Saturday I was riding back from chorus practice to meet up with Karla to go to a stamping party. Stamping party you say? Yes, this motorcycle rider in red has been known to stamp on occasion!
As I was riding north on Powers Boulevard, I was thinking about a safety tip that had been given at one of the Mountain Shadow Riders meeting. The safety blurb covered the horn location. Yes, I know it’s on the left hand signal cluster, but I also know that I’m not as familiar with the location as I am with the turn signal indicator.
Why was I thinking about this particular thing at that particular moment? I have no idea. I suppose it might have had to do with the amount of cage traffic on Powers that morning. However, that normally causes me to pay extra attention to the traffic around, not think of the stuff that went on at the MSR meeting.
As “luck” would have it, I glanced down to my left signal cluster and made mental note to work on knowing exactly where the horn button is. I even made the point to put my thumb on the button.
With that mental exercise over, I refocused my complete attention back on the traffic around me. It was no more than five seconds later that a huge red Dooley decided to change lanes—crossing over three lanes of traffic to my lane—an opportunity to squash my beloved self and Harley into a skid mark on the ground.
Fortunately, I had completed my little horn exercise and was able to react appropriately—honk at the offending vehicle while taking the necessary defensive measures to get out of his way. He did hear me and stopped his multi-lane changing exercise so all ended well.
Why I chose to do that particular exercise at that moment is beyond me. Not that I would have not found my horn button if need be; normally when I have reason to use my horn, I also manage to turn on my high beam as well. It’s not a big deal; however, it tells me that I need to work on indicator placement a bit more.
Which leads into reminding me that I need to look into relocating my horn to a different position on the Fatboy. My inner thigh rests on top of the horn and the only time I ever think to relocate is when I honk….which produces a nice jolt on the inside of my leg. The jolt is not necessarily a bad thing, but I know that my leg placement muffles the horn which is not a good thing.
Does everyone know where their horn button is located? Can you find it without looking or having to think about it??
Keep The Shiny Side Up!
~The Rainbow Wahine
Grateful for the authentic journey of this lifetime. Appreciate all the experiences and people I have encountered. I am humbled by my family--they keep me real.
4 comments:
I've been thinking about installing a set of truck air horns on my bike ;) the traffic here is so bad you are always on your toes. Good practice to keep your fingers on brake lever and your thumb by the horn button.
I know someone with truck horns too, not a bad idea. I have never used the horn yet, but next time I get on, I am going through a little practice...thanks for the reminder to do skills.
Good point Gymni - as I commute into and out of the city every working day I do something similar with the brake lever. I also cruise in a higher gear ready to take off if someone decides they want my space. I have not had any major issues yet but have had plenty of cagers moving over on to me - they soon move straight back when they hear me.
One of my fellow riders put an air horn on her bike...and it's LOUD!!!! I just gotta get the darn thing off my inner thigh *smile*
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