I don't know the answer. That's why I'm posting the question. So many riders have come off over recent years on Rimutaka Hill alone due to spills. I'm sure other bike popular hills are equally high risk. Or are they? Is it something peculiar to that hill that attracts a certain type of truck and campervan driver. Dicks that insist on filling their tank to the brim and not fastening the cap. I don't think some even bother having a fuel cap.
Unfortunately today we came across another rider down and I see on Stuff it was a serious leg injury. V-Rod rider dumped in tight left hander coming up from Feathers and went over the Armco. Westpac Rescue Chopper was quick on the scene.
Stuff said it was possibly a car vs bike incident. Nope, we were there minutes after it happened. I mean no disrespect to the hurt Rider but the cause was clear as, well a dark, wet, smelly diesel spill freshly running off the camber. Once the cops arrived I went to pull alongside one and ask that they set up a cordon on the Welly side and check every truck/camper for signs of spilling, but the Cop I went to approach gave me the evil stare and wave to keep moving. I'm sure the culprit couldn't have been far ahead.
From the very first corner the trail of fresh spill was obvious and pretty much was on every left and right hander. Sadly for the hurt rider he crashed on the last corner with a spill. After that it was clear for the rest of the journey. Once you know it's going to be there it's not that hard to continue at a decent pace, just allowing yourself plenty of vision through approaching bends to pick your line left or right of the diesel trail - which today being fresh was quite visible long before reaching it.
But back to my opening point. There must be stats showing that that hill is exceptionally high in bike crashes caused by other vehicle spills - diesel or stock effluent. There should be enough evidence to warrant random blitzes checking on trucks & vans.
These stats work against us, making bikes look at fault for having so many crashes.
Best wishes to the Rider for a quick recovery.
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