Riding in the rain 101 (and people who can't park)

[Gibbo]

On account of there being a reasonable weather forecast for today, I decided to bike into work (grey cloud forecast for CA20 and light rain for LA20). And, I thought, after spending £25 on a new pair of waterproof trousers I should at least be dry. However.....I hadn't planned for the BBC totally c*cking up the forecast, completely missing the monsoon we've ended up with.

Suffice to say the ride home (~26 miles) was pretty eventful. I have never seen so much water on the roads; more, even, than the November floods of last year. The standing water was so deep that my boots filled with water! I was even flagged down by a helpful lorry driver who warned me to watch out for standing water round a blind corner ( :thumbup: ) with the classic statement "I wouldn't go round there on that" - it did sod all for my nerves, but was appreciated anyway.

Anyway, the crap weather also caused someone to have a little mishap with my bike. Yep, someone decided to reverse into it in the works car park, knocking it off its stand. Now, this bit might be a little off-topic and should probably go into the maintenance / technical bit but....seen as the bike has been on its side, does anyone have any pointers about what potentially hidden damage I should look for?!

She's a 2005 FZ6N with crash bobbins (thank God). The steering lock was on when it was knocked over, and there's a bit a movement in the steering when the lock is on; how much movement there is compared to before it was knocked over I don't know (one of those things I've never paid attention to ). The clutch lever now has a very fashionable 90-degree bend in it. It seems to ride ok, but then it's difficult to really tell cause the ride home was so slow.

Should I be thinking about booking her into the garage for a quick health check?

And there's no way I'm going out in that lot to take some photos !

Cheers!

Oh, one last thing - can anyone recommend any decent, reasonably priced clutch / brake levers?!?!?

 

[lytehouse]

Sorry I can't really answer any of the technial questions you raised, but I did want to say...
That sucks that someone knocked your bike over!
I hope the wanker that did so gets what is coming to him. Nothing good.....
Good Luck.

 

[alanrim]

Try Metcheck.com - UK Weather Forecasts - Live Data - Long Range Weather Forecasts seems to generally be more accurate than bbc.

If you have the drivers details I would be looking to get an official dealer to check it over and give you a quote for a repair. Talk to the driver and see if they want to pay or go through insurance.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

On account of there being a reasonable weather forecast for today, I decided to bike into work (grey cloud forecast for CA20 and light rain for LA20). And, I thought, after spending £25 on a new pair of waterproof trousers I should at least be dry. However.....I hadn't planned for the BBC totally c*cking up the forecast, completely missing the monsoon we've ended up with.

Suffice to say the ride home (~26 miles) was pretty eventful. I have never seen so much water on the roads; more, even, than the November floods of last year. The standing water was so deep that my boots filled with water! I was even flagged down by a helpful lorry driver who warned me to watch out for standing water round a blind corner ( :thumbup: ) with the classic statement "I wouldn't go round there on that" - it did sod all for my nerves, but was appreciated anyway.

Anyway, the crap weather also caused someone to have a little mishap with my bike. Yep, someone decided to reverse into it in the works car park, knocking it off its stand. Now, this bit might be a little off-topic and should probably go into the maintenance / technical bit but....seen as the bike has been on its side, does anyone have any pointers about what potentially hidden damage I should look for?!

She's a 2005 FZ6N with crash bobbins (thank God). The steering lock was on when it was knocked over, and there's a bit a movement in the steering when the lock is on; how much movement there is compared to before it was knocked over I don't know (one of those things I've never paid attention to ). The clutch lever now has a very fashionable 90-degree bend in it. It seems to ride ok, but then it's difficult to really tell cause the ride home was so slow.

Should I be thinking about booking her into the garage for a quick health check?

And there's no way I'm going out in that lot to take some photos !

Cheers!

Oh, one last thing - can anyone recommend any decent, reasonably priced clutch / brake levers?!?!?

On my 07, with the steering locked, the end of the bar weights move back and forth approx 1 & 1/8" (just over 25mms).

As for the checking the bike, the main part to get damaged(if damaged) is the main stay that supports the front end nose/plastic. If you put the bike on the center stand and sit on it, just look straight ahead and you'll see if the nose is crooked/bent. If it looks straight, you should be alright. Same with the handle bars/grips. With your bobbins, you'll probably be ok unless it tipped beyond them.

Scratches on the outer mirror will indicate that.

As for levers, I like the look/warranty of the ASV levers:

ASV Inventions :: Unbreakable Levers

They have a lifetime warranty (including tip overs). Trying to straighten the stock clutch lever tip is almost always unsuccesful as the tip will break off. You can always try, then when the tip busts off, just file the end clean and round it off..

Good luck and ride safe....