DANG! That Car Tire Nearly Did Us In For Sure!!!

[DDT (12)]

DANG! That Car Tire Nearly Did Us In For Sure!!!  

We still had only about 100 miles on that brand new car tire at the time, too, and... Man, that was mighty close! I don’t recall being that skeert since a deer ran into us a couple of years ago... Nope, it had nothing at all to do with the new car tire Jerry had just installed on our girl, but it definitely was a car tire... It was attached to the wheel that had at one time attached them both to the tandem trailer being pulled by an oncoming pick-up truck.  

There we were, tooling down that two-laned road minding our own business while I was completely focused on that new car tire of ours, trying hard to identify anything at all that seemed different from the M/C tires we’ve run for the past couple of decades... the entire time we’ve been together, in fact. Heck, M/C tires are all I’ve ever run on any bike throughout my entire million mile plus riding career!  

You’d think that as hard as I was pondering on it, I’d have found at least a couple of flaws, obvious differences, subtle variations in handling at a minimum, or possibly even a flaming death issue or two, but... Nope, I just couldn’t see any big deal. Then, what appeared to be a rolling tire pulling out to pass that approaching pick-up crossed the centerline and straightened up! Double dang! That thing was headed straight for us, too!  

It seemed to straighten right out after crossing the centerline and appeared to actually begin to overtake that truck (who probably had begun to slow)! I was shell-shocked and about as indecisive as our current VP... Which way will that thing veer, I asked myself in near panic, or will it continue in the direction it now appears to be headed? It was worse than trying to decide how to miss a squirrel with much more serious potential consequences, including possible death! I maintained course while reducing speed... hoping for some clue about how to react... and I’m certain I squealed like a little girl!  

I considered drifting towards the centerline myself, but that would be doubly risky... I then thought about having to leave the roadway to our right, but that didn’t exactly hold any appeal either. If we stayed in our lane, anything could happen, and in the split second all these risky options had been racing through my mind, that tire had closed the distance between us, and it was time to fish or cut bait... no time even for any Rosary or farewell prayers! We drifted a little to our right, as that tire whizzed by... so close that I instinctively raised my left foot up high off the Cobra floorboard!  

Is it possible riding on the dark side could indeed result in some kind of flaming death? Well, I suppose my experience might point to that in a roundabout sort of way. However, let me quickly add that our new car tire had absolutely nothing to do with this incident other than to be partially responsible for us just so happening to be at that place at that time. Pure coincidence, though, and not at all cause and effect. If it had played a role at all, it might have shortened our stopping distance had I grabbed the breaks really hard... but I hadn’t...  

My experience so far is nowhere near sufficient enough to have a defensible position formed on the virtues or failings of car tires on motorcycles. In fact, I’d be hard pressed to even quantify any difference at all one way or the other that I’ve personally noticed. I have, however, given all of this some thought, and I do have an idea starting to form in my thinker muscle. It seems to this novice experimenter, that the only perceptible real difference I can actually point to at this stage would be with riders themselves...  

If one is predisposed to like the idea of a car tire, then that person is also likely to find or believe them to be worthwhile to run. If one is predisposed to not like them, then that person is far more likely to see or imagine definite downsides. In other words, it is more of a self-fulfilling outcome than it is any obvious differing characteristics in the tires themselves.  

They are different, of course, and logic would incline us to acknowledge there must be some variations in handling. So far, at least, any variations have been so slight that this simple rider hasn’t been able to point specifically to any... I’ll keep y’all posted, as we continue on...  

DDT  

 

[flsix]

I'll bet that was a spooky couple of seconds. Glad it turned out the way it did.
Had a similar experience on the interstate with a loose tire from a semi. I was in a pickup however and not on the bike.

[Barbie]

I enjoy reading your tales, Bruce.  I hate to admit that sometimes I have to play "catch up" to read them, but eventually I get 'er done.

If you are in the La Crosse, WI area this weekend...the invite is still open for you to stop in at the Quad State Ride.

Prairie Inn and Suites in Holmen, WI.  Same place as last year.
608-781-4490

You got my number if we are not at the hotel when you arrive.
Travel safe DDT.
Barbie

[Jess from VA]

Reminds me of two stories.

Once at 16 riding along in our gas station truck at about 35 on divided two lane road, a front wheel fell off, dropped the hub to the ground and we screeched to a crooked halt.  As exciting as that was, I was also fascinated with our departed tire.  It got over in the passing lane, went straight and true down the road for a while, and then made a perfect left at a cross street and rolled off out of sight into a housing area (with a lot of screeching tires from other drivers).  The guy who had rotated the tires on the station truck the day before got fired for leaving them all finger tight.

Decades later, riding the Valk on I-66 west, I watched a queen mattress gently lift off the back of a truck up ahead of me.  Not exactly aerodynamic, the 60mph airflow nonetheless lifted it up above the traffic a few feet and then it began wobbling, staying airborne.  I did not want to make contact, and there was no safety in hitting the brakes hard in traffic, so I swerved hard left and so did the mattress.  I swerved hard right and it also came back right.  So I faked left again and it went for it as I stayed right.  By now cars were swerving all over the place, so I moved over into the break down lane and nailed it to leave them behind.

