I crashed today (several days ago)

[yappahgo]

(edit: this is the same post from Tuesday night - I just changed the title because...it's not "today" anymore...sorry if there's any confusion!)

Just now. I was coming back from Home Depot. Reached my street, decided to keep going. Just tool around a little, enjoy the night.

I turned down an empty street. Shifted up a couple times, probably. I'm not sure how fast I was going, but I was trying to work the engine, not go slow. Probably only 30mph. I hit a speed table and only had time for two thoughts before I was sliding.

This is bad, I don't have control. Now I'm crashing.

Some parallel mental process figured out that it was a speed table. I don't know why I didn't see it coming up. There's probably a big yellow diamond warning sign. And I've ridden that street before several times.

I watched the bike slide along next to me. It made sparks. It kept running until I went to pick it up, then burped oil and stopped. The right side cover is gone. Same thing happened to me, actually. I lost two square inches of skin on my knee and another four on my hip.

I got the bike up on the second try, just as some strangers reached me. I said "I'm fine," a lot, took off my gloves and threw my helmet into someone's yard. Two of the strangers had European accents. They helped me check the road for pieces of bike, asked if I needed to call anyone ("no, I only live a few blocks away") and offered me a soda.

I'll put up some pictures of the damage later. I got off really easy for being such a jackass. Riding hard in the dark, what was I thinking?

I don't know what I'm going to tell the people who care about me, who are justifiably concerned that this is how I'm spending my time. This was caused by poor judgment, nothing else. That could have been a child or somebody's pet. I'm an @$$hole and I'm lucky I only hurt myself.

Getting the bike back to my garage wasn't too much of a struggle. Now I'm on my stoop.

Next step is disinfect these wounds. Thanks for reading.

(edit: autocorrect)

[Shinji]

I hope your okay! Alcohol, peroxide,neosporin, and proper bandages! After that if the wounds are bad you might need stitches and if you think your well enough to not need a visit to the ER you should still take a visit to your PCP. There could always be under laying problems you can't see.

Feel free to take this advice from a former first responder and fire fighter.

-Shin

[supermarvio23]

Glad you're okay enough to even post to the page. Good luck on the recovery process, God bless

[JAS6377]

The most important things are that you're okay, and you've realized where you went wrong. I wrecked 2 years ago because I was inexperienced and tried to trail brake a wide corner with gravel on it. The most damage was to the bike and my pride. But, I'm still riding, and it's the same bike, just rebuilt, with more goodies. I'm also not afraid to tell my friends how and why I went down. Just be thankful it wasn't worse, and take away from it what you can. Good luck, yap. You know we're here for you.

[robfriedenberger]

Glad your ok, don't be to hard on your self it was an accident and your learned from it. The more I ride the more I learn about how I ride and where my limits are, think about it you didn't just learn how hard the ground is or how important gear is, you learned out how your body reacts and what you could of done different. The easy answer is to say "turned into the drive way" or "went slower" only you know the  real answer.

I hate to say it but I ride for those moments when you find your limits and push them. I've locked up my front wheel, poped the front wheel up in the air a few feel, and pushed in it the corners harder than I should of. All you can do is use your best judgment, get good gear, and better insurance. 

[codajastal]

As long as you are ok and have learned something all will be fine.

[prmas]

I too am glad that you had no serious injuries. The bike can be easily fixed. I have to ask though, what is a "speed table"? It is not an expression that I am familiar with. 

Macka

[robfriedenberger]

Speed table I guess is like a speed bump for us mericans? or maybe a slightly larger one thats long and drawn out?

[Jimbob]

i had no idea either so i looked it up its a speed bump with a large flat around in the middle

[yappahgo]

I got the bbcode wrong. Will fix later.

Exhaust



Crank cover



Crank cover from below, with crack visible



Gas tank (previously had no dents)



Front brake fluid reservoir



Guage housing



Headlight (chunk of glass missing, housing roughed flat where it slid)



Turn signal (scraped)



Was going to post my road rash as links, but no need really. It's road rash. I do have a deep bruise inside my hip with no surface color. I'll be watching that for internal bleeding. I'm currently gauzed up under my clothes. 30 bucks at CVS for bandages, triple antibiotic ointment and isopropyl.

Thanks for the kind words.

[Gorilla]

damn man that's too bad.

Don't worry we all fall. Good luck!

[robfriedenberger]

Man it looks like you go off lucky as far as the bike! Other than the gas tank things will be pretty cheap.

