Had to lay it down

[Cracker Jack]

"Had to put it down", or "had to lay it down", is a phrase I've heard for many years. You say you don't know how it went down.

Thank goodness I've never been in a situation where I felt a need to "lay it down", and don't know how to do it if I suddenly felt a need.

Would you or someone who knows how to do it let me and others (if there are others) who may not know just how this maneuver is accomplished. With my present skills, I'd just probably crash uncontrollably. Apparently a common maneuver but maybe not so commonly known how to do it.

Sorry about your accident but maybe some of us can learn from it.

[The emperor has no clothes]

"Had to put it down", or "had to lay it down", is a phrase I've heard for many years. You say you don't know how it went down.

Thank goodness I've never been in a situation where I felt a need to "lay it down", and don't know how to do it if I suddenly felt a need.

Would you or someone who knows how to do it let me and others (if there are others) who may not know just how this maneuver is accomplished. With my present skills, I'd just probably crash uncontrollably. Apparently a common maneuver but maybe not so commonly known how to do it.

Sorry about your accident but maybe some of us can learn from it.

I've never comprehended the idea either. But, he could have meant he hit the car and went down. I've been down more than once. Neither times by choice. Avoidance has been my reaction each time. I don't think I could intentionally go down.

pstelter, there are more Valkyries out there.   Glad you survived it.  

[Cracker Jack]

"Had to put it down", or "had to lay it down", is a phrase I've heard for many years. You say you don't know how it went down.

Thank goodness I've never been in a situation where I felt a need to "lay it down", and don't know how to do it if I suddenly felt a need.

Would you or someone who knows how to do it let me and others (if there are others) who may not know just how this maneuver is accomplished. With my present skills, I'd just probably crash uncontrollably. Apparently a common maneuver but maybe not so commonly known how to do it.

Sorry about your accident but maybe some of us can learn from it.

I've never comprehended the idea either. But, he could have meant he hit the car and went down. I've been down more than once. Neither times by choice. Avoidance has been my reaction each time. I don't think I could intentionally go down.

pstelter, there are more Valkyries out there.  Glad you survived it. 

I think "laying it down", is intended to be an "avoidance", or at least a mitigating maneuver.

[The emperor has no clothes]

"Had to put it down", or "had to lay it down", is a phrase I've heard for many years. You say you don't know how it went down.

Thank goodness I've never been in a situation where I felt a need to "lay it down", and don't know how to do it if I suddenly felt a need.

Would you or someone who knows how to do it let me and others (if there are others) who may not know just how this maneuver is accomplished. With my present skills, I'd just probably crash uncontrollably. Apparently a common maneuver but maybe not so commonly known how to do it.

Sorry about your accident but maybe some of us can learn from it.

I've never comprehended the idea either. But, he could have meant he hit the car and went down. I've been down more than once. Neither times by choice. Avoidance has been my reaction each time. I don't think I could intentionally go down.

pstelter, there are more Valkyries out there.  Glad you survived it. 

I think "laying it down", is intended to be an "avoidance", or at least a mitigating maneuver.

Well, I guess it is. I'm hesitant to contact asphalt . I'm sure there might be conditions where it might be the best choice. I'm also sure my reactions will be to avoid everything I can, including asphalt. At least that has been my history.

[Leathel]

I read this a while ago, a little harsh comments mixed with comedy ... no offence meant to anyone but it has some good info mixed in there.... doesn't quite ring true to the OP as he did not say I had to lay it down, His post just reminded of this little write up

...................................

It would be nice if the next time you heard someone say “I had to lay the bike down”, you take a chair and belt him in the face with it. Then back it up by stomping him until the police hose you with pepper spray.
It’s certainly what I’m considering.
Because it really is the only recourse left when one is confronted with such a statement. For that statement encompasses everything that is wrong with many of the people who ride motorcycles today.

Let us look at what that statement is about.
At face value, it is (and is meant to be) a declaration of skill in terms of collision avoidance. You are meant to understand, applaud, and appreciate the rider low-sided his bike to avoid impact with a car. Or a tree. Or a werewolf.

It normally goes like this: “Yeah, I was just riding along and this car/tree/werewolf came out of a street and I had to lay the bike down to avoid hitting it”.
It is right at this point you need to pick up a chair and swing it into the crap-swizzle’s face as hard as you can.
And then say to him as he lays there with his eyes rolling around in his head, gagging on broken teeth and cheekbones: “You lie! Stop lying! Do not lie again!”
Because he is lying.

