Man Down; Okay though; bike not so much

[glwilson]

Well...

400 miles ride and less than two miles from home; turned left onto a two-lane rural road that was covered in some type of oil. I didn't see the oil slick. It just looked like it would regularly. (No one is sure what the oil is -- looks like vegetable oil.

Police are calling the county about the problem; and are manning the area until the county brings sand out to cover-up the oil and a warning sign.) One cop about fell on his butt walking on the stuff. Like I said, it looks like vegetable oil -- not road oil.

Bike went down and tumbled end-over-end. Just about everything on it has some sort of damage from the tumbling.

I went hands first to the pavement (couldn't help it). Side of helmet hit the pavement hard; as did my left shoulder. I tuck and rolled for quite a few feet. Came up a bloody mess. Cars witnesses it and several stopped and called an ambulance. I didn't argue; since I wasn't sure what hurt; or was bleeding.

Bike looks totaled from what I can see; if not it is nearly so.

Me, I have a small gash on my left chin; a large-gash in the palm of my right hand. Sternum hurts really bad from the impact of the pavement (although it didn't hit the pavement); but the shoulder did -- probably causing the sternum to hurt. (Pavement is real hard no matter how slow you might be going.)

Was wearing leather chaps, heavy coat, and a helmet. I had just taken off my gloves at the stop prior. Had been wearing them all day. If I had them on I wouldn't have been cut on the hand. Otherwise; my gear kept me from more injuries, I am sure.

Ambulance medics checked me over and allowed me to go home first. Waiting for my wife to get home to take me to the Urgent Care for stitches and x-rays.

Pictures and details later.

WATCH OUT FOR ANYTHING THAT LOOKS LIKE IT MIGHT BE SLICK!! It will take you out in a split-second!

[cactusjack]

Oh man! I am so sorry to hear this, Greg. I hope you have no serious injuries. Having just gone through a similar experience myself, I can empathize with you. It ain't no fun!

[cajun2wheels]

Sure hate to hear that but at least you are here to tell us about it.It doesn't look like there is anything you could have done to avoid this.Please keep us updated.

[sly]

Get well soon...

[Cajunrider]

Very sorry to hear of your slide/crash Greg. Happy that you aren't banged up worse than what you are. My wife witnessed a guy on a crotch rocket crash into the left rear fender of a car that turned left in front of him. He was following the car too closely and evidently wasn't paying close attention when the guy put his turn signal on and slowed to make his turn. Wife said he flew over the trunk of the car and flipped end over end then hit the pavement. Many exited their vehicles to render assistance and were on their cell phones calling 911. LEO showed up shortly after. She said he was lying on his back and wasn't responding. Mom and Dad witnessed a rider pile into the rear of a stopped/slow moving vehicle this morning. He was wearing a non DOT lid and was bleeding from his nose. He was responsive though. In those cases, inattentiveness appeared to be the factor. In your case, someone elses negligence or a busted hydraulic hose put you down. Not much you can do about that if you don't notice the slick in time. Hope you heal up quickly and aren't too sore for the next few days. A bruised sternum can be a nightmare for quite some time. Take care my friend.

[Top Cat]

Glad your not to bad off Greg.
Sorry about the bike. Probably totaled.
Lets see, CJ totals a Nomad and buys a Harley.
Does Greg total a Harley and buy a Nomad ???

[cactusjack]

Originally Posted by Top Cat (TC)

Glad your not to bad off Greg.
Sorry about the bike. Probably totaled.
Lets see, CJ totals a Nomad and buys a Harley.
Does Greg total a Harley and buy a Nomad ???

Not unless he hit his head really hard.

[usranger74]

Sorry to hear about your accident but glad to see you can tell us about it.

[Loafer]

Greg, Sorry to hear of this news. I hit the pavement 11 years ago with my left shoulder. It felt weird for a few days, so I went to a chiropractor. When I laid down on his table face first, two ribs popped at the sternum. Hurt real bad, but it was what was wrong. Listen to your body, and do what is needed for a good recovery. Best of luck with everything. Gerry

[flavor]

Been down on oil mixed with water. Slid a long way. I was told an oil truck had his hose dragging along the ground and leaking oil as he went. What a surprise.

Glad you're OK Greg.

[paul]

Sorry about the bike, glad you can tell the tale. Pavement Hurts! Oil on the road in unlikely places scares the bejeebers outa me.

[Netnorske]

Ooooohhh......damn Greg! Really sorry to hear of this. Bikes can be replaced.....body parts not so much. That just sucks and its stuff like that that we as riders have zero control over.

We had a local rider killed here last week when a cager ran a stop light... :'(. Hard to figure stuff like that and we all have to put our faith on the line when we saddle up that we don't get caught up in uncontrollable things....but as Greg's incident shows.....sometimes we can't avoid it.

I hope you aren't too banged up and heal quickly buddy....certainly by September.... ;). Good luck getting your ride taken care of as well.... :-/.

[AlabamaNomadRider]

Sorry to hear of your misfortune Greg. Glad you aren't in any worse shape than it appears.

Could have been one of those tanker trucks hauling vegetable oil with a loose hose.

[oldbikers]

Sorry to hear this Greg I hope that you heal real quick.

[ringadingh]

Sorry to hear that Greg, I had the exact same thing happen on my Suzuki GSX1100 back in 85. I went down so fast I didn't know what happened, the oil actually allowed me to slide and an didn't get hurt at all, but the bike was a total loss. I just remember sliding and tumbling and the bike going end over end, I came off at about 65mph so I considor myself very lucky. Hopefully your injuries are not too severe and youll be back up riding before long.