Crashing motrocycles hurts. (AKA, WEAR A HELMET)

McHaven · #1 10-25-2009, 10:48 PM

I was up in Texas Hill Country over the weekend for a rally with my dad. I ride a BMW R80, and I'm pretty much a newb. My cornering sucks, and I have less than 1000 miles experience. So, not really the best place for me.

I was following my dad, and happened to go through a corner a tad too fast. I could have pulled out of it, if I had just leaned a bit more but like I said, I'm a newb and I'm not confident in my own riding. Instead I panicked as the front tire slipped off the pavement into the grass. Brakes don't tend to work too well on grass. Lost control of the bike. It tossed me off and continued to go straight into the barbed wire fence. Valve cover cracked on a rock too.

Anyway, I flew and tumbled for a good 20 feet, landing in a nice patch of grass.

Thankfully, I was wearing full gear and sustained no injuries aside from bumps and bruises. Now I'm just sore as hell. Took a few minutes lying on the ground to test out all the appendages and try and bring my heart rate down.

Got up, found my headlight next to me and started surveying the damage. Not too bad thankfully. Headlight came off, shift lever snapped, tank scratched and a turn signal bent, and the valve cover cracked.

So, this could have been a lot worse, but let this serve as a testament for full gear, even if it was an easy crash. Luckily it was in the middle of nowhere in grass, rather than in Houston in traffic.

bui · #2 10-25-2009, 10:52 PM

Damn. Glad to hear you're ok. I've driven through the Hill Country many times (Fredericksburg, Kerrville, Comfort), and I know what you're talking about in terms of the roads/terrain out there...glad it happened in a fairly safe area...

**Kelly Lee** · #3 10-26-2009, 12:43 AM

Yep, crashing does hurt. Sometimes more than others.

I just went down hard this weekend myself. Going around a corner and the front washed out on me and it threw me from the bike. Probably only 15-20mph and on the dirt but I have scrapes on my hip and shoulder, and my ribs hurt. Worst part, I think I broke something in my hand. It is severely swollen, there is a nasty looking bruise coming up in my palm, and it freakin' hurts like hell! No, I haven't gone to the doc yet. I will be doing that tomorrow.

Funny thing, my helmet has only one tiny scratch on it (my head barely touched the ground) yet I hurt everything else.
I'll second to always wear a helmet but add that you should wear everypiece of protective gear you can. The two pieces I didn't wear on this ride would have saved me both scrapes and my chest hurting. Always were ALL of your gear!

As for my bike, a few scratches and that was it. I even rode it home.

xbmedic · #4 10-26-2009, 01:12 AM

+1 on always wearing full gear and helmets.

As a flight nurse / paramedic, I have transported more than my share of motorcycle riders. I also have ridden motorcycles for 22 years. This past April, I had to lay my Buell XB12X down to avoid a collision on my way to work. I was wearing full gear. Tore a muscle in my back. A little PT and a lot of rest and I am back to normal. Could have been much worse. I'm glad you guys are ok, too.

rosanne · #5 10-26-2009, 02:11 AM

Glad you came through ok! A guy I worked with took his 9 year old son for a ride on his Harley, hit a tree limb and crashed. His son survived but he did not.

He was so proud of that bike and it's gorgeous paint job etc. - he took excellent care of the bike but not of himself....... What a waste.

DaveDeVille · #6 10-26-2009, 09:16 AM

... woah .

dude , sorry about your bike , but i'm glad you made it ...

**Eric Perry** · #7 10-26-2009, 10:15 AM

I've never understood the macho cats that don't wear helmets. I have very little sympathy for those that really eff themselves up in a bike accident if they weren't wearing at least a helmet!

I was in an accident during a motocross heat (back when I was thin) where I came out of a turn in too high of a gear and cased it over a set of doubles. I got thrown over the bars. Broke my shoulder, my wrist, and got a nasty concussion. My Shoei helmet was essentially destroyed, with the visor ripped off and a massive chunk taken out of the front, where said visor used to reside. Granted this was during a race at a real track where full protection was mandatory, but such an accident could have happened at the local makeshift track by me and my riding buddies. I'm terrified to think what damage would have been done if I wasn't wearing that helmet!

Luckily, I never cracked up my Ninja. If I ever did, at least my thought locker would have stayed intact, inside the damn helmet!

karrot-x · #8 10-26-2009, 11:18 AM

I low sided at NJMP on 9/24.

