Lessons From a Quick Motorcycle Trip Home

Sometimes a quick trip home from the office can lead you down a road you’d rather not travel. This at least was my experience riding my favorite motorcycle home from work weeks ago.

Riding motorcycles year-round may seem insane or may sound routine depending on your perspective. For the past ten years, I have commuted on a motorcycle. In addition to being a lot of fun, I have found riding to be a very cost effective means of transportation. In addition to getting the benefit of access to the quicker moving HOV or car pool lanes, parking is far less expensive. Putting on waterproof gear when it rains can be a pain, but I’ve always found that the fun and savings more than makes up for the hassle.   You must be far more careful riding in winter conditions, but this is something that I routinely do anytime of the year.

With the foregoing in mind, I set out to ride from our Issaquah, WA office to our home in Sammamish. I’ve taken this route countless times and am intimately familiar with the roads and traffic patterns. Unfortunately, familiarity can lead to complacency and it certainly did in my case. The weather was clear and dry although at 38 degrees, it was certainly cold.  Riding at night, I didn’t notice a very fine layer of black ice had formed and while riding through a curve, my front wheel catastrophically lost traction.   I found myself on the ground watching and listening to the sickening sound of my favorite bike, a GSXR1000, sliding into a curb. Fortunately, my injuries consisted of a few scrapes and a back that was sore for a week. My GSXR, unfortunately sustained frame damage when it struck the curb and was a total loss.

Being familiar with prosecuting and defending property damages claims, I was able to quickly negotiate a favorable settlement which paid for not only my motorcycle, but also my gear and helmet. It has now been two weeks since my crash – the first in ten years – and I’m now sporting new gear and have a new ride – a BMW S1000RR. If like me, you find yourself in the dreaded position of having to file an accident claim and need representation, or if you just have some simple questions, we’re here to help. We’ve “been there and done that” and are here to help you.