Hey all, I am barely ever active on this forum but I figured I would share my story in hopes that it might help even one person avoid the same situation, or convince one person to use the equipment that I used.
Around mid June I left my home in the southwest for an approximately 1300 mile one way ride to my parents' house in the Northern Rockies. I had a pleasant and uneventful first day of the ride and had made about 750 miles in the first day without issue. I got a great night's sleep in a hotel in Utah, got up, and ate a good meal.
My second day was going to be a little shorter distance than the first day, and all freeway, and would only include driving through one major city (Salt Lake.) Around noon I stopped and got a small meal and a little caffeine in an Applebees in Idaho. A gas stop or two later I was in Montana and was BSing with an old guy on a BMW crotch rocket type bike. He told me that Montana had no helmet law and I could take it off, strap it to the back and finish the ride like a dog with it's head out the window. I told him that I would love to but I was pretty sure my mom would kill me if I didn't wear one, and that I was pretty sure she had access to some NSA/CIA spy satellites and would know if I took it off. He laughed and we both went our own ways.
About an hour later I was cruising along at 70-75 on the freeway, where the speed limit was 75, and saw a car in the right hand lane that was traveling below the speed limit. I gently eased out into the left hand lane and started making my way by the car. Around the time that I came up even with the driver side door, something grabbed my front tire/wheel and forced me hard to the left toward the dirt median between the north and southbound lanes. The last thing I actually remember was hitting the rumble strips. According to the Highway Patrol accident report, and my dad looking at the scene later, I had gotten into the deep ruts in the pavement, and forced off the road. When I left the road surface I actually almost saved it, fishtailing a bit before starting to fight it back and forth. Apparently on one of the swerves back to the left, I hit a piece of the blacktop that was sticking out.
My front tire then dug in and I was thrown over the handlebars and windshield of my Road King. I then lawn darted, hit head first at an estimated between 60-65 mph head first. My head, neck, and back took almost all of the impact, I miraculously didn't tumble at all. The bike tumbled after me As the bike tumbled by and over me, something on it grabbed the heavy leather jacket that I was wearing, exposing my left arm, which was clothed in a light fleece jacket. As the bike continued to tumble, it's exhaust made contact with the fleece and melted most of the left arm of the fleece to the exhaust, but amazingly didn't crush or burn me at all. The bike then continued past me and came to rest a short distance from me. The lady I was passing stopped and immediately called 911, but the ambulance personnel were not the first medical professionals on scene. The first one on scene was an ER nurse from Nevada who happened to be passing by southbound at the same time. She stopped immediately and rendered aid.
I was out for about 10-15 minutes and came to about 5 minutes or so before the ambulance got there. Another miracle that day was that one of only 3 or 4 major trauma centers in Montana was only about 20 or so miles away. I was transported there and was seen by a back surgeon within a very short time of arriving. I was diagnosed with compression fractures of 4 vertebrae in my upper back, a severe concussion, and some soft tissue damage to my neck.
I was in ICU for three days and another room for 2 more days. In those 5 days I have about 5 memories. The first memory wa realizing that my nurse was rediculously hot, and also had a giant diamond ring on her finger. The second memory was hallucinating about my mom's little dog running in circles in the corner of the room even though it was 120 or so miles away. The third was eating jerky but having zero recollection of where I got it, turns out my uncle had come by and talked to me for about two hours then as he was leavingm given me a large bag of homemade deer or elk jerky.
The forth memory was possibly the biggest shot to the ego that I have ever had. After eating my first solid meal in several days, I had to go to the bathroom, I hit the call button and called the nurse like I was told to do if I needed to so. The nurse came in and I told her that I needed to use the restroom. She then asked me if I needed help and if I would be standing up or sitting down. I told her I would be sitting down. She said that if I was sure that I could do it that she would let me do it on my own, but would be available to help if need be. I went in, did my business, grabbed some TP and went to wipe. Unfortunately I was unable to reach because of my injury and the brace that I was in. I looked around the room and tried to figure out how i could mcgyver something, even thought about propping myself up in the sink and trying to clean it out that way.....no luck though, I couldn't figure out any way whatsoever to do it myself. I then swallowed my pride and called the nurse into the bathroom. I told her what happened, and what I needed, and she did it without complaining at all to me.
My last memory in the hospital was the very last day, where my dad had to grab some clothes for me to wear for the about 2 hour ride back to their house. He bought me some cargo pants and asked me what I wanted to wear on top. I told him I didn't care, so he grabbed me a Harley tshirt. I found it funny, and he did as well, but when we got home to my parents' house my mother didn't find it quite as funny.
I spent a while recovering in their house before flying back home since my bike had been totalled, and I would have been in no shape to ride anyhow. In all the time since the accident I have realized how truly blessed I was. I have never been a real religious person, but realized at you can only write so many things off to luck. My helmet may have been the only thing on this planet to save my life, but something else had to have had a hand in it.
I have been struggling to decide whether or not to ride again, go back and forth every day about it. I would love to hear about other people who went through similar situations and ideas for recovery. I find out today in about 13 hours if I have to get surgery, or if I just start PT.
