Glad your ok. Maybe its a good time to revisit and ask your self if a full face is in your future.
-
Enjoy XS650.com? Consider making a donation to help support the site.
XS650.com receives a small share of sales from some links on this page, but direct donations have a much greater impact on keeping this site going.
Unknowns When Riding Known Roads
- Thread starter Boog
- Start date
Glad your ok. Maybe its a good time to revisit and ask your self if a full face is in your future.
I was on the Honda CMT 400 back in the '80's on a spring day riding a two-lane windy road, speed limit 25, Luckily, I was within regulation when a 40 or 50 pound dog as tall as my front wheel decided to bolt across the road. A quick clutch in, both brakes and a slight skid allowed the dog to make it across, and allowed me to remain unscathed. It gave me enough of a startle to know what I should expect anytime in the future. Lesson learned.
'TT'
'TT'
I just remembered a friend in H.S. riding his RD350 hitting a large dog at 60MPH+. Broken collarbone and wrist if I remember right. Dogs and deer scare me the most.
Back when I was a kid, I t-boned an Airedale with my Suzuki 80, at about 30mph. Over the bars I went and was rewarded with a cracked collarbone. Dog ran away, a bit crooked I’d like to think.
My first wreck on the street... Little 90 cc enduro, a light rain causing me to hurry home to warm and dry, diagonal semi filled RR tracks in the street. Being right after an intersection/corner my speed was at the "Shit this is embarassing" level rather than "shit this hurts" level
wildav
XS650 Enthusiast
Yes there are fox squirrels here. Not in my immediate area, too busy for them. Often see them when riding around in the state forest which is a few miles away
I do ride all winter with one.
Just catching up on this one - and I have two stories to relate:
1) In about 1977 I was going up highway 15 north of Kingston, ON on my '75 XS650B and a small bird nailed me right on my sternum (breastbone - where all of your ribs come together just above your belly). He hit me and flopped down on top of the tank and lay there while I tried to catch my breath and get off the road.
When I got it stopped, the little bird was dead so I tossed the body into the ditch and carried on. That evening, my chest looked like I had beaten with a bat - and now, more than 45 years later, my sternum still has a lump on it (my doctor notices it every year) and it still aches in cold wet weather (which hardly ever happens in Canada....
).
2) A few years later - around 1982, I was booting eastbound along Hwy. 7 somewhere about 15-20 miles west of Perth, Ontario late at night on my '79 Suzuki GS850G. Hwy. 7 between Peterborough and Ottawa was, back then, a pretty, but very lonely stretch of road winding over the Canadian Shield - so the terrain is hilly and rocky. An OPP police cruiser went by going the other way - so I knew that the road ahead would be clear of LEOs (they usually only send two or three cars per night up and down the highway. Some time after the copper went by going west, a car came booming up behind me and was tailgating me, even through some zones where he could have passed me and he was really close.
So, I gave him the taillights once or twice and then he suddenly pulled out and belted past me. After he went by, he cut quickly back into my lane and slammed on his brakes - enough to put a cloud of tire smoke in the air - and then he took off again. I just thought - "@sshole" - and kept going, but there in the road was a big dog - lying right across my lane about 40-50 feet in front of me. I cannot imagine where that dog had come from - we were miles away from any town or gas station and there aren't even many farms in the area because the terrain is so rocky. I am pretty sure that the car had hit the poor dog - and then just buggered off.
Anyhow, I knew I was going to hit him so I braced myself, the bike reared up and over the dog and came back down - still upright, wiggled once or twice and kept going. I stopped and turned back and went to the dog. He was still alive but very badly injured. It was, frankly, horrible. He couldn't move his hind legs or tail and he was whimpering quite loudly. There was no way I could take him anywhere (he had to weigh 80-100 lbs) and I knew there was no police patrol coming my way plus it was pre-cell phone so there was no way could I even call for help. There wasn't a lot of traffic on Hwy 7 - and very little after dark - but I couldn't leave him there to be hit over and over again.
Sooooo....I dragged him off the road to the outside edge of the shoulder as far as I could get him and as gently as I could, I helped him to move on to a better place without pain. I love animals - particularly dogs - and this was one of the most heartbreaking things I have ever had to do.
Sorry - can't seem to see the keyboard right now.
1) In about 1977 I was going up highway 15 north of Kingston, ON on my '75 XS650B and a small bird nailed me right on my sternum (breastbone - where all of your ribs come together just above your belly). He hit me and flopped down on top of the tank and lay there while I tried to catch my breath and get off the road.
When I got it stopped, the little bird was dead so I tossed the body into the ditch and carried on. That evening, my chest looked like I had beaten with a bat - and now, more than 45 years later, my sternum still has a lump on it (my doctor notices it every year) and it still aches in cold wet weather (which hardly ever happens in Canada....
