock, that's why I always brake with both brakes and have never gotten into the habit of "only using it in emergencies". For one, it helps me know what pressure to apply to prevent it, and two, if it does lock, I know how to brute the bike straight before releasing (if I need to, I usually will only lock it within the last few feet of a stop).