Best Riding Story

[sportrider]

ok I'm new to the forum, so I want to hear everyones best story; be it a close call, good race, or lesson learned the hard way. I've been riding motorcycles since I was 6 or 7, started on a cb50 moved up from there.I've had many close calls with cages, road debris, animals, catastrophic tire failure, I've had a case of road rage or two,and I've had some of the most amazing canyon carving that only someone who rides can share my enthusiasm on hitting the perfect line or holding back just to set up that perfect inside pass... ok now I'm daydreaming again, so lets your storys!!!

 

[VEGASRIDER]

As I was riding home during rush hour today, I happened to see a guy on a bike coming from the opposite direction, which was slightly downhill, standing straight up, ontop of his seat with his hands spread out. I guess the bike had to be in neutral. Crazy dude, doing it on a pretty busy surface street.

Can you do this?

 

[wrightme43]

No but God has blessed me with a very small amount of sense. LOL

 

[sportrider]

no, I've stood on the pegs without holding the bars, but the seat is a little to sketchy for me.

 

[sportrider]

heres a close call

about 5 years ago I was working swing shift at a shop.I got off work around midnight, I was riding a VFR750, I began my normal(at the time) 58 mile commute to my house. the ride started off as usual,I made my way to the freeway merged into the very light traffic and accelerated toward the home front. I normally paced myself around 95mph, and tonight was no different, as the freeway stretched ahead into the darkness,I settled into my groove, that over the years had become so routine I often would space out and reflect on the events of the day,wondering if part x would be in on time to finish whatever the crisis truck of the day was,or day dreaming about what I was going to do over the upcoming weekend. Somewhere over the years I've heard a saying that goes "experience is a bitch because it always gives you the test before the lesson" little did I know that I was about to be tested.
I approached a small pack of cages, about to overtake an 18wheeler. I momentarily rolled off the throttle scanning the cars for highway patrol and choosing my line threw them. no sooner had I split the cars the semi swerved erratically,I didn't see if it fell off the truck or if it had been flipped up by it but I was starring a 4x8 sheet of plywood in the face. with moves that would have left Nicky Hayden envious, I dipped the bike hard to the left looking at my escape route with wide eyes as I began to correct my course I literally felt the wind from the plywood as it just missed my right shoulder. the funny thing is, I didn't even feel any since of panic or fear until about 2-3 miles further down the road. at that point I was glad I had the skills I do, and shuddered to think how that whole scenario may have turned out if I hadn't. I learned a lesson that night, that I will share with you now.
there is no routine ride, complacency can kill you if your unprepared, so pay attention to the tasks at hand!!!

 

[buickttype]

Paying attention is one of the best friends we have on the road

 

[fz6xlr8r]

One time back in 1943 I was riding and out of no where this Jap Zero comes out of the sun with all his guns blazing! I was weaving left and right to avoid the gunfire when on the road ahead I see a flock of turtles eating pizza. I aimed for the turtles and as I approached they took flight pummeling the aircraft and its propeller causing it to crash in a near by field. I pull up to the crash site doing a hand stand on the handlebars looking to see if the pilot had survived and by some miracle he had so I asked him in fluent Japanese " Do you need a lift?" and he said " No, I think I'll walk home." So as I pulled back onto the road I did a huge wheelie and held it for about 4 miles while I did jumping jacks on the front fender.( Nobody said they had to be true stories.)

 

[wrightme43]

Those damned flying turtles. They will get you everytime.

 

[gmickey2001]

One time back in 1943 I was riding

Wow Dude, you're way older than I thought!

Good for you, it's good to know there are seniors out there riding the FZ6

 

[Bren]

F*ck! I just pressed the wrong button and lost the whole god damn story. It took me an hour and a half to write it.

Hmm... Let me get back to you with this later.

 

[wrightme43]

I do that all the time. It drives me freaking crazy.
I will hit my little touch pad with my thumb and bang there goes everything.

 

[Bren]

Riding story, take 2. Action!

The best riding story? Hmm… About horseback riding I have a lot of stories (including cows, tractors, geese, cemetery for bridle and a floating bathtub). Since I'm having my bike only for the second year now, I don’t have many stories of it yet. But one of my favourites is the story of how I got my bike. Here’s how it went:

I was born in November in the year… Naah! Just kidding.

