Shouldn't have drove that day... (my slide story)

[Akar.Zaephyr]

It was a nice Sunday yesterday and while I was waiting for my DL to be produced, I decided to have a tiny, tiny ride to the nearest gas station just to fill the NC up and go back home. Not even a mile one way. I guess you know where this is going...

It was a blink of an eye, and just a little too much throttle when turning left, joining the traffic. (I think brand new tires contributed to this as well, just a bad mix of no experience and new tires, me thinks) Speed was very low so when I lost grip in the rear wheel, I slid just a couple of feet. No harm to me at all, but the bike took a little damage. Steering handle bent (needs replacement, no way I'm trying to straighten it), left mirror scratched a little, handlebar weight scratched and left turn indicator broken, both need replacement. Other than that, minor scratch on the left frunk and a tiny, itsy-bitsy scratch on the frame, as well as a little scratch on the bottom left front catalyst plastic cover. Surprisingly less damage than I thought I would see.

Also, rider writing these words noticed several major cracks to his pride. No one else suffered from this incident.

I take it as a tough lesson on my now-proven-to-be-non-existent riding skills, as well as a clue from heavens I should wait until I get the DL. And point taken, I shouldn't have gone on the road without crash bars installed. Shouldn't have gone at all...

I was considering to replace every bloody part that took a hit in this little slide, but I decided to leave the mirror and the frunk as they are. I want them to remind me every day I'll be riding, that what I considered sufficient skills to ride casually was not enough, and that I have much more to learn than I thought. It is a humbling experience and I thank to God what happened, happened at such low speeds there wasn't real harm done to anyone on the road, bike parts being the only victims here.

Lesson learned. I hereby join the club of... what was the name of it again?
EDIT: Just found - Down To Earth Club.

I guess it's time to end what I consider to be a confession.
I've screwed up, believed my skills to be more than they really are, and I've payed the price for it.
I shall be much more cautious in the future, as the DCT is fantastic, but there is no grip control in the form of clutch, so careful throttle operation is a must. I also consider using a little of rear break, but I'll trust in your experience here, if you care to share it with me.
I guess it is fair to say I deserve some bashing so feel free to call me an idiot if you feel I deserve it.

Ride safe, everyone!

PS: I apologize, I've taken no pictures. The idea of documenting my enormous fail with pictures slipped my mind, killed by remorse and shame. God, I feel so stupid...

 

[Fuzzy]

Your NC now has it's own character matched by no other NC and uniquely yours.

Did you go back and look at the road surface where the rear tire lost traction. Common for something to have been spilled or bit of gravel in an intersection. An experienced friend was on crutches several months after hitting a small patch of spilled diesel fuel in an intersection.

 

[Akar.Zaephyr]

Your NC now has it's own character matched by no other NC and uniquely yours.

(...)

I didn't look at it from this point of view. You're right, she's mine now more than ever

(...)
Did you go back and look at the road surface where the rear tire lost traction. Common for something to have been spilled or bit of gravel in an intersection. An experienced friend was on crutches several months after hitting a small patch of spilled diesel fuel in an intersection.

Yes, I did have a look at as to why I lost grip. Unfortunately, nothing to be found there, the road is in perfect condition and was completely clean as well. A friend of mine will visit today afternoon - he has already given me some advice as to how to drive first 100 miles on new tires and get rid of stuff that comes with it before cornering properly. He suspects it was a combination of 80% of new tires and 20% of my bad throttle operation. We'll see what he has to say.

EDIT:
But to lighten the mood a little, I must say this bike really drives nicely. And I love the engine sound, after two years of riding 50cc moped it sounds like a beast. The muffler sound won't be boring to me soon. And it's LCoG feels really nice and smooth, almost friendly. Can't wait to start riding properly, but I'll take it slowly as I already know how being in rush to ride can bite in the butt.

Thanks for taking time to respond

 

[itlives]

Welcome to the club! If it had officers I'd probably be the Vice-president (behind OCR). I dropped mine no less than 7 times and actually totaled it (bought back from the ins. co. and fixed). Most of my drops were on the grass in my yard "learning" to ride slow and doing tight circles.

Btw- You're in Poland, but your English is better than most English speaking people. Gotta story there, somewhere?

 

[drdubb]

Hate to hear about your fall, but glad the lesson was not too painfull. You have many more lessons to learn, hope you learn them while upright.

 

[Akar.Zaephyr]

Welcome to the club! If it had officers I'd probably be the Vice-president (behind OCR). I dropped mine no less than 7 times and actually totaled it (bought back from the ins. co. and fixed). Most of my drops were on the grass in my yard "learning" to ride slow and doing tight circles.
(...)

Thanks for the visit! I would dethrone you all if I had to count all the times I dropped the bike on a driving course. Each time I switched machines, gradually going from small to bigger and bigger, I had to drop it at least once. I recon it would be around 20 times total, but to be fair and square - this didn't happen by the end. I guess I just had to learn what's what, but as my yesterday's adventure shows - no matter the experience and mileage, there's always a chance for a slide. Let's all hope it ends with just that, a slide instead of crash at higher speeds.

