Dirt Bikes Can Fly

Familiarity can, at times, breed carelessness.

I was fortunate enough to have access to a Honda XR 100 dirt bike. Riding that bike felt like I was putting on wings. Effortlessly, I would race to one end of the farm and get things done that would normally take twice the time and effort. Plus, once the work was done I could have fun.

Fun was code for: finding ways to propel me and my mighty machine higher, farther, faster than before. My favorite location was the ditch that ran along one side of a field not so far from the farm yard. This was a good ditch because it had no water in it, there was no fence beside it and there was little traffic on that road (well there was really little traffic on any of the roads).

I soon formed little dirt trails that ran down one side and up the other, or weaved up and down the sides. The exit out of the ditch was usually a steep edge that, with the proper velocity, provided a nice launch into the air. At first, I was just happy learning to climb and descend safely. The airborne part came next.

One fine fall evening, I was improving my jumping skills near dusk. The field had already been harvested and the stubble had been cultivated. I had been jumping out of the ditch for a while when I decided to return home. Seeing my location for the last jump, I really put some speed into it.

From my airborne vantage point, I noticed a certain farm implement parked right on my landing strip. The 5 bottom plow sat smug and firmly as my tires touched down a few inches from the hitch. Moments later, I became aware that the dirt bike front tire could fit very snugly under that hitch. My body did tend to stay in motion, thanks to one of Sir Isaac Newtons laws, and I flew straight over the handle bars and plow.

I lay crumpled on the ground, not sure if I was lucky or unlucky. Sure, I just crashed into a plow and I was thrown mercilessly to the ground. Yet, in my crumpled state, I smiled and snorted out the wheat stubble ready for another day of dirt bike flight.