Hi everyone, I have read this forum often, but never posted. I have wanted a 599 for many months, but after taking the MSF course and doing my research I decided a ninja 250 would be better to start out on, so I got one 9 days ago and have ridden about 550 miles since. Well I guess that was the right decision b/c today I crashed.

I made a 90 degree left turn and decided impulsively to downshift right before countersteering. I ended up letting the clutch out while in the beginnings of the turn and with low revs, so the back wheel kind of jumped a few times, bike went sideways, then whipped around and tossed me pretty hard onto the pavement. I hit my head and hip pretty hard, and slid a ways, but thankfully go by ATGATT, so damage to myself was minimal bruising and headache. My bike is now sans right turn signal, some scratches on the right, and bent up handle bars, not too bad really. Though am very glad I damaged a Ninja and not a 599!

I have to honestly say the first thought that came to mind was, I don't know if riding is worth all this. It's been a couple of hours now, I still feel a little shaken, and while I don't quite feel like up and selling the bike right away now, I'm wondering is the danger of motorcycling really worth the high risk associated with even simple mistakes?

Did you ever feel like going back to being a full-time cager? I don't expect to be a motorcycling expert in 9 days, but coming into contact with pavement is a very dangerous way to learn.

Everything you do in life has risks and not every one of those things is manageable. Its ultimately your decision whether or not it's worth it. For me, it unquestionably is.

You've got to get back in the saddle. With my first bike, a Honda VF500F Interceptor, I had a low speed drop on an uphill turn that scared the crap out of me. It almost stopped me from riding. I'm glad that it didn't. I took riding a lot more seriously thereafter. Once I got back on, I focused on what created the problem in the first place and it hasn't happened ever since. I also made a point of budgeting a substantial amount of money for PROPER riding gear. (No, Wilson's Leather jackets are not great for motorcycles.)

Get back on and give it a few rides. Then you'll know.

Damn, sorry to hear about your crash, but glad you and the bike are relatively O.K.
I think you made the right choice in riding ATGATT!

Welcome to the forum!

Everything you do in life has risks and not every one of those things is manageable. Its ultimately your decision whether or not it's worth it. For me, it unquestionably is.

+1

FWIW, as you ride more, you will get more and more comfortable with riding cageless in a sea of cages and having the very hard, very abrasive road right under you at all times. In only a few months I went from being super self-conscious about losing my balance :oops:, to not minding riding 70mph on a crowded freeway in a 30mph crosswind.

Yet we all have our ups and downs (no pun intended). Every once and a while, if you're anything like me, you'll stall at a light, or miss a 1-2 shift, and be supremely embarrassed. Not that either of those flubs are as painful as a highside, but for everything, each of us recover at a different rate. These threads are littered with guys who couldn't wait to go do a track day while their bones were still healing, ya know?

So hang in there... If you enjoy riding your Ninja, you just gotta get your game on when you're ready and learn from your mistake. There'll be more, er, learning opportunities, but hopefully everything in between is a BLAST. :wink:

You could look at it as getting it out of your system. That's what I did after my crash (actually I had fallen off twice before - TGFFrame Sliders) before my real crash. It was a low side on a blind turn at about 20+ mph with the bike flying off the road. I was shaky about riding for a few weeks after that, but I couldn't stay off the bike. It was calling me. Took a few rides to get back into it, and I'm only now just getting comfortable with blind turns again even though the crash was almost a year and a half ago.

All that said, it might take a minute to feel really confident again, but only you will be able to know if you will or not. Give it a little time before you decide to sell the bike. I have a feeling you'll change your mind - unless you let cagers talk you into staying in a car forever. But the fact that you can describe what happened as a result of something you did and can/will correct from now on makes me think you'll be upgrading to the 599 before too long.

I asked myself that question recently after my accident. I knew I could never give up riding, but I couldn't help but ask myself whether I'm a good rider or not. I knew I had caused my accident. I know several things that I could have done to prevent my accident and save my sorry ass.

After coming to terms with the blame for what happened, I knew that I just had to be more mature about riding. It's not actually the fun game that some make it out to be (thankfully I never considered it that to begin with).

