semi ot: Every bike rider should go off road

There I was, with my mighty 12hp '02 Honda CG125 going to work on a
moderate 60km/h pace, right behind a 18 wheeler and right in front
another one. Out of nowhere (*), there is that big-as-a-shoebox rock
in the middle of the asphalt. I hit it square. I swear that front
wheel (which suspension has a wee bit over 100mm travel) lifted at
least half meter, but I could say it was one meter after just a couple
beers. It was scary, this is the bike that chews fork seals every
couple months (because I insist riding it on unpaved, non grated,
road, hey, it is a 6km shortcut!) and currently right hand fork is
leaking.

I managed to keep rubber-side-down, thankfully, I guess, reflexes
developed riding over single track trails, I kept it calm and had bike
under control. Trucker behind me braked hard, when I looked back he
was good 100 meters behind and before I hit the rock he was much
closer. In Brasil, tailgating is the norm, it took me years to
understand why I read everywhere on the internet people complaining
about tailgating, I failed to see what was the whole deal.

Aftermath: badly bent front rim. Bike bounces if riding less than 40km/
h; rear flat tire that was a nightmare to fix, I work in a remote
industrial area, there isn't even public transportation, let alone a
tire shop that could fix a bike tire. Again, thanks to the off road
skills, I got to ride it on the flat for about 15km, mind, it's a
narrow and soft 18inch tire (I'm running Michelin Sirac Street, if you
see this on your size, use it, best street tire I have ever used).

I'm contemplating replacing entire front end, that currently feature a
<gasp> drum brake for the disk brake from the top-of-the-line version
of the CG of the early 2000's. The CG is a good bike, the fuel mileage
is incredible and it barely keep highway speeds (traffic the time I
commute is heavy, so the highway speeds we are talking here is
90-110km/h), which is adequate for the moment.

On a sad "on topic" note, I just learned that my best riding buddy is
losing it against that white and expensive product that comes in
powder form and destroys family, friends and jobs. He even tried (and
succeeded, which is really sad) scamming me! :( I'm torn between
hating him or trying to help him, problem is he says "there's no
problem"... sucks, sucks, sucks.

-- Tiago
(*) Wife doesn't fully agree, but I think this was 100% my fault. I
was behind a truck and wasn't behind it's wheel path. I was riding in
the middle of the truck, between wheels. I should have be riding
aligned with truck's wheels, because truck driver, up there, most
likely saw the rock and given it's size, he would never put his tires
on the rock path... A rock stuck between the tires of the tandem wheel
is no fun for a trucker...

.

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