Drain bamaged a little, hurt fingers, hurt pride, hurt wallet.

Wear gear, could have been worse

.

**Kelly Lee** · #9 10-26-2009, 01:06 PM

As just a little follow up to my first post...

Just got back from the doc's office. No broken bones!

McHaven · #10 10-26-2009, 01:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kelly Lee

As just a little follow up to my first post...

Just got back from the doc's office. No broken bones!

Congrats on the good bill of health. My neck has been real stiff since the crash, and only getting worse. I may make an appointment at the clinic on campus and get a once-over, just to be safe. Never turn down free health care right?

nortonrider · #11 10-26-2009, 01:41 PM

Seriously though....glad your OK. Crashing Sucks!

iamlowsound · #12 10-26-2009, 02:16 PM

Crashing does suck. I did it going 15-20mph once, cracked my helmet open, class three concussion, a few scrapes ect. Point being, if I wasn't wearing my helmet, I would be dead.

lowsound

davkane · #13 10-26-2009, 05:42 PM

Glad you are OK!

All the gear all the time. I even suit up to ride the 5 block to the super market.

Had two crashes myself on a motorcycle, and all I can say is I am glad I had on my gear... The back of my head would have scraped along the blacktop for about 20 feet if I hadn't on one occasion...

Hopefully this will not push you away from motorcycling. If you have not taken a Motorcycle safety course, they are well worth it. These classes help to build confidence too.

koobie · #14 10-26-2009, 10:30 PM

OP, sounds like you've got pretty good perspective, you learned a hard lesson. Good thing you went down in the grass with protective clothing.
When I travel in states without mandatory helmet laws, I'm always taken aback to see people riding bare-headed.

Tony G · #15 10-26-2009, 10:38 PM

Long story short, I wore full gear, when down in the grass at about 20mph, broke 3 vertebrae. Yes, crashing motorcycles hurts.

**Kelly Lee** · #16 10-27-2009, 01:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by McHaven

Congrats on the good bill of health. My neck has been real stiff since the crash, and only getting worse. I may make an appointment at the clinic on campus and get a once-over, just to be safe. Never turn down free health care right?

Thanks. Definately get in and have them take a look at you. It is worth it for the peace of mind.

As davkane said, I hope it doesn't scare you off from riding. I have gone down twice on the road and countless times in the dirt and I'm ready to jump right back on. Now if I would only heal faster.

Tsal · #17 10-27-2009, 03:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony G

.. broke 3 vertebrae. Yes, crashing motorcycles hurts.

On a side note, the stiff plastic motocross neck braces, also known as Leatt braces after the first manufacturer, are starting to be at reasonable prices nowadays. The cheapest Leatt models I've found are around 200 bucks, but I'm thinking there's also some copies on the market. They protect the neck quite well, AFAIK, a lot of the pros use them. I'm considering getting one as well.

Edit: EVS has a Leatt clone around 150 bucks with a tad less adjustability.

progrmr · #18 10-27-2009, 05:51 AM

Glad your OK - I wrecked back in 2007 on a 98 ZX-7. Had helmet and jacket/gloves but no leg protection. I spent the last 2 years hopping from bike to bike to try and "get back on the horse"...just sold off my 99 CBR600, I'm just not comfortable on a bike anymore.

Morale of the story: Don't ride over your abilities and gear up!

Here's some pics of my wreck:

Din Of Win · #19 10-27-2009, 07:35 AM

A Helmet totally saved my life last year!

I hit a patch of black ice and gravel from construction on my scooter going 35 mph about half a mile from my house. The bike slid out from under me and i went head first onto the gravel. I had a cuncussion, a cracked wrist, and a puncture wound on my leg. It would have been a LOT worse if it weren't for my helmet, layers of clothing (it was 7*F), and the fact i was returning from Yoga so i was very limber. My helmet was cracked and the face plate was scratched VERY deeply, i can't even imagine what it would have been like if i hadn't been wearing one...

That tumble cemented for me that i will NEVER have the guts to get a full-on motorcycle. I'll stick to my bicycles and my 55mph top-speed 50cc scooter...

DLKasim · #20 10-27-2009, 08:06 AM

Crashing sucks. I've wiped out numerous times on the dirt and twice on the street, once at about 70mph. Ended up with a slight concussion and some ligament damage in my shoulder, but no severe injuries. It would have been a different story without a full face helmet and my Roadcrafter suit, both of which were completely roached afterward. Wear your gear!