(...)
Btw- You're in Poland, but your English is better than most English speaking people. Gotta story there, somewhere?

uhm... Thank you, kind words indeed I've been working with Australians and Americans my entire professional life so I try to learn from experience, though I know we foreigners usually keep the sort of sterile English. It's not always easy to catch up with everyday life language when most of the contacts depend on email,the official-style one. Thank you nevertheless, I'm a little blushed now Unless your question had different meaning, I apologize if I don't get things sometimes.

 

[bduffey]

Sometimes folks forget just how 'slick' new tires can be! Gotta give them some triple-digit miles before they start to settle in. Good story.

 

[L.B.S.]

Don't be too hard on yourself, buddy!

I had the same thing happen to me, for the very first time in my life, when leaving the dealership on my brand new zero km NCX. Out of the dealership lot, a gentle throttle into the street, and *BAM* on my butt instantly. You never would have seen a more surprised and bewildered looking face in your life, as mine, lol

I'm over 50, and have been riding motorcycles since I was 6 years old. I have raced, been a professional courier, travelled North America, and have many hundreds of thousands of km's under my belt.

I've never had a tire spin out on me like that period, let alone on a brand new bike leaving the dealer!

That's where I got the name for my bike- "Gabi" which is a very rough translation of: "HOLY SH*T! " in Japanese, from what I can tell. hahahaha

 

[Old Can Ride]

Down to Earth Club - "For Members of this Forum who have dropped their NC700!"

Welcome to the "Haves".
The "Have Not's" will be joining us shortly!

 

[Akar.Zaephyr]

Sometimes folks forget just how 'slick' new tires can be! Gotta give them some triple-digit miles before they start to settle in. Good story.

Indeed so. I too knew that before the ride. and yet I forgot. Lesson learned

Don't be too hard on yourself, buddy!

I had the same thing happen to me, for the very first time in my life, when leaving the dealership on my brand new zero km NCX. Out of the dealership lot, a gentle throttle into the street, and *BAM* on my butt instantly. You never would have seen a more surprised and bewildered looking face in your life, as mine, lol

I'm over 50, and have been riding motorcycles since I was 6 years old. I have raced, been a professional courier, travelled North America, and have many hundreds of thousands of km's under my belt.

I've never had a tire spin out on me like that period, let alone on a brand new bike leaving the dealer!

That's where I got the name for my bike- "Gabi" which is a very rough translation of: "HOLY SH*T! " in Japanese, from what I can tell. hahahaha

Most bewildered face in the world - that's exactly how I felt I just stood up, picked the bike up and thought "what in the name?".
Though the damage still saddens me, I feel better knowing I'm not the only one with such adventures. I think to myself: if I was destined to drop my NC, I'm only glad it was at low speed with relatively low damage to the bike and no injuries. My brother, riding with me, seemed to take it much harder than me, lol. I told him in a year, we both will be laughing at it.

Down to Earth Club - "For Members of this Forum who have dropped their NC700!"

Welcome to the "Haves".
The "Have Not's" will be joining us shortly!

They may resist and deny, fight back with nails and teeth, but they will join us nevertheless. Resistant is futile!

I've decided I manned up enough and took some pictures today while checking the bike again. Phew, it's not that bad, could've been worse. Photos to follow shortly.

EDIT:

A few pictures of the aftermath.

Let's start with the major damage:
The handlebar got bent pretty good. Still can ride, but the wrist is angled in such a way it is not comfy for longer than 10 minutes. Unfortunately, this cannot be repaired so the handlebar needs replacement. Checked Internetz - around 100$. Not too bad. PS: Sorry if it can't be seen too well, just didn't have the time to take some good photos



Then comes the frunk. The scratch isn't very big, but it's hard to miss. Replacement part - almost 500$. Eeeeek!



Turn indicator - broken. Replacement cost - 50$. Not bad.



Now the smaller damage...
Left handlebar weight - scratched. Seems like enough of material was lost during slide to change its weight, needs replacement. Cost: 25$.



Left catalyst cover. Scrathed as well, I'll leave it as it is. Took a little bit more than I thought but it's not too bad.
I guess I'm happy the engine cover wasn't damaged, as well as the radiator.



Mirror, just a scratch at the forward-most edge. I guess removing the standing out material won't leave as bad impression, what you think?



And finally, the minor damage to the frame. I was surprised the frame almost got away with it.



All in all, it could've been much, much worse. Replacing mentioned parts should take around 200$ (still waiting for dealer response - due tomorrow). But the frunk side panel price is just insane. I guess I'll keep an eye at auctions, looking for totaled white NC and maybe one day I'll replace it. Same for the bottom left panel. It pains me to see this beautiful machine damaged before even making 10 miles, but what is done is done. Admit the fault, learn from experience (new tires, I'm looking at you!) and don't make the same mistake twice.

