No problems with the bike mechanically, and honestly after he put the fairing back on it doesn't look too bad, but I know that inside she's crying! (I'm so sorry baby! I promise it won't happen again!) The bike started right up without any fuss (at least I know the EX500 is durable!) and with a few quick adjustments (my bud somehow temporarily reconnected my fairing) and we were off. There's a tiny pinprick in my coolant hose but we manage to makeshift patch it for the ride home. The front-left fairing pretty much broke off and both my front turn signals are dead (one ripped off, one just non-responsive). The bike, while mechanically fine, did not come out as well. My favorite pair of jeans now has a hole in the knee (doh!). My gear has a few scratches, but overall it came out alright (whew). My knee couldn't have touched the asphalt for more than a few feet and I've got some nasty parallel lines cut into it right now. I'd heard it said that jeans will only last about 2 feet in a 30 mph slide over asphalt, and I can honestly say that this is true. Well, thankfully MOST of my body was covered in leather riding gear (boots, gloves, jacket). I braked before I went down hit so I was probably doing 25-30 mph or so. Eventually I ended up rolling over my bike. So I begin my lowside (silent curse words running through my brain) on the pavement with the intent of ending up in the green. There's a very narrow patch of green beside the road and then there's an earthen wall, so I decide if I'm going to go down anywhere it might as well be there. So, I'm riding with some buddies and take a blind hairpin a little too aggressively (doh!) and realize partway through the turn that there's no way I'm going to make it. All of the sudden we move to an area with terrible roads that is just barely two cars wide with no center line. We were riding through a fantastic section of sweepers up some mountain with perfectly paved roads and very wide lanes. Oh the joy! What's the easiest way to take a great day of riding and turn it into pain? A nice low side will do the trick!

Skin elite violator 1