I spanked my new to me SV650S today, after hitting a manhole cover while braking moderately hard. No-one else's fault, all mine.

Luckily I jumped straight up and walked away with no more than a small scuff on my Arai's visor, but my bike is a bit of a mess having buried itself deep under a Honda Accord - it's repairable, but needs a complete fairing, headlight, radiator, exhaust can and some other minor bits.

Bike is fully comp, and I walked away unhurt, so all's well that ends well.

Jeees sounds like u was lucky.  Sorry to hear about all the damage though.   I did the same thing, first day out on first big bike (Going to work one morning) hit a wet grid and didn't know how to deal with the front wheel giving way (Only used to riding a 125 cruiser, not a 500 sporty bike with higher centre of gravity)   At least ur ok tho mate, which is good to hear                                                                                                                                                                             

Aww sorry to hear that DM, i know how much you were looking forward to getting out and about on it. The main thing is you're ok, and from what i know of you, the bike will mend quickly                                                                                                                                                                              

OUCH!! Glad to hear you're OK, and that you're also fully comp. Not an economic write-off, is it? And is there much NCB to lose? Was the Accord damaged at all? I dropped the old BMW boxer a few years back in similar circs. I was able to pick it straighht up (with the help of a passer-by), and on an older bike a few more scratches don't make much difference, and bruises fade over time. Trouble is when you brake in a hurry 99 per cent of us don't check for wet manhole covers first...                                                                                                                                                                             

Yikes!!   As long as you're okay mate. Glad you walked away pretty much unscathed.                                                                                                                                                                              

glad ur ok dm m8                                                                                                                                                                               

That's one of the reasons i try to stay off wet roads DM. Glad you're ok though matey and the SV's repairable.                                                                                                                                                                             

Glad your okay DM, the bike will mend, glad you dont have to mend yourself too - take care xx                                                                                                                                                                             

Thanks for all the good wishes

Well, 12 hours on and the aches and pains are filtering through, but nothing serious.

The car I hit wasn't really damaged as the plastic bumper folded under and got a little scuffed - the driver was an utterly charming Asian guy who helped me to the side of the road with the bike and was more concerned about me than his car.

When I informed Carole Nash about the prang to arrange repairs I did question my loss of NCB, of which I have more than the 4 years max they allow - she said I'd lose 2 years' worth for this claim, which I can easily cope with as Fully Comp on all my 7 bikes (three of which have lots of modifications) is only 240 quid anyway.

Weird thing is, I only upgraded to fully comp 2 weeks ago when I bought this bike because it was only a fiver more on top of the admin charge to change bikes. Talk about doing the right thing at the right time - my housemate reckons if I fell in a sewage works I'd come up with a prize salmon in each pocket and a dry packet of fags in my hand

glad your ok DM, really sorry to hear about your bike. maybe I won't be in such a rush to ride on wet roads after reading that, as you are a much more experienced biker than me, and it just shows it can happen to the best riders too. xx lula xx                                                                                                                                                                             

Hey Dm - sorry to hear about your 'ickle prang - but glad you're ok & you can smile about the luck of the Irish you've got!!!                                                                                                                                                                              

Sorry to hear about your off Dm just glad your ok, the bike can be fixed up a lot easier than we can.   Thank goodness the weather is forcast for dry this week end, my bike is being mot'd on Saturday and if the roads were wet I would have been nervous as hell as like Lula says your an experience rider. (My little off was on a day when it was raining)                                                                                                                                                                             

yes, I echo what everyone else has said DM - glad you're ok, that's the main thing -sorry bike didnt come out so well but machines are repairable, ppl often arent!!!  I also agree with Dave DD about staying off wet roads.  I hear alot of jibes about being a fairweather biker but one very good piece of advice my riding instructor gave me all the way through my training to big bike test was "if you dont have to go out on the bike in road/weather conditions that are dodgy- then DONT do it!!! you may regret it if something happens to you or the bike and wished you gone in the car or stayed at home instead!!"  I must admit this is something that has stayed with me and really does make alot of sense - although we dont all think of that at the time do we??!!!  Roll on sunny days and ideal biking conditions is what I say lol!!1 Sandy x                                                                                                                                                                             

  Have you noticed that manhole covers aren't just situated near the gutter, these days they are all over the feckin road, why's that?   What's all this avoiding wet roads crap, get out there, learn how to ride in wet weather, it's the only weather we get most of the year. lol    Glad you're ok D M, hope the bike is back on the road soon.                                                                                                                                                                               

As has been said,at least you got off fairly lightly and bikes can be repaired. I hate riding in the wet, been there,done it.                                                                                                                                                                             

Commiserations DM and hope you get the bike sorted Re-wet weather biking I quite enjoy going out in wet/wild weather-it feels invigourating and sharpens the senses -I think people are missing out if they only ride in the dry [and what happens if they get caught out].Sometimes I cant be arsed if its the great british speciality weather [drizzle]and jump in the car but other times I purposely go out just for the practice[usually with the IAM]-keep it smooth,between the hedges,and avoid slippery surfaces,if you over cook a corner its surprising what angles of lean you can get away with-but it may help to say ,please god,please god ,please god ,as you go round it.                                                                                                                                                                             

lol @ iggypup                                                                                                                                                                             

I've done trackdays in the wet without any problems, the rain doesn't normally bother me, in fact it makes me a smoother and more alert rider.

I choose to ride a bike when I go into towns because round here there's nowhere to park a car and the roads are chokka. I was just unfortunate once in god knows how many thousands of miles. When I add up my annual bike mleage and then count the number of drops and crashes, it works out at one roughly every 120,000 miles, so that int bad considering I ride like a twat most of the time I'm out of town.

The only reason I have a car is for those very few times when I need to carry larger items or if I have to take someone somewhere. Even when I see the kids I get one of them to drive over and pick me up - it's the reversal of Dad's Taxi Service now...payback time.

oh well the main thing is and will always be that the person is ok - as I said before, bikes more easily fixed and/or replaced. Hope your aches and pains and the bike recovers soon DM!! Im still getting biking and road experience under my belt although been a horse rider and car driver for many years now.  Although I wouldnt choose to take the bike out in really dodgy weather I still think its important to learn how to handle all sorts of situations and weather conditions -  just in case (and more often than not in the UK a really sunny day can turn into quite something else!) This happened to me not long after passing my test when at a bike rally when fully laden with tent, paniers etc on the homeward journey - torrential storms which caused many returning bikers to just sit it out and get soaked in lay bys on the route home it was that bad - could barely see out of my visor., very scary and definately not for the faint-heated.  My first rally on my own fully laden "big bike" too - omg but no choice, had to get me and the bike home!  But, I listened to experienced bikers, took my time and had a steady careful ride home despite feeling less than happy and confident with my newly earned skills, I realised that it was vital for me to learn how to ride in such conditions in order to become a competent biker.   I have to say, once out of the storm, it was a pleasure and relief to ride in the dry and  see clearnly out of my visor again!  But, what a feeling of achievement to say that I rose to the challenge and came through it!  So, I have to admit - whether a good or bad experience - it all adds to becoming a more skilled and experienced biker and is vital to learning and improving and staying safe and alive out there!!! Good luck all, stay safe and keep the shiny side up always!!! Sandy x                                                                                                                                                                             

I noticed no one asked how the manhole cover was! Bloody typical!