I was headed back home 1200 miles when at the first gas stop I let my bike fall over. I tried to park it away from the gas pumps to get off and stretch my legs. The spot I chose (poorly) was unleveled and the wind caught it and pushed it over. The tip over scratched the saddle bag and broke my brake lever. At my next stop I found an auto parts store for some steel stick epoxy to temporarily ‘weld’ the lever back together. I let it cure for a few 30 minutes before setting off angain, and then a few hours before using it properly, but that only lasted a few hundred miles. Everything is an easy fix, but damn I was utterly deflated the rest of the trip with my scratches of shame.
Yeah that sucks on a lovely Goldwing. Sadly tip overs happen to the best of us. At least in this case it was the wind. I drop my bike manoeuvring out of my garage. Usually because the kick stand goes up just enough to not hold tue bike when I try to put in on the stand (I have to move it from the right as the wall is on the left).
I hope a replacement pannier isn’t going to be too expensive🤞if you intend on fixing the scratches.
Maybe it’s an opportunity for customization with vinyl decals? Make it truly your own. Maybe a map where you mark all the places you’ve ridden so far?