Last ride of the season went bad!

I had decided to fore go renewing my registration on the XJ until spring. Today was my last day for a legal cruise and it was BEAUTIFUL! The sun was shining and a nice temp of 65 deg. F.
I hit the road in high spirits and went off to run some errands before hitting the freeway for some relaxation. After dropping some forgotten items off at school for the kids and picking up the requisite odds and ends at the pharmacy for the wife, I down shifted to hit the entrance ramp and BANG! The clutch cable snaps at the lever!
I have never had a problem riding with out a clutch... once the bike is rolling... I made it to within 2 miles of home with out incident when a local yocal pulls out behind me and follows me through town. I was timing the lights and getting very lucky when I had to slow down considerably below the speed limit to avoid stopping at a signal. That's when the road side disco show lit up.

The officer was very polite but concerned that I had been drinking due to my somewhat erratic speed. Once I explained the situation he admonished me to be extremely careful and get the bike home and parked safely.

All in all a fairly exciting end to my riding season.

Chacal,
Got any clutch cables laying around?

 

Bummer! Glad you made it home to tell the tale. I sometimes worry about my clutch cable snapping like that. I still have the original on the bike. Thanks for posting your tale - it's a kick in the pants for me to get busy and swap mine out. Best wishes for next season.

 

Hey Luv, plenty of clutch cables in stock, just drop me a PM!

 

Get 2 then cable tie the spare to the one your using with the ends sealed in little plastic bags next time it breaks [which will of course be a while]you have your clutch cable already routed and ready to fit anywhere you might be when it breaks.Nice and simple on the side of the road.
Reminds me to put a spare on mine!

 

I have new clutch cables (bought from Chacal, by the way) on my Secas and from the looks of the way they are made I don't think there will be a "next time." The ends pop off 26 year old clutch cables because there is unseen corrosion hiding between the strands. Keep that new cable properly lubricated and it won't fail. I used to go through that "tying a spare on next to the working one" thing back in the day, but that was a long time ago and cables today are really much better. Plus the new thing.

 

"cables today are really much better"

That is so true! I'm sure most riders my age can remember stopping at service stations and borrowing their oxy acetylene gear in an attempt to solder cable nipples back on. (and you had to very quick to avoid melting the whole thing). Of course, it would be your spare cable that broke. You never went out with just one, in exactly the same way that you always carried spare spark plugs in your pocket.

Back in about 1966 a local bike shop closed down and at the auction I bought a huge bundle of assorted second hand cables for 20c. It made me very popular for a long time, as friends came round to sort through them, looking for some of the stranger cables needed for exotic things like Ariel Square Fours and Royal Enfield Constellations.

 

Hey Big Ross,
Thanks for reminding me of a couple of bikes I had long forgotten about, brings back a LOT of good memories.