Dirty Frank
Well-known member
On the only do once list.
Putting armor all on the front tire tread.
Putting armor all on the front tire tread.
Motorcycle mistakes you only make once... and ones you make all the time...
- Thread starter Lightcycle
- Start date
Relax
Well-known member
Yep, went through that when I rode my bike to school in the snow. Funny thing, it wasn't because of the snow that I dropped it, it was because I forgot I parked it in gear.
As I sat on it wondering how I was going to get home without a clutch, it occurred to me that I could just start it in gear again!
i-WERKS
Well-known member
Hopefully this mistake will only happen once - On my first bike with traction control. I was parked on some loose gravel, hopped on the bike and twisted the throttle expecting to move. Traction control kicked in and cut off the power unexpectedly causing me to drop the bike.
Ones that happens all the time - Forgetting to do up the helmet straps and forgetting to tuck in my hoody draw strings into my jacket.
Ones that happens all the time - Forgetting to do up the helmet straps and forgetting to tuck in my hoody draw strings into my jacket.
Mistakes I only made once:
Standing on the right side while moving the bike in the garage. The side stand must have dragged and it folded up. Once the bike was where I wanted it I let it shift to the left to land on the side stand........ and it just kept on going down past the point of no return. GIVI crash bars saved the tank, but the LH saddlebag got scratched up.
Standing on the right side while moving the bike in the garage. The side stand must have dragged and it folded up. Once the bike was where I wanted it I let it shift to the left to land on the side stand........ and it just kept on going down past the point of no return. GIVI crash bars saved the tank, but the LH saddlebag got scratched up.
If you're lucky! My car jumper cables don't fit in the tight little spaces half of my bike batteries are in though.
Even on my jumper pack, I paid extra for a really thin/narrow pointy set of pliers/grippy things for the terminals so I could work in tight spaces of some motorcycles because the little ones that came with the booster pack are still too big for some bikes.
Replaced these:
With these:
The original it came with was 1/3rd or 1/4th the size of my car jumper cables but was still too big for some bikes.
Remembered another mistake I made once...
On a scooter, with underseat storage, it's possible to lock your key under your seat.
Nowadays I could just ask someone to throw my spare key in an uber for me and I'd have my key in 15 minutes, and be home 15 minutes after that... But back then I was a broke student so I had to TTC home, just to get my key, to turn around and TTC back to my bike.
Instead of a 15 minute bike ride it took almost 2 hours. Being broke is a different kind of costly.
On a scooter, with underseat storage, it's possible to lock your key under your seat.
Nowadays I could just ask someone to throw my spare key in an uber for me and I'd have my key in 15 minutes, and be home 15 minutes after that... But back then I was a broke student so I had to TTC home, just to get my key, to turn around and TTC back to my bike.
Instead of a 15 minute bike ride it took almost 2 hours. Being broke is a different kind of costly.
Why is it my hoodie strings only come out at the start of a multi hour ride and the tappy tap on my helmet has absolutely no rhythm of enjoyment whatsoever!
Common new rider mistake (mainly by students on the M1X course)
Puts gloves on first. Grabs helmet, places it on head, tries to do up strap... ruh roh..
Puts gloves on first. Grabs helmet, places it on head, tries to do up strap... ruh roh..
Done that too.
Riding partner in Australia had the same white Burgman 650 as mine in Canada. Several moments of confusion over three months.
Bruce is the same age as me and was in the Mac business as well....continents away but we connected on the burgman.usa site.
Had lunch with him the other day but he cannot ride anymore due to a neurological condition.
He gave me his rather neglected Burgman ....I sold it for $1000 and the KLR for $1800 and scored the CB300F which I sold recently.
He was riding the Burgman 650 50km each way every day down the twisty James Cook Highway and I recall when I was waiting to hook up with him seeing his brilliant yellow helmet bobbing along .....very visible floating above traffic.
Bought similar when I returned to Canada. Was a very convincing demo of visibility.
Riding partner in Australia had the same white Burgman 650 as mine in Canada. Several moments of confusion over three months.
Bruce is the same age as me and was in the Mac business as well....continents away but we connected on the burgman.usa site.
Had lunch with him the other day but he cannot ride anymore due to a neurological condition.
