Stupid rookie mistake

Bit of a freakout moment last week, and frankly I’m surprised Sveta and I are okay. Basically, on the way home from running errands I wound through a parking lot at a local park, to wrap up a quick fun jaunt before heading home. Then I took a corner wrong.

The sidecar wheel bumped up onto the curb. Then I really screwed up, and must’ve shifted my weight left — because suddenly, the sidecar was in the air, and I was leaning really, really far left.

“Oh crap,” I thought, “I’m going to crash.”

Bike was still going forward. Luckily there was no one in the path of the bike and no traffic in either direction. I got across the access road, amazingly still on 2 wheels. I shifted weight to the right and put the tub down, then drove over the opposite curb and brought the bike to a stop. Amazingly, I didn’t even stall the engine.

I powered down, dismounted, walked around the bike and checked everything over. All looked okay. Only thing out of whack was my shaking hands, only thing damaged was my pride. I drove home without any other events. Once home, a scotch on the rocks helped settle my nerves.

Freak accident, nearly complicated by a stupid rookie weight shift mistake. Can’t believe I didn’t wind up under the bike. Can’t believe I misjudged that wheel-to-curb distance.

Be careful out there. And mind how you shift that weight, no matter what’s going on.

Lessons Learned

• Mistakes happen. How you respond is often more important than the mistake itself.
• Always shift your weight the way you want the tub to go — because that’s the way it’s going to go.
• Don’t panic. I wanted to panic, could feel it gnawing at me, but I also had a woman to get home to, and in one piece. She’s more important than panic. I thought about Jodie, and got the Ural back under control.
• If the tub comes up and you don’t want it up, shift weight right and put it down.
• Stop evenly.
• Keep an eye on your surroundings; I knew I had leeway to fix this situation, because I scanned around me and knew there was no one nearby who could get hurt, and nothing for me to run into.
• Don’t beat yourself up too badly. Mistakes happen to everyone, just also be sure to learn from them.

This is the kind of reminder that makes you shout, “hell yeah!” and then grab your gear and ride. This tale of near misadventure shows what great things can happen when plans fall through – only to liberate you from having plans in the first place.

“This recipe for adventure is available to any one of us, but is rarely prepared because we all live so well planned and convenient lives that we seldom think of it. The ingredients are very simple”

Follow the whole adventure (and recipe): Recipe for One Hell of a Weekend | Helmet Hair - Motorcycle Blog

Ran Sveta out for a quick errand yesterday evening, and I wanted to give a shout-out to the thumbs-up guys.

While running south on River Road, out of the corner of my left eye I noticed a car running abreast of Svetlana.

Turning my eye, there were 2 guys in the car. Both were grinning, face-wide smiles. The man in the passenger seat was leaning out the window a little, and when he saw I was looking at them, he gave me a big, pumping thumbs-up.

I nodded and smiled, and gave them a thumbs-up back.

They went on their way, moving up ahead in the lane. Wherever you are, thumbs-up guys in the red Nissan with the smiley face sticker on the back bumper, thanks for making my night.

Interesting discussion on ADV Rider about why a hack rider would not have chosen to purchase and ride a Ural Patrol. What gets me the most? It’s all preference. No horror stories. No big mechanical misgivings. Nothing. Just preference.

I’m just wondering. The ones I’ve seen in the dirt around here look like they’re more capable than I’d would have given them credit for. Hopefully folks can be honest for their reasons without being smacked down multiple times by a few excitable owners. I’m pretty sure it’s safe in here though.

Follow the whole discussion: ADV Rider - Hacks - Why did you not choose a Ural Patrol?

We’ve got a camping trip planned with some friends this weekend… but we’re not taking the Ural.

The reason is simple. It’s not mechanical. It’s not summer heat, or packing, or anything like that.

It’s conversation.

Over the next few weeks, Jodie’s going to be really busy. In addition to her teaching schedule, she has a lot of violin gigs, including some musicals. When she’s not teaching, she’s going to be in rehearsal or at an event, so we’re not going to see each other as much as usual.

So this weekend, with a couple hours drive each way, I’d rather we be able to have easy conversation in the car. We can talk, we can enjoy the drive and each other’s company in chat or silence, but mainly, we just have time to be a little closer. We don’t have intercoms for Svetlana yet, so we can’t really talk on the Ural, and besides, on the bike my main focus is on getting us where we’re going in one piece.

Much as I love Svetlana, I love time with my sweetie more. So this weekend, I’m not going to ride. I’m just going to enjoy time with my woman.

There’ll be plenty of time to ride next week. A man’s still gotta have his saddle time, after all.

From Soviet Steeds - First (brief) trip onto the expressway

Wonder if you can take a Ural on a highway? Here’s one rider’s experience:

I drove my hack down to the shore to work on my wife’s uncle’s Virago for him. I took backroads, but decided to brave the freeway for about ten miles to get around a small city, and to satisfy my morbid curiosity about how this machine not meant for freeways would do. I was pleasantly surprised. I kept my speed around 60-65 mph, which was not a problem on I-395 (in Eastern CT) because it is lightly trafficked. The motor seemed quite capable and unstrained, the rig tracked straight and steady, all the usual vibrations were gone, and the mirrors were crystal clear! I don’t think I would want to ride it all day on the expressway, but it’s nice to know that it isn’t completely out of the question if necessary now and then.

Follow the whole discussion: Soviet Steeds - First (brief) trip onto the expressway

From a sunny day, April 10, 2008

Back in April, when Andy Grow and I rode up to Salem for our 500km maintenance, I rode solo back to Eugene and stopped off briefly on Alpine Road, a tidge north of Monroe. I took a breather there, looking down a nice stretch of road that, according to my atlas, heads into the hills to Alsea Falls. While having a quick snack and some refreshment, I decided that would be a good place for me, Jodie and Ella to head off to sometime soon.

I also took this picture. I came across it the other day, as I was digging up a few other photos. I don’t quite know why, but it’s one of my favorite shots of Svetlana. Maybe it’s the light; maybe it’s the puddles in the background. Don’t know what it is, but I just like it. I hope you do too.

From the Soviet Steeds Message Boards

There is a great deal of “conventional wisdom” out there about breaking in a Ural properly. In addition to the points agreed on and disagreed on, one thing that everyone agrees on is that there is definitely a point after which your Ural essentially grows up, runs smoother and is even more fun. As for me, I can’t wait to get Svetlana there — as fun as she is now, we’ve got a lot to look forward to!

Soviet Steeds - Shakedown–coming up on 2500–results

I’m nearing the total break-in period and if this is the way the rig runs on break-in, I couldn’t ask for any better.

Follow the whole discussion: Soviet Steeds - Shakedown–coming up on 2500–results »

Thank you to David Strong, who asked me in an email:

You haven’t really mentioned your relationship with the hack recently in your Blog i.e how you feel when you hop onto it, warm it up etc?

I’ll do my best to answer that, David. Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday Ella, Svetlana and I helped some buddies with a photo shoot for a new marketing campaign. I don’t have pictures or details yet, but hopefully will have more to share soon.

Who would’ve thought? By naming my Ural after a beautiful sorceress, now she’s magically become a model too.

If you’re in Eugene, keep your eyes peeled for some ads featuring a Forest Green sidecar motorcycle, complete with dog and rider. I can’t wait to see them.