He didn’t purposefully and with great skill lay the bike down to avoid colliding with something.
He crashed. Like a bitch. A stupid, panicked, I’m-crap-at-this bitch.
He was riding along, something came out of a side-street, he befouled himself, grabbed all the brakes in the world, closed his eyes and slapped himself onto the roadway like a wet dishrag being flung into the sink.

There was no skill in this. No intent. He really didn’t plan for it to go like this when the object appeared.
But he wants you to think it did. He wants you to nod appreciatively at his display of riding prowess. A lesser rider would have hit that car/tree/werewolf. A lesser rider would not have had the presence of mind backed up with the skill of professional stunt-rider to “lay the bike down”.
But he did.

And that is a lie and that is why he needs to eat a chair.
He didn’t hit the car/tree/werewolf out of sheer luck. The same luck that ensured his entry into this world was via the aid of a mid-wife rather than a piece of Sorbent.

Of course, sometimes the bike is thrown onto the roadway and still hits the car/tree/werewolf, in which case the blame will be apportioned accordingly, ie. At the car/tree/werewolf, and it will be a case of: “It just came out. I couldn’t do anything.”

Yeah, well, you could have avoided it. But you crashed into it instead. Which I know is not the optimal choice.
I know this because I have done it myself.
A few years ago I centrepunched a car that had turned into my path. I broke my neck and speared all of my left-arm bones through the flesh of my wrist.
I didn’t “lay it down”. I just slammed into the car.
Could I have avoided it? Sure. If I had been on my game a little more. If I’d have anticipated a little more. If…if…if…
At the end of the day the driver was legally at fault, but I was the one in hospital because on that day and at that exact time, I was not on my game.

My fault. No issue. Hell, it’s not like I’m new at this. Car drivers do all sorts of Crazy Ivan crap. I want to beat them with chairs too. And before we entered the Age of Video Surveillance, I did. Except I didn’t beat them with chairs. I beat them with large shifting spanners, helmets, mailed gloves and steel-capped boots. Halcyon days.

And I can guarantee you that each and every one of those drivers whom I beat like a retarded plough-mule is today far more motorcycle aware than he was before the beating. You’re welcome.
So don’t give me that crap about violence never solving anything. Violence solves everything. It always has and it always will.

It is why governments all over the world use it, and it is why we live in a relatively peaceful society. The mere threat of police beating us with truncheons is usually enough to get us to behave.

So I contend violence is especially efficacious when it comes to solving things like the deep-vein stupid that produces arrogant statements like “I had to lay the bike down”.
I can admire a bloke who owns his screw-up.
“Yeah, I stuffed up. It was my fault. The pins come out in three weeks and the bike was insured, so I’m planning what to get next.”

See? No need to for a chairing here, is there? I’d probably shout him a beer or two because it’s hard for him to crutch his way to the bar and carry back a round.
But don’t lie. Only bitches lie."

[The emperor has no clothes]

I read this a while ago, a little harsh comments mixed with comedy ... no offence meant to anyone but it has some good info mixed in there.... doesn't quite ring true to the OP as he did not say I had to lay it down, His post just reminded of this little write up

...................................

It would be nice if the next time you heard someone say “I had to lay the bike down”, you take a chair and belt him in the face with it. Then back it up by stomping him until the police hose you with pepper spray.
It’s certainly what I’m considering.
Because it really is the only recourse left when one is confronted with such a statement. For that statement encompasses everything that is wrong with many of the people who ride motorcycles today.

Let us look at what that statement is about.
At face value, it is (and is meant to be) a declaration of skill in terms of collision avoidance. You are meant to understand, applaud, and appreciate the rider low-sided his bike to avoid impact with a car. Or a tree. Or a werewolf.

It normally goes like this: “Yeah, I was just riding along and this car/tree/werewolf came out of a street and I had to lay the bike down to avoid hitting it”.
It is right at this point you need to pick up a chair and swing it into the crap-swizzle’s face as hard as you can.
And then say to him as he lays there with his eyes rolling around in his head, gagging on broken teeth and cheekbones: “You lie! Stop lying! Do not lie again!”
Because he is lying.

