Spring 2013 - Ride South-Southwest (Crash Details Below)
I had some free time this Spring/Summer, and wanted to use it! It was a bit early in the year to head out on my next dream ride to the Rockies and vicinity, so a new 10 day ride was quickly thrown together, and I headed out Thursday April 25th. The plan was to take 2 days riding south, enjoying the scenery in West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina. I knew Back Mountain Road was a good one, and I found a Middle Mountain Road that looked good as well. That put me in southeast West Virginia (not quite in line with the map to the left), where I headed west just a bit to a free National Park campground right in the New River Gorge. Saturday and Sunday were spent in Greenville, SC with family, which worked out extremely well, as the weather was not conducive to riding. Many projects were accomplished, and a great time was had by all. The plan was to leave Monday morning, do a quick loop through the Smokey Mountains, ending in Chattanooga, TN for the night. Tuesday was a ride west, ending at another free National Park Campground on the Mississippi River. Wednesday was another westerly day, ending at the top of Texas to stay the night with a riding buddy from Columbus, who had recently moved south. Thursday's plan was a ride north, through the edge of the Ozarks, ending at Historic Route 66. The following 2 or 3 days was planned for a casual ride home on Route 66, followed by Route 40.
Day 1: Columbus OH, to the New River Gorge WV
Middle Mountain Road turned out to be gravel and dirt, but a great ride none the less!
Day 2: New River Gorge WV, to Greenville SC
A scenic overlook area in Virginia
Day 3: Greenville SC, to Smokey Mountains
The beginning of the end. It was 7 miles up this very road that the accident occurred.
Successful leaning pictures from before the accident. Notice the low clearance between the metal luggage and the ground, and more importantly, the metal skid plate and the ground (on the last pic)
The Crash
Where the pictures end was where I was done sliding. I stood up on the shoulder of the road, and watch the bike continue to tumble about 200 feet down the mountainside until it was completely out of sight. (Knowing that the main cause for the accident was me... as in, I was controlling the bike, I chose those aftermarket parts, and I chose that speed in that corner...) The main reason for the accident appears to be my aftermarket skid plate. As I leaned hard into the corner, the metal of the skid plate contacted the ground, removing weight from the tires, and thus eliminating traction. This was my first time on twisty roads since I added the skid plate last fall, and I was not expecting it to contact the ground as early as it did. To be fair to the folks at Rumbux who built the skid plate, my footpeg feeler did contact the ground prior to the skid plate, but the difference was so extremely small, if a peg is dragging, the Rumbux skid plate is just a tiny fraction of an inch away from dragging as well.
Super Tenere Riders, learn from my mistake! Do not drag pegs with the Rumbux Skid Plate!!!
On the positive side of things, I came out of the incident without a scratch or bruise, or even a sore muscle. I was wearing pretty significant gear, but also didn't hit hard or slide far. If I had to guess a speed, I'd say I was going in the area of 30 mph; it was a sharp curve, so my speed was not high. I was wearing an armored mesh jacket that sustained some rash to the outside, but not even a mark to the liner. And heavy cargo pants, with knee and shin armor and tall armored boots. The pants wore a couple small holes through, but the knee armor and boots only sustained small marks. Gloves made the biggest difference, as you can tell in every picture but one, once I hit the ground, my hands were down. I was wearing armored leather gloves, and they sustained almost no damage at all, just some minor scuffing. Had I been gloveless, both hands would be torn up I am sure.
Super Tenere Riders, learn from my mistake! Do not drag pegs with the Rumbux Skid Plate!!!
On the positive side of things, I came out of the incident without a scratch or bruise, or even a sore muscle. I was wearing pretty significant gear, but also didn't hit hard or slide far. If I had to guess a speed, I'd say I was going in the area of 30 mph; it was a sharp curve, so my speed was not high. I was wearing an armored mesh jacket that sustained some rash to the outside, but not even a mark to the liner. And heavy cargo pants, with knee and shin armor and tall armored boots. The pants wore a couple small holes through, but the knee armor and boots only sustained small marks. Gloves made the biggest difference, as you can tell in every picture but one, once I hit the ground, my hands were down. I was wearing armored leather gloves, and they sustained almost no damage at all, just some minor scuffing. Had I been gloveless, both hands would be torn up I am sure.
After the crash, I hitched a ride south with an extremely generous retired couple on vacation and just passing though, until I reached reliable cell phone service. What was a bit of a long and drawn out process of phone calls to insurance and family, finally got a tow truck headed my way, and I hitched a ride back to the bike with another extremely generous local. An hour or so later the truck arrived, and the fun began. The driver was great, and he and I worked together to get the bike back up. The 150' long cable wasn't near enough, so we used several of his chains to finally reach the bike. I had already hauled up the gear that came loose in the fall, and it doesn't look like I lost anything! A couple locals stopped when they saw the toe truck pull up and stayed with us in case anything went wrong. A Canadian fellow from the 2-stroke club also stopped and took several photographs of the recovery. I am in the process of getting in touch with him to get those photos, as they will surely be better than mine. An hour and a half later, and the bike was on the back of the truck. Another hour later and we arrived at the Yamaha dealership in Alcoa Tennessee (just outside Knoxville). We left the bike behind the building, and the driver gave me a ride to a cheap airport motel.
The bikes final resting place, 200 feet below the road.
I spent most of Tuesday hanging around the Yamaha shop in Alcoa. I didn't have much going on, and I was waiting to hear if the bike was totaled. We were all 99% sure, but I wanted to hear for sure before I left Knoxville and headed north without it. Word came back early afternoon, they had given up on the repair estimate once they passed the $16,000 mark; the bike was done. I setup my rental car online, and was ready to head north. The shop was extremely generous; they put up with me hanging around all day, they gave me a loaner bike to go get lunch, and they even gave me a ride to the airport to pickup my car. And even more, with my awkward luggage (everything had been in boxes on the motorcycle, and was now loose), they sold me a giant gear bag at cost. They had a brand new, identical, 2012 Super Tenere on the showroom floor as well. If it was in the cards financially, I would have left that day on the new bike, and finished my loop.
I got a decent deal on a rental car, which was then upgraded at no charge to a brand new Ford Escape Eco-Boost. Very nice car! My phone connected wirelessly for bluetooth calling, and it plugged into a USB port to charge and listen to Pandora the whole drive home. A large touch screen controlled the sound system, while a small (non-touch) screen displayed driving information. I averaged right around 25 mpg for the drive home, and enjoyed the alarmingly loud music and climate control the whole way. The engine was plenty powerful, and didn't noticeably shift too often, an issue that is all to common with cars today trying to squeeze out an extra MPG. Handling was tighter than expected for a taller vehicle, but not harsh at all. Braking was perfectly adequate. Interior space was fine and comfortable, the trunk was bigger than I expected, and the back seats fold flat for extra room. I'm not sure what I was thinking, but it seems I forgot to take a picture. I've attached a generic picture to show the car. Also, since they happen to give me a small SUV, I took advantage, and stopped by Lowes the next day for mulch. I felt a little bad, what with the all leather interior and the new car smell, but what the heck, it's a rental car right!
So that's that! I'm home, and 100% perfectly fine. The bike's still in Alcoa, TN, and totaled out. Now we just play the waiting game. On a positive note and all things considered, everything seems to be working out well. My insurance has already covered the winch-out service and tow, and they are working on covering my damaged riding gear, as well as my motel room and rental car. They've already gotten back to me as to the value of the bike, and it was very reasonable.
