Focussing moment!

[bobthepsycho]

I was heading back from the NEC on my FJ1200, tootling up the M69. As I approached the junction, there was a lorry in lane 2, with slower moving traffic up ahead in lane 1. As I was coming off at the junction, I moved into lane 1 and was slowly creeping past the lorry.

As I was level with the rear of the trailer - BANG! - offside tyre exploded on the tractor unit and the lorry started to wobble a little I moved onto the hard shoulder and slowed down. As I did, with various fragments of tyre flying at me, the mudguard from the lorry started sliding towards me Accelerated away from it, and then stopped up ahead. There was shards of tyre carcass going everywhere with sparks flying off it.

My brother was on his bike behind the lorry and his focussing moment was when he saw the sparking tyre sliding towards him out of the smoke

Anyway stopped to see if everyone was ok, first words to my bro were 'fecking hell' and 'that was pretty cool!'

Could have been interesting if we had been passing on the other side!

Edited by bobthepsycho on Friday 30th November 19:55 for spelling

Edited by bobthepsycho on Friday 30th November 20:30

[FM]

lucky man....

[Hooli]

and people say motorways are boring!

[Frik]

Shit mate, you didn't tell me that!

Made up for Bike show being so shite I guess...

[oggs]

Glad your ok

This isn't a new thing it happens all to frequent but car drivers still hoover by the wheels instead of getting the fk out of there

[locomotivefan1]

I think i must be having a bad day.

a) I'm the brother in that story.
b) On the way home it rains harder than i thought possible and i split my waterproofs.
c) Also on the way home, I pass a lorry who is plodding away in Lane 1. Next thing i know he's pulling into my lane. He finally checks his mirrors once I'm about a foot away from his back wheels and pulls back into lane 1. It was a motorbike race team as well so he should have known better.

Anyway, no harm done and I'm home safely now.

Edited by locomotivefan1 on Friday 30th November 23:10

[711]

I was standing next to a freeway in Alabama when a truck blew a tyre a couple of hundred yards after it passed by me.

It sounded like a fuggin bomb going off, and when the debris started coming back down to earth it almost sounded like it was raining!

I think I'd have crashed out of sheer fright if I'd been riding along next to thing...

[308mate]

bobthepsycho said:

I was heading back from the NEC on my FJ1200, tootling up the M69.

And therein lies your problem I reckon.

If you were doing 90 in lane 3, you spend far less time alongside any hazard, nearly zero time alongside large truck tyres, you approach every situation on your terms (no idiots/hazards approaching you) and can react accordingly.

Its simply a safer way to ride

You will NEVER convince me otherwise.

[Schmeeky]

Lucky, man...

Having seen a video off a truck tire blowout, I always make sure I get past trucks that bit quiker nowadays - I really wouldn't want to be alongside one of those when it goes!!

I'll have a bit of a rumage, see if I can find it... BRB

Edit - Looked all over the shop; can't find it, dammit..

Edited by Schmeeky on Saturday 1st December 18:05

[bobthepsycho]

308mate said:

If you were doing 90 in lane 3, you spend far less time alongside any hazard, nearly zero time alongside large truck tyres, you approach every situation on your terms (no idiots/hazards approaching you) and can react accordingly.

We were travelling a little (!) faster beforehand but, as my brother was following, I was taking the junction a little easier.

Mind eww, if I'd have done my normal trick of blasting past the truck and cutting in front at my junction, I'd have been alongside the offside tyre when it blew.

It had nothing to do with approaching hazards on my terms, but just old fashioned luck.