After I slid off the road in Helen - July 24 2011

Man, where to start. I was riding with a couple guys from the FZ6-forum around north Georgia. We had been riding for a couple hours when stopped at an overlook to take a break about 10 miles from Helen. Shortly after we started back out on Richard Russell Scenic Hwy, I was going around a corner to the left. There was a car coming the other direction, so I opened up the curve a bit. I noticed a pot hole in the middle of the curve and decided to run on the outside of it - big mistake. Before I could do anything about it, I noticed a bunch of very small gravel just after the pot hole that came out about a foot from the side of the road. I hit the gravel, the front tire slid off the road, and when it hit the grass the bike layed down and I went tumbling. Fortunatly I did slow down a little first, so I was only running about 25-30 MPH when I went off the road.

Here are some pics I took with my cell phone about 8 miles from the curve at a gas station in Helen

Here are some pics I took when I got home.

I was able to ride the bike home, all the damage is cosmetic. I took the lower fairing off and buffed out the tank a little. The scratches look better but the dents really stand out to me. I have a couple pieces ordered, and am going to fix the bike over time. I'm doing this mainly so I have to look at it and remember to be more careful riding the curvy roads.