“The Pitch, the Hit, the Splash!”
It was the kind of day only Seattle can produce on a consistent basis; chilly, noticeable dampness in the air, and fully over-cast. It was Thursday morning, November 17, 2005, when I was on my way to conduct an on-site interview at TouraTech, located on 34th Ave., on the SE side of Seattle, for an article, which I was writing for WominX.net
At 10:15 AM I gathered items for the interview, along with other personal effects, and making sure all riding gear was properly in place, bike prepped and fueled, I headed over on my ‘05 Suzuki DRz400SM motorcycle around 10:25 AM for an estimated 30 minute ride.
I recently moved from Bremerton, WA, and am now a resident of Redmond, just a smidgeon east of Seattle.
Local area commuters know the route all too well from Redmond to downtown Seattle - going directly over WA-520, floating bridge. So, to get there, I did just that… made a B-line, heading due West over one of Seattle’s famous floating bridge.
The usual heavy morning traffic had disbursed and the commute would be quick, easy, and uneventful. No momentary hesitation, nor any direct thought, or concern prior to the following event which would unfold just minutes ahead of me. It pretty much looked to be a casual ride over. At least I had thought that when I began crossing over the floating bridge.
As I approached my exit onto Lake Washington Blvd., toward the Washington Arboretum, making my way to TouraTech, I encountered an unexpected delay, a delay which would result in a midmorning splash into Lake Washington. This was caused by multiple elements. Overlapped and coinciding together, all in the same instance, which took a turn where I would experience first hand how a DRz throws a hard pitch!
There are a few factors to consider as you approach and prepare to merge onto Lake Washington Boulevard’s exiting off-ramp, to effectively execute a steady slow down on the approach to the stop sign. This exit ascends upward, with a few various twists and embedded grooves along the curbs edge. The exit is a half mile in length, with a shoulder about five feet wide from the fog line to the curb/barrier, and an exiting speed of about 35 miles per hour. A gentle turn takes one 90 degrees towards the left (south) before you stop at the stop sign.
Approaching this exit, I decreased my speed with the compression of the motorcycles engine, knowing I had to be within the approximate exiting speed. I began slowing about 100 yards before the off-ramps entrance to where my traveling speed was approximately 35 to 40 miles per hour, and continued manually slowing up the exit.
I simultaneously began applying small amounts of pressure to the front and rear breaks. As I passed over the connection joints, I hear the engines pace steadily winding down. I felt the road surface change from smooth to rough. Now I could feel the road go thump, thump, thump underneath the tires. It had changed the handling of the DRz performance as if from a Waltz to a Sock Hop all in just one motion.
Looking ahead, I followed through with my vision in the direction I intended to go.
Almost immediately I got the impression I was going in the wrong forward line. At first, I did not realize I was being ineffective in going toward the line of sight I intended. My posture and bike position were right. Yet, as I leaned to take the turn for the direction I was supposed to be heading, the DRz was more poised in a sideways slide, and at an angle I didn’t like!
The DRz acted like it had a mind of its own! As if, it wanted to lie down to take a nap. I immediately noticed other unusual occurrences going on. I felt the backend start to vibrate, like the beginning of a tank-slapper, but the rear continued to slide further out from underneath the bike. Additionally, the bike was just not slowing down.
Now dreadfully apparent, this was not going to be a typical type slow down!
My mind immediately began thinking of corrections I needed to make! As quickly, calmly, and efficiently as I could think, I started going over all of the required steps for a safe correction. First, I gently brought the bike back up and attempted a slight variation in steering. Second, I tried holding and carrying the bikes momentum… I was trying to continue down the first line of sight of my turn. Thirdly, I was not panicking as I steadily reapplied direct braking pressure to bring the bike to a controllable speed in order to maintain and follow through with the natural curve of the off ramp.
“Crap”… this is not working!” But I knew it needed correcting… and quickly!
Suddenly, the bike leaned at a left angle! With me poised upright… The bike was not responding… I could see down the whole side of the bike, and its distance between it and the curb narrowing. Running through my mind was, “I’m getting too close!”, while in the same instance I felt an uncanny feeling as if I had gone through this once before.
With no hesitation, or panic, I thought, “I’ve got to correct this sideways slide!” as I again released and reapplied the breaks. I was trying to maintain… self-control… staying calm, and… thinking of ways to keep from running up and onto the curb!
Now the DRz was acting as if it had mind of its own. I could see it heading for the concrete barrier, and I had the thought that it was going to try to toss me in between it and the concrete wall. Possibly pin me in!
Yet still… in the back of my mind, I knew it wouldn’t take place.
The curb, about a foot high and two feet deep, was a continuous concrete structure, and atop it sat the side barrier about two feet tall. Affixed to the top of the barrier was a rounded tubular metal guardrail. Lampposts were spread apart at about sixty feet intervals.
Uncomfortably aware of the curb right along side the DRz and me, I tried… once again seeing the bike turning successfully through the corner.
“Crap… no change!” I tried everything I knew. But still, the bike wasn’t recovering!
There was no veering away! With little else to do, I looked up, and prepared for the collision. Seemingly directly in front of a lamppost, the DRz struck the barrier. Having been at the highest point of the upper deck off-ramp, I literally pitched up… over… and mingled with the guardrail wall, as I was heading head first into Lake Washington directly below.
Stay tuned for part two… “The Splash!”
All rights reserved, written by Re. A. Reid ~ ©2/06
Topic: Falls 3 stories from off ramp into Lake/WA (Read 3928 times)