He didn’t purposefully and with great skill lay the bike down to avoid colliding with something.
He crashed. Like a bitch. A stupid, panicked, I’m-crap-at-this bitch.
He was riding along, something came out of a side-street, he befouled himself, grabbed all the brakes in the world, closed his eyes and slapped himself onto the roadway like a wet dishrag being flung into the sink.

There was no skill in this. No intent. He really didn’t plan for it to go like this when the object appeared.
But he wants you to think it did. He wants you to nod appreciatively at his display of riding prowess. A lesser rider would have hit that car/tree/werewolf. A lesser rider would not have had the presence of mind backed up with the skill of professional stunt-rider to “lay the bike down”.
But he did.

And that is a lie and that is why he needs to eat a chair.
He didn’t hit the car/tree/werewolf out of sheer luck. The same luck that ensured his entry into this world was via the aid of a mid-wife rather than a piece of Sorbent.

Of course, sometimes the bike is thrown onto the roadway and still hits the car/tree/werewolf, in which case the blame will be apportioned accordingly, ie. At the car/tree/werewolf, and it will be a case of: “It just came out. I couldn’t do anything.”

Yeah, well, you could have avoided it. But you crashed into it instead. Which I know is not the optimal choice.
I know this because I have done it myself.
A few years ago I centrepunched a car that had turned into my path. I broke my neck and speared all of my left-arm bones through the flesh of my wrist.
I didn’t “lay it down”. I just slammed into the car.
Could I have avoided it? Sure. If I had been on my game a little more. If I’d have anticipated a little more. If…if…if…
At the end of the day the driver was legally at fault, but I was the one in hospital because on that day and at that exact time, I was not on my game.

My fault. No issue. Hell, it’s not like I’m new at this. Car drivers do all sorts of Crazy Ivan crap. I want to beat them with chairs too. And before we entered the Age of Video Surveillance, I did. Except I didn’t beat them with chairs. I beat them with large shifting spanners, helmets, mailed gloves and steel-capped boots. Halcyon days.

And I can guarantee you that each and every one of those drivers whom I beat like a retarded plough-mule is today far more motorcycle aware than he was before the beating. You’re welcome.
So don’t give me that crap about violence never solving anything. Violence solves everything. It always has and it always will.

It is why governments all over the world use it, and it is why we live in a relatively peaceful society. The mere threat of police beating us with truncheons is usually enough to get us to behave.

So I contend violence is especially efficacious when it comes to solving things like the deep-vein stupid that produces arrogant statements like “I had to lay the bike down”.
I can admire a bloke who owns his screw-up.
“Yeah, I stuffed up. It was my fault. The pins come out in three weeks and the bike was insured, so I’m planning what to get next.”

See? No need to for a chairing here, is there? I’d probably shout him a beer or two because it’s hard for him to crutch his way to the bar and carry back a round.
But don’t lie. Only bitches lie."

good read 

[solo1]

I've heard that phrase many times from Harley riders.  I always wanted to say that rubber grips the road better than steel or plastic.

I'll tell one on myself. In 1947 I managed to buy a thoroughly beat 1935 Harley basket case. It had NO front brake and not much of a back one.

I'm motoring along at 15mph when a car pulled out of a parking space in front of me. I hit the rear brake and the bike initiated a low slide. I missed the car but hopping along on my right foot I couldn't reach the 'suicide clutch' with my left foot and it started engaging just enough to keep moving the bike but not enough to stall it. I fell on my arse in a getoff.  Now i knew nothing about 'laying 'er down" I was just a dumb kid riding a piece of junk.

I interpret 'laying her down' today as purposely low sliding to miss something by slamming on only the rear brake and turning the bars to the right. Generally means, IMO, that the rider doesn't know his brakes, especially the front one, and evasion tactics.  I could be wrong.

[Moonshot_1]

"Had to put it down", or "had to lay it down", is a phrase I've heard for many years. You say you don't know how it went down.

Thank goodness I've never been in a situation where I felt a need to "lay it down", and don't know how to do it if I suddenly felt a need.

Would you or someone who knows how to do it let me and others (if there are others) who may not know just how this maneuver is accomplished. With my present skills, I'd just probably crash uncontrollably. Apparently a common maneuver but maybe not so commonly known how to do it.

