I went down on 101 (May 15)

[Drunken Monkey]

Wow sroberts152. Glad you're (reasonably) okay.

On one hand I'd call you lucky, but given the gear you were wearing I'd say you made some of your own luck by dressing for the crash.

And JohnC, have you considered posting up that technique in the FAQ section?

And as an FYI,  most insurance cos let you add an "accessories" rider to cover aftermarket bits.

I'm guessing my monster has a bluebook of maybe 4K at most but I've got an additional 5K of 'accessories' coverage 

[johnc]

And JohnC, have you considered posting up that technique in the FAQ section?

not considered it ... feel free to post it up if you feel it appropriate.

again, i cannot stress enough that YMMV ... it worked for me on the street that time, and has worked MANY times racing motocross on old POS bikes back before long travel suspension and even disk brakes on dirt bikes 

[Drunken Monkey]

not considered it ... feel free to post it up if you feel it appropriate.

again, i cannot stress enough that YMMV ... it worked for me on the street that time, and has worked MANY times racing motocross on old POS bikes back before long travel suspension and even disk brakes on dirt bikes 

This was no doubt back when you were a kid during the late Triassic when you had to dodge big piles of dinopoop on your Bultaco 

[johnc]

This was no doubt back when you were a kid during the late Triassic when you had to dodge big piles of dinopoop on your Bultaco 

nope ... it was a CZ 

[mostrobelle]

wow...very lucky indeed.  Thanks for sharing the details of your get-off.  I think it does us all good to be reminded of this and hopefully learn from it in any way possible.     ticker updated shortly.

[Itsasickness]

Wow! that's a crazy story, great that you kept your head about you.  Glad you're OK 

[Spidey]

Man, that sounds scary.

Medical:
Nothing broken
Left elbow had a nasty deep cut that took 3 stitches
Left tricep had a major contusion
Left leg - deep road rash at the knee
Right leg - mild road rash at the knee and just above my boot line
Left foot - deep purple bruise on my big toe
General bruises up and down my left side

My head touched the ground only to scrape the vent on the front of my helmet.  No damage to my jacket on the back above my belt line.  Because of this, they did not c-spine me.

Taken in perspective, that's great!  Nothing lasting and no C-spine (gawd, I hate those boards).  And the good news is that you didn't have to suffer anything permanent to learn the jeans-are-not-gear lesson. Many others haven't been so fortunate. 

This is now the third or fourth MOB member I know of (Scott, mostrobelle, you, and I think there was another) who has gone down in a tankslapper where they didn't do anything wrong.  I hope everyone out there has a damper on their bike. 

If you need lawyer recommendations, shoot me a PM.  I can give you a couple of names.  Keep your gear, all the pictures you have of your injuries, the accident site, and keep track of how you're healing.  Make sure work documents any and all time you miss, both because of injuries and because of doctor's visits/therapy.Be aware that there is a six month statute of limitations for filing a government claim (you have to do this before you sue), so don't wait too long. 

[Desmostro]

Thanks for posting up. Sorry to hear - that sucks, but glad you'll be ok 

Anyone of you 4 know the anatomy of a tank slapper - as in why do you think that happened? What caused it?

Thanks JohnC for posting a solution.

[b.]

Yikes!  Glad to hear your injuries weren't worse.  Heal up quickly!

[sroberts152]

Since it was a few weeks between the wreck and when I posted, most of my external healing is done.  The deep road rash on the left leg is almost cleared up, the scab on my elbow is gone and the road rash on my right side is gone and all new skin. 

The big deal for me is the contusion to my tricep is still painful.  Last weekend was the first time I could do more than 5 push ups in a row without pain.  Today I did a few sets of 30 with little pain.  I have some other random pain in my leg and arm that is getting better day to day.  I know that I need to take it easy on this stuff but it is really hard to keep a gym rat away from his home.

Thanks for all the well wishes and good thoughts. 

Lessons learned...  Steering damper.  Period.  Always ride in the carpool lane on 101 from now on.  It is just better road with less wear and tear.  I can't stay off 101 - I live pretty close to it and use it all the time.  Road rash sucks.  Time for under gear for my knees.

I have said it for a long time - dress for the crash, not for the ride.  On the 15th it really was a true statement.