One lazy warm week last summer I had a couple of days off from work. Just in a week before the previous one I had finally passed my drivers exam. The second one of them. (The first one I had failed completely almost before it even started and that totally pissed me off. And from that failed exam I had to go straight to a psychological evaluation for my job placement. You can well guess how that interview went… But I’m still in the same job, mind ya’! But that’s a whole different story.) Well, there I was. I finally had the adequate licence to drive a full powered motorcycle. Me! A young silly horse girl with two long braids and some vague idea that there were at least two types of motorcycles in the world; Harley‘s and those the ordinary people drove. I had indeed surprised even myself.

A friend of mine had borrowed me his bike for a week. (Yes I know, I don’t understand either). But oh, I was wild and free! I could see with my minds eye how I would drive to the sunset with the front tire eating away miles and miles of hot black smooth asphalt. Oh, what a thrill! Indeed what a thrill it would be to drive miles and miles to the next gas station with almost empty tank… On a bumpy road… Oh, and did I mention the bugs? They start swarming at sunset… And the elks get on the move. And why the hell would anyone want to drive to the sunset?!? You can’t see anything and it’s getting cold and dark.

But back to the original story. The first day off work I headed to the great winding roads with my borrowed bike, new drivers licence and a mismatched goretex-suit. Oh, I was so proud of myself. If this didn’t earn me some respect, then what would. Look, I’m a biker! See me go!… Button?… What button?… I knew that… Of course the engine starts from the button… Who said I was trying to turn it on from the key…

From somewhere along the way I called a friend from work who lived in that direction to ask a good place to have a cup of coffee and to take a break. Well, he invited me over to grab a bite and to chatter for awhile as they were home anyway with his family. There the conversation of course turned to bikes and driving. And before I knew it we were calling to one guy whose bike I had asked more about a few days back.

By that day I had decided what kind of bike I wanted and checked a few choices at local stores. I had picked a few that were for sale for a closer check-out. (But picking the right kind of bike is probably even a longer story that this one. Lets just say that my reasoning was not the most rational. But as my signature says; trying to guide a woman’s mind is a waste of time.) We agreed that I could come to see and try the bike the same day. So I left the borrowed Kawasaki at my friends house and we left with his Honda (in which the back seat is not the most comfortable). My friends driving style is a bit -hmm- reckless. So after a notable quantity of curses and almost banging him with my fist a few times, I only hoped to get where we were going in one piece. And when I finally got off the bike with wobbly knees, I didn’t even yell at him. Much. Only reminded him that in Finland we have this thing called speed limit. Yeah, who would have known it is illegal to go 90@60.

Anyway. The guy we had called showed us the bike, started the engine and so on. My friend checked that the bike was in good shape and was working as it should. Then I took it for a test drive. Damn, I was nervous. The only times I had actually driven any motorcycle before that was the few lessons in the driving school and then two trips on that borrowed bike. Forget the cruising to sunset! I was glad I didn’t drop the bike or do anything else as stupid. Krhmm… “Hey, funny! The front end doesn’t move when I turn the handle bars!” “Noooup… The upper fairing is attached to the frame. I would be concerned if it did move…“ “Ooooooh!… So it is!…”

We drove a short round, me with the FZ6 and my friend with his Honda. At the end of the round we stopped for awhile and my friend asked me how the bike felt and how it was to drive. Yeah… Ask a sea urchin what it feels like to climb Himalaya. I had no idea what the right answer was. I just mumbled with small voice “I think I could manage with this thing”. And that’s about it.

We went back where the guy lived. I have many weird tendencies but buying bikes every now and then and carrying thousands of euros in my back pocket isn’t one of them. So of course I didn’t have the needed money with me. Luckily it was okay with the guy that I paid by bank transfer, as I could do that via internet at his place. As we used the same bank, he could check that the money showed in his bank account right the way. We then finished the paperwork and outside he gave me the keys and bid safe journey home. And there I was standing beside a beautiful big motorcycle, holding in my shaking hand a fistful of motorcycle keys and a sales contract with my name in it. That took the words “Honey, I’m going shopping!” to a whole new level.

The dark blue paint of the tank gleamed in the late afternoon sun. The cat-like front lights stared at me challengingly. I guess I looked a bit stunned at the moment. At least that how I felt when I finally realised that my friend was talking to me. Eh, how do I feel? Let me take a minute. Or a day. Or better yet, ask me again next week. Wow! The drive back to my friends house was like a dream. I was driving my own bike!

But I still had one problem. Or two, to be exact. It was already past ten pm and getting dark and I was 70 miles from home with two bikes. Obviously I had to leave one of them there, but which one to choose; my precious or the borrowed one which I had to take back to its owner in a couple of days. To be or not to be: that is the question. My friend was leaving on a vacation the next day and since I had no idea when I would get a chance to come and pick up the other bike, I decided to leave my precious and take back the borrowed bike.

