Site Index
Crash Poll Stories, Spring
The Crash Poll has become a popular place and the page has become BIG, so I broke the stories into seasons of the year.The topic of "get-off's" came up and the stories started, many have found them very educational and some find them entertaining. A real study into the details of how and why motorcycle accidents are what they are. Read This! Spring Time Stories Summer Time Stories Fall Time Stories Winter Time Stories On Road?: yes Model Year: 89 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 22 Comments: Way back in 1990 when I was brand spankin' new to this sport I went down on my used 250 Ninja twice. First was in my neighborhood in Queens, NYC stopping at a red light. The Transit Authority was replacing subway tracks on the elevated #7 line and had sections of track down on the street as they worked on them. This was going on for weeks and I guess a lot of oil and grease had gathered on the street. Well, as everyone knows by now, applying the front break on this stuff sent my front wheel sliding to the right. It was a loosing battle as I tried to keep the bike from falling over but my feet were sliding as well! Rest is history--I laugh at it now!! Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: No Model: 250cc'c Bike Make: Kawasaki 250 Ninja Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: No Model Year: 1995 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 26 Comments -------------------- Fully loaded KLR with camping gear. First few months of ownership of said KLR. First time off-road on any bike. We're on a dirt road in Baja. I'm with about 4-5 people out of a large group of 12 or so. We come to a water crossing. We pause to allow a car to go through it before us -- to show us where the shallow part is evidently. After the car goes through, the first motorcycle goes through. Eventually comes my turn. I stand on the pegs and go for it. About halfway through, the water drag catches up with me. Reminds me of water-skiing. :) Get all the way through the water, and start climbing the hill to stop with the rest of the group. I touch my brakes to stop, and the bike tips over to the left. Immediately, my friends pick up my bike and admonish me not to touch the front brake in dirt. KLR emerges unscathed -- mostly. Scratches are character on a bike like this. :) -------------------- Loaded?: yes season: Spring Group?: yes Model: KLR650A9 Bike Make: Kawasaki Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: yes Model Year: 95 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 40 Comments -------------------- Gravel truck in front of me broke a hydraulic line and coated the pavement with hydraulic fluid. I was going about 35-40 mph and went down. Gino -------------------- Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: No Model: KLR650 Bike Make: Kawasaki Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: yes Model Year: 85 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 17 Comments: just cruizing down a back country road ,when a small doe decided to commit suecide .i was doing about 85 and went down,not sure how it happened really fast.got up dizzy as all hell and stumbled to side of road.went to hospital by way of ambulance and by the grace of god no serious injurys. Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: No Model: 650 Bike Make: yamaha Helmet?: yes DUI?: yes On Road?: yes Model Year: 89 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 31 Comments -------------------- Stoned on pot, Small residential street in Oakland, CA. A car that was parallel parked along side the curb pointing the same direction as I was traveling, attempted a U-turn and blocked both lanes of traffic. I was traveling 35-40 mph and had about 2-3 secs to react. I hit the car and was thrown clear of the bike and car, landing in the street. Bike was totaled, I took my self to my doctor the next day. No broken bones, or road rash but very black and blue. Stiff neck, laid up in bed for 2 days. Other driver was found to be at 100% fault and was citated by police. Settled out of court for $3500 pain and suffering plus about another $5500 for damages. That was may of '92. Took two years off cycles and bought another KLR in '95. Wear ballastic pads now and observe speed limits in cities and residential streets. -------------------- Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: No Model: KLR650 Bike Make: Kawasaki Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: yes Model Year: 91 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 25 Comments -------------------- It was only about my third day riding (after