Wow, met up with some other bikers today, and unfortunatly it wasn't under the best of circumstances. I had reached my turnaround point for the day (a nice overlook), and right as I was putting some gear back on, I heard motorcycles coming up the road. I finished putting on my gear, and headed out of the overlook area as 3 sporty bikes flew by. I kept up somewhat with them, but was unconfortable at their speeds, so I ended up falling behind. A few curves after they disappeared completly, I made a right curve, and had to be really careful, as my bike hit a patch of nasty dirt. After I recovered, I realised I has caught up to the group, as 2 were on the side of the road, and the 3rd guy had parked.
I stopped to offer any assitance, and managed to see what happened. The first guy in the group hit the same patch of dirt I did, lowsided the bike across the road and into a small ditch, then proceeded to slide a ways down the road. The second guy also hit the dirt, tried to stop, saw his friend crashing, and ended up going up and over the gas tank when the bike hit the soft deep dirt on the side of the road. By that time, a truck coming the other way pulled off to make sure they were ok, and the 3rd guy had arrived on the scene.
Damage to the first bike was the complete destruction of the plastics on the tight hand side, along with damage to the insturmant panal. We had to straighten it out so that the steering worked propery. Once we pulled his bike out of the ditch, we also discovered damage to the radiator, as he was leaking coolant.
The second bike came out much better, with only scratches to the plastics on the left side, and nothing broken.
Both riders? They came out with no physical injuries, beyond a sore spot or two. The first guys jacket has a few gashes into the leather, and his visor on the helmet is scraped up on the left side, from the slide down the asphalt. The second guy had no damage to his leathers, and only a few scratches on the helmet.
I rode with all 3 back down into the city, and they seemed fine. To me, it definitly proved the need for all the protection I wear when I head out. Had either one skimped out on a part of the protection, they wouldn't have ridden home on theor bikes.
Both were looking forward to the hot tub tonight