Ducati Sporting Club UK > General > Idle Chat > I had a moment ...

[Glyn]

i still practice my emergancie stops
when i set of for work in the morning i'll do a bit of heavy braking just to see how much grip there is
when i first started trying this i was amazed at how heavily you can apply the brakes on a wet greasy road
but this only works in a straight line
when it's icy aim to ride as if i had no brakes, and in reality in icy conditions you havn't
and on a high torqe bike cutting the gas on a slippy bit of road is often enough to lock the back wheel
but however carefull you are there is still the unexpected and you must have a safty zone large enough to deal with these eventualitys

[Vince Jones]

Hi Ruth

Talking of moments, I took my beloved Ducati 999 out on Christmas Eve. Taking extra care because the roads were damp and cold, I took the first bend on a roundabout and before I knew it, I had a front wheel slide. No brake, no excessive lean, no excessive acceleration. All I remember is sliding along the ground (thought I was never going to stop) and watching my bike sliding along the ground in an array of sparks and parts flying into the air. Boy, these bikes with fairings don’t want to stop. I remember maintaining eye contact with the bike as I slid behind it thinking ‘please don’t hit anything’. Unbelievably, my concern was with the bike. And of course, there's that dreadful moment when you stand the bike up (with the help of a passer by) to reveal the damage. I can only conclude that the cause was due to a number of things. A wet and cold road and dare I say, whilst trying to lessen the feelings of guilt for having damaged such a lovely looking machine, the possibility of diesel. Not to mention a negative camber on the roundabout. Anyway, I managed to get away with a bruised foot and sore shoulder so counting my blessings. My bike, on the other hand, apart from having the entire left side damaged, needs a new frame and swing arm so will probably be a write-off pending a crash repair assessment. C’est la vie.

[bambam]

Originally Posted by Vince Jones

Hi Ruth

Talking of moments, I took my beloved Ducati 999 out on Christmas Eve. ... My bike, on the other hand, apart from having the entire left side damaged, needs a new frame and swing arm so will probably be a write-off pending a crash repair assessment. C’est la vie.

Damn, that's awful. Bad luck mate.

It shows how this sort of thing can happen at any time, irrespective of your level of caution and attention. Rotten luck.