VERY annoying Word issue...!

unclepine · 18 Nov 2012

This story just gets stranger and stranger...! My introduction to racing started when my buddy Dave, already a local club racer on a 400 Suzuki, convinced me to take the MRA sponsored Rider's School to see what it was like rid/racing around a "Real" racetrack. Well, GUESS what I was on...a Virago 500...!!!!! Scraped the living S--t outa the pipes goin through corners, even at 60% race speed...and I was HOOKED...! It's all history from then on.

I rode A Yammy 600, GPZ 550, Suzuki Gamma 500, Kawski 600 Ninja, and a few laps on a Honda 750VFR. Never crashed at my local track, but made a BIG splash in BIR, when for WHATEVER reason(to this day we don't know WHY the bike let go), I slid out, crashed through the hat bales, slammed into the Armco, broke a couple foot bones, continued careneing down the road till the bike dug in, bounced UP in the air, slammed into the UNDERSIDE of the bridge, ripped off my helmet, and came to rest almost 75ft from where I initially hit the hay bales...!!

Woke up the next day with Dave, his wife, and Frank, another close racer mate, staring at me from the foot of a hospital bed..."What the hell happened...'???!!! were my first words. To this day, even after returning the next year to race, I have absolutely NO IDEA what or HOW that crash occured, nor any images of the aftermath...!

The one story that was related to me was of a "Newbie" corner worker who saw the whole thing and proceded to release hios lunch when my helmet was ripped off and I guess the chin strap tore into my chin and the red stuff started to flow...PROFUSELY...!! 11 stitches later, cast on foot. a few stitches to knee, and concussion from hit to back of head, I sent the helmet back to the manufacturer with a BIG THANK YOU for manking such a "robust" lid...!

Haven't ridden for years now, but a few years after parkin the crotch rockets, I raced Karts for a couple years. That was a blast, but had to hang that up as well. Too rough on the joints after all thos 2 wheeled "offs"...

Yer right tho, that Vrago had torque to spare. I rode it all the way to Road America for the SuperBike races, and haf way there I blew a cam...!!! Kept goin all the way to the track and BACK to Winnipeg. Round trip about 900 miles...bike was brand new...got to the dealer and told him it just went on the way home...cheeky bugger...they fixed it anyway...

...KEEP THE DIRTY SIDE DOWN MATE...!!!

Laurie

ICIT2LOL · 18 Nov 2012

Hiyya Laurie
Small world eh? yep never dropped that thing well only when parking it as you can see I ma not that big and 268kg dry with fuel oil bags etc must have been closer to 275kg. I had to so careful where I parked that baby anything approaching a steep camber at the roadside and there was no way I would park there.

The first time I dropped it was when my foot slipped on gravel and I went A over tit and tried to lift it up when I noticed a slip of a girl watching me struggle - she offered to help and well being a Sunday no one around I asked if she minded. Well she helped me up with the Big Girl and hardly broke a sweat - real embarrassing.
So any drops were when I was stationary I think I must hold a record or something!!

Like I aid I can't ride now cos of the steel shoulder joint which doesn't allow full movement and any length of time hanging on the bars would make it ache like hell.
Cause I did that prospecting - another hobby I used to do a lot of but well being not vigilant enough fell onto a pile of small rocks and made it into a jigsaw puzzle.

I almost bought my favourite bike once well what I think is the most stylish road bike ever made - 2004 Kawasaki ZZR 600 - it was metallic blue and I could reach the ground no problems - could with the Yammy but just wanted this one for fun.
Dealer aid to me what do you want that for? which I thought real odd to which I replied I liked the look and wanted some fun. He then grinned at me and said mate that's your 20 minute licence which I thought hilarious but true LOL!!
He was right of course I'd have had that thing up to a ton before I got out of town as I regularly cruised the Yammy at 140km even then she was only pulling 4.5 rpm. The only problem with that bike was the fuel tank size I had to make provision and lans to stop before 200km came up as that was the reserve warning level and given that meant only a about a couple of litres left in the tank at 55mpg it would not last too long.

But it was good like I said for cruising and if you ever get down under you need to go to Lightning Ridge - fabulous place a bit like a frontier town with the dirt roads on the edge of town named with different coloured old car doors. Truly a must see place.

Hmmmm memories

Take care mate and keep it upright and black side down

John