).2) A few years later - around 1982, I was booting eastbound along Hwy. 7 somewhere about 15-20 miles west of Perth, Ontario late at night on my '79 Suzuki GS850G. Hwy. 7 between Peterborough and Ottawa was, back then, a pretty, but very lonely stretch of road winding over the Canadian Shield - so the terrain is hilly and rocky. An OPP police cruiser went by going the other way - so I knew that the road ahead would be clear of LEOs (they usually only send two or three cars per night up and down the highway. Some time after the copper went by going west, a car came booming up behind me and was tailgating me, even through some zones where he could have passed me and he was really close.
So, I gave him the taillights once or twice and then he suddenly pulled out and belted past me. After he went by, he cut quickly back into my lane and slammed on his brakes - enough to put a cloud of tire smoke in the air - and then he took off again. I just thought - "@sshole" - and kept going, but there in the road was a big dog - lying right across my lane about 40-50 feet in front of me. I cannot imagine where that dog had come from - we were miles away from any town or gas station and there aren't even many farms in the area because the terrain is so rocky. I am pretty sure that the car had hit the poor dog - and then just buggered off.
Anyhow, I knew I was going to hit him so I braced myself, the bike reared up and over the dog and came back down - still upright, wiggled once or twice and kept going. I stopped and turned back and went to the dog. He was still alive but very badly injured. It was, frankly, horrible. He couldn't move his hind legs or tail and he was whimpering quite loudly. There was no way I could take him anywhere (he had to weigh 80-100 lbs) and I knew there was no police patrol coming my way plus it was pre-cell phone so there was no way could I even call for help. There wasn't a lot of traffic on Hwy 7 - and very little after dark - but I couldn't leave him there to be hit over and over again.
Sooooo....I dragged him off the road to the outside edge of the shoulder as far as I could get him and as gently as I could, I helped him to move on to a better place without pain. I love animals - particularly dogs - and this was one of the most heartbreaking things I have ever had to do.
Sorry - can't seem to see the keyboard right now.
Last edited:
@MaxPete I feel for you brother. That pup was lucky you helped him along. Otherwise that would have been a potentially long and painful death.
This morning, just before sunrise on my way to work, I came up on a slowish work pickup in the center of three lanes. We are on the expressway and he is poking along at maybe 70-75mph. As i begin moving to the left lane to pass him, a big box of hardware fell onto the roadway. The box burst with many pieces of hardware flying all about. Most of this stuff went tot he right where a car slammed their brakes hard to attempt missing the debris.
I pulled along side the driver and got his attention. He pulled off the road evidently unaware he had lost anything initially.
This kind of truck is always on my list of concerns when riding or driving. It has a headache rack atop the bed and cab with several ladders attached. The sides of the bed have tool boxes affixed atop each side. The bed was loaded with various construction looking bits of gear. Had I not already been moving left when the box flew off, I could have easily had a bad day.
This morning, just before sunrise on my way to work, I came up on a slowish work pickup in the center of three lanes. We are on the expressway and he is poking along at maybe 70-75mph. As i begin moving to the left lane to pass him, a big box of hardware fell onto the roadway. The box burst with many pieces of hardware flying all about. Most of this stuff went tot he right where a car slammed their brakes hard to attempt missing the debris.
I pulled along side the driver and got his attention. He pulled off the road evidently unaware he had lost anything initially.
This kind of truck is always on my list of concerns when riding or driving. It has a headache rack atop the bed and cab with several ladders attached. The sides of the bed have tool boxes affixed atop each side. The bed was loaded with various construction looking bits of gear. Had I not already been moving left when the box flew off, I could have easily had a bad day.
Thanks Boog - and glad you dodged that junk on the road this morning.
Be safe out there everyone.
Pete
Be safe out there everyone.
Pete
Wearing a 3/4 sleeved t shirt I happily rode across the San Joaquin Valley towards NAS Lemoore. With all the agriculture there it should be no surprise that I went through a swarm of bees. I felt a little tickle up my arm then some fluttering on my back. After going through the main gate I rode out the the flightless repair shop and parked. When I climbed off the bike and stood up a panicked bee stung me right at the top off my butt cheek.
OUCH!!!Wearing a 3/4 sleeved t shirt I happily rode across the San Joaquin Valley towards NAS Lemoore. With all the agriculture there it should be no surprise that I went through a swarm of bees. I felt a little tickle up my arm then some fluttering on my back. After going through the main gate I rode out the the flightless repair shop and parked. When I climbed off the bike and stood up a panicked bee stung me right at the top off my butt cheek.
Now THESE guys, I would have no problem dealing with. Bees scare the sh!t out of me.