Wish you the best of luck with road rash, just stay positive. I'd suggest going to a doctor they might prescribe silvadene cream which will help with the burning and also help it heal up very quickly.

MY wife got a 3rd degree burn on her leg from an exhaust pipe, she put some of that on there, she was as good as new in a few weeks.

[Shinji]

Man it looks like you go off lucky as far as the bike! Other than the gas tank things will be pretty cheap.

Wish you the best of luck with road rash, just stay positive. I'd suggest going to a doctor they might prescribe silvadene cream which will help with the burning and also help it heal up very quickly.

MY wife got a 3rd degree burn on her leg from an exhaust pipe, she put some of that on there, she was as good as new in a few weeks.

After the wounds start to heal, consider putting Mederma on them to help prevent/minimizing scaring

[yappahgo]

(Fixed the images, above. BBcode is hard.)

I got nervous this afternoon about the internal bleeding risk. I was feeling lightheaded, couldn't focus. Then I realized I hadn't eaten since lunch, and I always get starved around 4pm. Had a couple granola bars, now I'm good. If my hip soreness doesn't feel better in the morning I'll think about going for the CT scan for internal bleeding...

After the wounds start to heal, consider putting Mederma on them to help prevent/minimizing scaring

Thanks, I'll look for it. The really deep one is my knee, and a scar there wouldn't bee too noticeable. On my hip it's not too deep.

I'd suggest going to a doctor they might prescribe silvadene cream which will help with the burning

Great. I guess I do have some burns from the heat of the friction...I was mostly thinking about abrasions before.

[Joolstacho]

Mate, you've got pain enough without beating yourself up about it.
It happens to the best of us, the bike is easily fixable, so look on the bright side.
BTW I've fixed a engine cover that looked just like that, although mine wasn't cracked -it would need alloy welding.
File the deep scratches out, then go through grades of wet 'n dry to about 800 then polish it and stick a rubber blind grommet in the hole.

[jacob92icu]

Like everyone has said, dont beat yourself up too bad man. The damages to the bike are minimal compared to what they could be. I once rode off the side of the road on the freeway cause I wasnt paying attention... Felt like an idiot and got over it. Everybody crashes, getting back up and on the saddle is the most important thing.

Glad you are ok!!

[rexpepper651]

i crashed once. dont be so hard on yourself i was nothing good came of it. i also was being an idiot. had bad rash on my ankle and hip and almost broke my pinky. you have way worse damage to the bike then i did but i wasnt caught off guard as badly.  now you know what its like to crash and learned how to not do it!

[robfriedenberger]

Since every one is talking about their crash story's.... I had a 74 Yamaha tx500 (street bike) that I took on an atv trail following a buddy, well going around a muddy turn i flipped the bike on my self. My buddy Seen the entire thing, I think god I was able to walk away with Only a few scrapes and a burn. Some do us are bigger idiots, I was going to fast and used my front brake.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[AnonRider]

Were you wearing any protection at all? I always wear my kevlar lined pants, kneed/shin guards and my heavy duty armored jacket and gloves for fear of moments like these.

[yappahgo]

 

Were you wearing any protection at all?

Geriecke (sp?) leather jacket with foam shoulder and elbow pads, Joe Rocket gloves with thermo formed knuckles. They did their jobs. My hands are fine and my shoulder took a slam (still sore) but practically no damage except where the jacket slid up. A bunch of the leather scrubbed off the shoulder, but the stitches held. I'll probably still wear it until I find a better one.

The HJC helmet should probably be tossed, but I didn't smack my head, just scraped up a 2-inch circle on the shell.

If I'd been wearing foam or plastic knee pads (or even Kevlar jeans) and had the jacked zipped to my pants so it wouldn't slide up, there wouldn't be any scars.

One of my boots got mangled pretty well, even picked up some "character". The paracord laces held the shoes on my feet but burned through, actually fused in a few spots.

BTW I've fixed a engine cover that looked just like that, although mine wasn't cracked -it would need alloy welding.

That's good to hear. I figured that part would be a loss. I was just happy to see that the bigger pieces of the engine were OK. I don't know who I can talk to for alloy welding. Is that the usual sort of welding that they do for aluminum? I don't have any welding experience. Closest I've come is sweating pipes. I could fab that part in a machine shop though, if I can't find a replacement or someone to weld it. I can't weld but I know my way around a lathe.