I'm sure the observant of you guys might of noticed I've gone from one 14R to another, in quick succession.
Going from a pristine nearly new, Ohlins equipped bike ( the 20th bike in my 40 year riding career ) complete with flame effect graphics.
To now owning a Matte black version ( my 21st bike )with the red grilles.
There is of course a reason for this, the biggest accident I've ever had. That put me in hospital for 3 days after being airlifted by chopper, I felt rather stupid & I,m lucky to still be here with you in actuality.
If anyone remembers I put photos up of scraped footpegs, lower fairing panels & even the oil window had a bit of a drag on the bitumen, on my 14R mark one. Of course I realised I was at the very limit of the bike ( but that's just me ) & I was looking into raising its back side to gain ground clearance in various ways, well I didn't get that far.
I set off with around 20 mates for a 4 day trip away, with the biggest & number one thing in my mind ( I,M TAKING IT EASY UNTIL OF GOT HER SORTED )
Well, I did take it easy, scraped nothing, UNTIL, ( I'm told by others, ) cus I don't remember a thing about it, after lunch on day one, in a tight, hilly, twisty section, a left hand corner that then tightened up, had me leant over & then stuffed her in some more, In a split second both wheels let go, down I went & over a BIG drop off on the opposite side of the road, down, down around 40m I'm told, !!! As I say I'm lucky to still be here.
I hadn't hit gravel, I hadn't run off line or wide, there was no dip in the road surface, I'd just done what came , naturally, corner tightens up, stuff her in & over more but on this occasion the engine cases must of bottomed out & down I went,over the edge in this case, gave everyone a hell of a shock, only one rider behind me saw what happened, & alerted the rest following. There were a few ahead too.
The moral of the story ? I push a bike hard, always have, my instincts are built in, corner tightens up & I stuff the thing in every time. HOWEVER, great thing hindsight, I shouldn't of been riding her knowing that I was compromised by ground clearance as much as I was, being used to my Aprilia Tuono ( which I've recently sold ) & other bikes on the list that I've owned having more clearance.
If my telling of this, my fessing up, to an accident of my own causing, can save anyone else from a similar helicopter flight then my feeling stupid is all worth it.
I had a miricle escape, somehow I flew through the air at maybe approaching 100 klm, ended up 40 down a steep embankment that was dotted with big trees, boulders & tree stumps ! I didn't break a bone, still never have, but I did go into gar gar land for around 45 minutes, & the first thing I remember was being cared for by my mates at the bottom & the chopper hovering overhead. During my flight for a good half an hour I remember being a little pissed at being strapped down & not able to see out the window.
So guys, judge me as you will after reading this, if it enlightens anyone else's riding then good it's worth me feeling a little stupid, I had concussion for around a month, I've bought a new helmet & leathers, replaced my 14 with another & im back on the pace, having realised my first 14, although having Ohlins, it wasn't the best quality Ohlins these bikes deserve, so I bought what I call the base model bike & ive added the GOOD Ohlins gear that's height adjustable in the arse. Lifting her up at the back has made a massive difference to her handling characteristics & im enjoying her very much.
Thanks for reading my ramblings Johnno.

I'm really glad you're ok considering how much worse you might have been injured or killed. Take 'er easy on the new 14R even with the upgrades. Test the limits gradually. LOL I know if I feel my exhaust scrape, that's all for me. I'll need a bike designed more for road racing at that point. Thanks for the heads up.

That's a very nice new 14R. The old one was a dandy but I think the red fins is my fav of all 14Rs.

Well, you're OK and lived to ride again which is the important thing . I had a very similar incident over 20 years ago on a Fireblade. Attacked a set of favourite bends and went in way too fast, maybe 15-20mph faster than I'd ever done. With the peg digging in and realising I wast going to get round tried leaning it even further, lost the front and down I went. Just shear, fired up enthusiasm plus some brain fade. Older, wiser and slower now!

Too bad about the SE. Glad to see you're ok. I don't know, hate to see a beauty get wadded but it happens.

Johnno, glad your ok. Machines can be replaced or repaired. Ride safe.

WOW, no need to be embarrassed ... SHIT HAPPENS. Good that you LIVED thru it!

Maybe chicken strips aren't such a big thing, in the beginning anyway.

BTW ... I like the new bike WAY better

How much height does your new shock give her? Which model?

Cheers,

Jon

thank you for the 'learned the hard way' story. i'm glad you're back at it and glad to see you came to your senses and got a bike that looks just like mine! so now that you've learned your lesson on suspension and proven that you're allergic to chicken strips, what will your next set of tires be?

