So I walked away my first motorcycle accident this weekend

Went out for a ride with a couple buddies in South OC on Sunday morning, met up at Cook's Corner for a beer and grub, then headed towards to coast to cruise up PCH but never made it. We pulled up to a stoplight with me in the rear, light turns green and I give my buddies a few seconds to pull away before I take off. I start to pull out but don't even make it through the crosswalk before I feel somethings not right then a split second later I get hit square in the lower back by a front bumper and I'm pushed off the bike as it goes down on it's right side.

I was was able to step over the handle bars and right off the bike as it went down, but my XJ wasn't so lucky. I turn around to see an Acura TL sitting on the rear of my bike with both front wheels propped off the ground and an older lady sitting behind the wheel still talking on her damn phone! She then tries to tell me it's my fault for stopping in front of her! WTF?

Well my buddies circle back around and we push her car off my bike, tearing her front bumper off in the process. The damage; my new Biltwell slimline seat got folded in half along with the rear fender, Mac 4-2 exhaust is all beat to hell, my license plate/tail light bracket broke off , the plate rolled up like the top of a sardine can, and one of the TC Bros foward controls has a cracked weld. I know I got lucky and we were able to beat the seat & fender back a bit so that I could ride back to my buddy's garage which was nearby, but holy crap this is irritating!

Just needed to vent a bit. I'll try to post up some pics of the damage in the next day or two.

Anybody else care to share an ass puckering story?

Cheers!
-Joe

 

Don't know Joe but I'm still stuck at the "a beer and grub" part......bad mix.....but still glad that you weren't hurt. A classic case of SMIDSY.......and I guarantee that she won't even get a lousy ticket for it.

jeff

 

You called the cops, right?

 

Got her license, plate, and insurance? And SCREAMED in pain, "OH MY BACK!"

Seriously, that's not SMIDSY, you probably could have been in a car and the idiot would have still hit you. People who choose to talk on the cell phone over their responsibilities as the driver of a 1 ton death machine should have the book thrown at them and taken to the cleaners. You'll need some pain and suffering, cause we all know the insurance won't give you what you put into the bike.

Talking on the cell while driving is illegal in CA isn't it? She should at least get a ticket for that.

 

Damn Joe, just glad to know you'er all right.

Last yr a guy driving a rolloff (trash trk) plowed into
9, yes 9 riders at a stop. I believe 4 or 5 died.

I cut my teeth on a bike from San Clemente to everywhere I
could.

But that was 20 yrs ago and the freeways then were only dangerous.
lol.

 

Re: So I walked away my first motorcycle accident this weeke

In the last 3 months I have been forced to either take evasive action, honk my horn to alert them, or just missed getting hit 5 times by cell-phone-attached-to-ear drivers. One girl was sitting at a stop sign talking away as I approached from 3 blocks away, she waited until the very moment when her pulling out put us on a collision course (no other traffic on road) I was watching expecting just that and laid on my horn while swerving away-close call.

Intersections are always dangerous. Back in the 90's I was riding away from a just turned green light in downtown Little Rock, AR with a buddy on back when we got creamed from behind by an 80's model Delta 88 (land yacht). We both launched 30 feet away and tumbled up onto a sidewalk. I turned around to watch my Nighthawk pinned beneath her bumper and digging into the pavement as she slid towards us. She had just got off work, was 18 years old and said she was looking at the green light and just didn't see us. Was wearing FF Helmet and leather jacket but the impact with the ground rolled up my sleeve and I had severe road rash from my elbow to my palm-still have a quarter shaped scar on my forearm. We were able to push my bent up bike back to my apartment (only 6 blocks away) and I fixed it over the next 2 weeks. One funny thing about the whole deal was a sheriff up the street only saw me and my buddy rolling up onto the sidewalk and came speeding down because he thought we were fighting!

You must always be scanning around and ready to avoid any situation, forward, backward, everywhere. Damn phone jockeys should be treated like DWI drivers! You can still go down to 8th & Main in LR and see the gouges from my case gaurd, foot pet, and rear axle.

Glad you weren't seriously injured. And yes you should pursue any legal action you can. She must not get off or she will do it again. Not sure about California but here if you rear-end someone it's your fault 99 times out of 100.

 

I guess I should clarify that it was a single 12oz Bud Light about an hour or so prior to riding.

I didn't need to call the cops; 6 cruisers, 3 motorcycle cops, a firetruck and an ambulance were all on the scene within 5-10 minutes. I talked to a number of the officers and they mostly all ride so when they hear about a down motorcycle they tend to book it to the scene.

 

Just playing devils advocate, maybe she was on the phone with 911 yes? Doesn't matter she was at fault as far as I'm concerned.