I bet that if this same thing happened 6 months after you started riding, you wouldn't feel as conflicted. 9 days is really soon to get into an accident, but it happens to everyone. You just got it out of the way sooner! Good luck to you and ride safe!

I can't say anything that anyone else hasn't. For some people, it's definitely not worth the risk, and I heard it from them for my first few months of ownership. I'd still hear it from my mom if I hadn't made it clear that those comments aren't appreciated. For me, though, nothing it going to make me even question riding short of something resulting in physical therapy *knock-knock*. I went down my first night and again about a month later, suffering some nasty road rash, nearly broken toe, and a sprained ankle that both made shifting too painful to ride for about two weeks. Now, though, I can't stand going more than a week without riding. I knew a crash would come sooner or later, and I won't be surprised if another one comes.

Get back on that horse when you feel right. Like everyone has said,
you'll know when it's right. If it is something you really want to do,
this whole motorcyclin' thing, then bro you gotta do it. If you just aint
feelin' it, don't get back on. Know your limits but also understand that
accidents happen and you could flip your cage and die a fiery death all
nice and safely buckled up. Shit happens.
Just figure out what you did wrong and learn from it and you'll be a
better rider. Glad you're OK, though. And stop lurking! :wink:

Oh, and let me state the obvious...you fell because you didn't
have the 599. :lol: Just kiddin'.

Hey Kinderv! Welcome.

Did you ever feel like going back to being a full-time cager?
At the start of the year, when it was too cold to comfortably ride, I did consider that. Or, at least, going for a car that might compare to the thrills of a motorcycle. Now, I won't get into a debate as to whether or not that's even attainable (it isn't), but the gas prices sure do reinforce my primary means of transportation.

Most of the obvious has been already covered - it's ultimately up to you how you want to proceed from here. Give it some time.

I know where you're coming from. I have a pretty checkered past with bikes. Started cold last July on a Nighthawk 750 that I promptly dropped twice (God bless crash bars). Then I did the MSF and the following weekend I dumped it over a curb (still virtually no damage...lol). Then in September '07 I took a 90-degree lefty a tad too fast and went head-first into a guardrail with no real gear except a helmet. Still walked (limped) away. I should have died. I vaulted off the bike at an angle that I still can't figure out. I should have went over the front into the ravine and creek bed below but I shot off to the side and landed in the middle of the road. No doubt someone was looking over me that day.

It took me almost a month to get back on a bike. Partly because I had blasted my balls into the tank so hard I thought I'd never get one up again. But when I did I felt really uneasy and I could see my arms shake going around easy, lazy turns. I thought I was done, but before I knew it the itch came back and I started looking for a new bike, found the 599 and it just felt like home.

Even now, I've dropped the 599 once on each side (both times trying to park) and frame sliders did their job. I have a track day under my belt and this bike keeps letting me get better.

In retrospect, crashing was the best thing that could have happened to me. Early on I was "progressing" too quickly for my own good and started losing respect for the machine. I paid for it, and I needed to. Now I have a permanent memory of a 5-second sequence of events that keeps me in check.

So... you can see it the same way. All things considered, you're fortunate. You can use that as a tool for future riding, or choose to see it as a sign to hang it up. Ultimately it's up to you, and either direction is okay.

Partly because I had blasted my balls into the tank so hard I thought I'd never get one up again.

hahaha, I feel your pain. I had to stop fast because a car came whipping around a blind turn when I was getting ready to turn onto the road. I had to turn off the bike and stand there for a second to let the stomach ache subside.

Sorry to hear about your crash... and 9 days into riding, too! Here's a word of advice from someone who fell down once too:

MSF gives you some basics and leaves you be. I had no idea what I was doing when I received my little paper from them saying it was okay for me to ride the street now.

For the first two to three weeks of owning the bike I spent most of my riding time in parking lots. When I got really brave, I rode around the block (which provided it's own scares and showed me that I'm still clueless). I HIGHLY recommend you go back to the parking lots and practice smooth shifting (up and down), turning, doing u-turns, emergency braking, and all around not stalling! (which I did more than a couple of times).

Do that first. The second thing you should do is read books. (Check out the threads at the very top of the Riding Tips section.) Those will give you something to practice and scare the living crap out of you all over again.