having completed an MSF course about three months earlier). I was pulling out of my driveway, saw a lot of sand/gravel in the road and panicked (sp?). I grabbed too much brake, the front end slid until it hit the curb. When the wheel hit the curb the bike went right down with the rear sliding a bit until it, too hit the curve. All in all, I think it was a pretty gentle introduction to motorcycle mishaps. This is so mild, does it even count? All I had to replace was a turnsignal, and live with a some scratches on the left side of the bike. (BTW, now when I leave my driveway, I gas it when the rear wheel hits that ever-present sandy spot to get the bike to fishtail a little.) -------------------- Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: No Model: EX500 Bike Make: Kawasaki Helmet?: yes DUI?: No Model: 500 On Road?: yes Model Year: 83 hurt: No Rider Age: 35 Comments -------------------- I was just learning to ride. I wouldn't call it a crash. I'd call it a low speed dump. I stopped with the handle bars turned. -------------------- Loaded?: No season: Spring Bike Make: Kawasaki EX500 Group?: yes Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: yes Model Year: 1997 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 71 Comments: Two lane rural state highway in forested area. Deer emerges from trees at speed leaps off bank into the clip on area and a low side results. 80 mph. Several fractures in the hands and concussion. Minor damage to motorbike. Just bummed but riding in short order. Deer are a grave threat in Siskiyou county, N. Ca Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: No Model: 955 cc Bike Make: Triumph T595 Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: yes Model Year: 1998 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 49 Comments -------------------- Coming out of a left hand hair pin already rolling on the throttle and passed through a diesel fuel spill and rear tire gave 'way. Slid about 40 feet on pavement. Required new shift lever, clutch lever, new grips, and about $80 of repair to my Darien pants. -------------------- Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: yes Model: 651 Bike Make: KLR 650 Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: yes Model Year: 1999 2-up?: yes Hurt: yes Rider Age: 21 Comments -------------------- Going through my favorite set of curves with my buddy on the back. Just broke in my bike and was looking to flirt with the redline and max-lean. Always gave my friend a ride to work. Every time we went into a curve, I would lean in and he would lean the opposite way. I grew accustomed to this style of riding until one day my friend decided to lean with me. We high sided and he was thrown off the back and hit the guard rail and only suffered a broken coller-bone. I on the other hand ruined my new set of leathers and 500 Shark helmet! I landed in a ditch 15ft off the edge and to top it off my bike landed on my hip!! Broke my femer and my hip!! Still have to walk with a cane and I have fake hip sockets. Doc says that in a few months I can leave the cane behind and atempt to ride. I've already tried but I can't even lift my leg high enough to get it over my seat. My bike suffered a bent set of forks, handle bars look like a pretzel, and swingarm looks like an L. My insurence covered it all, thank god I had it. Would've cost me 5 grand it fix it!!!! -------------------- Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: No Model: 650 Bike Make: Suzuki Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: yes Model Year: 1998 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 49 Comments -------------------- May of 1999, just a few weeks before Moab. Carving curves in the north Georgia mountains. Coming out of a left hand hairpin, already rolling on the throttle and the rear tire hit some fuel oil, intentionally poured on the road. The rear tire broke away and I was on my left side sliding down the road. Speed was about 35-40. Have Pelican cases on the back and they slide real good. The bike starts to pull away from me and I let it. It does a 360 on its left side before going off the opposite side of the road. The only thing I could think of was the $800 I paid for the Darien outfit I was wearing. WORTH EVERY PENNY!! I got up and surveyed damage to myself first. No blood! Left knee of pants totalled but armor kept flesh off the pavement. Additional damage to hip area, but again the suit took the brunt. Next surveyed the bike. Scuff on the Pelican, tiny scuff at bottom of left fork, scuff on end of highway pegs(they were extended), bent but not broken clutch lever and! shift lever. Removed