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Thursday 23 June 2011

An R.T.A. with a touch of magic.

I remember it
as from a dream:
Stan and I both slowing,
still breathless from the climb.
Ahead of us the road,
foreshortened, fell away
beyond our view.
Stan sitting up,
hands resting for a moment on the bars
before they drop down to the brakes:
I'm looking where I'm going here!
Saying it as Randy vanished with the road,
a small dot hurtling down.

Then at the bottom, tight right-hander.
Of Randy, not a sign; but round the bend,
propped by its pedal, standing in the kerb
and upright, nonchalant almost,
as though he'd put it there,
his bike. Back wheel a figure eight.

Next thing, we see a line that might
almost be painted in the road
to draw attention to the bend
so perfect is the curve of it,
a long black mark that hugs the kerb,
burnt rubber from the tyres;
and on the chevron by the roadside,
a shattered red reflector;
while to our left, the hedge demolished.

A loud groan from beyond the hedge,
the star-shape of the red reflector
imprinted in the forehead's
bone and tissue.
And then the ambulance;
and last of all, the doctor's query:
"A motor cycle accident? Must be!"

We never did get over
the way the bicycle had parked itself.

30 comments:

Isabel Doyle said...

whizzzz - zing - kerplunk

hope the scars have healed

great poem

SG said...

Oh! That must have been quite an accident.

Jinksy said...

I had to laugh at the synchronicity here- there's another 'Two in Tandem' post on Alias Jinksy today! Did you mean to do a poetic ad for it? LOL Thanks...

Dave King said...

Isabel
Me too, I've lost touch with him now, unfortunately. I think at the time we all treated it as a great adventure, the way boys do. Photographs in the paper etc, ect.

SG
It was. Spectacular was one word used to describe it, I recall.

Jinksy
Sure! Of course I did!

jabblog said...

You all lived to tell the tale, especially Stan. I loved this poem - it made me smile.

Jenny Woolf said...

As a cyclist I found myself getting quite involved in what happened here. I love the way you gradually reveal what happened, and the ending is just right.

The Weaver of Grass said...

And what of Stan?

Ann Grenier said...

Happy to read your hair raising tale. It does fit Jinksy's Tandem #7 painting. A fun new prompt.

Windsmoke. said...

Very enjoyable and humourous that's what i like :-).

Carl said...

Brought back memories of funtimes and mishaps with friends racing our bike on the trails of the mountain we lived on.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Dave King said...

jabblog
We did all live to tell the tale - and have dined out on it quite a bit!

Jenny
It was my first cycle tour, but didn't put me off. Not at all.

The Weaver of Grass
Ah! Thanks for the question, for it has made me realise that I write Stan when I should have written Randy.( Both names are fictitious, of course, as per my usual practice.) I'm afraid that as originally written it gave a misleading - not to say confusing - account. My humble apologies to all. It has now been corrected.

Ann Grenier
A warm welcome to the blog, thanks for the comment, and yes to both observations!

Thanks Windsmoke

Carl
Ah, those were the days!

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