10-31-2014, 09:27 AM
buuuuut....theeeeeen...this can/did happen:... back in August... on a planned "overnighter"...with camping essentials lashed onto pillion seat...I was off on a two day "adventure"... looking forward to the camp night listening to the bard owls & nightingale calls while watching for meteor streaks across the heavens..
. when riding "memory-bank" trickled into my attention that there was a "squirrelly" slight shimmy of the rear wheel... yep... the dreaded low tire pressure wiggle that precludes serious wobble & probable lay-down... due to large carpenter nail picked up about ten miles before.
.. fortunately I was able to exit immediately at a turn-off...kickstand down & noted the rear tire(on ST1100) was just beginning to de-bead itself...(this describes the background for the next phase of episode)... peeling off my riding suit... knowing I will have to detach my massive web of bungee cord tie-downs to get into the camp bag for the tire plug kit & co2 little "bombs"...I look up to notice a quite well used, quite old bike with those loud pipes "saving lives" transporting a very sizeable fellow well into the 300 pound(weight) category who could easily been taken for someone who has lived in the deep woods in self-sufficiency for at least two decades... many zip ties & duck tape keeping the bike bits from falling off... my initial contact with this fellow was to politely thank him for stopping...& to inform him that I was sufficiently prepared to attend to my current flat tire plight... however... he insisted to pull out his cell phone & call in his son as additional assistance..bringing to my coordinates an amply filled air tank(of which I was grateful so I would not have to deal with multiple little co2 "bombs" for partially filling rear tire..
. now I will compress this incident... biker dude's son shows...I get two gummy worms into large carpenter nail hole... the son & I get tire bead reseated with air tank at about 100psi...and tire about 50psi for plug testing... plug leaking air some... but I cut off the worms with some extending beyond tread to get them to mash down & hopefully better seal... I offer up some reasonable cash from wallet for dude & son's providing me with welcomed air tank fill for tire... dude inquired in pretty direct fashion as to just how much $$$$ I might be carrying (on such a trip with a camping bag, etc)...biker dude waves off quickly another stopped pickup driver who is rather aggressively told "WE have this in control, REALLY in control!"... (insert a deeply aggressive chuckle or two from him here)... situational awareness/intuition takes over from my standpoint in this rapidly developing scene... as I decide it is time to make my exit from the roadside drama as quickly as possible without panic...I walk towards dude's son who is beside rear wheel well of his pickup to say, "Thank You for help"... when I notice he is crouched beside rear wheel in something like a "CROUCHING-TIGER" ninja move... staring up at me just like a cougar about to pounce...WTH??!!...I back away... speechless... and know that I am in deep into a scene of highway robbery, or worse... now...to quickly finish this roadside "help-session" ...the son tried to put a neck hammer-lock on me as I moved toward bike... son got confused just enough from his biker dude father's "commands" that I was able to make my get away as son was trying to find his opening to grab me as I feathered the friction zone to control the elevation of turnoff as I made my left hand u-turn to cross between son & dad dude still sitting on his rat bike... whew!...I made my getaway!...best I can surmise: they were intent on a complete "score" of my bike & wallet & camp stuff...& I do not want to speculate as to what they would have done with me!... so... in summary... some who stop to "help" are in fact those who we most want to avoid!... obviously,... since I am posting this after all...I made it back home... had to spend night in only motel in a town... limped back home next day with numerous checking rear tire leaks & re-fills at air pumps along way... thankful to have barely avoided a roadside heist (or worse)... be vigilant & listen to your intuitional voice... it just might save you & me in our future outings!
. when riding "memory-bank" trickled into my attention that there was a "squirrelly" slight shimmy of the rear wheel... yep... the dreaded low tire pressure wiggle that precludes serious wobble & probable lay-down... due to large carpenter nail picked up about ten miles before... fortunately I was able to exit immediately at a turn-off...kickstand down & noted the rear tire(on ST1100) was just beginning to de-bead itself...(this describes the background for the next phase of episode)... peeling off my riding suit... knowing I will have to detach my massive web of bungee cord tie-downs to get into the camp bag for the tire plug kit & co2 little "bombs"...I look up to notice a quite well used, quite old bike with those loud pipes "saving lives" transporting a very sizeable fellow well into the 300 pound(weight) category who could easily been taken for someone who has lived in the deep woods in self-sufficiency for at least two decades... many zip ties & duck tape keeping the bike bits from falling off... my initial contact with this fellow was to politely thank him for stopping...& to inform him that I was sufficiently prepared to attend to my current flat tire plight... however... he insisted to pull out his cell phone & call in his son as additional assistance..bringing to my coordinates an amply filled air tank(of which I was grateful so I would not have to deal with multiple little co2 "bombs" for partially filling rear tire... now I will compress this incident... biker dude's son shows...I get two gummy worms into large carpenter nail hole... the son & I get tire bead reseated with air tank at about 100psi...and tire about 50psi for plug testing... plug leaking air some... but I cut off the worms with some extending beyond tread to get them to mash down & hopefully better seal... I offer up some reasonable cash from wallet for dude & son's providing me with welcomed air tank fill for tire... dude inquired in pretty direct fashion as to just how much $$$$ I might be carrying (on such a trip with a camping bag, etc)...biker dude waves off quickly another stopped pickup driver who is rather aggressively told "WE have this in control, REALLY in control!"... (insert a deeply aggressive chuckle or two from him here)... situational awareness/intuition takes over from my standpoint in this rapidly developing scene... as I decide it is time to make my exit from the roadside drama as quickly as possible without panic...I walk towards dude's son who is beside rear wheel well of his pickup to say, "Thank You for help"... when I notice he is crouched beside rear wheel in something like a "CROUCHING-TIGER" ninja move... staring up at me just like a cougar about to pounce...WTH??!!...I back away... speechless... and know that I am in deep into a scene of highway robbery, or worse... now...to quickly finish this roadside "help-session" ...the son tried to put a neck hammer-lock on me as I moved toward bike... son got confused just enough from his biker dude father's "commands" that I was able to make my get away as son was trying to find his opening to grab me as I feathered the friction zone to control the elevation of turnoff as I made my left hand u-turn to cross between son & dad dude still sitting on his rat bike... whew!...I made my getaway!...best I can surmise: they were intent on a complete "score" of my bike & wallet & camp stuff...& I do not want to speculate as to what they would have done with me!... so... in summary... some who stop to "help" are in fact those who we most want to avoid!... obviously,... since I am posting this after all...I made it back home... had to spend night in only motel in a town... limped back home next day with numerous checking rear tire leaks & re-fills at air pumps along way... thankful to have barely avoided a roadside heist (or worse)... be vigilant & listen to your intuitional voice... it just might save you & me in our future outings!