We had decided to ride to sandy bay Exmouth yesterday, to visit my wife Suzanne's dad and brother and their girlfriends who were on holiday there. I spend monday giving the bike a full check up before the trip, (about 200 miles in there and back) tire pressure, brakes, lube the chain etc, but still had the feeling something wasnt right. We kept a careful eye on the weather reports, and we were pretty sure that although very windy and overcast that it wouldnt rain untill 4pm and then only a maximum of 0.25-0.5mm. Monday night Suzanne mentioned that it might be an idea to consider going by car, but we both love seeing the scenery on a bike.
Tuesday morning we woke early and were on the road by 7. The weather was not bad and we were enjoying the ride. The stretch of the A35 from tolpuddle onwards we encountered fierce winds and we were blown about pretty well. We took a detour through lyme regis as we had decided go go along the coast road and through the lanes the rest of the way, we got to the coast road and there were workmen on the road and a closed barrier across. They had just started work and we pleaded our case and they allowed us through, however they warned us the first 20 feet were very sippery as they had put something on the road surface, I carefully rode through and I took it easy for the first mile to make sure my tires were good. We then had a very fun ride around the lanes of Devon in brightening weather,we even saw a bit of blue sky and sunshine. All was going well untill we got to the outskirts of Exmouth at around 9.00, where suddenly the bike lost power, I thought fuel starvation and switched to reserve, still nothing so I slowed and pulled onto the grass verge probably doing 15mph or so. Suddenly the engine stalled and before I could pull the clutch in the piston had come up against comprression the back wheel locked and we went down, In hindsite it was purely my mistake I should have pulled the clutch in before I got onto the grass, as I know even on a dry road the back wheel locks if it stalls. I got thrown forward and to the side and Suzanne went down with the bike on top of her. A few motorists stopped to help I unplugged her from the intercom and lifted the bike off of her then suddenly 4 ambulance paramedics were there, this was within a minute of the crash. We had crashed outside the ambulance station which was across the road. I was fine I strained my hip and had hurt my knee, Suzanne had hurt her arm badly. I carted all our gear across the road to their compound and also locked the bike up there. We phoned her dad and brother to let them know what had happened and we went to Exmouth cottage hospital. They had no radiographer untill 12.30, the ambulance men wanted to take Suzanne to Exeter but she said no she could manage till 12.30 so they put it in a sling, we then went to the holiday park and had a fried breakfast with the family. After breakfast we chatted, Suzanne mentoining that the previous night she thought that something was going to happen and thats why she had mentioned going by car. Arrived back at the hospital and they took the xray (we found out they only have an xray clinic there on a Tuesday afternoon) they strapped the arm up and said they couldnt do anything more and it would need looking at at our local hospital. We arranged for the R.A.C to collect us and our bike at 4.00 (the time we had planned to leave on the bike) they duely arrived and we set off, no sooner had we done so the heavens opened in an absoloute downpour which continued most of the way home. On the A35 near Bridport (the road we would have been coming back on) there was a huge crash in front of us, a car had spun off the road hit the armco and been catapulted back into the path of an artic which had smashed into it and also taken out a van, the car was a mangled wreck the van had the entire side of it peeled open and the fuel tank on the artic has split open. Police closed the road for 3 hours while the fire brigade cut the driver from the car. Our recovery guys helped out as they had equipment on board to soak up the diesel. We got out of the cab to have a cigarette, we heard everyone complaining about the road that had just been resurfaced, the entire stretch was almost as slippery as ice it was even tricky standing on it, most of the truckers locked their wheels brakeing as did our truck. We had a ring side seat for the whole thing and even have a photo of the car that was smashed up. The driver was miraculously not seriously hurt but was taken to hospital. We later carried on our journey only to run into fog so thick that we slowed to 20mph and could only see a few feet in front of us even with the powerful lorry lights. we eventually got home around 9.30.
So in conclusion we only had a small crash in the most convenient place possable.
The local hospltal had an xray department on that day
That saved us from travelling back on a road that there was a strong possability that we would have skidded on that road surface at a much higher speed with worse consequences at probably about the same time and same place as we would have been on the bike. (the recovery was averaging 45-50mph roughly what I would have been doing in that weather on the bike)
The bike has suffered only minor damage forks twisted in the yokes, a front right indicator broken and the headlight surround dented. I havent found out yet why the engine died but I shall have a look later today. My leathers have a hole on the knee where the front brake leaver has gone through them my knee has a bruise that is an exact shape as the leaver end and im limping well and Suzanne has a broken elbow but not a mark on her leathers.
