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            Danger on the CBR1100XX Black Bird  
 
 
          
           
 
    Well, I almost lost my life on a Honda CBR 1100 XX Black Bird. I know, your first comments before I even finish saying what I am starting to say is, "Don't speed!". I know you're thinking this right now, because I have told friends three or four times that I wasn't speeding. I suppose you probably wouldn't believe me, either.

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, perfect for enjoying the world we live in. The date was August 12, 2001, and it was 3:48 P.M., riding up the access road between the city of Morgan, UT, and Immigration Canyon, or SR66 (666 on the accident report form - so it was rather humorous). The roads were clear, no rocks, loose gravel, or other debris. The sky was blue (no rain, no standing water, snow, ice, etc.). In other words, the road was perfect. The weather was perfect. So, just to be polite, you ask "What happened?"

Well, this occured on a mountain road. In looking ahead, I could easily tell which curves were "S" curves, and which were standard curves. I was 5 Mph under the speed limit of 40 Mph, when I encountered a turn that had every detail of a regular curve. It turned out to be an "S" curve, and I had taken too much arc in the primary turn. Finding myself perpendicular to the lines on the road, I had no choice but to launch the motorcycle over the edge of a cliff.

I am very glad that I was wearing a helmet and a kevlar jacket. These items saved my life. Three motorcycle accidents occured that day, within 6 miles of each other, and I was the only one to walk away from it. Still, riding the worlds fastest, stock motorcycle was an activity to enjoy. And yet, I feel the need to post to people how dangerous those machines can be. To illustrate, I am including photographs of the vehicle, taken after at a local junkyard (yes, the bike was totalled.)

Now, I suppose it is time to illustrate a few of the finer points concerning the accident. In the top right photograph, you can see the dash board. On most bullet-styled motorcycles, the dash board (and the tinted windscreen, of course) are attached to the motorcycle using some metal bars. This sub-frame had enough pressure to force it to the right side of the motorcycle. You can't even see the other major guage on the right side, because it is covered and hidden by the hand brake lever and hydraulic container. Notice the left turn signal. These usually buckle under pressure, and can pop back, so that one shouldn't be too shocking. But, the core frame for the turn signal had snapped. The dash board plastic, which did not take the impact, had broken plastic over each of the guages (even the small ones such as fuel and temp, to the left). Gives someone a new lease on life when examining the relics of the incident.

Now, let's look at the photograph to your left. Notice the shattered nose cone. The motorcycle landed on the left side, which you can obviously see. The right side almost looked perfect. The skins on the bike were ripped off by the impact, the exact place where my left knee was supposed to be sitting. Looking at the dent in the fuel tank, you can get a good impression (sorry for the silly pun in the middle of a gripping story) of what the impact did. The fuel tanks are extremely sturdy, because they have to survive the accident. This is where the full impact was located. It doesn't look too bad until you look at the other photograph below, and notice that the entire FRAME was bent around that impact point at the fuel tank.

If you don't understand what I mean, look at the lean of the front forks (the front wheel), and the rear of the motorcycle. Looking carefully reveals that there is a very bad twist in the frame itself. This is what pushed damage over the "totalled" level. From the heavy twist in the frame, and having skin attachment points literally sheared off of the frame, to the snapped plastic and dented fuel tank, and even the punctured crank case or the now-religious-because-it-is-holy radiator right in front of the engine, I am just glad to have walked away from the accident. Anyone who doesn't wear a helmet and a jacket deserve what they get because they don't have the brains to protect. Sorry, but it's true. Always were the proper protective clothing.

Still, the days of spring and summer find me wanting to climb back on, and check out the demons that still haunt me from the accident. All because I refuse to stay down. All because I relish the freedoms of pushing my life close to the edge. All because I love a good adrenaline rush. There's nothing like it, and there's nothing like being alive to enjoy it one more day.