wow thats slippery

[phil on a fazer]

Was driving to work this morn through a 30mph zone as i do nearly every day, crossed a small roundabout....the car in a instance turned side ways, then caught grip, then fish tailed, then was o.k 
 
Looked in my mirror to see a Yaris on the roundabout also slipping round like Bambi on ice. It felt like i was on a huge sheet of ice, the only time I've had a car move like that before is in snow.
 
Theres no way it was ice so must have been a diesel spill. Got to work and went straight to the high Ways dept and reported it.
 
If i had of been on my bike theres no way i would of stayed rubber side up. Just goes to show that riding a bike is a bit of a lottery.

[bigralphie]

I once saw a cooking oil spill on a roundabout in Holland (waste oil collected from burger joints) about 3 bikes and two cars came a cropper on it before me and some mates could stand in the road and warn people

[Ton13]

we have an island by me thats notorious for diesel spillages, because we have a lot of wagons and arctics around....
unfortunately we have a problem where its also the border between two councils so when it gets reported they argue for 2weeks about whos job it is to clean it!
 
i remember my first venture out at 16 on a little 50cc and watched my uncle on his Triumph Sprint just lose it, broke his collar bone and 3 ribs at 15mph (its a big island)

[phil on a fazer]

Its shook me up a little bit to be honest, i felt safe in my car but its more about what would of happened if i was on my bike.
 
I have a fear of crashing but I'm not scared of hurting my self. I'm scared of f**kin up my bike, I've spent so much time, money and effort on it that i couldn't bare to see it sliding down the road. 

[adeejaysdelight]

Seen a lorry shed its load on a roundabout down the road from my house last year. It happened to be carrying chickens, which looked hilarious, but when I went round said roundabout the next day, it was super slidy. Chicken fat everywhere.
 
P.s. the chickens looked tasty as, but the missus would not let me go get one 

[Bracechenko]

Its shook me up a little bit to be honest, i felt safe in my car but its more about what would of happened if i was on my bike.
 
I have a fear of crashing but I'm not scared of hurting my self. I'm scared of f**kin up my bike, I've spent so much time, money and effort on it that i couldn't bare to see it sliding down the road. 

In a weird way, that fear of spilling off your bike is more likely to make it happen due to tensing up, tip toeing too much and losing fluidity with your riding.

As you say, sometimes it is a lottery so all you can do is do everything in reason to ride safe and be safe and whatever happens happens.....ride 100% committed and you need to have a little faith.

Everything else is out of your hands i'm afraid 

[JKay]

Seen a lorry shed its load on a roundabout down the road from my house last year. It happened to be carrying chickens, which looked hilarious, but when I went round said roundabout the next day, it was super slidy. Chicken fat everywhere.
 
P.s. the chickens looked tasty as, but the missus would not let me go get one 

That's fowl 

[Silverdream]

That's fowl 


 

[pitternator]

Phil
That just sounds like black ice m8. I have ridden on it too...the bike just goes down without warning.Twice its happened to me in my life, and its very frightening , nothing you can do , the bike goes down even at upright.
In the 4x4 last winter I went to the bike show at NEC, and the roads around it ( ungritted) were similarly treacherous...like being on marbles. Even that car slid, and its great on snow.
Its not a skill thing either ! 

[bigralphie]

I like to have a little off every 3 to 4 years just to keep my hand in 

[phil on a fazer]

Phil
That just sounds like black ice m8.

thats exactly what it felt like...but it wasn't. It was about 11 degrees and had been for about 2 days. Plus some of the lads i work with drove that way about 3hrs before me (i was there at 9:30am) and it was fine.
 
What got me was how fast the car moved out...good job there wasnt a lorry coming the other way.
 
Might wrap my bike in bubble wrap 

[locksmith]

How fast a car can lose grip reminds me of a few years ago at Brands Hatch. I was having a go in the formula fords. Getting faster each lap then on my last lap I was thinking it was F1 qualifing! Pushed the pedal a bit too much coming out of the Druids hairpin and, just like a video game, as fast as fuck I was pointing the wrong way.  Got black flagged for it, good job it was me last lap

[pitternator]

At the end of the day its all about surface adhesion and grip...I have skidded on diesel too, at 70mph, and its unbelievable how fast you go down.I dont like to think about it too much, cos it could give you a complex and then never lean a bike over again !
I reckon I have ridden at least 100k miles on bikes now in my lifetime...probably nearer 200...yet I have had under 10 slide incidents as discussed...so it is still a very low incident rate.I also take comfort from knowing modern tyres do stick exceptionally well as opposed to the crap we had in the 70s... so well illustrated on my track day last sept, and hundreds of miles over cold wet soggy alps last summer....it really does give you confidence in our black hoops.
Reasons to be cheerful....

[Chillum]

Might wrap my bike in bubble wrap 

FFS, don't give the desk jockeys more ideas ! 

[Ton13]

I like to have a little off every 3 to 4 years just to keep my hand in