Photo from the roadside, I,m down there being taken care of.
Thanks for your kind reply,s guys, maybe i should expand just a bit, I,m 55, now riding my 21st bike, been riding nearly 40 years, had a few minor OFFS, as we do, but this was by far the biggest.
I,m the first to admit I do push the limits on a fairly regular basis, HOWEVER,
At the time of this accident I WASNT pushing those limits what so ever, I was in the middle of the pack, riding at the same pace as others around me, the rider behind me, going at the same pace, was a female, she was the only person who saw what happened. I have zero memory of it. ZILCH.
She tells me, I did not run wide / off line, I did not panic, no brake lights, no gravel, no dip or pot holes.
It was simply a 90 degree bend, that proceeded to then tighten up, thru maybe a further 30 degree,s,
apparently, she tells me I didn't make a mistake, wasn't being an idiot, did what any rider would do in the same situation, more counter steering, pushed her in, kept my line, BUT ran out of clearance, COMPLETELY, while consciously on that day being conservative in my riding. Both wheels let go together.
I was on new tyres that day, but they had been scrubbed in by the time of the accident, 200 odd klm. inc some tight stuff.
I use Dunlop GP racers on the front & 190 by 55 Dunlop Sportsmarts on the rear, a great combo for grip, but don't last all that long which I,d rather have personally.
The mark 2 14R, is now adjusted higher in the arse with its new Ohlins, see my recent other post, : Prezzie Time :
I,m not writing this stuff for sympathy just to let you guys know what CAN / COULD happen !
Stay safe you blokes.
Johnno

* Last updated by: banknyank on 4/24/2016 @ 2:39 PM *

Looking at that photo again made me think, if i,d gone off there in a car I,d not be writing this, full stop.

all i ask is that you stick around for at least another 30 years telling this story, allowing it to grow exponentially in its grief and terror and manliness in each telling from here on out.......

Hey kixx, was thinking you were out my way, W.A. Western Australia, but second thoughts you must be nearly in Canadian Canada. Yea the matte black ain't too shabby at all. Been throwing some coin at mine getting her sorted. Laminar lip in a customised position, & the flat bars, comfort & leverage, each to their own hey. Need to find some black adhesive Velcro for the head light protectors tho, that white looks shite !

* Last updated by: banknyank on 4/25/2016 @ 1:37 AM *

Thanks for the educational confession Johnno. I always appreciate as much feedback on these beautiful bikes including their limits. Happy that you are ok after what looks like a very big "off".

Lucky guy to live to talk about the experience. Well at least you recovered, got a new bike and back on the saddle.

Damn!!!!!! That pic from the roadside looks horrific!

Now my turn to fess up. No crash but did something stupid today. I had a Corvette pass me. Not real fast but definitely over the speed limit and then accelerated to about 70-80 mph. Now is that a challenge or what? So I caught up and followed him in a U-turn ---back into town? Who races in town? Maybe he was running back where a race would be less likely. I had this hunch it was an old guy in that car. There's not many people under 50 around here that would own a car like that. Couldn't see the driver with him sitting that low---or maybe it was a small woman? So the vette heads back up the hill and I took off fast behind it and another car that was in the outside lane. I see brake lights and drop a gear then get on the brake hard. There's a semi half on the road, half on the shoulder with the folding caution signs set out behind his trailer. BOTH cars have almost come to a dead stop. I'm skimming the rear tire behind them hoping they move. I came to a stop a comfortable distance behind and there they sat at a standstill. the guy on the inside can't move because the vette is blocking him. All I can think is that the vette driver freaked out by the loud bike closing on him (or her). This has happened before. Sometimes people get overwhelmed and don't know what else to do but slow down or stop. Not everyone with a fast car has a clue about driving fast either. I can see slowing down for the semi on the side of the highway but stopping?? I have no horn so I blipped the throttle and away they went after seeing that I did not crash. ..and I went merrily home, too. good reminder for the opening of the season: try not to scare people and don't race in town.

I had this hunch it was an old guy in that car. There's not many people under 50 around here that would own a car like that.

ONLY 49 Rook, I wish.
Well avoided. Cant be too careful out there with the complete knob heads driving cars / trucks / buses, etc, you often wonder how they get a licence.
With age/mileage comes the ability to steer a bit good, the unsuspecting might of run up the back of that Vette.

Glad you are ok!!! That is a heck of a drop. You are very fortunate. I have rashed the lower fairings on mine a couple of times. It is very tempting to ride the 14 the same was as a sportbike. A couple times I didn't even realize I was scraping the fairing because of the sound of my knee slider.