April 30, 201313 yr Being old enough to remember the arguments about the compulsory use of helmets I was sceptical about these things but bought two for us.......after 18 months of using them I have to say they get my vote, loads less damage to crashing bikes as well as bodies what I can't understand is why all manufacturers aren't fitting as standard equipment and of course why they are so expensive......got to get a bit of rhetoric into my posts!
April 30, 201313 yr Also, being magnetic, the damn things wander. Here's mine stuck to the side of the kitchen drawer, which is not much help when you've driven nearly an hour to a trial to find that it is not on the bike. Just for those cases make sure you have a magnet in your tool box and some duct/electrical (whatever the popular European type of ) tape. and just tape the magnet on and viola!!! problem solved
May 1, 201313 yr he fashioned a kill switch with a set of points and non-conductive something or other attached with a wrist strap. Worked every time. The very first bike I ever bought (paid for with money from throwing a newspaper route in 1969) had a kill switch exactly as you described. It was used in hillclimb competitions by the previous owner. Most folks agreed that when the rider & bike became separated, it was handy if the motor was at least not running...... Jimmie Added in EDIT: Sideup, are you gonna ride the Trial next weekend at Goldendale? I'm gonna try to do a Saturday ride there.... Edited May 1, 201313 yr by mr neutron
May 1, 201313 yr US Nationals should require these. I saw rider fall on his own bike and his hand go through the sprocket. none severed but many broken fingers.
May 1, 201313 yr A riderless out of control bike is a lower-probability-but-higer-consequence event at a WTC event than at clubman level, what with the close proximity of a group of spectators pushing to the edge of the Section. So at this level the dead man switch keeps an event safe. For we Clubbies, it probably is more of an aid to keep our bike safe by avoiding a handlebar end and throttle jammed open in the dirt while we pick ourselves up. On a less serious note, I bought myself a lanyard switch a few months back.... I found that with it on the handlebar you CAN scratch your forehead (the elastic lanyard stretches quite a way while staying attached) but that you CAN'T scratch your back (it only stretches so far before letting go). Nothing like belting along in 4th gear between sections with one hand on the bars, the other behind your back, and suddenly the engine dies. Also, being magnetic, the damn things wander. Here's mine stuck to the side of the kitchen drawer, which is not much help when you've driven nearly an hour to a trial to find that it is not on the bike. Now, that is funny!
May 4, 201313 yr I put a dead-man switch on my Gasser last year (and, uh, no, I'm not planning on riding world rounds, I just wanted the extra bit of safety.) Edited May 4, 201313 yr by funtrials
May 4, 201313 yr Sideup, are you gonna ride the Trial next weekend at Goldendale? I'm gonna try to do a Saturday ride there.... Speaking of Goldendale: as I write this the boys are heading out to ride in Goldendale.....made it last year, but can't this year.
May 4, 201313 yr How does a dead man operate the switch in the first place in fact why would the FIM even let a dead man start the event. Dead men have a real hard time adhering to the new "constant motion" rule, for one thing.
May 4, 201313 yr or the mittens tied together with strings so we wouldn't lose our mittens on the way to school. That's why I got the lanyard, I kept losing my darn bike. But not anymore. Wait, after reading through this thread it seems like you guys are implying that the lanyard PULLS AWAY from the bike at some point(?)....but then I couldn't find my bike. Edited May 4, 201313 yr by funtrials
May 4, 201313 yr So lanyard type "Dead man switch" "kill switch": maybe a good idea for all levels of competition............... but the way I ride I would rather have it attached to my chest. I use my hands to make dabs on trees too often. There is a type of lanyard that attaches to the waist, so you can hug trees... In Belgium, at national events the lanyard kill switch and the rear sprocket guard are compulsory. Edited May 4, 201313 yr by guys
May 5, 201313 yr There is a type of lanyard that attaches to the waist, so you can hug trees... In Belgium, at national events the lanyard kill switch and the rear sprocket guard are compulsory. OOH I do love me some trees!!!
June 17, 201313 yr done that too...took one of those magnets supplied with toytown speedo kit and keep it inside my helmet ( steel stud for strap)......strangely enough since I did this I havn't forgotten
June 17, 201313 yr RE: the sprocket cover. Why cover the holes in the sprocket when the sprocket has nasty gnashing teeth, the wheel sharp spokes? It's just so silly. The lanyard I can understand.
June 17, 201313 yr I think the filling in is so it cant act as a guillotine, as per disc on front which have a full guard, all to do with minders loosing fingers! saw it once from 50 yds away and it wasnt nice.
June 18, 201313 yr Dabster: what about the teeth on the sprocket? They can sever digits just as well as the holes but nobody has attempted a work-around for them. Edited June 18, 201313 yr by toofasttim
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