He gave me his rather neglected Burgman ....I sold it for $1000 and the KLR for $1800 and scored the CB300F which I sold recently.
He was riding the Burgman 650 50km each way every day down the twisty James Cook Highway and I recall when I was waiting to hook up with him seeing his brilliant yellow helmet bobbing along .....very visible floating above traffic.
Bought similar when I returned to Canada. Was a very convincing demo of visibility.
Hopping on someone else's bike, realizing it is not mine.
Yeah, I've heard that happens a lot on GTAM group rides...
"Is this my V-Strom?"
"No, you're on my bike..."
"Are you sure? I think this one's @oioioi 's"
"Oops, you are right, my bad, my one's over there."
Relax
Well-known member
Hopping on someone else's bike, realizing it is not mine.
A mistake you only made once?
Gaoler
Well-known member
During my first ride to BC on my FJR I experienced some "range anxiety" along the trans Canada...
'Passing by a gas station with a 1/4 tank...
"I'll stop at the next one"
Turns out the next one is... Well, it's not even showing up on the GPS... lol.
Learned my lesson and subsequent trips...
Just stop and fill 'er up when you have the chance.
'Passing by a gas station with a 1/4 tank...
"I'll stop at the next one"
Turns out the next one is... Well, it's not even showing up on the GPS... lol.
Learned my lesson and subsequent trips...
Just stop and fill 'er up when you have the chance.
And the FJR is no slouch on range, either!
We rode up to the top of Alaska at the end of tourist season, as all the campsites and gas stations were closing for the year.
Most of the gas stations on the Alcan Highway are spaced about 75 kms apart (don't ask me why I know this), but at the end of the season, every other one closes. This leaves 150 kms between stations, which is fine for trucks and cars, but on a motorcycle, it can induce quite a bit of range anxiety.
Our bikes at the time could do ~400 kms to a tank (similar to an FJR). Still ran them empty when TWO stations in a row were closed.
Thankfully, we were carrying jerry cans:
This was at the closed gas station. Funny thing was, there another motorcyclist stopped there too, filling up with his jerry can!
I got to the top of the Roger’s Pass with zilch left on the cb500x
It was a long nail biting coast/draft down to the next station. Had1 ltr left. Not the smartest way to start a trip. I ignored the no gas for xxx km and forgot about gravity
Despite that I still ran it thin a few times on that trip
Seasonal gas stations are a dice roll in BC
It was a long nail biting coast/draft down to the next station. Had1 ltr left. Not the smartest way to start a trip. I ignored the no gas for xxx km and forgot about gravity
Despite that I still ran it thin a few times on that trip
Seasonal gas stations are a dice roll in BC
sburns
Well-known member
Thread revive!
So today I did the stupidest mistake with the bike on my ride. I gassed up in Coldwater, and I needed to check something in my side case. Did that then hopped on the bike and off I went. When I stopped in Big Chute, looked at my side case, it wasn't locked and my keys where still dangling there...WTF... When I say keys they are all my keys, house, car, and etc... thank the universe they didn't fall out I would have been fuked!
I doubt I will be doing that again. BTW my motorcycle key is on it's own, only the side case key is with the rest of my keys...
I should rethink this setup..
So today I did the stupidest mistake with the bike on my ride. I gassed up in Coldwater, and I needed to check something in my side case. Did that then hopped on the bike and off I went. When I stopped in Big Chute, looked at my side case, it wasn't locked and my keys where still dangling there...WTF... When I say keys they are all my keys, house, car, and etc... thank the universe they didn't fall out I would have been fuked!
I doubt I will be doing that again. BTW my motorcycle key is on it's own, only the side case key is with the rest of my keys...
I should rethink this setup..
The one main thing I like about the Shad topbox on my current bike compared to my last two bikes that had Givi's is that it can open/close without a key.
One of the guys I ride with rides with his keys in the top case lock quite often. Last ride his top case was actually opened and it never bothered him.
I also find it annoying that every time I want to open my top case I have to remove the keys from the ignition.
I use one of my spare Givi keys and put it to a detachable tether. It's attached to my top case with the key in the lock. I'm not worried of it coming out and I know it's there all the time. I can remove it from the tether if I'm walking away from the bike.
