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RE: [ST] Texas Raid Ralley-The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly



Well I survived the Bandera ride and I guess I fall into a high risk
category - so what are my thoughts?

41 years old.
Last rode in 1988 - about 15 years ago.
A new Sprint ST - way more powerful than any other bike I've ever owned.
40,000 miles on bikes in the 70's and 80's - but what is that worth now?

I felt a little hesitant about the ride when we left Saturday morning
as I feared the adrenaline rush and the roads were unfamiliar to me.
The light mist and drizzle did not help my confidence...

We came on the Bonneville wreck right after it happened and I began
to feel the creeps set in.

We continued down 337 and I was trying to follow some faster riders
through some real twisties with decreasing radius turns, guardrails,
oncoming traffic etc. I was way out of my comfort zone and I could
almost feel myself getting into a nasty wreck.

We then came up on the 3 bike wreck with the EMT's doing the CPR etc.
My confidence was shot and I was very jittery - I backtracked and
stopped
at a gas station to gather myself.

I met up with Ralf St. Clair and we discussed abandoning the ride and
going
back to Bandera. After some thought we decided to continue and Ralf told
me to take the point, mellow out and stay in my comfort zone.

That was 'excellent' advice. We continued up 336 and I really chilled.
The weather cleared, my confidence came back and we had a relatively
speedy and enjoyable ride the rest of the day!

Moral of my story:

If you're in a group and you get out of your comfort zone - back off.
Make it your own ride - don't make it your last ride.

The corollary: 
If your out on one of these rides and your one of the more experienced
riders - look for someone that may need some guidance or words of
wisdom.

Ride safe out there!
Kevin McDonald
Austin TX
01 Sprint ST
70 Bonneville

p.s. the heated grips worked great!


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