Well, almost...

I was zinging to work this morning, on the expressway in the left lane...Firing off a reasonable for the area 80 mph...No biggie very normal start to the day.

Out of nowhere, I hear a loud bang and see a water bootlle bouncing away. "Did I hit a water Bottle? no way." I'm thinking.

Right after the bang, the back tire locks up and the bike is in a slide. Holy ****! :wow: The bike wants to fall over, and I sure figure its gonna.

In about a 100 foot slide I manage to get it to the left hazzard lane... YIKES!

Turns out, my lunchbox that I tie down the same way fell off and got stuck in the wheel. GREAT!!!!!

I did cut it all out there, and got back on the road abotu 20 minutes later, but in 18 years of riding, that was the most scared I have ever been.

I'd start brown bagging if I were you. Glad to hear you're OK.

I know, right! That styrofoam just jammed it perfectly. :) At least a bag would have exploded or something. :)

I bet you couldn't get that to happen again if you tried! :wow: Glad you managed to ride that out safely! Definitely time to brown bag.

Wow! I new there was a reason I don't eat lunch. Glad you made it through OK.

Yeah, It was weird for sure. It took me and my Leatherman abotu 20 minute to cut it all out of there. Rocking the wheel back and forth(Hand full of Chef Boyaredee!-Ugh!) That was after about 5-10 minutes of shaking. :)

Certainly doesn't sound like a fun ride to work!!
Had something somewhat similar happen on my dirtbike when a long strand of solid wire got caught in the wheel, chain and both sprockets.
Brought me to one sudden stop!! But on the trails, that's not as much of a "Pucker Factor" as when on the highway. Especially at that speed!!

Good job of being able to control it to a safe stop!! :beerchug:

Hey elemental, not only was your fiasco scary, but taking 20 minutes on the left side of the highway to fix things up must have been scary too.

Please tell us how you secure your lunchbox normally. I usually secure things with a bungie cord and a bungee net --- double up for security. I once lost my bible on the way to church because my single bungee cord somehow got undone. I had that bible for almost 20 years, and I had some really personal notes in it. I don't ever want to loose something again, let alone have it become a dangerous object.

Holy Sh!t!!! I would have just taken my shorts off and burned them right there on the side of the road.

that could have went wrong in so many other ways...
cool. how you kept your head, Ele
a lessor being would have went.... mental

;)

Sounds like a new practice exercise to be added to the safety courses. You can even name it the "Elemental 80 Food Disposal".

Thanks guys! I'm not sure how much skill as much luck, but I'll take the win either way. About twice I thought 'Crap! Here it goes.' It was thought to keep it straight, the back end just wanted to snap out on me. My biggest fear was I didn't know what was behind me. I was scrubbing speed fast, who knows if the guy behind me was on a phone or some other situational awareness sucker. :)

I too, used one bungee everyday wrapped around both turn signals and ending in the Luggage rack. Never had a problem before, never even loose. I figured if it fell of, it would just bounce down the road behind me. I never imagined it would get jammed in the wheel.

And, you are right. The side of the road was plenty scary. I picked up the back to get it closer to safety, stuck it on its center stand and started cutting on the left side because the right was just too close to traffic.


I'm not sure what the lesson is here, I guess in the future I will imagine whatever is on that rack CAN fall into the wheel and jam it.

For the record, I drove my Element to work today. :)

Been there, done that same slide my friend when my chain snapped and wrapped around my rear wheel. SCARY AS HELL!!! I feel your fear there my brother. To this day when I am cruising down the Hwy doing 70+ that same fear is still with me and that was 20yrs ago. I am glad you were on top of your game that morning.

Peace :beerchug:

that's just crazy! glad you came out of that ok! your right about what was behind you. that could have been a real mess!


maybe it's time to get some saddle bags or a back pack?

I too, used one bungee everyday wrapped around both turn signals and ending in the Luggage rack.

Might want to check that the signal stem didn't break, causing the bungee to come loose.

Usually, whenever I bungee anything down, I make sure it's well secured.... then add atleast one more bungee, just to be sure.
I also almost always use a net too, which secures in 6 places. That way, even if one comes off, there's still 5 more holding it.

Shoot, the Bungee was there there. UGH! Yep, that was a life lesson. Much better securing in is my future.

great, I use a smal cooler for a backrest!

Guess there's more than one definition of "brown bagging," eh? Glad you made it!

I'm thinking a back pack might be a good idea. I use one when I've got my bags full. Just remember to close the zipper! =)

glad to hear the only thing hurt was your lunch and lunch box... it's a lot easier to replace that than new skin.

Keep riding safe and good reflexes... I hope i am ready when my time comes...

I had one bike lock up at speed over twenty years ago. Managed an upright stop as you did. I threw the bike over in the grass and walked away.
Happy to hear you were able to make it to the stop and get it going. I was too angry and inexperienced mechanically to care.

Lucky it wasent the front tire, how was lunch? How about a saddlebag? Glad you came out good.

Glad you made it! I got the t-shirt last week myself and it's not fun... Good Save!