Sorry about your accident but maybe some of us can learn from it.

This is a basic and fairly simple maneuver.

You panic, slam on the rear brake while, at the same time, try to steer clear of the obstruction. Goes down every time.

I've never purposely laid my bike down. Had it laid down for me (Clipped in the rear by a tractor's loader).

Unless you are a pro stunt driver, if you "laid it down" as it has been said, you have crashed. Most likely unnecessarily so.

Even if you could try and make a case for it, you would have to make the case that the best course of action was to purposely lose all control of the bike. Which deserves one of these 

[Valker]

"Laying it down" to avoid a crash IS a crash. I once asked a motor cop who mentioned that 'technique' if they turned and shot each other before rushing into a house?

[Jess from VA]

Had to lay it down..... expression by people who do not know how to use the brakes (esp the front brakes, assuming they have any).  And people who are not alert and look ahead, and ride within their skills, and limitations.

My creedo is...... never give up.  I have fought low and high sides and sliding sideways and  emergency stops, and won, many times.  Even after I had pretty much figured I was going to fall, but I didn't give up.  And I didn't fall and I didn't hit anything.  But I sure could have.

The one time I can think of to lay it down goes like this:  I am in the mountain twisties, the bike loses traction (ice, wet leaves, gasoline, real slippery) and I am heading for the edge of the road with a no guardrail cliff/drop off, and a long way down.  There is very little road and shoulder to work with before the long drop.  I lay it down (do an intentional low side), to get off the bike and hope ground friction slows me down before the cliff.  The bike (850 lbs of inertia) slides over and off the cliff, but I stop just short of the cliff (195lbs of inertia).  This is not something you can practice.  The common wisdom is to always stay with the bike if you can, and let it take the hit.  But if the bike is going off the cliff, I'm leaving the bike.

If you go off the cliff with the bike, Wylie Coyote karma causes the bike to land on top of you.  

As opposed to laying it down, I have decided I am going to hit something (or really visa versa) and cannot stop in time (or the other guy won't stop at all), so I pick a soft place to land (as opposed to the solid thing I'm going to hit, and the concrete under me), which is usually a grassy median or shoulder.  I intentionally drive off the road into a soft landing.  I've gone off in the grass, then did a goofy-footing slip and slide with alternating almost high-side, almost low-side, almost high-side, etc, and managed not to fall (it's a freeking miracle).     (I may have soiled myself a little)  This happened years ago.  But having a plan to exit into soft stuff is not a bad plan if the danger ahead is unavoidable (or terminal looking).

When you spend your first few years riding dirt and motocross, you fall off the bike all the time.  You learn there are less painful ways and places to land than others. 

[Rams]

Can't say it won't ever happen but, I've never been in a situation where I considered "laying it down" versus the option of trying to control the situation and ride the bike through the situation.

Never laid one down, that doesn't mean I've never had an issue.   

[The emperor has no clothes]

 The bike (850 lbs of inertia) slides over and off the cliff, but I stop just short of the cliff (195lbs of inertia).  

Unfortunately my fat ass of 205 lbs. would carry me off the cliff.   

[Cracker Jack]

How did my handle end up as the original poster on this thread? Did the original poster decide that maybe he didn't lay it down but simply crashed and deleted his post?

In any case, I'm sorry he had a mishap and I hope he recovers quickly.

Looks like I'm not going to learn how to "lay it down", unless it's to lock up the rear and turn the front.

I doubt if I'm quick enough in a panic situation to apply the maneuver anyway. I'd probably instinctively try to keep the rubber down!

[The emperor has no clothes]

How did my handle end up as the original poster on this thread? Did the original poster decide that maybe he didn't lay it down but simply crashed and deleted his post?

In any case, I'm sorry he had a mishap and I hope he recovers quickly.

Looks like I'm not going to learn how to "lay it down", unless it's to lock up the rear and turn the front.

I doubt if I'm quick enough in a panic situation to apply the maneuver anyway. I'd probably instinctively try to keep the rubber down!

I think Willow split our responses off the OP's. Maybe we were too harsh ? 

[Leathel]

How did my handle end up as the original poster on this thread? Did the original poster decide that maybe he didn't lay it down but simply crashed and deleted his post?

In any case, I'm sorry he had a mishap and I hope he recovers quickly.

