Walk of shame

To IndieSol: I went out for a ride about 6 weeks ago with the family, my brothers GS425, fathers GS750EZ, and my big body 850. A couple of miles in the trip the bike started running like complete ish. I pulled over and told them to go on and that I was going to turn around and take it home before it got any worse. I was Angry! Just so happened that my carb2 float bowl was stuck, and since the bike doesn't have a center stand (PO removed it) its always parked on its side, so every once in a while i'll fire it up and know its stuck and just tap it with a screw driver and she's back to life.


Anyways, just wanted to say that i've had a coil go out on a GS too, and also limped it home. Not sure how other bikes are, but i'm very impressed with how well the zooks will run/help you out to get home in a situation like that.
 
How about the wait of shame! When my battery fried in the CB360 I sat on the side of the road waiting for my pops in his truck. It seemed like every person passing was staring right at me. Luckily that's my only story to tell!
 
I thought it was called test and tune?.....I'll admit it, during a "test and tune" session a few back, my front sprocket nut decided to let loose.. the 2 mile push back in the 90deg heat in the sun sucked hard...but guess thats part of it. On the bright side of things, my hardware was nicely tucked inside the sprocket cover looking up at me when I tore it back down. So remember...loctite ftw
 
Haha wow, didn't realize I'd get so many responses.

Well here's mine, happened about 2-3 weeks ago: Bike died around mid-May because of what turned out to be an exposed wire that burned out the main fuse, though because the fuse looked fine I didn't know. In the time I fixed a lot of the wiring, wrapped it up better, I swapped the bars for tomaselli clip ons, got mini gauges, and took off a few other things.

Finally get the bike ready and so I take it out for a little spin around the block. Okay.... forgot mirror, put that on, adjust the clip ons a bit more, then go for test run #2, this time on the highway. Go down one exit, turn around and as I'm going on the on-ramp and back up - POP! What's that? Why's my left foot so slippery all of a sudden? Uh oh... let me just ride home.

I get to a red light and what do I see? White smoke and coolant GUSHING out of my rad (CX500D). Luckily I was only 300 metres away (300 yard or whatever), and pushed the bike while coating the sidewalk with green goodness.



There have been a few other times where I take off and I forget to turn on the fuel, but the bike is actually quite reliable engine wise. Need to keep extra fuses with though.
 
My cl350 died on me 2 miles from home from the petcock being clogged with rust, I remembered a road that was downhill in the direction of my house. So i was cruising along down this hill and I thought "maybe if i pop the clutch it'll turn over fast enough" sure enough put it in 3rd gear let out the clutch it was coughing, running on 1 cylinder and would only run choked, But I still got her home :]
 
Did it once on my GSXR750 back in the mid-90's. I was about 1/2 mile from my house when everything went dead. I parked it on what little shoulder there was and started walking. A red Camaro passed and slowed. I got up to the car and expected the driver to be a fellow gear head to have taken pity on me. Nope. It was a smokin' hot blond chick. She was a kindergarten teacher at a school just down the road and Budwiser Girl. OMFG Went out twice. Nothing like that has ever happened to me ever or since... 8)
 
Literally just happened to me about an hour ago. I knew it was going to happen - I was a block away from my house in a parking-lot doing some carb tuning...I think I ran out of gas. Only kinda embarrassing.
 
biker_reject said:
Did it once on my GSXR750 back in the mid-90's. I was about 1/2 mile from my house when everything went dead. I parked it on what little shoulder there was and started walking. A red Camaro passed and slowed. I got up to the car and expected the driver to be a fellow gear head to have taken pity on me. Nope. It was a smokin' hot blond chick. She was a kindergarten teacher at a school just down the road and Budwiser Girl. OMFG Went out twice. Nothing like that has ever happened to me ever or since... 8)
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Dear Penthouse Forums... lol :D

Shakedown runs at the house while building the DS7...
Leaving:
0410091338.jpg

Returning:
0410091351.jpg


Most recently, she "ran out of fuel" about a mile from the house. I knew it was low, and when she started to sputter I flipped it to reserve. Still died. Walked it home, pulled it apart, and discovered that the reserve tube was clogged. I now have a working tripmeter so I can better keep track of my fuel range ;)
 
Man Red, I'm trying to avoid the dry tank with my Suzuki.......the petcock is the vacuum type but I don't have the vacuum line hooked up. So I run the bike in prime and have been keeping an eye on my trip meter.
 
they all kinda blend together :mad: battery killen hondas lol i been jumped but almost every one at my work
 
Here is the back story. I am a chevy guy, my Dad is a ford nut. There is always a lot of ribing going on between us and our cagers. So last summer when I left the house specificaly to go gas up the GS, what happens? I run out of gas, a quarter of a mile away from the gas station!!! And of course no cell phone. After pushing the bike 50 yards or so guess who pulls up beside me, sure enough my Dad. He gets out of his truck with a big shit eating grin and says. "Hell son, I didnt know Chevrolet was making motorcycles now!"
 
