[ST] Ride report - north Georgia

["David Pullen" <dpullen@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

This past weekend, I went for a ride around the ever lovely (and buggy)
mountains of north Georgia.  My trip started off through Gainesville, then
Hwy 136 west to GA 400 north, going through Dahlonega.  Nice roads, not much
traffic, great weather.  From there, I took Hwy 60 west, then peeled off
north on Hwy 129 toward Blairsville (or Blaaaarsveil, as the locals
pronounce it).  Continue for a bit to a stop sign, then head left on Hwy 129
again to Vogel State Park.

This is where it got interesting.

Starting off up toward Vogel, it's a 2 lane road, and I was stuck behind a
good bit of traffic.  Eventually, the road gets steeper and windier, and
splits to 2 lanes.  A bunch of the cagers ahead of me pulled out and passed
the slower traffic, merging back to the right as soon as possible.  I was
slowly making my way past them all, until only a smallish SUV and some sort
of white sedan/land yacht behind it were ahead in the right lane.

Coming up to a sweeping left hander, I was leaning over, drifting in to the
inside of the turn while looking through to the exit, generally enjoying the
smooth power and handling of the ST, when something flashed in the corner of
my eye to the right.  Against my better judgment, I glanced right to see
what it was, and did a double-take, my eyes as big as saucers...it was the
white car...IN MY LANE...his tires whizzing less than a foot from mine!  It
was noon, and this car was casting a shadow over me!!!  The only reason he
hadn't collided with me at this point is because I was leaned over pretty
far.

In a fit of disbelief, I counter-steered further, scraping the toe of my
left boot the whole way.  Fortunately, we were at the apex of the turn, and
I could see through the exit - no cars coming ahead.  I pushed her over the
yellow lines, straightened up, throttle open, and got the f*** out of there.

Apparently, he had decided to pass the SUV by cutting the corner into my
lane, and didn't bother to look and see if anyone (car or otherwise) was
there.  As I sped off ahead, I raised my left hand in a one-fingered salute,
letting him know what I thought of his driving skills.

Fortunately, no damage or injury (aside from slightly soiled drawers).  A
couple of valuable lessons learned - always be aware of everything around
you, even when you're cornering and tend to focus on the exit; and never
commit 100% in any corner on an open road, because you never know when you
will need another 5-10% to escape some lunatic cager.

Keep it safe out there, shiny side up,
  - Dave



     *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *
      The ST/RS Mailing list is sponsored by Jack Lilley Ltd.
          http://www.TriumphNet.com/st/lilley for more info
   http://www.TriumphNet.com/st for ST, RS and Mailing List info

=-=-=-= Next Message =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=