I saw that and some poop came out!
That is so true. There are lots of reasons we should live our lives in the present moment. But that is most important during certain activities which includes riding a motorbike. Easier said than done but you need to be in the moment, not thinking about what you will do when you get there. And don't switch off from that when you're nearly there.
Last edited:
Coming out of the mountains after a fast ride, Visalia CA area, my side road intersected with a divided highway, my route to the left across the traffic lane going right (at 60 mph). Check traffic in all directions, wait, wait, here's a clearing go.... Why is there a puddle right there in my path, why is there a yellow thing there, why does it look like a broken PENZOIL quart? Sheeeeeeyat! Oiled both tires, one bootsole keeping things sliding upright and almost greased my shorts.
MaxPete, that is an awful experience and you did the best, most caring, thing anyone could do for that poor dog.
A few years ago I was riding towards the ferry from Vancouver, headed for Victoria, and I saw a swarm of unknown insects right in my path. I had no windscreen on my Honda 919, but thank God had a full face on. I could not veer around them and just put my head down and there must have been at least 15 or 20 impacts all over me. Once I got on the ferry I headed straight for the washroom to clean up. Thankfully had a leather jacket on for that one!
A few years ago I was riding towards the ferry from Vancouver, headed for Victoria, and I saw a swarm of unknown insects right in my path. I had no windscreen on my Honda 919, but thank God had a full face on. I could not veer around them and just put my head down and there must have been at least 15 or 20 impacts all over me. Once I got on the ferry I headed straight for the washroom to clean up. Thankfully had a leather jacket on for that one!
Summer evenings along the river near me a face shield can become completely opaque with bugs in a mile or so of riding.
Roads serving farms are never "Guaranteed" clear. Leaking manure spreaders, mud from tractor tires, spilled corn, loose hay, grass clippings, LARGE farm equpment, deer, dogs, critters, don't trust any corner you can't fully see.
Crashed on a german shepard LONG ago. been dog bit. Several VERY close calls with deer. Pea gravel at an intersection has gotten me. Ice, frost on heavily shaded roadways in the spring. Did a half mile on heavily rutted ice on a K1200LT barge, roads were clear but a bluff shaded a section of the road. GPS conned me into thinking 12 miles of DEEP soft sand was a ridable road, the "other way around" was an extra 50 miles.......... a riding buddy is still mad at me about that one. We were on heavily laden touring bikes. Once into it, stopping would have been instant stuck.
Roads serving farms are never "Guaranteed" clear. Leaking manure spreaders, mud from tractor tires, spilled corn, loose hay, grass clippings, LARGE farm equpment, deer, dogs, critters, don't trust any corner you can't fully see.
Crashed on a german shepard LONG ago. been dog bit. Several VERY close calls with deer. Pea gravel at an intersection has gotten me. Ice, frost on heavily shaded roadways in the spring. Did a half mile on heavily rutted ice on a K1200LT barge, roads were clear but a bluff shaded a section of the road. GPS conned me into thinking 12 miles of DEEP soft sand was a ridable road, the "other way around" was an extra 50 miles.......... a riding buddy is still mad at me about that one. We were on heavily laden touring bikes. Once into it, stopping would have been instant stuck.
Yup - as Gary says, bugs can be a real hazard in North America.
I was riding my '75 Yamaha XS650B from Kingston to visit a girlfriend in Wawa Ontario in the summer of 1980 (thats about 1150 km or just under 720 miles by road) and I was.....shall we say, anxious to get there and so I was "in a hurry". I left work at about 4:30 pm and so the 12+ hour ride took me through the night over some pretty lonely stretches of Northern Ontario highway. There really aren't many places to stop or re-fuel north-west of Sudbury - especially at night and so (just like Maxwell House coffee), I was stretching the Yamaha's 15 litre fuel capacity "to the last drop".
Anyhow, it was a cold, crisp, clear June night with a decent moon shining along paved two-laner Hwy. 17 and suddenly a June bug splatted against the shield of my brand new Simpson full-face "Darth Vader" helmet. A June bug is a big, dumb, slow-flying type of beetle that can range from 12 to about 32 mm in length (1/2 to more than 1.25 inches). These buggers are BIG with a fairly hard shell and they seem to be filled with a sticky yellowy slime. They don't bite or sting but man, do they make a mess when you hit them.