Looks like I'm not going to learn how to "lay it down", unless it's to lock up the rear and turn the front.

I doubt if I'm quick enough in a panic situation to apply the maneuver anyway. I'd probably instinctively try to keep the rubber down!

I think Willow split our responses off the OP's. Maybe we were too harsh ? 

Yeah saw the OP thread is still running in its original thread and our Harsh comments in this...

[Cracker Jack]

How did my handle end up as the original poster on this thread? Did the original poster decide that maybe he didn't lay it down but simply crashed and deleted his post?

In any case, I'm sorry he had a mishap and I hope he recovers quickly.

Looks like I'm not going to learn how to "lay it down", unless it's to lock up the rear and turn the front.

I doubt if I'm quick enough in a panic situation to apply the maneuver anyway. I'd probably instinctively try to keep the rubber down!

I think Willow split our responses off the OP's. Maybe we were too harsh ? 

Yeah saw the OP thread is still running in its original thread and our Harsh comments in this...

I see, looks like it's split into believers and doubters.

[pstelter]

I'm fairly new to this board.  As a rule, I am very circumspect about making any personal claims.  So, let me set the record straight...I was involved in a low-side accident this morning.  Was it skill or luck that it ended up that way?  More like divine Providence.  As the layer-in-chief responsible for this thread, let me add some comments to this discussion...

Cracker Jack...original post is still there.  Somehow when you responded, you must have inadvertently changed the subject.  That way it looks like a new post.  I actually opened this one up thinking that today was a day of two accidents....

To all posters...Leathel's assessment is mostly correct.  The title was meant to be a euphemism -
 perhaps a better title would be "Experienced a low-side" or something similar.  Also, my statement of not knowing how I went down was meant to convey it was more accident than skill.  

In truth, while I won't claim Evel Kenevil (sp?) like skills, neither will I sign-up to "befouling myself".  First of all, my drawers are clean.  Second, I have no recollection of the ACCIDENT.  The last thing I remember was looking at the tachometer.  There are some brief glimpses of contacting the pavement, but the next thing I remember is trying to pull my right foot from under the bike (this is with first responders there).  Don't know if I lost consciousness.  The woman who called my wife said I was alert and responsive, however I don't remember giving her the number.  Wasn't really with it until I was in the ambulance.  Don't know what brakes I engaged (if any).  Don't know if I aggressively swerved to avoid.  Hell, I couldn't tell you what kind of car it was (an SUV, apparently).

However, he & you all are correct...today I was not prepared for the car to be there.  The intersection in question is just over a small hill.  In the direction I was traveling, crest the hill and there it is.  She was making a left and was found at fault in the accident.  But it was my bike that was smashed and my leg that was cut.

[The emperor has no clothes]

I'm fairly new to this board.  As a rule, I am very circumspect about making any personal claims.  So, let me set the record straight...I was involved in a low-side accident this morning.  Was it skill or luck that it ended up that way?  More like divine Providence.  As the layer-in-chief responsible for this thread, let me add some comments to this discussion...

Cracker Jack...original post is still there.  Somehow when you responded, you must have inadvertently changed the subject.  That way it looks like a new post.  I actually opened this one up thinking that today was a day of two accidents....

To all posters...Cracker Jack's assessment is mostly correct.  The title was meant to be a euphemism -
 perhaps a better title would be "Experienced a low-side" or something similar.  Also, my statement of not knowing how I went down was meant to convey it was more accident than skill.  

In truth, while I won't claim Evel Kenevil (sp?) like skills, neither will I sign-up to "befouling myself".  First of all, my drawers are clean.  Second, I have no recollection of the ACCIDENT.  The last thing I remember was looking at the tachometer.  There are some brief glimpses of contacting the pavement, but the next thing I remember is trying to pull my right foot from under the bike (this is with first responders there).  Don't know if I lost consciousness.  The woman who called my wife said I was alert and responsive, however I don't remember giving her the number.  Wasn't really with it until I was in the ambulance.  Don't know what brakes I engaged (if any).  Don't know if I aggressively swerved to avoid.  Hell, I couldn't tell you what kind of car it was (an SUV, apparently).

However, he & you all are correct...today I was not prepared for the car to be there.  The intersection in question is just over a small hill.  In the direction I was traveling, crest the hill and there it is.  She was making a left and was found at fault in the accident.  But it was my bike that was smashed and my leg that was cut.