Big Rich said:
Man Red, I'm trying to avoid the dry tank with my Suzuki.......the petcock is the vacuum type but I don't have the vacuum line hooked up. So I run the bike in prime and have been keeping an eye on my trip meter.
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I hate the stupid vacuum setup all my yamaha's have it >:[
 
Someone must be looking out for me. Got on my 850 this morning (4:00Am) to head to work. Got as far as the end of the driveway when the clutch cable broke! Pushed it back into the gargae and took the wife's car. Got half way to work and it started to pour down rain (even though weather channel radar an hour earlier showed nothing!) So the breakdown at home saved me a possible walk of shame in the rain! Hard to get mad when my bad luck is so good.

Matt
 
I have tried to keep my shake downs close enough to the house that IF I have a problems I can push her home. Now I am at the point that I need to start making long runs. I am sure that in the very near future I will be here.
 
well i read this thread thinking I might be lucky... well my luck ran out yesterday... Im riding to a place about 40km's from my house so im 2 mins from my destination, and go to pull the clutch in, SNAP. Oh yay didn't see that coming... so i push it out of the intersection. Start going through my tool roll in my head, can I get myself outa this one, nope. Next who could i call for a emergency retrieval.... none....

Ok its mostly rural highways between here and home could it be done..... so i wait for a good hole in traffic, start it up in neutral, duck walk it as fast as i can, pop it into first.... so far so good, gently upshift through the gears, made it the first 35kms no problems with only one stop. Now i gotta make it though 5km or so of suburbia to make it home, now comes the embarasing part, traffic was too busy to risk screwing around at intersections doing the duck walk, so what do i do, start crossing at the lights pushing it like a bicycle... got some WTF looks wearing a helmet and leathers, then when there was a sufficient "hole" in traffic do the duck walk first gear pop. What a day....

Long story I made it home in one piece. all is well just a bruised ego, the moral of the story, keep a spare clutch cable on the bike,
 
Same story here.

A couple of years ago I was back home in Australia on a business trip with a client and we had a free day so we rented a couple bikes and rode down the coast. Next morning we leave and as I change up I feel the clutch lever go pop and I know there's a problem. Pull off and stop and of course, that model of Kawasaki has the clutch lever coming out the bottom of the trans to keep it looking clean - but without a cable it drops down and leaks oil all over the rear tyre.

Rode back using a similar technique to my son's lace and made some calls. The only bike shop open that could repair the cable or make a new one was 50 clicks further down the road. So off we go again. Changing up is easy, down takes more care and I try not to stop at stop signs or traffic lights - lots of good anticipation and guess work on timing. I got lucky for most of them but other required the kill switch ignition cut out to get speed down. and if I timed it right I'd be in 2nd gear when the light changed and I could flick the switch back to run and sort of kangaroo hop for the next few yards as it took off again.

That small bike shop in the middle of a small Australian town made a new cable from scratch and we were back on the road in less than 30 minutes. Fantastic service. We had lunch in a small cafe and headed down towards the coast through windy hilly roads and then my riding partner realizes he left his wallet in the cafe, so it's time to turn around and ride vigorously to get back before they closed. No traffic, dry roads, nice bikes and by the time we took them back that night the tyres were looking the worse for wear.

Last summer I rode the RZ 5 miles to a hardware store and sure as fate the nipple pulled of that clutch cable too. No country roads this time, so had to ask the G/F to go ride home and bring back the truck and trailer. That was embarrassing sitting around the parking lot with a busted bike. It wasn't even a Harley.....
 
So far, three times this year, all thankfully near the top of a hill near the house. The first time was a dead battery, the second time was a fouled plug and I didn't have any on me (a problem that I won't have again), and the third time was a dead battery again. Just a little walking, then a nice coast down a hill and a short push through the woods; aside from the heat, sweat, and shame, it wasn't so bad.
 
We have all been there. My bike broke down on me once and i was several miles from home.The last stretch of road that i lived on was a freaking gigantic hill. i was running my ass off ,wanting to pass out ;D
 
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