4fraziers.com

Posts Tagged ‘bike crash’

I remember the first time I dropped my 1979 Yamaha XS1100. Miles away from home, no traffic, and no one to help me stand it back up.

It weighed 631 pounds dry. With a full tank and oil she weighed in at 680. I remember thinking I’d probably given myself a hernia by the time I’d finally managed to manhandle the thing upright. My legs and arms felt like rubber and my back hurt for days afterward.

If only I’d known then what I know now.

My latest bike weighs over 750 lbs wet. There is no way I could upright this vehicle the way I did my old Yamaha. Fortunately I discovered the proper technique sometime back while watching a “Ride Like a Pro” instructional DVD. But there are also lots of YouTube entries where folks demonstrate the proper way to pick up a fallen bike. This one in particular is pretty good, because the gal doing the instruction gives you a few pointers about things you should check and do BEFORE you attempt to get the bike back on its wheels.

Unfortunately I’ve already had to employ this technique with my R3. It works, even on that giant 2300cc two-wheeler.