Unexpected bump in the road

[Patman916]

Just wondering, has anyone ever went over an unexpected bump in the road that caught you by surprise? Today I went down 160 between the Royal Oaks exit & the Arden Way exit (Sacramento) and there's this friggin bump in the right lane...right after the Royal Oaks entering ramp that caught me by suprise and almost threw my azz of the bike! I was going about 65mph. You can't see it until you're almost on it. Close call.

[WIRE]

Ouch. Good to know about that one; I go out that way once in a while. There used to be a pretty bad one on n/b I-5 JSO Meadowview, up on the elevated part that crosses Freeport Blvd by the water tower. First time I hit that I was goin' 75 on my old V-Star and it bounced me about a foot off the seat.

[FishWitch]

If you find such a bump call the City and or CalTrans and report it.

I have definitely hit more than my share unexpectedly and felt like I was on a bucking bronco! Definitely not fun.

[M.Brane]

I had a couple scary tank-slappers on my old ZX600 due to mid-turn bumps. Just gotta stay loose, and ride 'em out. The bike knows what to do so don't fight it. The worst thing to do is death-grip the bars, and go stiff. That transfers the oscillations from the bars directly into your body, and the rest of the bike. Not good.

[Dirty Girl]

There are two, one in the right lane in either direction, on 29 between American Canyon and Napa. The first time I caught one I nearly had to change my pants. Now I know where they are and avoid them, but sometimes when I can't I know to go loose now. If they have to put bumps there, why not shape them so they're fun? Like the long, rolling ones that make your tummy flutter.

[Darth Lefty]

I had a few hard knocks on my cross country trip, the interstates were all torn up from end to end and the transitions from one bit of pavement to the next could be exciting.

A nasty sinkhole developed on Folsom-Auburn road between Aerojet and 50 this summer and it was a pretty exciting jump until they fixed it. There's still litter on the road from trucks tossing their loads.

[Skywalker]

i just came back home on the 101 heading south to downtown and out of nowhere came out a huge bump.. Sportbike riding position + bump = well... let's just say i'm still hurting :S. The only drawback in being a man :P.

[ducmonster]

Originally Posted by Skywalker

Sportbike riding position + bump = well... let's just say i'm still hurting :S. The only drawback in being a man :P.

True dat Karim! In the last couple of months I've hit bump sand some major potholes ("Sportbike riding position + bump or pothole = well... let's just say i'm still hurting") which left me with not only a bent rim but it was tweaked. Tweaked good enough that the front brakes would shudder from the rim being out of true.

I just got it back yesterday and put the bike back together last night. $100 to iron out the rim was well worth it, as a new one probably would have set me back $600 or so from what I hear.

When you hit a big bump or pothole get home and check your rim. It may not be safe to ride on.

[Thumbuster]

I've hit a few bumps at speed, a bad dip on the old 99 ridge route, and most recently, a baseball sized rock while leaned over at about 40 mph up by Lake Tahoe. It took a chip out of my front wheel.

All were a little unnerving.

[advrider]

I hit a large piece of firewood on Hwy 26 east about 6 miles before it joins 88...It was in a shaded corner and I had just slowed down because you couldn't see the road well...Then "WHAM", I thought my handlebars were going to hit my face bar of my Arai...With almost 9" of travel if I was one a shorter suspended bike that would of smarted...