shift lever and straightened us the triangle bracket that the passenger footpegs are mounted on. Made it back to the house, about 70 miles, and ordered a new shifter from Fred. Have slowed don't significantly since the accident. Suffered from bruises and stiffness. Guess its my age creeping up on me. The other effect of the accident is that I don't go anywhere without my protective gear. A lesson I learned the EASY way. -------------------- Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: yes Model: 650 Bike Make: Kawasaki KLR 650 Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: yes Model Year: 1973 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 18 Comments: Beautiful spring day, I'm 18 and immortal, my beater Honda howling through shot four into fours, way too fast in backcountry Virginia. I hit a turn way hot, and the threadbare rear lets go. I countersteer, recover, but not enough, and into a ditch I go at about 45 mph. I go down faster than I can see--one second I'm up--then just tremendous acceleration and impact and I'm down. Fairing, clutch, left side pegs smashed, all 700+ pounds of bike lying on my numb left leg. I manage to get up...feeling comes back to my leg...I was amazed that it wasn't broken. Cop comes by, helps me out of the ditch, and I speed shift My left forearm is one massive blood-blister, my leg bruised up--but dirt absorbed much of the impact. Very lucky. No doubt--my helmet saved my life. Ride safe. Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: No Model: CB750 Bike Make: Honda Helmet?: yes DUI?: No On Road?: yes Model Year: 89? 2-up?: No Hurt: No Rider Age: 22 Comments -------------------- Side swiped by car (they in left lane, I was in right), lost control, slid across highway, ended up being greeted by oncoming traffic with my face 3 feet from the bumper of a VW bug. (car/driver who hit me left scene) Driver rolled down window and said, "Are you ok?" I said, "Ugm.. I think so," as I attempted to stand up. They replied, "ok, can you get you and your bike out of the road because you're tying up traffic." Big sustained minimal damage and started after 4 pushes of the button. Right hand guard was torn up and handlebars were out of alignment. My leg was saved because when the bike fell over on to my right leg as we slid across the road, the steel shank boots took the brunt of the impact. My head never touched the pavement and I remember sort of sliding on my back/side and watching the whole thing in semi-slow motion and even uttering "oh S$%@#t!" as the whole scene took place. I sold the bike a few weeks later not because it was damaged, but because I had a hard time riding a bike I was almost killed on. -------------------- Loaded?: No season: Spring Group?: No Model: 650 Bike Make: KLR-650 Helmet?: yes Bike Make: Italian amf HD Comments: Car in front if me didn't have any brake lights. I had to dive over to the shoulder and lay the bike down when the car slammed on it's brake in front of me. DUI: no Dirt Or Road: Road Helmet: yes In A Group: no Injured: no Loaded With Gear: no Model: SX250 Model Year: 1976 Rider Age: 18 Two Up: no Season: Spring Bike Make: Kawasaki 650 KLR Comments: Wind Shear is all I can Say. I was topping a hill and over on the other side I hit a strong wind shear that pushed me off the edge of the road. I would have been fine but there was a mud ledge created by a big truck tire which flipped me right on my side. Cracked two ribs on me, Bent the Handlebars and ripped off the left side Radiator panel of my brothers brand new KLR. He was pretty cool about it. He was more happy that I'm OK. I just bought a 03 KLR with 1236 Miles and I'm ready to hit the road. I will say one thing I under stand the concept of Counter steering now! DUI: no Dirt Or Road: Road Helmet: yes In A Group: no Injured: no Loaded With Gear: no Model: 650 Model Year: 2004 Rider Age: 31 Two Up: no Season: Spring -------------------- I understand your situation 100%. While riding two up, loaded with two weeks of gear on my KLR, just north of Las Vegas, I found wind. Sixty mile per hour gusts coming from the mountains to our west. The wind was STRONG, filled with sand and the temp was a mild 100+ F. We were canted into the wind at a pretty steep angle to stay on the pavement, until the curve. The bike was leaning to the left as we needed to make a long sweeper to the right, running about fifty miles per hour. I made my first "reverse" lean corner; leaning to the left, turning to the right! Through some act of natural physics, we righted our lean angle gracefully, with the wind supporting us and ending at our backs. I have had many experienced