regarding gravel, small rocks and noobs

[WiDuc]

2nd year rider, 1st on monster, so with my limited experience I currently have a mindset that it only takes A rock to send the tail out wide...

On that note, while I do take spirited rides, they are by no means very aggressive, but frequently encounter rocks or bits of gravel kicked up onto the country roads here in Wisconsin.

This morning on my semi-leisurely commute I noticed some debris on a righthander and just used a little engine braking to scrub a little speed before leaning....a staggering 6 degrees    noob.

anyway, got on the throttle a little bit and later felt a couple rocks under the rear, might have been mental but I thought I felt the back end slide a 1/2 inch and surprised myself by staying on the throttle and rode it out like nothing happened.

so I'm very happy with how it went, and I know its very circumstance dependent, but I guess I'm curious to compare my super-cautious approach with what more experienced riders would do.

if you could comment on coming into a turn and just seeing a few rocks spread out (ie, not a huge patch, but not necessarily a clear path thru either) and how you would handle accordingly, that would be great.

I'm pretty sure its just a matter of getting about 10k more miles under my belt, as most of you probably wouldn't even blink at a few small rocks like that.

Thanks-
Erik

[Slide Panda]

if there's no clear line, where you won't hit rocks then I'd set up to do the least evil.

Staying relaxed and letting the bike move as it needs to, within reason, and it'll stay on track a lot better than our rational mind would think. A lot is that staying relaxed. I *try* to think of disconnecting my torso from my hips - or at least making them loose. No floppy or slouchy as you don't want to be driving weight through the bars, but rather two stiff but flexible sections joined by a more flexible connection. Hope that makes sense.

It's easier to visualize and feel on a more upright bike. But if you watch super moto you'll see that their legs are really a unit with the bike while their upper body is a lot more still as they move the bike around under them. Granted, a SuMo is a lot lighter than a Monster and riding style is different - but I'm using it to illustrate the fact that these guys bikes are sliding, hopping, backing in and all over and mostly under control.

And yeah, with more experience you won't be so nervous - but never hurts to be wise about road conditions.

[take risks]

A couple rocks... stay cool Fonzi, everything will be just fine.

Most of us have hit a patch of something, and had the back slide out.
I had gravel, water, and pavement repair cause them.
A little pucker the first 2 or 3 times, but you realize that staying calm and no sudden movements are your best friend.

[Slide Panda]

Yep, just be cool. It's the sharp jabby inputs that usually cause troubles.
Once thing I did have happen due to gravel was potentially serious, so I'll tell the tale.

On a back road at a sporting pace I came around a right where the top layer of the road had turned to pea gravel smack in the middle of my line. The bike (both wheels) shifted out a couple inches and hooked up again. As soon as that happened I started to get head shake - not epic tank slapping shake but a shake.

Lucky for me I'd read up on what to do and gave it gas to lighten the front and settle the shake and all was fine. But in a case like this, cutting the throttle, or jabbing breaks would have worsened the shake and possibly caused a crash. Stayed cool, did what was needed and rode it out.

[WiDuc]

Thanks for the all the pointers guys.

Just wanted to follow up and mention that I've noticed a huge difference already just in this last month riding.

Multiple times now I've either had rocks or those tar lines upset the rear tire in turns and I feel much more confident now in just riding through it without any abrupt changes as mentioned.   

[ducatiz]

Multiple times now I've either had rocks or those tar lines upset the rear tire in turns and I feel much more confident now in just riding through it without any abrupt changes as mentioned.   

tar lines = road snakes

i hate those

[Monsterlover]

Another thing you can do is (since you're looking ahead far enough, right?) when you see gravel or whatever, recognize it for what it is and before you hit it, have your plan set.

You see rocks and think "rocks.  the bike will probably wiggle, be ready for that.  Maintain throttle and focus on where I want to be before/during/after the rock encounter"  That way it's not so unexpected and you can just follow your plan.

Do that enough and when you come around a blind corner and don't have the time to think things through, hopefully it won't need so much thought by then.

[R0CKETMAN]

When it's a rogue rock most of the time you won't even spot it prior to the "wake up" moment. With that being said it's over before you can make any stupid inputs.


On/off the subject of gravel...

Remember on full gravel roads, rear brake only and early.