Tail of the Dragon Caution
05-22-2018, 09:02 PM
#21
Race Director
I wanted to follow up to yesterday’s post. Many of you have posted regarding some of the dangers of the Dragon.
Yesterday I was enjoying the curves at fun but reasonable speeds. A guy in a Ford Taurus was determined to stay close on my rear. At one point my juvenile side just about decided to really push it around a sharp turn coming (there are signs that give you an idea of how tight the curve is on some curves) to see if the guy could hang.
My more cautious side stayed in control.
Immediately around the curve a large duelly (sp) truck was stalled and taking up most of the road in front of me.
Had I been pushing it there would have been a real mess.
So, just remember that you never know what may be around that corner.
Yesterday I was enjoying the curves at fun but reasonable speeds. A guy in a Ford Taurus was determined to stay close on my rear. At one point my juvenile side just about decided to really push it around a sharp turn coming (there are signs that give you an idea of how tight the curve is on some curves) to see if the guy could hang.
My more cautious side stayed in control.
Immediately around the curve a large duelly (sp) truck was stalled and taking up most of the road in front of me.
Had I been pushing it there would have been a real mess.
So, just remember that you never know what may be around that corner.
05-24-2018, 11:25 AM
#22
Instructor
I drove the dragon last year. Whole lotta fun, but not enough to endanger yourself or others on the road. Be reasonable all the time, one moment of stupidity sticks with you for a lifetime.
05-24-2018, 06:59 PM
#23
Le Mans Master
Not on the Dragon road but we were south a bit where the road follows the river, I thought maybe I should do a little spirited driving but then came to my senses, sure enough around one of the corners right in the middle of the road was a group of "donkeys", would've been a mess for sure Had to blow my horn to get them to move too, they're tame from folks feeding them
NSF
Had to blow my horn to get them to move too, they're tame from folks feeding themNSF
Clif
05-24-2018, 08:57 PM
#24
Drifting
05-25-2018, 01:10 PM
#25
Le Mans Master
I wanted to follow up to yesterday’s post. Many of you have posted regarding some of the dangers of the Dragon.
Yesterday I was enjoying the curves at fun but reasonable speeds. A guy in a Ford Taurus was determined to stay close on my rear. At one point my juvenile side just about decided to really push it around a sharp turn coming (there are signs that give you an idea of how tight the curve is on some curves) to see if the guy could hang.
My more cautious side stayed in control.
Immediately around the curve a large duelly (sp) truck was stalled and taking up most of the road in front of me.
Had I been pushing it there would have been a real mess.
So, just remember that you never know what may be around that corner.
Yesterday I was enjoying the curves at fun but reasonable speeds. A guy in a Ford Taurus was determined to stay close on my rear. At one point my juvenile side just about decided to really push it around a sharp turn coming (there are signs that give you an idea of how tight the curve is on some curves) to see if the guy could hang.
My more cautious side stayed in control.
Immediately around the curve a large duelly (sp) truck was stalled and taking up most of the road in front of me.
Had I been pushing it there would have been a real mess.
So, just remember that you never know what may be around that corner.
06-24-2018, 11:20 PM
#28
06-24-2018, 11:22 PM
#29
Not his fault. Completely the biker's fault.
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AutoCutter (06-25-2018)
06-25-2018, 06:43 AM
#31
Drifting
Hate to say it but it has happened to me on the bike, you get into a blind curve a little too fast, you have 2 choices, lean the bike lower (in this case to the right), more speed and hope it doesn't go out from under you or slow up and up you go and over into the other lane. Thankfully no one was coming in the opposite direction when I went high and drifted into the other lane, this video could have been me. I learned a lesson that day that I still remember and learned from...
06-25-2018, 08:08 AM
#32
Le Mans Master
Hate to say it but it has happened to me on the bike, you get into a blind curve a little too fast, you have 2 choices, lean the bike lower (in this case to the right), more speed and hope it doesn't go out from under you or slow up and up you go and over into the other lane. Thankfully no one was coming in the opposite direction when I went high and drifted into the other lane, this video could have been me. I learned a lesson that day that I still remember and learned from...
06-25-2018, 08:49 AM
#33
Drifting
When I lived in NY, we had a mini version of the Tail of the Dragon! It's called the "Hawk's Nest" on RT 97 about 4 miles North of Port Jervis, NY. It's a very popular area for the bikers, and on a regular basis they would plaster themselves into each other, cars, and the rock wall. Plenty of fatalities over the years!
06-25-2018, 09:10 AM
#34
Racer
Here's an image sequence video of the accident as it happened. There was a photographer for U.S. 129 Photos set up in that curve shooting photos for their website. He was getting shots of the Triumph Thunderbird as it was passing. The motorcycle rider appeared to pay a little too much attention to the camera and couldn't make the turn and crossed the double yellow line into my lane. As you can see, I tried to give him more space, but he decided to head right for me. Both of us survived intact, although the bike rider sustained a minor break in his right wrist that he didn't discover until the next day. Both vehicles were totaled and his insurance paid me a nice settlement which I was able to use to buy the Navy blue C5 in my avatar.
06-25-2018, 09:21 AM
#35
Racer
06-25-2018, 09:28 AM
#36
Racer
Here's the video including the rider waving at the camera. It starts a few seconds before the first video.
Triumph-C5 crash with rider waving at camera on Tail of the Dragon
Triumph-C5 crash with rider waving at camera on Tail of the Dragon