riders tell me many different ways to ride in wind, but I can tell you from history, the safest way to ride in the wind is to avoid it. Editor Bike Make: moto guzzi Comments: ceterpunched a chevy wagon that made a left hand turn in front of me. she didn't see me. (of course!) DUI: no Dirt Or Road: Road Helmet: yes In A Group: no Injured: yes Loaded With Gear: no Model: 85l Le manns Model Year: 1976 Rider Age: 21 Two Up: no Season: Spring Bike Make: KLR650 Comments: looks like i'm in the 3% catagory according to your faq. i was riding with my girlfriend and the back tire lost it due to a valve stem failure. i was doing about 65, but got it down to somewhere between 25 and 35. by myself, i prolly could have saved it, but with a passenger the fishtailing was too much- laid it down and ground an inch off of my handlebar and bent my shifter. otherwise the bike was undamaged- i just got a road rash on my hip. unfortunately my girlfriend did a couple of cartwheels, but wasnt seriously hurt. so of all the causes of accidents i suppose i was in the lucky 3 percent. DUI: no Dirt Or Road: Road Helmet: no In A Group: no Injured: no Loaded With Gear: no Model: 650 Model Year: 2001 Rider Age: 34 Two Up: yes Season: Spring Bike Make: Yamaha Comments: Believe it or not, I was test riding the bike at the dealer. As I came from around the back of the building, I blipped the throttle a bit while executing a partial lean on the paved parking lot (just seal coated). The back end slipped out, so I tried my best to save that brand new bike. I should have let it go (it slid anyway) but instead sprained my ankle, pulled all of the muscles on my right side, and tore most of the skin off of my right forearm and hand. I couldn't raise my right arm for about 4 weeks without inducing spasms all up and down my side. I still get a spasm once in a while 10 years later... DUI: no Dirt Or Road: Road Helmet: yes In A Group: no Injured: yes Loaded With Gear: no Model: 180 Model Year: 1990'ish Rider Age: 30'ish Two Up: no Season: Spring Bike Make: Kawasaki Comments: I had just finished some carb work at a friend's house and was on my way home enjoying the KZ's new found power from correctly jetted carbs. I downshift to first as I round the last corner to my house and grab one last handful of throttle and to my surprise, the KZ did a throttle wheelie, but continued to accelerate when I rotated forward. (the #3 carb clamp rotated just enough upon installation to catch the linkage at WOT) I am quicly eating up the 200 yards between me and parked cars and the rear brake is giving little resopnse so I grab a handful of front brake and lowside the KZ. After some "blacktop acrobatics", I come to rest a foot from rolling under the rear of a parked van. The KZ's momentum took it a little further and it slid just enough to wedge the handle bars under the rear bumper of my neighbor's parked Honda Prelude. My helmet never touched the ground throughout this whole ordeal until I hurled it in disgust after looking at my scratched, dented, bent KZ. I escaped with some road rash and 4 stitches to close up a puncture wound in my elbow caused by the keys which were ripped out of my front pocket through my jeans which also left a pretty nasty bruise on my thigh. I was pretty lucky. Chuck DUI: no Dirt Or Road: Road Helmet: yes In A Group: no Injured: no Loaded With Gear: no Model: KZ 1000 Model Year: 1981 Rider Age: 27 Two Up: no Season: Spring Bike Make: Kawasaki Comments: On duty, as a motor officer, a DUI driver turned left in front of my partner and I. We hit his minivan broadside. My partner was launched over the minivan, landed 80 feet later and died at the hospital. I crushed my skull, broke my arm, wrist, back and hip. 9 months later, I was back to work again. 12 months after that, I was back on a police motor chasing speeders down. It was life altering. Two things I learned from the crash: People are mortal. You can crash and burn even if you didn't make a mistake. DUI: no Dirt Or Road: Road Helmet: yes In A Group: yes Injured: yes Loaded With Gear: yes Model: KZ1000-P Model Year: 1999 Rider Age: 29 Two Up: no Season: Spring if you have or want changes to any of the stories you submitted, drop me an e-mail, I'll do what I can... |
Back to the Main Page!
This Page Copyright By The Reverend Chuck MacKarness, 1998 -> 2007. Please Make Requests To The Site Owner Rev. Chuck
For Permission To Use Any Images Or Content Contained In This Web Site.
All Other Content Is Copyrighted By Its Respective Owners.
For Permission To Use Any Images Or Content Contained In This Web Site.
All Other Content Is Copyrighted By Its Respective Owners.