 

Re: So I walked away my first motorcycle accident this weeke

Not unless she is very experienced with trauma. Most people wouldn't be that fast to react after an accident. From his description he was looking back almost immediately after she hit him. Having had a very similar experience (see above), I can attest to the fact that once you realize your alive; you look right away to see what happened to your beloved bike!

About the brewski, it takes one hour for one drink (1 beer, 1 shot, 1 glass of wine) to metabolize and leave your system. I don't advocate drinking and riding by any means, but in moderation and with proper time to regain full faculties it's not unreasonable.

So was is Charlotte or Shirley J? Oh surely I see it was Shirley.

 

Re: So I walked away my first motorcycle accident this weeke

On the side of a funnier story. As you may have guessed by the name elGato, I'm not very graceful at time. I was my first day in the motorcycle safety class. They had talked about the clutch and gas, and how it was like ringing a rag. I was a little cocky, I had learned to drive stick in a car, I though it was no big deal. We had practiced 'Duck walking' the bikes and I had done great. The instructors had finally said it's time to pick up the feet.

I gave it some gas, then let the clutch out and started rolling. (keep in mind, it's a close course) I didn't go straight and it felt unstable to me. I pulled in the clutch and stopped, as I had squeezed the brake it opened up the throttle. I let it go. After the roar of the 250, I guess meow of the 250 calmed, I found myself sitting in the saddle, with everybody looking at me. I was so embarrassed. There was a lesson to be learned. The notion of cockiness has left me completely to this day, and the embarrassment still lasts, haha!

Remember there is always something to take from an accident. Be happy the injuries are okay, and see that you are the only one you can trust on the road.

 

Motorcycle accidents are never funny. You're lucky, period. Bikes can always be replaced; not so much your spine.

I THOUGHT I'd "walked away from" my big one (Yamaha SR500 vs. Toyota, wanna guess?) in '82; I ended up in the hospital for 15 days with 3 broken ribs, one leg broken in two places, and a shattered collarbone.

Cars are hard. Motorcycle fenders aren't. (Fenders.)

You guys ever wonder why I preach safety first?

 

Had a friend who lost his leg in a single vehicle motorcycle accident. He still drives the bike, just doesn't drink anymore when he does it.

Easier to fix metal than flesh and blood.

Glad to hear you're ok.

 

I have been very lucky with the spills that I've taken over the years, the worst injury I suffered was a broken finger. I think in all I have dropped my bikes a total of 8 times, only once was I involved with a car, and I didn't get so much as a scratch. I had a good combination of luck and skill, I just hope it continues when I take up riding again.

 

Re: So I walked away my first motorcycle accident this weeke

Glad to hear you are o.k. You are truely blessed to have walked away from something like that. I hope they threw the book at her!

 

Back in 91 I had a nasty accident that I was lucky to walk away from. I was going about 65mph on the freeway when my front tire hit something in the road and blew out. The bike immediately started going down and when I realized there was no way to recover I bailed off. I slid almost 100 feet across the asphalt while watching my bike bounce end over end. I still don't know what caused it to bounce like that. I got picked up by a local shop that had a driver just happen by. My bike and I were taken to the shop. I walked 5 miles to catch a ride home. No cell phone back then. I was then taken to the hospital. I didn't realize I was so messed up. I had a clean break in one leg, roadrash up my left side from my ankle to my hip and a cracked sternum. It would have been a lot worse if I hadn't been wearing a fullface helmet (whole side scraped up), leather boots (hole ground through side), leather jacket (roadrash up side) and leather gloves (holes worn through palms of both). My Levis were shredded. I was told by many hardcore bikers that if I hadn't bailed off I would have died. I am glad I listened to the old timers tell stories of what to do in a situation like that.

I am always so happy to hear when a fellow rider was able to walk away from a wreck. I also understand what goes through their mind during and after the accident. When I came to a stop my first thought was if my bike was going to be ridable again. I still own it and I am in the process of getting it back on the road.

I am really glad you are ok, interstatejoe.

 

I have had many close calls. I ride as if they can't see me. I know that they aren't paying attention when they are talking on the cell phone, and there are movements in process to outlaw their use while driving. And if they were outlawed tomorrow it would be a day too late as far as I am concerned. Comprimising anyones safety while driving and talking on a cell phone should be a punishable offense, whether it's just a wreckless driving ticket or a manslaughter charge. Just my 2-cents worth.

 

We all must be vigilant about watching the road surface, especially at night and believe it or not at twilight. Lighting conditions at twilight can virtually blind you, I have experienced it and it's not fun. Out here in Nevada, some times cattle get on the roads in rural areas at night. I had a lapse of concentration while riding in San Diego, and hit a pothole so hard I damaged my rear shocks and put flat spots in my Lesters( wheels).