I got back home tired but safe. I had gone to bed already whet it truly hit me. I owned a freaking motorcycle! Immediate reaction: a huge grin! And I was even happier the next day when my friend called and told me they were coming to my direction anyway so he could drive the bike to me. He did as he had promised and had even washed the bike for me. Great! And then: “Oh, by the way. Be careful with the back break, it’s pretty sensitive. I almost…” Wait. Stop. Information overflow! Warning! Information overflow! System breakdown, self-explosion activated! “Please, don’t tell me you almost wrecked my bike?!? What did you do with it? No, I don’t want to know!” Thank God it was only almost.

And that’s how I got my FZ6. This was going to be a short story. Really. It was. No, don’t say it got out of hand. It didn’t. If it had, the story would be ten pages long and be written in a form of a poem. I’m a woman for crying out loud! I am totally incapable of expressing myself in brief. Sorry.

 

[wrightme43]

Good story Mirkka,
I remember the feeling with my first new bike, and when I get the FZ6. I could never put it in words, but I hear what your saying. Good job writing it down.

 

[sportrider]

Good story. That reminds me of when I got my FZ6.
The first FZ6 I ever saw was in February 2004. I instantly fell in love with it. I love the undertail exhaust. Like from the movie "Wayne's World," I used to go by and "visit her" saying to myself, "you will be mine." Due to finances at the time, it was not meant to be. I ended up buying a 2004 HD sportster 883. I tried to convince myself I liked the bike, I didn't. The more chrome and accessories I added, the worse the bike handled (forward controls suck.) I added pipes, they made it louder, but didn't seem to give it anymore power, rejeting it helped a little, but I still wasn't satisfied. Limited ground clearance, ruined my fun anytime I would start to get into the rythym of a good twisting road. I needed a sportbike. Let me rephrase that, I needed a sportbike, BAD!!! I started calling local bike shops looking for a good deal on a leftover 05 model anything. The salesman told me he had a fully faired SV1000 that he would sell to me below cost just to make room for the 06 models. I drove to the dealership wondering if I would be happy with a Sport V-twin. I've always been a revver, so the inline 4 has always been my favorite choice of power plants. I walked into the showroom and looked at the SV1000, Suddenly something caught my eye. OMG, there's an 06 FZ6. SV what??? One look at the FZ6 and all my thoughts of trying to get a "deal" on an 05 model were gone. She was just like I remembered her, only better. The 180 rear, the undertail exhaust, fuel injection, those sexy cat eyes and the R6 inspired INLINE 4. This little kitty wanted to ROAR!!! After doing some paperwork, I threw my leg over the saddle and fired her up for the first time (pause here for a moment of silence)
Now, I know you're supposed to do this whole "break in" thing, but I hit 135 mph as I entered the freeway. It was everything I wanted it to be. I finally had it, the bike I wanted 2 years ago, or should I say, the bike I've been wanting for 2 years. Okay now, slow her down, "you've got the rest of your life to enjoy this", I think to myself as I roll off the throttle. I took it easy the rest of the way home, but 20 grit sand paper couldn't have wiped the smile off my face.

 

[Nelly]

My two best stories: A few years ago I did some courier work in London prior to going to university. It was summer I was steaming into Piccadilly circus (EROS) round about on my ER5 with an open face helmet on smoking a ciggy. Pegs on the floor being dead cool (or so I thought) another courier came beneath me on a suzi GS500 with his knee down and he had the skill and cheek to wave at me as he went by. The lesson is no matter how good you think you are some ones even better.
Next story same bike ER5 brand new BT 35's (super sticky at the time) all scrubbed in. Coming up to my favourite roundabout that I usually went over at 65mph. This was a fine day I was doing 70mph and thought what the heck. I didn't back of, threw the bike in and it felt great. Then the back stepped out and high sided me off. I slid along the road and watched my bike fly off with out me. As I slid along I hit the kerb and bounced into the air. The bag I was wearing ended going behind me like a pillow. Very comfy, then I did what we all do. Wiggle toes, fingers arms legs ect to see that things were all working. I noticed my left foot was pointing backwards. Strange thing was I didn't feel a thing. I fractured my tibia and all my Metacarpals. 12 months in plaster and only £35.00 to fix said ER5. Moral of story is Warm your tires. If it hadn’t been for this crash I would not have become an ER nurse which I love

 

[sportrider]

ouch!!! good storys:thumbup: