So this incident happened about a month or so ago. I was rushing to work as I was running late and all of a sudden it started to rain a little bit. The rain was just about right – not too much to wash away the oil and dirt which forms a slippery mix and not too little to have no impact. Just about right. Well I realized that the conditions were not safe to ride and I started to slow down to ensure that I didnt skid off the road. I think I must be riding at approx. 20 kmph when I saw the signal was red and there was some traffic lined up nicely. So I slowed down even more and that when it happened. The front tire completely gave away and I panicked and decided to brake – and the bike skidded. It hit the rear of the car (the bumper had a huge dent). All this happened in a matter of seconds. Immediately people started rushing to help me get up and pick up bike and check if i was ok. The owner of the car also got out to see if there was any damage and when he saw the dent, he wasn’t too happy. He started saying that I should have been driving slowly. That’s when fellow bikers who were behind me told him that he was already going very slowly and it was road and there wasn’t much he could have done. Hearing that the car owner calmed down a little bit and decided to go on his way. By that time I was up on my feet, and I pushed the bike to the side of the road. I checked to see if there was any more damage to the bike. The angle of the bike handle had changed and the mirrors had loosened. There were some scratches on the exhaust. Overall not much damage. The reason for so little damage was the leg guard on the bike. I shudder to think what would have happened if the bike didn’t have the leg guard.
I slowly turn the bike around and head home. One side of my jeans is completely messed up. Thank goodness, this incident didn’t happen when I was riding in my shorts or formal office wear. The injuries could have been severe. I reached home and narrate the incident to my parents. At this point, my dad says – how can a heavy bike like Bullet skid like this on the road? I told him well it does skid and the end results arent too good when that happens. I am now thinking of getting rear leg guard too – to prevent the bike from touching the ground. But come rains – this baby is going to remain in the garage until there have been a few heavy downpours and all the slick has been washed away from the roads.
My thoughts...My story 