Oh Deer... again...

yellowrex said:

It should be as close to the ground as possible facing forward when the bike is in the up right riding position @ a 45 deg angle, and it should not be mounted @ the rear just saying the angle is so the sound bounces of the pavement and travels further distance, and not so low it will touch the ground in turning, if you have highway pegs look @ them that is how I mounted mine on some Kuryakyn pegs, and that is how I will mount them on the 21 GW in one of the unused holes with a short piece of metal for the bracket, yes it will have a switch so I do not have to hear it when I am in the garage with the bike turned on and you can hear it it is a very low tone sound, and yes @ very slow speed you can hear it when it is quiet around you.

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Werdigo said:

With a sunny 60F-ish Maryland day it seemed time to give the 2018 DCT Wing a little exercise. The rural roads of northern Baltimore County are only a short hop away and I chose my favorite 70-mile loop that includes Prettyboy Reservoir. Heading home, at the 57-mile point, I was tailing a pickup truck at a comfortable distance, figuring deer would hear it and allow both of us safe passage.
No deal... we were doing about 45 mph when a large brown and white blur appeared, seemingly leaping right into me. I felt a "thud" and a slight leftward pull of the steering, but didn't go down and kept moving ahead. The bike seemed to be working fine, but some flapping plastic led me to stop to check the damage. Woah... the photo shows it. (I don't know where the deer ended up, right or left side. Maybe it heard the truck, then decided crossing the road was safe.)
After finishing the ride home I called my insurance company, then rode the 11 miles over to the dealer, a bit anxiously with plastic flapping at (slow lane) freeway speed. It awaits professional attention.
Next accessory: For sure, a deer whistle... View attachment 416112

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Rudy2 said:

I wouldn’t be surprised if the insurance company totals it.

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Werdigo said:

Here's the word on my incident: TOTALLED. Market $23.4K, repair cost $22.5K, Comprehensive reimbursement (market + sales tax + tag - deductible =) $24.2K. Bye bye, beautiful blue 2018 Wing.

I was surprised, but there may have been mechanical damage in addition to the obvious plastic stuff. This resolution seems fair to me, and I have no interest in delving into the details, and certainly no interest in trying to repair it myself. After two round-trip solos to Alaska, two to New Orleans, and one to Key West I had some emotional attachment to the bike, but reminded myself that IT had no emotional attachment to me.

I still have a 2014 NC-700X, which (extensively accessorized for touring) also took me to Alaska and to New Orleans. I like it a lot, partly despite and partly for its differences from the Wing.

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