Black Ice

On Saturday 25th July I was on my way to Wentworth Falls for a Christmas in July overnighter at the Grand View...(can strongly recommend...done it two years in a row!). There were about twenty of us and we started the ride from Albion Park, up the MacPass and at the outskirts of Robertson there was a warning sign...Frost next 7km...

It was 8:30 by the time we got up there; it was sunny and whilst there were some occasional moist patches under trees, things were very ridable...well that was until we came upon a 300m stretch of straight road that was covered right across all lanes with black ice. We were warned, but that was way back there and I reckon that was more like 10 ks that we had done, but never mind...that's another story.

I rode fifth in the front pack and enjoyed the sunny scenery and had a really good run up the pass, felt good and right on top of things, doing about 80km/h, when the guys in front suddenly slowed for what I thought no apparent reason...did not see brake lights either...

I hit the rear brake and thats when I knew why they had slowed! Ice!
The rear started to step out...it felt like slow motion...got off the brake,I started to correct it...it swung the other way...sending me into a series of four or five tankslappers...so I had to carefully hit the throttle to pull out of that one, but that's when you are between a rock and a hard place, as it can send the rear off again...AND I was gaining speed whilst my mates slowed down, potentially turning me into a giant bowling ball that was about to take them all out!

Thank goodness there was no oncoming traffic and I had space to gently steer the bike, clutch lever pulled, holding my breath, eyes wide open, listening intently, heart pumping, passing all of them at considerable rolling speed...
The next breath was a deep one and I exhaled screaming 'F@@@@@@@#k!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!'

We rode on.

I was still shaking 5km down the road, but felt very alive...when another rider caught up to us to tell us the bad news.
Five of us had hit the deck. One rider broke five ribs and a collar bone and had to be carted to Bowral Hospital, where he remained for a week. His pillion was fine. Two of the remaining three fait-stricken bikes were rideable after minor repairs.

Every rider wore the right gear and no skin was lost nor blood spilled.

We were very lucky!