That mattress was demon possessed.  It took almost an hour before the whole incident became funny.

You just know that if you rammed a big mattress on a freeway at speed, karma would never allow you to actually fall onto a soft mattress.  You'd smack the pavement for sure.   

  

[RNFWP]

Man, what a close call... I'm glad your reaction (or just not letting the panic take charge) led to a complete miss. Sounds like even a minor run in would have been unpleasant. At least you were just plain skeert and not plumb skeert...

With the good outcome, it's funny to see how you tied the story together with your experimental car tire.

[Valkorado]

Whew!  

My foreign highway object was a mangled pile of bicycles in heavy traffic outside Salt Lake City.  I'd just purchased and temp licensed the Silver Bullet and was heading home, figuring out both the bike and the traffic while looking for a gas station.  It coulda been ugly, thankfully I discovered that for being ol' dinosaurs these bikes maneuver quite respectably!

Ya, the way some folks talk about car tires on bikes you'd think they' are square and chiseled outta stone.  As your discovering, they're round and composed of rubber!

Carry on vagabond rider, carry on!

[Willow]

Good experience, Bruce.

You had a good man who knew which tire to use.  People talk about "car tire" versus "motorcycle tire" as if that's what there is.  Truthfully there are a lot of different brands in the "car tire" category and they each behave in their own way.  You got one that is a little rounded on the edges and that was a good choice.  For others if they pick the correct tire they'll hardly notice a difference.  Pick the wrong tire and the differences are many. 

[MarkT]

Once I was riding Deerslayer west on Mississippi just west of I-225 in Aurora in heavy traffic when I had to slam on the brakes.  The utility van behind me did the same.  But the ladders not secured on top of his van broke loose and passed me on both sides.  Unbelievable.  I wasn't hit.  Bet he had to change his shorts worried about the potential lawsuit.  I thanked karma or whatever and carried on.

[The emperor has no clothes]

“I was shell-shocked and about as indecisive as our current VP...”  I like it, a pretty apt distinction.

The close calls always seem to stay with us. There’s a saying that goes something like “it’s better to be lucky than good”. I think that pretty much sums up my life.


“ no time even for any Rosary or farewell prayers! “  (you are a good writer !) 

[Bigwolf]

That headline sure skeert me!  You do have a knack for grabbing attention to your writing!

The actual event you recounted was every bit as scary as my first thought when reading the headline!  Those spinning wheels are extremely unpredictable when running solo!  Wow!  I am glad you survived that potentially deadly threat!

I am also very relieved to know that the incident had nothing to do with me!

That reminded me of a night I was standing in the pits by the 30 inch tall fence while watching cars sliding into turn 3.  People around me started moving and I looked back toward turn 2 just in time to see a wheel with the axel still in it headed right at me from 20 feet up in the air………..I moved away from that fence with enough haste to pass the other people! That tire and axel hit the fence precisely where I had been standing!

Good experience, Bruce.

People talk about "car tire" versus "motorcycle tire" as if that's what there is.  Truthfully there are a lot of different brands in the "car tire" category and they each behave in their own way.  You got one that is a little rounded on the edges and that was a good choice.  For others if they pick the correct tire they'll hardly notice a difference.  Pick the wrong tire and the differences are many. 

[/font][/color]

Well said Carl!

[DarkSideR]

EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT!

Million Mile Motorcyclist Who Installed A Car Tire On Bike States No Noticeable Difference, Has Near Death Experience Because Of A Car Tire!

  

I personally fear retread whereas it's always scattered about the roads. Having seen it violently come off a wheel a time or two has made me wonder if life will intersect death at the rate of delaminating rubber.

[cookiedough]

glad you made it unscathed, those darn car tires on cycles are dangerous..... LOL

My daughter was not lucky enough few years ago to avoid a blown out trailer tire on the interstate.  She heard a THUD and NEVER stopped when ran over partially the trailer tire coming at her.  She should have stopped since of course the truck pulling the trailer stopped and she went right on by them.  Was so upset when she in few hours came back to our house with a ripped out left side lower side body panel came right off and inner left front tire plastic fender well was torn up badly and undercarriage plastic cowling ripped up also.  That incident cost me several hours of my own labor and trying to find a lower body panel at a few junk yards cheap since car was only worth 4K.    If she woulda stopped and talked to the truck/trailer owners on the interstate, their insurance woulda paid for it.

[..]

I'm riding a 2 lane road downhill to a bridge over a stream.

A pickup coming downhill the other way has a recliner chair sitting in its bed.

A gust of wind or a bump raising it up slightly and the chair is airborne.

A lazy 360 and it lands on the road in its lane about 30 yards ahead of me and slides to a graceful stop still in its lane.  

[Serk]

Ya' really gotta be careful with those non-motorcycle-specific tires! Neve know when they flaming death thing will kick in!