Find a mentor. Someone who's been riding for over 10 years, preferably.

When I first started riding I was afraid of it and questioned if the risk of riding was worth the joy. Ultimately, it was. But it's a decision you should make on your own. After 9 days of riding, you do not have enough "information" to make this decision, though. It is only after you get a bit more comfortable on a bike, when shifting doesn't require your attention, when you start to really enjoy your motorcycle - that's when you make this decision. Until then, back to the parking lot you go.

A big :thumbsup for wearing all your gear!

Oh, and welcome to the forum, bud. We don't care that you don't have a 599, just the fact that you want one is good enough. We're here if you need any help.

Partly because I had blasted my balls into the tank so hard...

...but before I knew it the itch came back

Wow, that there's RND quality humor, even if it was unintentional. :lol:

That Nighthawk sounded like it was invincible. You are my hero. :wink:

Wow, that there's RND quality humor, even if it was unintentional. :lol:

That Nighthawk sounded like it was invincible. You are my hero. :wink:
I'm everyone's hero, those who say otherwise are simply in denial.

:lol:

The 750 was a tank. Weighed about as much as one, too. Bad first bike. Heavy, tough to wrestle in corners, lots of low-hanging stuff to scrape. I bought it because I got it in almost showroom condition for $2900 and all the wrong people were telling me it would be a great first bike. Not a sport bike, not a cruiser. Although it certainly is much closer to a cruiser. You live and learn.

Mistake number 2 was trying to ride it like Nicky Hayden as soon as I got the hang of the controls. I had never even used a clutch in my life before a motorcycle, so I had a lot of ground to make up.

I'm not a danger-junkie, but I like challenges and pushing my abilities. Unfortunately with bikes you have to temper that with judgment and caution. That particular time I crashed I was in over my head and didn't have the experience to manage it. In reality all I had to do was keep my line. It was fine. But I felt like I was going to fast and I was scraping and it spooked me. I stood the bike up and... everything went into slow-motion and I knew I was done. Strangely there was an instant of panic and it disappeared... then I just waited for impact and hoped it wouldn't be too bad. It really is a fast-forward/slow-motion experience.

Crashes build a lot of experience quickly. But they hurt a lot, too. Learn from them whenever you see one, hear about one, read about one, and most of all, if it ever happens to you.

Hey Guys, thanks for the words of wisdom, helped me out. I am going to try and get the bike all fixed up this week. It's only been 4 days and I already really miss being on the bike.

So much for not wanting to ride anymore!

[quote=Transient]FWIW, as you ride more, you will get more and more comfortable with riding cageless in a sea of cages and having the very hard, very abrasive road right under you at all times. In only a few months I went from being super self-conscious about losing my balance :oops:, to not minding riding 70mph on a crowded freeway in a 30mph crosswind.
+1

My neighbor used to tease me that I was "thinking" too much and not riding enough. It's a fine balance. Riding comfortably comes with time and mileage. The real trick is not getting so comfortable that you forget to ride smart.

A funny thing that has stuck with me from my cycle safety course is that you will ride the way you drive. At the time I was still trying to get comfortable riding so I was really reserved on my bike. I'm a fairly "spirited" driver in my cage (OK...borderline aggressive at times). I guess we'll see how that whole theory shakes out!

One last thought. Don't get turned off by your mishap. You're a better rider for it. Good luck!!!

A funny thing that has stuck with me from my cycle safety course is that you will ride the way you drive.
Nothing tops spontaneously snapping to attention and wondering, "Oh crap, where am I? How did I get here?" If I ever develop the autopilot problem with my bike like I have in my car, I'll be in a world of hurt.

Glad UR OK.

Yeah what's going thru your head is a valid thought and only you can answer it.

I'll take this moment to say, more reason that a small underpowered bike is always gonna be a better place to start learning (if I understood that you are new to the MC world). I really do think this. The stakes are much lower and thoughts of scratching your nice bike can be circumvented leaving only the Ego and Pride to be dealt with.

It's a lot to coordinate and it's gotta develop in to something you don't think about. That takes time.

Take it easy and as Steve said, welcome.