eddd Posted October 10, 2007 Share Posted October 10, 2007 Had a bit of a scare riding home this afternoon. Traffic volume was normal on the undivided highway, one lane each direction with a large shoulder. I was behind a compact car and there was a tractor/trailer in front of the compact. A rider on a sport bike (couldn't tell the make) came up behind me and decided to pass. As far I could tell he didn't downshift to get into his powerband, just pulled out in what I assume was top gear. As he came by me I felt this pass is taking too long. Traffic was coming from the other direction. I backed off to give him some more room to pull in, but he went for the pass of the compact as well. By the time he got in front of the compact he had to quickly pull back into his lane. Now he had some speed but little engine braking as he came up on the rear of that tractor/trailer. He had to get on the brakes, hard! I really thought he was going to tag the rear of the trailer. Scared me...I imagine it scare the *&%$ out of him. Can't say with any certainty, but my feeling is he decided to make the pass to show off a little. Also my feeling is that if he had dropped down a gear of two he would have spooled up, made the pass, (not a really smart pass in any case since there was a string of vehicles ahead anyway) and if he left it in the lower gear, he would have slowed after the pass instead of running up on the rear of the tractor trailer. Hope he learned something from the close call. Link to comment
motoguy128 Posted October 11, 2007 Share Posted October 11, 2007 That's unusual, ususally a squid is always in too low of a gear so he can hear his pipe. Maybe a noob just trying ot show off like you thought. Dumb move. You always select 2nd or 3rd when making a pass on a 2 lane road unless 1) You have a clear view of hte road ahead a long ways off and can take your time, or 2) Have a GSXR1000 which I think is faster in a 6th gear roll-on than my bike is using 2nd.... even then, it's way more fun getting to almost 100mph before you've reach the drivers door of the car in front and are already rolling off. I do miss my ZX9R sometimes for that reason. The RT has good power, but it's certainly no liter bike. If I see a long string of vehicles, I just fall back out of the draft of the car in front to reduce buffeting and think about the great mileage I'm getting. Link to comment
ShovelStrokeEd Posted October 11, 2007 Share Posted October 11, 2007 No comment on the decision to make the pass but, IMHO, he did the right thing. Brakes are for slowing the bike, not the engine. Yeah, a lower gear might have allowed him to get by quicker but the brakes are a far more efficient way to slow the bike than using engine braking. Link to comment
eddd Posted October 11, 2007 Author Share Posted October 11, 2007 No comment on the decision to make the pass but, IMHO, he did the right thing. Brakes are for slowing the bike, not the engine. Yeah, a lower gear might have allowed him to get by quicker but the brakes are a far more efficient way to slow the bike than using engine braking. I will certainly agree that brakes are more efficient than engine braking alone. Braking in combination with engine braking is even more efficient, and in this case he needed all the braking he could get. I certainly didn't mean to leave the impression that I felt engine braking alone was what he needed. Actually, what he really needed was to wait until oncoming traffic permitted a safe pass. Then let it rip and show everyone how fast you are! Link to comment
bvaughan Posted October 12, 2007 Share Posted October 12, 2007 . . . A rider on a sport bike (couldn't tell the make) came up behind me and decided to pass. As far I could tell he didn't downshift to get into his powerband, just pulled out in what I assume was top gear. . . . my feeling is that if he had dropped down a gear of two he would have spooled up, made the pass, . . . in another thread recently, BereIsland referred to the police rider's handbook printed in the UK. one of the handbook's concepts is an iterative process called "Information/Position/Speed/Gear/Acceleration". the handbook applies it to all sorts of maneuvers, including an entire chapter devoted to "overtaking". being in the "most responsive" gear is repeatedly mentioned as key in successful overtaking. and "overtaking in a stream of vehicles" is not discouraged, simply identified as "more difficult" and analyzed for additional factors the rider needs to manage. Link to comment
Dick_at_Lake_Tahoe_NV Posted October 12, 2007 Share Posted October 12, 2007 As I recall on my R1200RT, the RPM comes close to matching the speed in 2nd gear--40mph =4000RPM. So if I'm doing about 40 and want to pass, I can downshift to 2nd, get lots of HP to the ground and shift to 3rd at 75. Shifting down to 3rd at 40, works nearly as well. Link to comment
ShovelStrokeEd Posted October 12, 2007 Share Posted October 12, 2007 Trouble is, in even 50 mph traffic, all 6 of my gears are available to me. Grabbing a handful at 50mph in first will result in a ground loop, 2nd a pretty impressive wheelie, 3rd will find me at 125 mph in very short order, 4th is about right, I'm never in 5th or 6th below about 60. Could it be that the rider chose not to open the throttle all the way? I know I seldom do. I seldom run to redline either. Moderation, yeah, that's it, moderation. Those of you who ride a K1200S will understand. Link to comment
Jones Posted October 12, 2007 Share Posted October 12, 2007 On a R1200RT, grabbing a "handfull" of throttle in second gear at 40mph is similar to launching a space shuttle. I tried that once. Almost ripped the cover off of the seat with my butt cheeks. Put horsepower to the ground? I guess. Link to comment
drzep Posted October 13, 2007 Share Posted October 13, 2007 On a R1200RT, grabbing a "handfull" of throttle in second gear at 40mph is similar to launching a space shuttle. We must have very different RTs. Link to comment
RRainman Posted October 13, 2007 Share Posted October 13, 2007 On a R1200RT, grabbing a "handfull" of throttle in second gear at 40mph is similar to launching a space shuttle. I tried that once. Almost ripped the cover off of the seat with my butt cheeks. Put horsepower to the ground? I guess. Not being a smartass, but have you ridden a modern sportbike? The R12RT is a great bike and I love mine, but space-shuttly it is not. Now my '04 Yamaha R1 is. My R1 will do an honest 100 mph in first gear!! (Yes....I have done it) Passing on a modern sportbike is effortless in the proper gear..... 1st, 2nd or 3rd at any speed you want. Link to comment
Jones Posted October 13, 2007 Share Posted October 13, 2007 I have never been on a modern sport bike. The RT is by far the most advanced machine I have ever ridden. This is a new level of performance for me. I guess I have been too easily impressed by what I am now experiencing. Prior to making the jump to the R1200RT, I was riding a Kawasaki Vulcan 750. Perhaps this helps explain my admittedly limited point of view. It may not be very space shuttle like, but I am having an awful lot of fun on it. Link to comment
Little Joe Posted October 13, 2007 Share Posted October 13, 2007 I have never been on a modern sport bike. The RT is by far the most advanced machine I have ever ridden. This is a new level of performance for me. I guess I have been too easily impressed by what I am now experiencing. Prior to making the jump to the R1200RT, I was riding a Kawasaki Vulcan 750. Perhaps this helps explain my admittedly limited point of view. It may not be very space shuttle like, but I am having an awful lot of fun on it. My last bike was a 1975 Honda CB750K5, 58 horses and all. We're on the same page. Link to comment
RRainman Posted October 14, 2007 Share Posted October 14, 2007 ... It may not be very space shuttle like, but I am having an awful lot of fun on it. That, my friend, is the key!!!! Link to comment
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