And to think that crash pads would actually save all those part... Learn from my mistake, always install crash pads on, even if you're experienced. New bike can be a surprise even to an experienced rider, like L.B.S. said!

Thanks for cheering me up, makes admitting the mistake all the less painful.

 

[mreric]

I love the addition of ABS to motorcycle in the recent years.... it is becoming a standard item in Europe and other countries..... now i wish traction control also become this standard.

I am glad you are ok.... got some frame sliders?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=42&v=-gu1W2DR-vU
Testing Bosch's Motorcycle Stability Control - Common Tread - RevZilla

 

[Akar.Zaephyr]

I agree, ABS is a must - I've had the opportunity to ride both ABS and no-ABS Gladius and the difference is... Let's just say I'll never buy a bike without ABS.
As to frame sliders, no, I don't have any, hence so much damage (my previous post updated).
It's settled, after what happened yesterday - I won't get on public road until I have at least crash pads or frame sliders.

I wonder what motorcycle manufacturers will come up with in the future. Seems exciting I'm all for helping a rider get back home safely.

 

[itlives]

uhm... Thank you, kind words indeed I've been working with Australians and Americans my entire professional life so I try to learn from experience, though I know we foreigners usually keep the sort of sterile English. It's not always easy to catch up with everyday life language when most of the contacts depend on email,the official-style one. Thank you nevertheless, I'm a little blushed now Unless your question had different meaning, I apologize if I don't get things sometimes.

I asked because I'm a moderator on a workout site and we had a member that was living over there and I asked him how he Chad such good English. He was an English teacher living overseas.
Anyway, I'm always glad to see proper English - even though mine is not always the best , I try.

You can always have your scratched pieces painted for less than replacement.

 

[dakotamiles]

I think those scratches are badges of honor. They show that your bike occupies the real world, and has been out in it!

True story: A guy who was poor as a young man finally made enough money to buy a brand new pickup truck, so he went to the dealer and picked one out. After closing the deal and getting the title, he went out and kicked the front fender as hard as he could, putting a big dent in it. A friend who was watching asked "what did you do that for??!". The guy replied that if his truck was perfect and someone else dented it he'd get mad at them about it. So having a truck that's dented already made it so he wouldn't have to get mad at anybody.

I heard that new tires are really slippery. They are coated with the "release material" that lined the mold. It looks like wax to me. What's the trick to getting that material off of a new tire? When I first got my new rear tire recently, I headed right over to the nearest dirt and gravel patch and carefully noodled around in there for awhile. I figured the gravel would scrape all that stuff off my tire faster than pavement would. I'm relieved I didn't have to have Akar's experience, yet.

 

[ViperDriver]

"There are those who have and those who will."

Regarding the back brake, I probably use more back brake in cornering than anyone--probably more than I should--but it's unlikely you could have reacted quickly enough to stop a power-on low-side. Using some back brake in a turn helps if you need to turn in more (either you entered the corner too fast or it's a decreasing-radius turn) and, since we have ABS on the DCT bike, it's a fairly safe thing to do. The nice thing is that it doesn't cause a "dive" like the front brake, which can pull you off your line. But again, I doubt that the average rider could stop a power slide with the brake.

Regarding the accident, learn from it and then put it away. It's a tiny blip in the long riding career you have in front of you.

 

[Kiernan]

Man, that sucks to see that much damage from just a little skid. Glad to hear you're ok, though.

Mine ended up on the ground at my riding class a few weeks ago. It was more of a slowly controlled, "I'll put this right here," than a skid or drop. I was going really slow to get in line for the next exercise and I thought the bike in front of me was going to move. I was prepared to end up where he was currently, and when he didn't move, I had to hit the brakes very hard with the wheel cut sharp to the right. I got my feet down, but didn't have the leverage to keep it upright. I think I did more damage trying to get it back up than it did when it hit the ground.

I'm still pretty uncomfortable on the bike and try to ride as often as I can to get my experience level up. I'm willing to bet that my one time won't be my only time.

 

[670cc]

OP stated that the back end slid when applying throttle. I don't think ABS would have saved the day.

 

[kpinvt]

Indeed so. I too knew that before the ride. and yet I forgot. Lesson learned

Snipped...

Then comes the frunk. The scratch isn't very big, but it's hard to miss. Replacement part - almost 500$. Eeeeek!

View attachment 25076

Snipped...

Thanks for cheering me up, makes admitting the mistake all the less painful.

Good place for a decal. I had my one week old bike get blown over in a wind storm - $1200 damage. The right handle bar was bent upwards about 40 degrees. That spot looks paintable for a lot less than $500.

 

[wildeone]

two best things you can do for yourself - get crash bars and get offroad riding training then no wheels skid will scares you.

 

[Fuzzy]

For your frunk scratch just get a sticker that is meaningful to you and apply over the scratch. More personal character to the bike while covering the scratch.