My first excursion on to three lanes

Re your article this week about Motorways made easier (BikeMart page 28) and how to cope with your first excursion on to three lanes. I just thought I’d tell you about my first excursion 30 years ago.

I’d just passed my test on my BSA Starfire 250 and went out for a ride with my mate. Somehow we found ourselves going along the M3, we were tanking along getting the thing up to 65mph. After several miles we decided to pull off and turn round at one of the junctions. Coming down the slip road, we had the thing flying, 65, 66, 67, 68 and then out onto the carraigeway, 69, out into the middle lane, 70mph – ** BANG **, the rear wheel locked solid and the bike skidded, with the pair of us scared sh*tless, back across the carrigeway, on to the hard shoulder to a stop.

The bike in complete silence, us shaking like leaves we both got off the bike and just stood there. I’ll never forget his words, “I don’t know how you mangaged that” he said “I could have done it, I would have come off”. I remember thinking, “it was just pure luck I was just hanging on for dear life”. We both stood there looking at the thing for ages, no money, no phone and no idea what to do. Eventually we wandered back toward the slip road and came across a phone – I had to pay nearly a weeks wages (£32) to get that bike back to my house. I rebuilt the bike and kept it for a year before selling it, in that time the rear wheel locked up 4 times while flat. One time we were off to get some spares from Hamrax Motors when…