The bug was spread all over my shield and I really couldn't see at all. I was frantically trying to wipe it away, but leather gloves were no match for the sticky innards of this big b@stard and so I must have weaved off the road a little. It was getting decidedly bumpy when I finally got the bike stopped and the shield up. At that point, I found that I had actually crossed the right hand shoulder (gravel verge to my friends across the sea) and was down in the ditch beside the road. My front wheel had stopped about 6 inches away from a 24" steel culvert. If I hadn't gotten it stopped, I would have hit the culvert and undoubtedly been badly injured or even killed - which would also have entailed lying in the ditch for the remainder of the night, if not longer, because I was well off the road and below grade in the ditch. Fortunately, the ditch was fairly broad so I was able to push the bike back and ride up out of it. It took me a few minutes to calm down and assess my condition (and that of my undergarments) - and then I got going at a slightly slower pace.
Geeezzz...and I had thought that the biggest hazard on that ride was likely to be a raccoon (up to about 20 lbs - but very tough), deer (150-400 lbs) or a moose (from 420 lbs for a small cow up to 1500 lbs for a big bull) wandering out in front of me. Moose are definitely the most dangerous, partly because of the weight, but mainly because they are tall, so, while the bike itself may actually go under the moose, you will hit the main part of that huge body.
The rule of thumb with Canadian wildlife is that if you hit a 'coon, you are going down, but you might get away with just a slide injury; if you hit a deer, your bike will be totaled and you will likely be injured; but if you hit a moose, you have nothing to worry about. There will be no wheelchair....you will be killed.
European visitors have often asked about the danger from wolves and bears - but you simply never see them in the heavily populated south of Canada where I live and even up north, these creatures are shy and seldom seen. They generally run away if you approach unless they are protecting their young (and they are extremely dangerous in that situation). BTW- if a bear does ever chase you - simply lie down and cover your head. You will not be able to outrun one of these guys. They will likely just nose around you and leave you alone after that. A wolf....well, that could be a different kettle of fish indeed.
Anyhow - insects - yuk!
Pete
I was riding my '75 Yamaha XS650B from Kingston to visit a girlfriend in Wawa Ontario in the summer of 1980 (thats about 1150 km or just under 720 miles by road) and I was.....shall we say, anxious to get there and so I was "in a hurry". I left work at about 4:30 pm and so the 12+ hour ride took me through the night over some pretty lonely stretches of Northern Ontario highway. There really aren't many places to stop or re-fuel north-west of Sudbury - especially at night and so (just like Maxwell House coffee), I was stretching the Yamaha's 15 litre fuel capacity "to the last drop".
Anyhow, it was a cold, crisp, clear June night with a decent moon shining along paved two-laner Hwy. 17 and suddenly a June bug splatted against the shield of my brand new Simpson full-face "Darth Vader" helmet. A June bug is a big, dumb, slow-flying type of beetle that can range from 12 to about 32 mm in length (1/2 to more than 1.25 inches). These buggers are BIG with a fairly hard shell and they seem to be filled with a sticky yellowy slime. They don't bite or sting but man, do they make a mess when you hit them.
The bug was spread all over my shield and I really couldn't see at all. I was frantically trying to wipe it away, but leather gloves were no match for the sticky innards of this big b@stard and so I must have weaved off the road a little. It was getting decidedly bumpy when I finally got the bike stopped and the shield up. At that point, I found that I had actually crossed the right hand shoulder (gravel verge to my friends across the sea) and was down in the ditch beside the road. My front wheel had stopped about 6 inches away from a 24" steel culvert. If I hadn't gotten it stopped, I would have hit the culvert and undoubtedly been badly injured or even killed - which would also have entailed lying in the ditch for the remainder of the night, if not longer, because I was well off the road and below grade in the ditch. Fortunately, the ditch was fairly broad so I was able to push the bike back and ride up out of it. It took me a few minutes to calm down and assess my condition (and that of my undergarments) - and then I got going at a slightly slower pace.
Geeezzz...and I had thought that the biggest hazard on that ride was likely to be a raccoon (up to about 20 lbs - but very tough), deer (150-400 lbs) or a moose (from 420 lbs for a small cow up to 1500 lbs for a big bull) wandering out in front of me. Moose are definitely the most dangerous, partly because of the weight, but mainly because they are tall, so, while the bike itself may actually go under the moose, you will hit the main part of that huge body.
The rule of thumb with Canadian wildlife is that if you hit a 'coon, you are going down, but you might get away with just a slide injury; if you hit a deer, your bike will be totaled and you will likely be injured; but if you hit a moose, you have nothing to worry about. There will be no wheelchair....you will be killed.
European visitors have often asked about the danger from wolves and bears - but you simply never see them in the heavily populated south of Canada where I live and even up north, these creatures are shy and seldom seen. They generally run away if you approach unless they are protecting their young (and they are extremely dangerous in that situation). BTW- if a bear does ever chase you - simply lie down and cover your head. You will not be able to outrun one of these guys. They will likely just nose around you and leave you alone after that. A wolf....well, that could be a different kettle of fish indeed.
Anyhow - insects - yuk!
Pete
Last edited:
