Modern Vespa

Anyone ever hit a truck tire tread on the freeway? Yes on your scooter.

If so what was the end result and how did you handle it.

Manny

Hi Manny
I've seen loads but not hit one. Did you?

btw, thanks for your response to me about fish tailing - sorry I did not reply to your post to my post. For your info, I have a King Tire on the rear and a Michellin City on the front - not of my choosing but you sometimes gotta take what you get to keep riding.

After riding a few days in the rain, I can't blame either tire really. I just think I hit some oil or something as greasy unfortunately.

Didn't hit one, but had to say a few prayers as one bounced/rolled in front of me on my way to work one day.

As it was coming my way I was wondering what I would do if it were to hit me, I let off the throttle and tried to get a sense for where it would bounce next. I saw an opportunity to change lanes, in the opposite direction of the bounce and I moved over (luckily the tire kept rolling on it's path and missed me).


But yeah, don't know what I would do if I hit one, or one hit me...

Yes, a complete tire on a rim, just laying there in the road. Didn't see it because of the direction I was changing lanes vs the direction people were swerving to avoid it.

Hit it with the floorboard at 50mph, it bounced me a foot over to the left. Luckily stayed upright. It left a nice dent.


Captain Obvious

Nope thankfully I havent (yet) and wont. But I wanted to know if anyone had and how they handled it.

As for my response to your post, glad I could help a brotha out from down under.

Just dont ask me what color helmet to buy?

Glad to hear you pulled it out.

Sorry about the Capt. Obvious comment.


Ride safe
Manny

From the "debris on the road" files...

... this morning on the way in, on the highway (BQE for the NY'ers out there) a large piece of what appeared to be firewood found it's way directly in front of me... probably the scariest moment on a scoot to date. 60+mph... came off the throttle, balanced myself, and hit it head on. I was lucky to go right over it, square.

(after I went over it I noticed a truck was pulling over up ahead, I think he was the one dropping pieces, a few cars in front of me)

Road debris sucks...

LEO's call that "failure to secure a load", a rather serious offense. Where's the cops when you need 'em?!?

I had quite a scare with a truck tread once. Many years ago when I lived back east, Mark Jurus and I were riding back from one of the rallies up north (Boston Stranglers I think, or maybe Checkered Demons), and we were cruising down 295 in southern NJ on our P200's after dark. I was riding in front in the left track of the lane and Mark was behind me in the right track. Now stock P headlights aren't much better than your average flashlight, so I didn't see the huge strip of truck tread lying across almost the entire lane until the last second. I managed to swerve to the left and just barely miss it, but Mark hit it head on without even seeing it. I remember seeing his headlight going all over the place in my rear view mirror and I was afraid he might bite it, but luckily he managed to stay upright. We pulled over and he was white as a sheet, but his bike wasn't any worse for wear. After taking a few minutes to calm down and gather ourselves, we continued on our way, but man that sure was one scary experience!

I think the truck tire tread scenario is one of my worst nightmares. I'm constantly thinking about it whenever I'm on freeways. I try to position myself in such a way that will give me as much advance warning as possible should one come out of nowhere, but sometimes traffic is traffic. I do the best I can and hope that when the day comes, I'm sharp enough to react fast enough.

I once ran over a King Sized mattress on the 101 freeway in SF on my Yamaha Vision YZ550. I stayed upright, but scared me none the less.

I think a tire iron coming off a car tire and hitting me in the face when I am wearing a 3/4 helmet and a mid size or small windshield are near the top of my list of concerns.

Those truck treads are called alligators, just about as dangerous. Don't look at the tread, look at the open space on either side. Concentrate on the open space you want to ride through. If you look at the object you will most times hit it. Called target fixation. Make the safe path your target.

Wow, that explains why I smacked that curb when I had my wreck. I remember thinking, "Maybe I'll go up over it" You would think if I had the time to think that why didn't I break or try to go around it? But I didn't. Plowed right into it.

Tire Treads..... not on my bike but my car hit one on the Florida Turnpike several years ago. Truck dropped it right in front of me. I hit it square with my car and went airborn. Took out front fender and left nasty black mark on other part of front.

Ran over just about 1/2 of a tread not more then 30 minutes ago. Car ahead of me swerved, I did enough so that I just went under me, no worries about it. Scared me though.

Glad you made it through.


SOB

Manny

Big hunks of tread - known as "alligators" among truckers - are no joke. They are almost always cast off from retreads on 18-wheelers.

A semi about a tenth of a mile ahead of me on I-10 west of New Orleans rolled over one, causing it to become airborne with a surprising amount of loft.

Since we were all moving at 70+, it was still in the air by the time I drew near. It took out the left headlight assembly and fender of my '00 Toyota Tundra.

peace..I'm out...

Where the heck did THAT come from??

I had a semi drop a mud flap infront of me as it swerved to get around another truck. Went airborn.. bolt still attached.. dropped just intime to avoid my windshield, but took out my bumper skirt and cracked a AC mount. Wouldn't want to deal with on a bike, thats for sure.... but agree.. LOOK WHERE YOU WANT TO GO! (We northern drivers who deal with ice, learn that pretty fast!)

Holy shit!

Thats off a semi truck, if they dont strap them down properly, they will fly off a whole lot of energy and add the speed of the truck, that could be deadly for a scooterist.

Sorry to hear about your sis-in-laws car. Could have been worse if it had flew up a little highier.

Yeah Mikey aka Ponch, ride safe my brotha.

Manny aka John Baker.

Once here on the 10 FWY in L.A. I was riding... ~60mph and was close to the car in front of me when re runs over a car bumper, when I saw just had the time to see it and run over it, I was surprised that pass it over very steadly. after that I always keep a longer distance for better reaction time.....

In my car I had a wheel cover come off in front of me.
It went airborn like a frisbee and went over my hood and toward my head then the car draft took it over the roof. Scary.

Any truck drivers or tire people out there who can explain why there seems to be a lot less tire debris out on the roads now as there was a few decades ago?

Are truck tires better now or are we doing a better job of picking up after them?

A couple reasons truck tire treads separate is they are going to fast for their tires and/or they are overloaded. Some times they buy retreaded tires instead of new tires. Maybe freeways are too congested now for them to speed compared to the past.

I had a friend recently get hit in the head from a car losing his tire on an overpass. Good thing he was in a BMW instead of the Toyota I suggested he buy, or else hed be dead, even the fireman said the same thing. He had a steel plate installed in his neck now.

Manny

Ok, no problem. Let's forget it.

Forget what?

Ride safe my brotha.