I
feel it is smart to bring this article back to the forefront with our riding
season about to hit full speed. This article was featured in the February
issue of Wing World and makes a very strong point about communication during
group riding.
I
Survived My Own "Tale Of The Dragon"
by
John E. Barron, GWRRA #109643, Coldwater, MS
On
a recent trip to North Carolina to ride the blue Ridge Parkway with Dickie &
Kay Avant from GWRRA MS-Y of Hernando, Mississippi, I encountered an incident
that I never want to repeat.
We
were approximately 48 miles north of Asheville on the Blue Ridge Parkway when we
decides it was time to turn back and return to Asheville. We found a road
called NC 226A that looks twisty and we thought it might be fun to ride.
We started south and down from a town called Little Switzerland. Dickie
& Kay were in front on their GL1500 and I was on the GL1800 following
them. We had gone approximately three-quarters of the way down when, as
Dickie was going around a sharp 120-degree left turn, he met an 18-wheeler
approaching in his lane. Dickie said it was approaching one-and-a-half
feet into his lane when he saw the truck. The only thing he had time to do
was quickly move to the right, key his CB and yell, "TRUCK, TRUCK!"
Not
seeing the truck yet, I quickly moved right to the edge of the road. There
was a 30-35 foot drop to a creek below the right shoulder. When I got to
the edge of the road, I had to lean left again, so I wouldn't go over into the
creek. As I did, the 18 -wheeler's left front tire hit my mirror and bent
it.
The
truck's headlight missed my head and helmet by about six inches and its mirror
tore off my CH antenna. Our best guess was that the truck was over halfway
into our lane as he went around the corner to the right.
The
trucker kept going and we never saw him again. The only thing I could say
on the CB to Dickie was. "That guy broke my mirror!"
"Say
WHAT?" was the response I heard from Dickie.
"That
guy broke my mirror!"
A
few hundred feet down the road, we stopped at a clear spot and my hands were
shaking so badly I could hardly hold the handlebars.
I
have heard stories of the "Tail of the Dragon," in which many bikes
have met 18-wheelers and have gone down. This was one of the reasons I
didn't feel I wanted to attempt the "Dragon.
Now
I know what it is like to have survived my own "Dragon." At the
start and at the bottom of NC 226A is a sign that states, Trucks use alternate
route. Obviously, from my encounter, I can attest these signs don't mean
much.
Other
than this incident, the trip was great and I hope to go back and see more of the
great State of north Carolina on my bike.
The
moral of this story is: If Dickie had not called out on his CB, more that likely
I would not be here today. Remember this next time you are jabbering on
the CB when someone is trying to give directions or is calling our road hazards.
 
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