Ride safe and as great philosophers once said "Be excellent to each other."
Around mid June I left my home in the southwest for an approximately 1300 mile one way ride to my parents' house in the Northern Rockies. I had a pleasant and uneventful first day of the ride and had made about 750 miles in the first day without issue. I got a great night's sleep in a hotel in Utah, got up, and ate a good meal.
My second day was going to be a little shorter distance than the first day, and all freeway, and would only include driving through one major city (Salt Lake.) Around noon I stopped and got a small meal and a little caffeine in an Applebees in Idaho. A gas stop or two later I was in Montana and was BSing with an old guy on a BMW crotch rocket type bike. He told me that Montana had no helmet law and I could take it off, strap it to the back and finish the ride like a dog with it's head out the window. I told him that I would love to but I was pretty sure my mom would kill me if I didn't wear one, and that I was pretty sure she had access to some NSA/CIA spy satellites and would know if I took it off. He laughed and we both went our own ways.
About an hour later I was cruising along at 70-75 on the freeway, where the speed limit was 75, and saw a car in the right hand lane that was traveling below the speed limit. I gently eased out into the left hand lane and started making my way by the car. Around the time that I came up even with the driver side door, something grabbed my front tire/wheel and forced me hard to the left toward the dirt median between the north and southbound lanes. The last thing I actually remember was hitting the rumble strips. According to the Highway Patrol accident report, and my dad looking at the scene later, I had gotten into the deep ruts in the pavement, and forced off the road. When I left the road surface I actually almost saved it, fishtailing a bit before starting to fight it back and forth. Apparently on one of the swerves back to the left, I hit a piece of the blacktop that was sticking out.
My front tire then dug in and I was thrown over the handlebars and windshield of my Road King. I then lawn darted, hit head first at an estimated between 60-65 mph head first. My head, neck, and back took almost all of the impact, I miraculously didn't tumble at all. The bike tumbled after me As the bike tumbled by and over me, something on it grabbed the heavy leather jacket that I was wearing, exposing my left arm, which was clothed in a light fleece jacket. As the bike continued to tumble, it's exhaust made contact with the fleece and melted most of the left arm of the fleece to the exhaust, but amazingly didn't crush or burn me at all. The bike then continued past me and came to rest a short distance from me. The lady I was passing stopped and immediately called 911, but the ambulance personnel were not the first medical professionals on scene. The first one on scene was an ER nurse from Nevada who happened to be passing by southbound at the same time. She stopped immediately and rendered aid.
I was out for about 10-15 minutes and came to about 5 minutes or so before the ambulance got there. Another miracle that day was that one of only 3 or 4 major trauma centers in Montana was only about 20 or so miles away. I was transported there and was seen by a back surgeon within a very short time of arriving. I was diagnosed with compression fractures of 4 vertebrae in my upper back, a severe concussion, and some soft tissue damage to my neck.
I was in ICU for three days and another room for 2 more days. In those 5 days I have about 5 memories. The first memory wa realizing that my nurse was rediculously hot, and also had a giant diamond ring on her finger. The second memory was hallucinating about my mom's little dog running in circles in the corner of the room even though it was 120 or so miles away. The third was eating jerky but having zero recollection of where I got it, turns out my uncle had come by and talked to me for about two hours then as he was leavingm given me a large bag of homemade deer or elk jerky.
The forth memory was possibly the biggest shot to the ego that I have ever had. After eating my first solid meal in several days, I had to go to the bathroom, I hit the call button and called the nurse like I was told to do if I needed to so. The nurse came in and I told her that I needed to use the restroom. She then asked me if I needed help and if I would be standing up or sitting down. I told her I would be sitting down. She said that if I was sure that I could do it that she would let me do it on my own, but would be available to help if need be. I went in, did my business, grabbed some TP and went to wipe. Unfortunately I was unable to reach because of my injury and the brace that I was in. I looked around the room and tried to figure out how i could mcgyver something, even thought about propping myself up in the sink and trying to clean it out that way.....no luck though, I couldn't figure out any way whatsoever to do it myself. I then swallowed my pride and called the nurse into the bathroom. I told her what happened, and what I needed, and she did it without complaining at all to me.
My last memory in the hospital was the very last day, where my dad had to grab some clothes for me to wear for the about 2 hour ride back to their house. He bought me some cargo pants and asked me what I wanted to wear on top. I told him I didn't care, so he grabbed me a Harley tshirt. I found it funny, and he did as well, but when we got home to my parents' house my mother didn't find it quite as funny.
I spent a while recovering in their house before flying back home since my bike had been totalled, and I would have been in no shape to ride anyhow. In all the time since the accident I have realized how truly blessed I was. I have never been a real religious person, but realized at you can only write so many things off to luck. My helmet may have been the only thing on this planet to save my life, but something else had to have had a hand in it.
I have been struggling to decide whether or not to ride again, go back and forth every day about it. I would love to hear about other people who went through similar situations and ideas for recovery. I find out today in about 13 hours if I have to get surgery, or if I just start PT.
Ride safe and as great philosophers once said "Be excellent to each other."
