I fucking crashed the ZX6R :(

[Stu_666]

Fuck me, what a day that was .

Although the weather was pretty shite down here today I decided to take the bike out for a quick blast. As there's some nice roads around Blandford I decided to head over that direction and up to Shaftesbury.

For those not familiar with the area, there's a section called zig zag
hill about 4 miles outside of Shaftesbury. As I've heard its a pretty
nice bit of road I thought I'd give it a try. Before you reach the hill you rise up right above the countryside and there's some fucking amazing views. Would definately recommend it if you're ever in the area. There's also good visibility on the road so you can see far ahead of you.

Before I approached zig zag hill itself there was a car in front of me
which I had ample space to overtake. About a good 300 metres after the overtake I turned into the first bend on the hill which was a fairly sharp right hander. Then the shit happened. I don't know whether it was because the road was slippery after the rain, or that there was a smooth bit of tarmac in the middle of the road where it had been repaired, but I braked and just could'nt make the corner.
All i can remember, as I was shitting my pants at the time, was that I was probably braking too late as underestimated the sharpness of the corner. The bike seemed to just be ploughing straight forward (can't even remember if it was skidding) and I was heading straight for a fucking tree.
Somehow though I managed to drop the bike onto its side into the earth at the side of the road and just hit a wee bit of the clump of the tree sticking out from the side.
Next thing I know I'm lying only about a metre from the bike on its
side and can see steam coming up from it.

Fortunately my balls are still in the proper place and the damage to the bike isn't as bad as I thought it would be. Funny thing is right after it I wasn't thinking 'shit that was fucking close' but looking at the bike on its side and how fucking much it was gonna cost.

In hindsight I was probably approaching the corner far too fast and didn't get my speed sorted before going into the corner. I also didn't pay enough attention to the shitty weather conditions and have enough respect for a unfamiliar bit of road.

As for damage to the bike, theres a cracked cover on the bottom left (I think this is the clutch cover or dry sump cover?) and also damage to the fairing. The Kawasaki place I use is repairing it all for £400. Although i might be able to get it cheaper, I'd prefer them
as they do a good job their and can trust them more.

Big thanks though (not that their likely reading this) to the woman who stopped to see if I was ok and gave me a drink and also to the fella who stopped and helped me to get the bike upside. Also to the chap on the R6 who stopped to ask if i was ok. Also when I had pushed my bike to the bottom of the hill it was nice all the bikes that went pass to slow down and give me the thumbs
up to see if I needed help. Reminds me that not all people are complete tossers.

Although i would highly recommend breakdown cover, the people I phoned (got them through my insurance) were a fucking pain in the arse as they took ages to confirm that i had cover with them (still not sure if they did locate my details) and also the recovery truck took a fucking age to come out, which was fair enough I suppose as it was in the middle of nowhere. Was good on the way
back as he was pointing out on the road all the hedges where bikes had overcooked it going into a bend and gone straight through them Also he was showing me his photo album of car crashes he had been to

[paulthewitt]

[tony532]

at least you walked away from it.

and you know what to do next time.

have a few beers.. that solves everything
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bikes owned :-

aprilia rs125 - suzuki gsxr400rrsp 1990 - yamaha yzf600r thundercat - honda hornet 6

[Cannon]

You always look at the bike matey. Just be glad you walked away from it.
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Staffs Riders Forum

[Whosthedaddy]

Unlucky on the spill, it does seem easy to get carried away when riding, try and learn from it
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Current : MSX 125 Past : CBR 900RR Monkeybike : c50 LAC : ZXR750 H2 : FZR600 : ZX7R P3 : YW100 : TRX850: Trophy 900 T309 : GSXR 600 L0: Monkeybike : XJ6S Whosthedaddy

[Responsible Biker]

[Andy C]

yea, just think your lucky and not about how much it will cost. Bikes can be replaced, you cant
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99 RS125 --> 02 SV650s --> 03 Speed Four --> 92 RXS100 --> 93 CB400sf --> 01 CB600f Hornet

[Rob-B]

Glad your ok, nice to see others helping.

[tiger777]

[Aikman666]

Sounds like you dealt with the situation really well, some people might have tried to save the bike resulting in more damage to themselves. £400 is acctually really good for the damage you've done aswell. Hope your not too sore!
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My Design Blog

[cestrian]

Glad your OK. I applaud your honesty in posting this account.

[kawakid]

Glad your okay. Hope it acts as some advice for all of us.
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I've a twin and a 4.

[Stu_666]

Cheers for the nice replies chaps

I reckon as well I'll try and use the bike on a more day to day basis rather than have it stuck in the garage until every weekend. Really do need to get more experience on it as it can be such a lairy motherfucker at times

[Rookie]

[the grim reaper]

Zig-Zag hill is always either shiny and slippery or covered in bloody gravel from the water run-off. I've ridden it a few times and I wouldn't bother again.

Glad to hear the damage isn't too bad though.

Cheers

Grim
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Adverts don't always work: Remember that advert, where the army are running across the desert and they have a wounded man on a stretcher. They get to a ravine, the bridge is down and a caption pops up that says, 'What are you thinking?'. I don't know about you but I was thinking, 'Christ, I'm glad I'm not in the f***ing army'.