I can't believe I'm going to put this out there, but when I was learning to ride I really could have used some stories like this from experienced riders, so here goes...
The punchline: I dropped my bike, on the street, at a stoplight.
Phew. Bandaid ripped off. Ouch. Here's what happened...
Tuesday morning, a totally normal dark and rainy Oregon morning, I'm on my way to work. I'm at a stoplight not far from home. The light turns green, and without thinking, I put my feet on the pegs, roll on the gas, let out the clutch, like I have well over a million times before, and.... The bike dies. Before I even know what is happening, the bike is falling, and I can't get a foot on the ground to stop it before it was past the point of no return. So, we fall, and I am glad I'd just purchased D3O hip armor for my pants. I stand up, pick up my bike (thank goodness I can do that, because while it was AWFUL that there were other cars watching this, not a one even put their car in park to try to help) hop on, turn the bike on, and this time, carefully roll on the gas, let out the clutch, and bam. The bike dies again. (I'm ready this time, it doesn't fall over.) I take a moment to be thoroughly perplexed, look at the mileage on my odometer, and decide that while my odometer says I have 30 miles to ride before reserve, perhaps there was an oops with that in the not too distant past, put the bike on reserve, again start it, and carefully roll on the gas and let out the clutch, and I am off. For about 3 feet, because the light is red again.
Now, as a new rider, three years ago, it wasn't unusual for me to kill my ninja at a stoplight, but this has not happened for as long as I can remember. So, for the rest of my ride, even though there was no way most of the rest of the Portland could have seen this happen, I'm hanging my head in embarrassment about what happened. Walk of Shame comes up on my playlist, and I think yes, I'm doing the ride of shame.
As an update, the gas is behaving normally, no leaks in the fuel system, and the bike is running great, so I just have to assume something messed with odometer setting while we were working on the bike last weekend.
So, internet, you decide, do I lose my badass biker card?
Kris, we all drop em sooner or later. You picked it up and kept on going, and that's what makes you a badass! In the bigger picture, you commute on your bike every day, rain or shine, that, in my book, makes you a badass... OCJohn
ReplyDelete*grin* I have joked that on the dirt, falling is my schtick! Don't want it to be that way on the street! But as street offs go, I'll take this one. :-)
ReplyDeleteRiding in the rain to WORK.
ReplyDeleteoh hell, keep your card. We all drop them sooner or later.