U-996 or amphibious all terrain VTR
 

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/image...04303223-1.jpg

Fun today after yesterday, when a month's rain fell in 1 day here in the UK, when I was faced with an inland sea between Frinton-in-Sea and Clacton-in-Sea or a 15 mile detour. A shipping lane was of traffic stalled in the road/river so put it in 1st gear and went for it. Gradually it gets deeper and deeper almost up to my knees and feeling some pressure as it covered the exhaust - increase the revs with a corresponding increase in speed causes a bow wave to wash over the fairing and screen like a crash diving sub conning tower. Blinded in the wash cascading into my visor all I can do is steer in a steady straight line hoping I can avoid veering & crashing. Amazingly like the James Bond car emerging up the beach I receive a round of applause from the waiting oncoming car drivers watching agape as I hit land, steaming away with the heated grips and race cans on full blast.

At my destination I take off and empty my water filled waterproof boots and all that was missing was fish in 'em!

Roll on the Summer...

wow haha that is a lot of water. happy you and your bike got to the other side! though i would have taken the detour.....

WOW.. how did the air intake not get filled with water?

I knew there was a reason Honda put that rubber snorkel on them. :-P How much water made it into the airbox?

Well it ran fine after - another 5 miles to where I was heading. Stripped and dried off esp the soggy socks. Then after a few cups of tea it started first time and got warmed up in the 15 miles ride home.

Wouldn't have dared done it if I hadn't unintentionally been thrown in the 'deep end' years back on a GPZ600R... heading to work out in the sticks early in the morning in the dark, when I careered down a hill into the quaintly named village of Fordham Heath only to find the Ford in Fordham in full flood - Hit it at 40-50 mph and arrived at work looking a tad incontinent.

Artist's Impression of the experience

http://www.americansale.com/images/u...rge/990967.jpg

Been there, done that but for 250 miles in 40~45 degree F temps and having to open the gas cap with a spare key because the tank vent tube was under water and the engine wanted to die regularly. Over nine hours of non-stop hell and umpteen detours and cage drivers venting their frustration moving over on me and no cops to sort the bedlum. I still can't belive I made it thru it all alive. After I re-routed the vent tube and managed to change to a clear visor so I could see thru the dim and rain, only the hypothermia, lack of rest, fluids and food became the barrier to survival. Yet my trustly VTR kept chugging with the water over my knees. I'm hoping water did not make it thru the grease I always pack in the wheel bearings but I'll find out when I change my Conti Road Attacks (which were great) this winter. And no one cheered and clapped when I got home. Then it was 2 days of bailing out the basement. Worst ride ever in over 35 years of riding. I was soaked twice over to the skin, near frozen and exhausted. And to add insult to injury I left Indianapolis (for north of Chicago) before the start of the US MotoGP only later to find out that if I had stayed until after the race the road back was without the monsoon conditions (though the detours and flooding persisted for over a week afterward).

RE: U-996 or amphibious all terrain VTR
I can still recall that horrible sound the connecting rod made when the piston tried its best to compress the slug of water. I'd probably have chickened out and stayed home for the day. Still, had a good laugh picturing the bow wave. Would you do it again?