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Today I had my first accident riding my GS450

  • Thread starter Thread starter apopleptic
  • Start date Start date
A

apopleptic

Guest
I was making a right turn a block away from my house and there was a car coming towards me in the middle of the road. They didn't move over so I had to cut my wheel too sharply and I went down. They didn't run me over, but as soon as I got up they took off. The person who lived in the closest house sat me down and cleaned me up with some peroxide and alcohol.

I got some road rash on my right knee and my right side and arm fom about halfway up my forarm to halfway up my bicep. I also got a little road rash on my side and my hip hit the ground really hard and is quite sore along with my right thumb which got a little dislocated. It was an interesting thing the way the whole world bounced when my head hit the ground. Thank goodness for helmets!

My bike made it out pretty much OK, a scrape on the fender, the brake lever, the master cylinder, the rear brake pedal was bent into the engine case and the rear turn signal is bent. Oh yeah and the handlebar bent some.

Here's the pics! I'll post the bike pics first, if you don't want to see the injury (they aren't that bad), don't scroll down.

2012-08-09_14-56-04_596.jpg

2012-08-09_14-56-40_471.jpg

2012-08-09_14-56-52_68.jpg

2012-08-09_14-56-31_262.jpg

2012-08-09_14-56-11_73.jpg


here's the road with it's little gouges from the bike
2012-08-09_14-59-05_246.jpg


2012-08-09_14-44-17_889.jpg

2012-08-09_14-44-51_419.jpg

2012-08-09_14-44-56_701.jpg
 
You were very lucky. Might not seem that way at the moment ... but some of the worst accidents I've seen happen just like that. slow speed and no where to go.

all the bent stuff can be replaced .... and your cup holder is still intact, so that's a plus too !
 
Oh, I know I'm lucky. very glad it's not worse than this.
The bike will be no problem to fix. I just need to wait a little until I'm not so sore.
Thanks for the optimism guys. I really do advocate wearing a helmet though. :-\\\
 
Glad your ok- could be better I know.
What a jerk to take off- Did you file a police report? Hit and run?
I agree- helmets always! Full face too!!!!!
Best thing to do when you get your bike fixed is get on it and ride.
Put that fear to bed quick as you can.!!!
Cup holder is cool!!!!
 
Man that bites the big one! Specially after the effort you put into her...

Very glad to hear the damage is minimal to both you and the bike!
 
no police report filed since I generally don't get along too well with police and it was only a minor accident. I'm hoping to have everything back up and running in a week, but it may take longer if the master clyinder is broken or I can't straighten the handlebars.
Maybe if it takes longer than a week or so I'll finally get around to painting the gas tank which was about the last think left to do.
I always wear gloves, but not a jacket. since it was about 90 degrees out I only had on a t-shirt.
I'll kepp you posted how it turns out.
 
Dang, bad summer for us central PA guys, I went down in june, only on my left side. Totally my fault though, unlike yours. Too funny about the world bouncing, for me the road jumped right up, never knew asphalt could move so fast. Thank god for helmets. Hope you heal up quick, and we can compare scars. Good luck with the bike repairs.
 
Good that you are ok.

With the dog days of summer, we face an uncomfortable and challenging tradeoff between safety and avoiding being hot and sweaty. I opt for wearing gear but keep the vents fully open and front zipper only zipped at the bottom. But I can understand the temptation to dress lightly, especially while waiting at a light with the sun beating down.

Be careful about rebending the handlebars. From what I understand, each time it is bent, it becomes harder and more brittle from additional micro fractures and work hardening (less flexible). Also, the first bend is easier, the second (from the accident) actually requires more force, and the third (attempting to correct) requires even more.
 
apopleptic said:
no police report filed since I generally don't get along too well with police and it was only a minor accident. I'm hoping to have everything back up and running in a week, but it may take longer if the master clyinder is broken or I can't straighten the handlebars.
Maybe if it takes longer than a week or so I'll finally get around to painting the gas tank which was about the last think left to do.
I always wear gloves, but not a jacket. since it was about 90 degrees out I only had on a t-shirt.
I'll kepp you posted how it turns out.
Click to expand...

I have worn leather at 115F........admittedly, it was noticeably warm

There are options, however.



Something to consider:

http://www.leatherup.com/p/Fabric-M...505-Mesh-Sports-Motorcycle-Jacket/114546.html
 
pmong said:
Good that you are ok.

With the dog days of summer, we face an uncomfortable and challenging tradeoff between safety and avoiding being hot and sweaty.
I opt for wearing gear but keep the vents fully open and front zipper only zipped at the bottom.
But I can understand the temptation to dress lightly, especially while waiting at a light with the sun beating down.
Click to expand...

DSC09851.jpg


I also un-zip a few inches at the neck when it gets really hot out.


Eric
 
pmong said:
Be careful about rebending the handlebars. From what I understand, each time it is bent, it becomes harder and more brittle from additional micro fractures and work hardening (less flexible). Also, the first bend is easier, the second (from the accident) actually requires more force, and the third (attempting to correct) requires even more.
Click to expand...

You are fairly right. The proper process would probably be to anneal it before bending, but then it may soften the whole thing as a result.
I'd like it to only be a temporary fix if I rebend them myself, I'm currently looking for a new set in the cheap - free range.

argonsagas said:
I have worn leather at 115F........admittedly, it was noticeably warm

There are options, however.



Something to consider:

http://www.leatherup.com/p/Fabric-Motorcycle-Jackets/Xelement-Mens-CF-505-Mesh-Sports-Motorcycle-Jacket/114546.html
Click to expand...

Firstly, you're nuts even being outside in 115F weather :-\\\

Secondly, thanks for that link. I'm going to look at a few and try and get someone to buy me one of those as an early holiday gift.
 
apopleptic said:
You are fairly right. The proper process would probably be to anneal it before bending, but then it may soften the whole thing as a result.
I'd like it to only be a temporary fix if I rebend them myself, I'm currently looking for a new set in the cheap - free range.
Click to expand...

Mate I have my stock 'bars here doing nothing but I suspect shipping for something like that would take it out of the cheap range...
 
apopleptic said:
You are fairly right. The proper process would probably be to anneal it before bending, but then it may soften the whole thing as a result.
I'd like it to only be a temporary fix if I rebend them myself, I'm currently looking for a new set in the cheap - free range.
Click to expand...

I once tried to straighten a bent handle bar. I took it off the bike, stripped it to a bare bar, clamped it between two pieces of 2x12 and parked my truck on the 2x12 to hold it down while I fitted an 8 ft pipe to the other end to have leverage to straighten it. All I accomplished was to lift my truck up and down. The bar stayed bent.
 
new handlebars, new grips, bled the brakes. time for a test drive. wish me luck!
 
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