I think I speak for us all, when I say We are glad you are relatively ok. crap Happens, don`t let our commentary bring you down. Time to start shopping 

[Hook#3287]

Pete, glad you came out of it relatively unscathed.

[mark81]

"I had to lay 'er down"  y'all ever seen how they pull the rear tire  on a gl8100?  That's laying it down.  Nice and easy on a padded blanket so she stays safe and warm.

Anything else is a wreck

[Leathel]

Cracker Jack...original post is still there.  Somehow when you responded, you must have inadvertently changed the subject.  That way it looks like a new post.  I actually opened this one up thinking that today was a day of two accidents....

the forum moderators would have split the threads to keep your thread on topic, not dramas about that

Glad you are able to be around to tell the tail. I hope you recover well.

[Moonshot_1]

Great to know you guys are all professional riders, never heard so much bull in one sitting. Some of you sound like you are drinking and typing.

I agree that laying a bike down is a crash, but it has been done intentionally and it can be the best alternative in certain situations. Would you ride off the side of a canyon with brakes on full, jump off your bike  (somehow), or lay it on its side and get off the bike?

I don't know what bull you are referring. Laying down a bike intentionally is done by stunt drivers. Everyone else does it by accident. You can't practice the maneuver.
When a panic situation presents itself, what is your first move?
For me it is the front brake. How do I know this. I practice. EVERY time I am on the bike. Every stop sign, every time I need the brakes, it is the front brake as the first thing I respond with first thing I go to.

I can atest that doing this has saved my life on a number of occasions. It gives you the extra second or two to maneuver and rapidly slow down.

Again, this is not something you can think about at the time you need it. You need to practice it every time you are on the bike. Make it an unbreakable habit so when the panic situation presents itself you react properly and automatically.  If you don't your first instinct and reaction is to floor the rear brake and steer away from the problem. Boom the bike goes down and you slide uncontrollably into your destiny. Which is usually bigger and heavier than you.

Nothing professional or any bull about it. Simply spend some quality time with the bike everyday to prepare for the panic situations. And practice them, and practice them and practice them.

You'll be surprised at what the bike, even our big bikes can actually do to get you out of a jam.

[Jess from VA]

Pete, please don't take our sarcastic and critical comments personally.  There is just too much history behind people claiming to lay a bike down... for whatever reason.  That is one of those things that tend to bring out the fangs in experienced riders. 

Your explanation of your get off sounds very credible and pretty usual.  And we're sorry it happened to you.... and your poor bike.

When you get around to discovering what parts you need to fix it up, let us know.  Lots of members keep a supply of odds and ends around, and we may be able to help a fellow out.     

[..]

Fer F's sake UNTIL you EXPERIENCE EXACTLY what the OP experienced you HAVE NO IDEA how to react.

Sure, sit there on yer ASSES and make yourself one as you swiftly pass judgment on him and HIS BUSTED BIKE.

SHEESH!

You couldn't just commiserate with the guy?????????

TOUGH F'IN CROWD.

Flame suit not needed this time.

[Raider]

"Laying it down" to avoid a crash IS a crash. I once asked a motor cop who mentioned that 'technique' if they turned and shot each other before rushing into a house?

 

[Valker]

Fer F's sake UNTIL you EXPERIENCE EXACTLY what the OP experienced you HAVE NO IDEA how to react.

Sure, sit there on yer ASSES and make yourself one as you swiftly pass judgment on him and HIS BUSTED BIKE.

SHEESH!

You couldn't just commiserate with the guy?????????

TOUGH F'IN CROWD.

Flame suit not needed this time.

As someone else said-the answer to not being able to think perfectly in am emergency situation is "practice, practice, practice". I realized the speed of reactions and practiced habits once when a car pulled out right in front of me in my one ton Ford extended van. When my foot was going for the brakes, my right hand on the steering wheel reached and squeezed the nonexistent front brake lever. I giggled in a good way.

[Moonshot_1]

Fer F's sake UNTIL you EXPERIENCE EXACTLY what the OP experienced you HAVE NO IDEA how to react.

Sure, sit there on yer ASSES and make yourself one as you swiftly pass judgment on him and HIS BUSTED BIKE.

