Epic fail, or why you don't grab a handful of front brake on a loose surface

[DredheadV2.0]

Here's the full version.  It's political, but funny as hell.

Okay, that there's funny no matter who you are.

[miles]

That's not a front brake issue.Airborne off the gas landing is more like it.Get airborne,even a little and let off the gas the ass end of the bike will smack you over the bars just as illustrated.Unfortunate given the cost of his ride.I've done it on far cheaper rides with similar results.

Yeah, but look at the puff of dirt behind the front wheel.  He was off the gas, and hit nose-down, sure.  Worse though was the fact he was on the brakes.  My read on the situation was that he realized he was going to launch and tried to not do so by getting off the gas and hitting the brake just as he hit the lip of the roller.  He tried to keep it on the ground but had too much speed.  In the air the bike naturally pitched forward and the front locked up, causing him to auger hard.

[Mr Sunshine]

He hit loose dirt and was thrown.

And so you guys know the rider isn't ok.  Broken ribs and a broken femur.  A broken femur can land you in ICU.

[TheGoose]

Bummer, hadn't heard that yet.

As for the reason of the crash, whatever it might be, staying off the front brake continues to be the hardest habit to change in my transition to dirt riding. Having been a pure pavement rider since I started when I want to slow down my first instinct is to hit the front brakes. At the Shelton rally in June or July I almost bit it three or four time because of that. By the end of the day I all but cured my self of it but it came right back. I'm heading out with my brother on Saturday to hoon around, hopefully I get my brain wired correctly before I biff it.

[Mookie]

Did Will find some dirt wheels or are you two just hooning in the dirt as is?

[Windblown]

OUch!

He must have been rolling pretty good based on how far he and the bike traveled after the spill.  Not sure what all contributed to the event but that's a lot of dirt getting torn off the road when the front landed and it does look like his hand had the front brake covered.  I reckon it's possible that if he was covering the brake in the air that when the nose started to drop he instinctively tightened up and locked the front without meaning to.  

Regardless, it brought back unpleasant memories of wiping out by going over the top on gravel. But mine haven't ever been that violent.  

[TheGoose]

We're hooning as is. Widge is going to put Mad Max in the back of his van. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to just ride to where we're going or throw mine in the van too. I have knobbies. From what I understand of where we're going he'll probably be fine with the tires he has on right now, it's just a gravel road type situation.

[fotomoto]

Do you think it would take 8 guys to load a crf450?     Hmmm, let's take a 1920's era powerplant, call it a dirt bike, and charge bazillions for it.

[R.Markus]

OUch!

He must have been rolling pretty good based on how far he and the bike traveled after the spill.

He better have been moving...he was in the middle of a race.

[Mr Sunshine]

Bummer, hadn't heard that yet.

As for the reason of the crash, whatever it might be, staying off the front brake continues to be the hardest habit to change in my transition to dirt riding. Having been a pure pavement rider since I started when I want to slow down my first instinct is to hit the front brakes. At the Shelton rally in June or July I almost bit it three or four time because of that. By the end of the day I all but cured my self of it but it came right back. I'm heading out with my brother on Saturday to hoon around, hopefully I get my brain wired correctly before I biff it.

Using the front brake in the dirt is totally ok.  I was ridiing with a pretty fast trail rider who does some fun racing and he never uses his rear.  The issue is you need to have the feel to know when the front is locking up so you can get off the front.

On the trail I use both, but I use the rear when I reallllllly need to haul it down.

[Mr Sunshine]

We're hooning as is. Widge is going to put Mad Max in the back of his van. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to just ride to where we're going or throw mine in the van too. I have knobbies. From what I understand of where we're going he'll probably be fine with the tires he has on right now, it's just a gravel road type situation.

save the knobies and put it in the back of the van.  will not going to race this weekend?

[Scratch33]

OK - I need help - why is Alex Putin looking over the horizon?

Oh, is that Putin?   Thanks for the clarification -- *I* thought it was Ron Howard.

[R.Markus]

That crash is at the end of this video.


Black River Stages Rallymoto 2008

[miles]

It looks as if he was heavy on the brakes before he even crested the roller.  

[bubba zanetti]

Here's the full version.  It's political, but funny as hell.

   ... err .....  

[R.Markus]

It looks as if he was heavy on the brakes before he even crested the roller.  

Rallymoto is an awesome race event. It's one of the last "grass roots" racing that anyone can participate in, and the only one you can slap a number on your big trailie and go race. I went in February and made a lot of mistakes, but have spent the entire year learning and trying to correct them. One of the main mistakes I was making was too much front brake, it's a hard habit to break when coming from street riding. You have to ride off pavement enough to get the right techniques to become natural, because you revert to your instincts in a panic situation.

A guy at that race wadded up his HP2 also.

[Mr Sunshine]

It looks as if he was heavy on the brakes before he even crested the roller.  

You must be watching a different video than me cause I don't see him on any brakes.  I hear him roll off but other bikes did it.  I just think he was leaning too far forward for the front heavy bike.

[miles]

He already has the back of the bike in the air by the time he crests the roller.  His strategy would have paid off only if he hadn't even attempted that strategy at all.

[Mr Sunshine]

I took some screen shots.  In the first one notice that his front wheel is compressed but there is not pitching forward of the bike?  There is a bump there which in the next shot causes his rear wheel to kick up.

His problem was he didn't stay on the gas but I don't think he had brakes on.

[miles]

I'm not seeing the screen shots.