NYC commuters?

Will I seem out of place on a 2014-1/2 Honda VFR?

I think I can fish out something that looks like a smoking jacket.

I doubt it, but there was some pretty surprising warnings when registering about bike types, essentially saying customs, cafe racers, and vintage bobbers etc were the only bikes they wanted taking part, and that if you don't have that, to kindly just donate and leave the bike at home (no joke the site said that in other words.....)

Fuck em, register anyway...

You might want to watch it getting off the Belt. Speed camera, 6000 freaken tickets in one day. http://www.sheepsheadbites.com/2014...-6000-tickets-one-day-belt-parkway-exit-ramp/

For your safety of course, not the $300,000 it pulled in.

Woweee.

PS, yesterday I noticed a crew installing another one of these fuckin' things on Queens Boulevard, westbound by the Islamic school.

I crashed the V65 Sabre this morning that I had driven up to Maine over labor day, and commute with daily.

First things first, I’m fine, just dinged on the right knee a bit (that’s the other knee, not the one that got really messed up last year).

I was ATGATT, and it did its job. Little ding on the helmet, and the shield attachment is kind of scratched up. My jacket, which is a new firstgear adventure mesh jacket, held up well, but took a bit of damage on the right arm that will need to be repaired in some fashion. The zipper that closes around the wrist came out of its seams, but it doesn’t actually hold any of the jacket itself together, just makes the wrist tight. No discernable damage to the Olympia mesh pants, the Sedici gloves, or the Sidi boots I was wearing (have to double check).

I was headed for work, westbound on the Brooklyn Queens Expressway. At Exit 32a, the road splits, 2 lanes left towards the Williamsburg bridge, and 2 right continuing on the BQE West. I was on the right, in the left of the 2 lanes. A black limo cab (Lincoln whatever it is, NYC has thousands of them) decided at the last minute to not get on the Williamsburg, cut across the pavement triangle and right in front of me. I grabbed the brakes, locked the front end and low-sided.

A couple of people got out of their cars and helped me pick the bike up. I was already back on my feet, and not really shaken much. We pushed it over to the side, and I began assessing the damage and called my insurance. Eventually decided after speaking to the insurance (they would reimburse a tow, but couldn’t call one for me on that particular highway), I got it running pretty easily, and just drove it back to the apartment (15-20 blocks away).

Damage assessment:

Headlight & bezel destroyed (seems the plastic bucket is ok)

Gauges: Speedometer side glass is broken; plastic housing is cracked and missing the back part on the speedo, missing the lower corner around the ignition cylinder.

Windshield: aftermarket National cycle plexifairing 3; rashed up but not cracked. Will have to see how I can buff this out.

Engine guards: rashed, but not dented. The highway peg on the right side is swung around towards the engine side, but can probably just be moved back.

Welp. That was my Tuesday morning. This is the second time I have crashed in NYC, and I am even more convinced that riding around here without ABS is just plain stupid.

For those of you wondering about my riding skills, so am I. Perhaps a more practiced rider could have avoided lowsiding. Maybe I should have been paying more attention…I don’t know. I have not been overly confident in the brakes on the sabre anyway, so this doesn’t surprise me that much. I have watched the travel on the front forks with the ziptie method, and I have less than ½” of travel left even on a normal ride around here. The roads are 3rd world/zombie apocalypse ready, and not for the first, second, third or fourth time do I find myself very much missing my Vstrom, or some other adventure bike with adequate suspension, modern brakes and godfuckinghelpmemynextbikewill havemutherfuckingABS.

First, glad you're OK, bike can be replaced. I think NY cabbies, black or yellow, take a course in disruptive tactics. A close call with a yellow cab dissuaded my wife from just about ever getting on a bike again.

Again, glad you're OK.

Sorry to hear this happen again to you and glad you were well protected by your gear. Any chance you got the cab info or did the cab just speed off? People don't know how to own up to their actions anymore, but at least people were able to help you pick the bike up. Maybe it's time to consider that Tenere?

Yes on the tenere. No to the driver. I doubt he even looked in his mirror.

Wow. Even more reason to have a "dash" cam of sorts while riding in Manhattan. Glad to hear your ok. ABS and a higher suspension seem to really help on these roads.


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Glad you are ok. Not sure if ABS is a good idea if you run into gravel though. I have been riding through newly stripped streets on Ocean Avenue...ABS would be beyond dangerous on there even for the most experienced rider. So many corners around the city have random gravel and objects strewn around- I would be more tense with ABS on than not.

Bottomline, just need to be slow down on all corners...and also keeping away from exits too (i.e. stay on the left lane)- once riding toward the airport saw a cager aggressively change lanes and nearly crash into a SUV as he took the exit at the very last moment..from the middle lane! The SUV nearly took the exit in trying to avoid that jerk.

Cabs and those vans are other red flags too. And MTA buses. And SUVs. And cyclists. And pedestrians....

^Yea to the dash cam

Rectal. What's the law say about right of way for pedestrians crossing against the light versus motor vehicles that have the light. Do vehicles with a green light have to legally yield to pedestrians?

today on the cross island north at 7am a motorcyclist was struck too
so much of this happening lately its scary
his bike was fubar but he was standing and on the phone smoking a cig when i rolled past
asked him if he was ok and he gave the thumbs up
be careful out there guys

Motor vehicle operators must exercise "due care".

Pedestrians must cross at crosswalks (marked or unmarked), with the light as applicable, and are specifically forbidden to walk into the path of oncoming traffic.

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I'm assuming you put due care in quotes to emphasize the vagueness of the law? Pedestrians seem to be getting bolder by the day and routinely cross in front of my path of travel.

Glad you're not hurt.

As for the sabre, more practice is never a bad thing, but the bike counts here too. I used to have the small sabre, and it was unstable under heavy braking. I went down a couple times while braking, once while practicing, and once while trying to avoid a bear.

Also, I don't know if your model has the dive assist doodad in the front fork. If it does I suggest turning it off. It can over-stiffen the fork while braking, which could cause a very quick loss of traction if you then hit a bump while braking. My braking record improved after I turned that off.

In quotes because that's how the law is worded.

Yes, I'm experiencing the same idiocy as you are. It has been getting worse over the past few years in particular, as if it's some kind of grass-roots revolt against motor vehicles.

Much to the chagrin of the likes of Transportation Alternatives, pedestrians in New York City have even less "rights" (quoted because what pedestrians are very confused about their rights to begin with) than pedestrians in the rest of the State of New York.

Due care means you as a motorist (or even bicyclist) are supposed to do your best not to hit belligerent morons on foot. But they are obligated to not walk against the light and/or in the middle of a block into your path, so if hitting them was simply unavoidable you should not be held liable or accountable.

If you do hit them, put your vehicle in reverse or circle back around and hit them again, repeatedly, until their remains are an unrecognizable smear of shattered bones atop clumps of torn flesh, muscle and organ in the blood-soaked pavement, I'm pretty sure that would not be considered "due care".

YMMV.

Thanks Rectal. You never disappoint.

So if your bike's towed without a plate, how do you find out if they don't have the plate in the system?


(yes parked on sidewalk (same spot a thousand times never had an issue) in West village near water, plate's in top box&#8230


grumble...

Glad you are all well. Bikes can be replaced