I will be replacing the bike within the coming month or two, in hopes of still being able to do a decent ride late this summer or into fall. The new 2013 Super Tenere comes in some great new colors, but is largely unchanged from the 2012 that I had. Prices are somewhat reasonable, although I would still be stuck financing a large portion of that, which I'd rather not do. KTM has announced a new 1190 Adventure, for release (in the USA) later this year. This bike is almost perfect, with two fatal flaws. Firstly, the chain drive; nobody likes chain maintenance, and it's competing in a class of exclusively Drive-Shaft driven bikes. And second, the price will be high; probably starting around $17,000, and easily $20,000 for the fancy electronic suspension model. That puts it out of the question for me right now. Used Tenere's are a bit difficult right now because used bike financing is less than ideal, and they're holding their value fairly well (because they were just released in the USA last year). So I'm currently looking at used, or new old-stock KTM 990 Adventures. This predecessor to the 1190 Adventure of next-model-year, is simple, raw, and determined. It is higher strung than the other two, and more capable both on road and off, albeit that comes at a cost. Maintenance is a bit higher, because not only does it utilize the dastardly chain drive, but also dirt bike sized tires requiring tubes. Creature comforts are also lessened; no fancy traction control or linked brakes here, although ABS is usually included. While they're not always easily found, these bikes can be had for great deals, and they really are fun, highly capable machines.
I will be replacing the bike within the coming month or two, in hopes of still being able to do a decent ride late this summer or into fall. The new 2013 Super Tenere comes in some great new colors, but is largely unchanged from the 2012 that I had. Prices are somewhat reasonable, although I would still be stuck financing a large portion of that, which I'd rather not do. KTM has announced a new 1190 Adventure, for release (in the USA) later this year. This bike is almost perfect, with two fatal flaws. Firstly, the chain drive; nobody likes chain maintenance, and it's competing in a class of exclusively Drive-Shaft driven bikes. And second, the price will be high; probably starting around $17,000, and easily $20,000 for the fancy electronic suspension model. That puts it out of the question for me right now. Used Tenere's are a bit difficult right now because used bike financing is less than ideal, and they're holding their value fairly well (because they were just released in the USA last year). So I'm currently looking at used, or new old-stock KTM 990 Adventures. This predecessor to the 1190 Adventure of next-model-year, is simple, raw, and determined. It is higher strung than the other two, and more capable both on road and off, albeit that comes at a cost. Maintenance is a bit higher, because not only does it utilize the dastardly chain drive, but also dirt bike sized tires requiring tubes. Creature comforts are also lessened; no fancy traction control or linked brakes here, although ABS is usually included. While they're not always easily found, these bikes can be had for great deals, and they really are fun, highly capable machines.
Thank you's (in order of occurrence, not necessarily importance):
The US129Photos photographer that happen to catch the action on camera, but then also came running to help however he could.
The retired couple that drove me to cell service.
My local All State insurance agent, who helped setup and work with roadside assistance, and was adamant about making sure everything went well.
The local fellow that drove me back to the motorcycle's location.
Floyd's Wrecker Service that got the bike pulled back up and towed to the dealership.
The other photographers and passer-by's that stayed for the winch-out to make sure all went well.
Huge thanks to Alcoa Good Times Yamaha Dealership (on Facebook too) for all their help! Highly recommended if anyone is interested in a fly-and-ride!
And most importantly, to all those who reached out to see if they could help. Seriously, there were so many folks that contacted me about getting a ride, or transporting the bike, or simply making sure I was alright. I can't thank you all enough!
The retired couple that drove me to cell service.
My local All State insurance agent, who helped setup and work with roadside assistance, and was adamant about making sure everything went well.
The local fellow that drove me back to the motorcycle's location.
Floyd's Wrecker Service that got the bike pulled back up and towed to the dealership.
The other photographers and passer-by's that stayed for the winch-out to make sure all went well.
Huge thanks to Alcoa Good Times Yamaha Dealership (on Facebook too) for all their help! Highly recommended if anyone is interested in a fly-and-ride!
And most importantly, to all those who reached out to see if they could help. Seriously, there were so many folks that contacted me about getting a ride, or transporting the bike, or simply making sure I was alright. I can't thank you all enough!
Photo Credits
The moving pictures used here are currently low resolution proofs that are copyrighted and owned by the photographers. I will be ordering the full resolution prints to post, but as of this time, they are not yet in my possession. Most photo's are by US129Photos.com, and can be found here. One photo above is from Killboy.com and can be found here. I use this website to inform my family and friends of my journeys. I in no way intend to make money off of or take credit for others' photographs.