[bigiain]

This is now the third or fourth MOB member I know of (Scott, mostrobelle, you, and I think there was another) who has gone down in a tankslapper where they didn't do anything wrong.  I hope everyone out there has a damper on their bike. 

<wavy lines>
I dunno how many of you remember, but Thomas, the guy who started the mailing list that was the reason for the "L" in "DML" which came _before_ TOB... He crashed quite badly from an unexpected tank slapper...
</wavy lines>

I've had my Monster slap on me once - going quite fast on a very bumpy backroad over a crest on a slight right hand curve - it slapped two maybe three times, but violently enough that it loosened off one of the mirrors... I didn't "do anything to save it", it was all over before I had time to react... I suspect the road conditions were exacerbated by worn out tires, and possibly not-recently-enough-checked pressures too...

old-man-big

[johnc]

I didn't "do anything to save it", it was all over before I had time to react... I suspect the road conditions were exacerbated by worn out tires, and possibly not-recently-enough-checked pressures too...

old-man-big

there's a LOT to be said for doing nothing in a tank slapper situation.

by doing nothing (i.e.: keeping on the gas, not hitting the brakes, not trying to correct the bar movement ... just staying loose on the bike), allows the bike to correct itself by letting physics take over.  the gyro effect that the wheels have, will, in most tank slapper situations, be stronger than the side to side movement of the front end ... and will "most times" straighten the bike out all on its own. 

i have seen way too many riders on the dirt and the street/track, try and "correct" a tank slapper, only to have very nasty things happen ... typically a high side.

[mostrobelle]

i have seen way too many riders on the dirt and the street/track, try and "correct" a tank slapper, only to have very nasty things happen ... typically a high side.

I instinctively hit the brakes just a little when mine started going... I'm sure that did nothing to help the situation.  I can have pretty fast reflexes when I want to, and in this case, I sort of wish I had been a bit slower to react.

[richard]

had a tank slapper on a sport classic, three years ago while in italy on the WPM trip.  was riding in group formation (120 club presidents, double file ... on one of the superstradas heading to rome from umbria, doing a little over 140kph (about 90mph) on a VERY straight section of the superstrada.  i was riding right behind the two lead ducati DOC employees, with the rest of the 120 club presidents behind me.  for anyone who has not riding in italy, the main roads are pothole and rut free, except for about 100 yards on THIS superstrada, which i did not see until i was already in them at speed, as the two lead riders split just before, and i was not paying attention (so, mia culpa).

anyway, everything went in ultra slow motion, just as the front started to slowly pivot from left to right to left repeatedly ... and i started to think "hmmm ... if i can't stop the tank slapping, i can push the bike to the left, and slide on the smooth, soft dirt on the roadside" ... then just as the front end slappers started to get more violent, i realized that there were 120 other ducatis right behind me, and i did not want to be the minchione that caused a giant wreck on WPM trip that year ... so ... i remembered the motocross technique to stop tank slappers:

• stay on the gas, don't use the front brake
• stand up on pegs
• move ass as far back over the rear of the bike as possible to lighten the front
• when bike's front end is lofted, straighten the bars and lock elbows to hold front straight
• stay on gas until through rough section

it worked for me, but YMMV  

everything started moving fast again once i initiated the above, and i managed to save it at speed.

mark duncan was riding directly behind me on a multistroodle. when we stopped about 20 kms later for gas, he bumped my back tire to get my attention and asked if i needed to change my leathers because he thought for sure i was going to loose the bike in the tank slapper as it was so violent.  he advised that not only the forks were moving side to side, but the entire front end was moving a foot side to side.

since then, i have stayed the hell away from sport 1000's  

Thanks John. That's very good to know.

[mostrobelle]

I just have to say, that while some 'slappers go in what seems like slow-motion, others happen at lightening-fast speed.  Going in a straight line at a very reasonable speed, a tank slapper was the last thing I expected.  My tank slapper was maybe two very violent twists (that I saw before I was bucked off) of the front end and it was over.  The only thing I might have done would have been NOT to hit the brakes and instead give it a little juice.  There wasn't time to do anything else.  I've seen videos of long, drawn-out 'slappers that gain momentum, but just be aware that they don't happen all textbook n stuff.