[Ice]

Bruce,

Screamed like a little girl??? YOU, Never.
All kidding aside, I am glad that you didnt get hit by the tire.
Very similar thing happened to us many years ago and I know how scary that is. The decision, stay, swerve, accelerate, crap your pants, or scream like a little girl and just hope it misses you....none of them good and all you can do is hope for the best.
Keep on keeping on my friend.
Stay safe.

[Jess from VA]

Maybe my worst one ever.

I am running up I-95 North in NoVA, in hard rain, and heavy traffic about 60/65mph.

I am following a big semi in the slow lane, not too close, but this is safer than the wild folks zipping in and out in the faster lanes.  Visibility is not good.

Suddenly, a huge tangled pile of those meal strapping bands used to tie down loads on semi's and flatbeds appears  in front of me (the semi just drove over it).  It is almost as wide as the lane, and up to 12-18 inches high.  I have maybe 2 seconds to decide what to do.  I cannot swerve to the center lane full of cars.  There is no breakdown lane, just a guardrail.  I take a deep breath, raise both legs and ride right over the middle of it (straight better than crooked).

It does not catch anything on the bike (to start dragging all or part of it with me), and does not slice a tire.  I lived.  It could have been so much worse.  

Whoever didn't tie that big pile of metal strapping down should have been horse whipped (for a few hours).  

[..]

Maybe my worst one ever.

I am running up I-95 North in NoVA, in hard rain, and heavy traffic about 60/65mph.

I am following a big semi in the slow lane, not too close, but this is safer than the wild folks zipping in and out in the faster lanes.  Visibility is not good.

Suddenly, a huge tangled pile of those meal strapping bands used to tie down loads on semi's and flatbeds appears  in front of me (the semi just drove over it).  It is almost as wide as the lane, and up to 12-18 inches high.  I have maybe 2 seconds to decide what to do.  I cannot swerve to the center lane full of cars.  There is no breakdown lane, just a guardrail.  I take a deep breath, raise both legs and ride right over the middle of it (straight better than crooked).

It does not catch anything on the bike (to start dragging all or part of it with me), and does not slice a tire.  I lived.  It could have been so much worse.  

Whoever didn't tie that big pile of metal strapping down should have be horse whipped (for a few hours).  

 

[hubcapsc]

I have maybe 2 seconds to decide what to do.

I remember a motocross race where a guy fell in front of me and I
had to decide whether to run over his head or his mid-section...

-Mike

[The emperor has no clothes]

I have maybe 2 seconds to decide what to do.

I remember a motocross race where a guy fell in front of me and I
had to decide whether to run over his head or his mid-section...

-Mike

And……?

[Beardo]

Thank God for your cat like reflexes Bruce. 

[..]

Your brother from another mother?

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10217230854442152&set=gm.1027584127902178

[Rams]

I've had a similar oncoming tire experience, got lucky I guess, I didn't see it coming until it was passing me.   I've also had one pass me going the same direction once and, I've also been the guy that lost a trailer tire and wheel while traveling to Billings for InZane.    Have no idea where that tire and wheel came off, I was sleeping and my co-driver was driving.     What I do know is, the bearing went and overheated the axle spindle.    So, we traveled on three tires/wheels until we stopped for fuel and a restroom break about midnight (I think).   

My standard for checking tires and wheel bearing for heat are at every stop, doesn't matter why we stopped, check the tires and feel for bearing heat.    We had done that every stop.   Regardless, I asked my co-driver to check my side since I really needed that restroom break.   I got about 50 feet away when he called me back and said, Houston, we have a problem.

Yep, been there done that.    No idea where that tire and wheel went to.   Thankfully, we never heard of a tire/wheel/spindle and brake that crashed through any old lady's window or door.   It could have been worse.

Rams

[H*GLEG]

Self-moving season is upon us, watch out for the Clampett loads ahead.

[DIGGER]

Geeeeez.....glad you made all the right decisions......sounds like it coulda been much worse.  Glad you are ok!!!

[Binkie]

My sister in the 70’s had a car load of girls going down the expressway in my brothers new Datsun B210. A semi so where in front of them lost his spare tire that usually was located in a carrier under the trailer. This huge tire and wheel comes bouncing down the road at highway speeds, bounces onto the hood of the car, goes over the roof and hits the trunk lid. They all survived without injuries but the B210 was totaled. The semi never knew anything happened.

[old2soon]

      Sittin here readin yer narrative AND You dang near had me leavin skid marks in my dr dentons!  All those years in a big truck crisscrossin AMERICA I've seen THINGS!  Furniture boats on trailer clothing dead animals etc etc and YUP unattached wheel tire assemblies. O dark thirty on Any highway in AMERICA may bring drama comedy and other sterner consequences. I lost off of a semi an entire wheel tire assembly just North of L V Nv and the wheel was painted Bright Orange. Wife and I looked for over an hour and NEVER did find it! HAPPY other than an elevated B P Reading yer sorta okey dokey!  Even Fun Travel is Not without trials and tribulations!  Keep on keepin on there Bruce!  RIDE SAFE.