Your scariest moment on a bike

[Anthony5]

Here is mine.

About 12 years ago my friend and me went to the Phuket bike week.

Me riding a Yamaha roadstar 1600, fully loaded

First time we went with our bikes through Bangkok and we had a hard time finding the Prapadaeng ferry. After hours wasting in the hot sun in Samut Prakan we finally asked a bike taxi to lead us there.

I since found out that there are 2 ferries, but the one he took us to had at least a kilometer dirt road leading to it, and a ramp to the ferry which I think has a 45° angle.

We arrived there just as the ferry was leaving, so my friend indicated me to follow him past the car queue right on the ferry.

We go down the ramp, which is of course full of the fine sand from the dirt road and rubber from the cars exiting the ferry, and my friend makes it onto the ferry but with his rear wheel still on the tail lift when the ferry starts moving.

I shout at him and blow the horn in panic, and luckily the ferry operator notice him and put the ferry in reverse, so he is able to make it on the boat, but it is so full there is no chance I can get on it as well.

I'm halfway the ramp.

So the ferry leaves with me standing half way a slippery high angle ramp with a +350kg bike in my hands. When the ferry has left I only get the real impact, since there is nothing but water below, and I'm cramping the brakes to hold the bike in position. At the age of 5 I almost drowned when I fell in a pond, and since have a scare for deep waters, so you can imagine how I felt.

Let me add that this was my first long trip in Thailand and I wore Nike slippers.

I'm sitting on that bike, while I see the ferry from the other side arriving fully loaded.I'm scared to get of the bike since I'm afraid to loose my grip or maybe my shoes slip on the ramp.

The only thing that went through my head at that time was that the bike goes down and slides in the river.

You can't believe how relieved I felt when 3 or 4 Thais ran down the ramp and pushed my bike to the top again. I never have been so thankful to anyone in my life as that moment.

Now 12 years later I still get the shivers when I think about that moment, and I recall it often.

[edwinchester]

Years ago I was going out with a nice girl. We were at the pub one evening and her twin brother was getting a bit loud so she asked me to take him home. It wasn't too far so I agreed and we were soon nearly at his place. About a mile to go I feel a hand on my thigh and creep around to my crotch. A swift back elbow and some cornering Marquez would have been proud of and I dropped him off in double quick time.

If only they'd been twin sisters.

Edited June 25, 2015 by edwinchester

[longstebe]

Every day on sukhimvhit.

[guzzi850m2]

I had some very close calls both here in Thailand and elsewhere.

I have realized that going more than 120-130 on the highways is extremely risky when there are small side sois branching the bigger roads and U-turns.

Small Thai scooters pop over the highways all the time but if you don't go too fast you have time to brake and avoid disaster, many small scooter riders calculate they can cross when they see a car coming at perhaps 100-120 but if you come at 200 km/h they don't see you coming and it too late and it can quickly end tragic for all involved.

I like going real fast sometimes (+160) but I very very careful decide when and where and as soon as I can see U-turns and side sois, I slow down again.

Speed is a killer.

[rodknock]

riding on the Hollywood freeway in CA. on my kawasaki 1500 vulcan at around 75-80 MPH and the front tire blows out!!!

[longstebe]

riding on the Hollywood freeway in CA. on my kawasaki 1500 vulcan at around 75-80 MPH and the front tire blows out!!!

Love them Vulcans, the 1500 is a beast.

[longstebe]

Anyone who rides around Bangkok must have had a few hairy moments. Drove the wife's scoopy i a few times from Ramkhamheang area (spelling) over to China town. You need balls of steel to being that regularly.

[Loptr]

I was riding a GSXR 750 on the Blue Ridge Parkway several years ago on a section of road I thought I knew well... Came up on a sweeper, so I did what one does on a sport bike, I laid it over on the centerline... Little did I know (remember) is that is was a decreasing radius turn... By the time I exited the turn and got the bike stood up, I was on the painted line on the edge of the road, looking over into a ravine with no bottom... Scared me so bad I took the bike home and parked it for a while...

[wow64]

Giving a girl I meet a lift home... Maybe a coffee.

She had her hands around me and one of them started to slip down to my crutch... Was thinking to myself this is getting interesting... Can't wait to get to her house.

Then I felt a hard dong pressed up against my back.

Hands down the scariest moment on a bike...

Sent from my c64

[ttakata]

I feel pretty safe riding in BKK for the past 5+ years because everything is slow.

In the US where things are fast I was scared when running out of braking area, or when a front tire slips leaned over.