“Did you see that gravel? How about the grass clippings? What about the roadkill that was floating around in oily water? It’s like someone ordered the tarmac surf and turf.” These were just the first of many excuses from downed motorcyclist, Jamie Goob, after he rode his motorcycle straight into a ditch.
“How can we be sure that the ditch didn’t hit me?,” Jamie said. “I couldn’t tell since the warm, summer sun was in my face and my tinted visor fogged up after a bee flew through my chin vent and into my mouth.”
GoPro footage of the incident revealed that Jamie was going an alarming 3 mph over the speed limit when a gentle left turn not-so-suddenly appeared. Instead of looking into the turn, the footage shows Jamie’s head locked onto the one and only hazard in the immediate area – an error commonly known as ‘target fixation.’ “I think it’s silly to suggest someone of my experience level would succumb to target fixation,” Jamie said. “If I didn’t have months of experience, how could I possibly be riding above the speed limit? Not just anyone can move their wrist that far back on the throttle.”
Fortunately, Jamie is ok, but his Ninja 636 wasn’t so lucky.
“I’m most angry that my ‘Panty Dropper’ and ‘Kawasexy’ stickers were scuffed,” Jamie said. “If only I had thicker tires – like those found on a liter bike – I would’ve made that turn. So I think it’s time for me to upgrade. While I’m at it, it’s clearly time to swap to Dunlop Q4s because the Q3 Plus tires are clearly not as capable as I am.”