Group Ride

Yesterday I went on a group ride with 5 other people I know from work and the pnwriders.com message board. All of us were on sportsbikes.

The plan was to ride Spiral Highway, then Rattlesnake and back.

Spiral was fun. Although I tell myself I won't let others in a group push me beyond my comfort riding level, if I was completely honest I'd admit that I also wanted the others in the group to be impressed by me. I think I may have pushed it a little bit because of this, but not by much. This, to me, is one of the dangers of riding in a group and one of the reasons I prefer to ride alone. I took off first from the top of spiral, partly in hopes of being able to get to a good corner to take some pictures. It only took a few seconds for three of the other riders to pass me. I didn't even see the first one come up behind me. I took most of the curves at 50mph after that, so it was pretty easy going.

The Asotin grade was fun as well. I scraped a peg in one of the final corners, but was still one of the slower riders.

Rattlesnake is where things got interesting. I fell behind on the flat highway before Anatone; my ex500 just couldn't keep up with the others, except for one other which was also an ex500. We met up at the campground near Rattleskale, and I elected to take up the rear (I thought I'd probably be stopping for pictures and didn't want to slow anyone down). After approximately three miles, the bikes in front of me suddenly slowed down. Around the corner I saw that one of the bikes had gone down. It was wedged wheel first into the guard rail, If I hadn't been thinking about making sure everyone was OK, I would have thought to get some pictures. Except for being quite shaken up by the experience and some minor scratches, the rider was fine.

It appears that he may have fixated or took the corner too fast and rode into the rail. All he remembers is flying ahead of his bike. The bike took a pretty bad beating. It's forks were broke, front upper and lower fairing cracked, gas tank punctured, and most things that stick out like blinkers and pedals were snapped off. Past the guard rail was a 200 foot drop – everyone commented that it was a good thing the rail was there.

As we were waiting for a pickup, some guys in the group commented on how many wrecks they had seen and been in. One guy has either seen or been in a wreck on eveery group ride this summer. This is the one that passed me first on Spiral. I've been riding for about two years now, and this is the first wreck I have seen.

I can't help but wonder, if they see and experience so many accidents, why ride so aggressively? Maybe a sense of self-preservation is something that comes with age, or with having a family. I know of some people who would quit riding after seeing one wreck. I certainly cannot give up riding yet, but I have kept my speed in check since seeing the accident yesterday.

I have also been thinking a lot about riding alone versus with a group. I have always been a loaner. At times I wish I could be more social; it's dificult for me to initiate communications, and I often feel akward around others. When it comes to riding, I do enjoy rides with small groups, and have been in one large one that was pretty fun, but I enjoy myself much more when riding alone. I like the freedom of selecting a speed I comfortable with, having my choice of when to stop for whatever reason, and many times what path to take or explore without a specific destination. There is one thing I would change – I'd like Teri to be with me more often on my lonesome rides. I think riding with her would have all the benefits of riding solo, but with the pleasure of sharing the experience with her.