Today's ride with sort of happy ending

[Falcolion]

I went out for a ride today and the weather was just perfect. Everything was going great till I started heading back home. I was riding somewhat brisk pace at about 85 mph when I hit a huge pothole. The hit was unexpected and so bad that it actually lifted me of my seat and I almost had a tank slapper. I managed to keep the bike going straight but felt that steering feel became somewhat hard. I slowed down to about 50 mph and drove another 5 miles to the next exit where I was able to pull off the road. If someone is familiar with New York Saw Mill Pkwy then you know that its a nice 2 lane road with beautiful smooth curves but no place to pull off. In any case when I pulled out on the exit, I gave my bike a glance over and saw a big dent in the front rim. Tire was still inflated so I decided to keep going home back to Brooklyn. The good thing about this Bimmer is that one can put hazard lights on. Well, I put hazards on and rode at 25-30 mph the rest of the way (about 35 miles). Not the best feeling when cars are flying by you.
I made back home safe but will be calling my insurance tomorrow.
Here is the aftermath pictures. Note that the hit was bad enough that forks travel was all the way to the top. Should I worry about broken fork seals or anything else? Bike feels Ok with the exception of the front wheel, which feels like its now SQUARE

[sgoodwin]

Looks like the left seal is weeping, could be from the hit unless it was wet before. If you're going the insurance route you might want to have both sides checked out.

[Meeni]

Yep, your fork tubes are leaking. Depending on your deductible, you might not recoup. The estimated cost of the repairs is in the $500, or can be as low as $250 if you do the seals yourself. If you want a new wheel, that's another story, you're looking at 4 figures, so insurance is the way to go.

[Guest24]

Glad you were able to ride 'em cowboy. The rim might be repairable. The best rim man is up there around you I think. You can do the seals yourself and save $$'s Roger may have a comment on the bottom out. I'd get it looked at by a pro. Nice job on the motorsports paint BTW

[Falcolion]

Thanks guys. My thoughts are exactly the same. I will get forks done but I will put the whole thing thru insurance. The full retail on the wheel itself is around $1850 plus full MSRP on the rubber another $200. I will get insurance involved 100%. As for the parts, I will get them at my dealer cost and put everything on myself. I am sure I can fix the rim but I will either keep it as a backup or sell it on eBay for reasonable price.

Should I look at the trailing arm or any other front suspension pieces?

[Droptarotter]

Fork seals are easy to replace on these bikes.....but leave it a while, they might just stop leaking........mine did after I dropped the forks a little too far when I changed my a-arm on my 12S.

The a-arm should be fine......it was not a head on......just a big bump........replace/fix the wheel and give it the berries!!

Cheers

[dee jones]

When this happened to me in Idaho I decided to use my insurance. They told me that my insurance would not go up for hitting a rock in the road. They lied, it did go up. The good thing that did come out of it was that I had both wheels and tires replaced. You could not see any visible damage to the rear wheel or tire but the adjuster agreed to replace them anyway. Good luck with your bike.

[bradzdotcom]

although the wheel definitely has a dimple in it, i'm not so sure there's anything wrong with the fork seals.
it's hard to make a decision based on the photos.

[shreddr]

those fork seals are fine, a little weepage is normal, and the forks dont have any damping anyway, i would be more worried if it was the shock seal.

that wheel looks fried, i thought the forged units were supposed to be stronger, i guess you hit a real whopper, good thing you held on!

[kocook]

Replace the front tire as well. Even though it is still holding air, it is very likely to have been damaged.

[Herb]

Is there any scope for a claim from your highways authority?

[lightfighter]

Maybe a bit of a highjack, but short of a whole roadbed collapsing, has any government agency ever paid claims for damages resulting from pothole damage? I doubt it.

Is there any scope for a claim from your highways authority?

[ErricZ]

Bridgewater Twp was more than willing to pay me $350 for a "new" used rim to shut me the **** up when I hit a nasty pothole one night in the middle of an overpass.

Make sure you take pictures and document the incident, then call and ask for the proper forms. You only have a set amount of days to claim.

DO IT.

[Guest24]

Originally Posted by lightfighter

Maybe a bit of a highjack, but short of a whole roadbed collapsing, has any government agency ever paid claims for damages resulting from pothole damage? I doubt it.

You are right ,Brian. You'd have a better chance collecting the rock damage from a dump truck for a broken windshield than collecting on a road HAZARD. I have learned to phone in road hazards to the county or city in which I encounter them. They usually get repaired in a matter of days. The squeaking wheel so to speak.

[Herb]

Just in case you do claim against your authority, I have noticed an error in your original post. I think you meant to say you were riding at a modest pace well within the speed limit etc etc.

[lulo]

if ur interested this guy in the city can fix that wheel, i bent one on another bike i had a little worse than that...charges like 150.00 powdercoat included and turn around is usually 1 or 2 days..

Papo Fix My Rim at Papo's Auto Clinic | Facebook

[LeftCoast Peter]

That is a happy ending.

[AZ-J]

I had this same circumstance, pothole, rim damage, once years ago with my R50/2. The rim was repaired, the Earles fork was undamaged. I also got a new tire.

[Falcolion]

Originally Posted by Herb

Just in case you do claim against your authority, I have noticed an error in your original post. I think you meant to say you were riding at a modest pace well within the speed limit etc etc.

The pace was 100% modest. Anything below 100 mph is modest . As for claiming against local authority as far as I know is useless. NYC actually have an ordinance where you cannot claimthe damage against NYC. That is why I will be putting an insurance claim. Once every 25 years insuarance can pay out. Rim is 100% repairable but I do have insurance and will either keep it as a back up or sell it. I know it shouldn't cost any more then $100-125 to get the wheel straigh and then another $100-$125 to powdercoat it. Tire is 100% toast so it will definitely be replaced.

[CoffeeGuy]

Maybe a bit of a highjack, but short of a whole roadbed collapsing, has any government agency ever paid claims for damages resulting from pothole damage? I doubt it.

Quote

Is there any scope for a claim from your highways authority?

Yes. It has happened. In Ohio, you simply "sue" which requires a simple form.