SHEESH!

You couldn't just commiserate with the guy?????????

TOUGH F'IN CROWD.

Flame suit not needed this time.

As someone else said-the answer to not being able to think perfectly in am emergency situation is "practice, practice, practice". I realized the speed of reactions and practiced habits once when a car pulled out right in front of me in my one ton Ford extended van. When my foot was going for the brakes, my right hand on the steering wheel reached and squeezed the nonexistent front brake lever. I giggled in a good way.

I'll add to that. I just got me an old 16' Alumacraft fishing boat. 1st boat ever. Console steering. Last two times coming back to the dock I hit the brake with my foot to slow down. Of course I can't find the brakes because boats don't have brakes. I am currently on a learning curve.

We get ourselves conditioned to do things. And when a situation arises that required instinctive reflexes and response we revert to what we have conditioned ourselves to do. Practicing the right instinctive reflexes and responses, particularly on a motorcycle, and in my case, a boat, gives you precious seconds and distance in those situations.

As a general rule, folks lay down motorcycles because they have conditioned themselves, often unknowingly, to respond and react in the wrong way and simply lose control.

[Jess from VA]

Who hasn't stomped the brake on the passenger side of a car?

[Gryphon Rider]

This just might have been the time to lay it down:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6uyv_taTsE

By the way, I agree with the practice of riding the bike and using the brakes until impact, assuming no escape path.  The energy your body has to absorb on impact is it's kinetic energy (KE).

KE = ½MV²

You can't do anything about your mass (M), but any tiny bit you can reduce your velocity (V) before impact exponentially reduces the energy your body absorbs.

[Gryphon Rider]

Unfortunately my fat ass of 205 lbs. would carry me off the cliff.   

I dunno; race cars grip better with "fat" tires.  Maybe if you wore grippy pants you'd stop shorter than a skinny-assed dude riding his motorcycle!

[The emperor has no clothes]

Unfortunately my fat ass of 205 lbs. would carry me off the cliff.   

I dunno; race cars grip better with "fat" tires.  Maybe if you wore grippy pants you'd stop shorter than a skinny-assed dude riding his motorcycle!

I'll be on the lookout for some B.F. Goodrich pants. 

[Jess from VA]

Not only does the bike (valk) weigh more, but it has some hard points that tend to hit and slide like the engine guards (fore and aft on IS and Tourer), and maybe the handlebar, and those small contact points will slide a long way on concrete if you have enough speed going into the fall.  

The one time I dumped a bike turning through an intersection (on a big gas spill) at 35-40mph  (DT 360 Yamaha), I was thrown off on my back going backwards (no chance to stay with the bike), and me and the bike slid along together at about the same speed, side by side, except it slid toward the curb (in the direction I had been turning the bike when it went down), while I kept going pretty straight down the road from my get off point.  Sort of a physics lesson.

And all was well until a big Lincoln, late to the accident, rolled through the intersection to where I had just stopped sliding, and almost ran over my head.  Glad for the helmet, but I don't want to practice that either.

I didn't lay it down, the gas in the street made the tires slide like on black ice, and I slammed down hard.  Also a physics lesson.  Went about 50 feet and only a bruised hip from the git off (geared up in winter).

[baldo]

16 yrs old, I was headed into work at a local restaurant. I was riding my 72 Yama DT125 on the road (I know) and leaned into my turn into the parking lot. The lot was bordered on the street with a low stone wall and filled with all kinds of shrubs and foliage, you couldn't really see anything that was in the lot. Especially approaching from that direction. I leaned into the turn, entered the lot, straightened up and came face to face, 20 ft away, with a 76 Cadillac driven by a co-workers Mom. No room or time to think. I laid it down and slid right into the car. When everything had stopped, I was looking up at the bottom of the front bumper. The bike was there with me, my leg was trapped under it. THEN, she actually laid on her horn....

Two cracked vertebrae and some serious road rash later, I was back on my bike within two months....

[czuch]

The only advise I could muster would to get on some dirt road and lock up the rear going slow..
 See how it slides, how far it slides and which way it prefers.
Other than that, watch for cars coming out of the shadows at gas stations.
The first time I dropped a street bike it was my new '71 750 Honda with 4" over fork tubes.
I had it for about 2 weeks and was very green. And pissed, not British pissed.