[BWB75]

There have been bumps and tipovers at 0mph before, but today I got hit hard. Some guy was going hell-for-leather straight into an intersection with a red light and full of stopped cars. It was like he had his eyes closed and his foot on the gas. I was one of the stopped vehicles, and happened to be the one he hit.

I saw him coming in the rear view and had left a little get-away room. I let off the brakes and got moving but he was too fast.

Terrible things happened to the bike. Nothing at all happened to me. I departed the motorcycle and rolled backwards onto the hood of his car just as he stopped. I just sort of stood up. Not a scratch, even on the gear. Was glad for the back protector and for being in good overall physical shape. I don't know if they will total out the bike, but the hit was enough to squish the spoke rear wheel.

Several takeaways.

Look in your rearview as soon as you stop. I might have gained an extra second just by checking faster. Note that this guy wasn't there as I approached the intersection. He showed up after I stopped. There might have been one extra second in there that might have enabled an escape. Or not.

Wear gear. Mine didn't play much of a role, today, but that wasn't my choice. Once the hit happened, there was zero opportunity to shape outcomes. Only pre-existing reflexes (who knows where they came from), physical conditioning, and gear had anything to do with it. Whatever you think you will do in a crash, you won't. It's over before you can process anything. Everything you can do to mitigate the damage is stuff you did before you got on the bike.

Think twice about riding when things are weird. Maybe this guy had been cooped up with his kids all week and freaked out. Who knows? But he was damned sure gonna plow his car into someone at that intersection. Pure chance it was me.

Another weird thing: the cops asked about the damage to the front of his car. "Oh, no," he said. "That was from another time."

Me: Drrrp.

 

[RonK]

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Thanks for sharing. Glad you're okay.

--

 

[BWB75]

Thanks, Ron. Was one of those things that can happen. I do all the things they teach in the parking lot courses, and they did help. A lot, probably. Had the presence of mind to reduce the impact when I knew the accident was going to happen. Happy about that.

But still: Wow. Sometimes the other guy just gets you. I've never crashed on the road, even in horrible conditions. Never let traffic create a situation that couldn't be avoided. I may suck at riding fast, but I do ride safe. But some random guy who is just out of his mind during a pandemic? How do you plan for that?

I do feel like a much more experienced rider. Not sure what to do with it, but there it is.

Been browsing the motorcycle company websites. Wonder if the BMW R1250GT can be adapted to short people....

 

[RonK]

...

Been browsing the motorcycle company websites. Wonder if the BMW R1250GT can be adapted to short people....

--

Well, I understand yours is now a little shorter. ??

--

 

[BWB75]

 

[SemiFast]

It was like he had his eyes closed and his foot on the gas. I was one of the stopped vehicles, and happened to be the one he hit.

I had that happen to me one time. The guy was blind drunk, no insurance of course.
It didn't total the bike but it bashed me pretty good. The police didn't site him for the crash, said he could make a deal to get out of the DWI if there were two charges against him.
I payed a lawyer to write a letter to the drunk and/or his lawyer. Six months later he paid me actual bike and equipment damages plus what I lost for time off work.
I never asked for pain and suffering money, or a related doctor visit later on. I'm thinking his lawyer told him to pay me what little I was asking for before I sued for real money.

Glad you didn't get hurt BWB75. Sorry about your bike.
S F

 

[SemiFast]

View attachment 61260

Ouch !

 

[BWB75]

This is one of those situations, however rare, when it might have been worse in a car. At least with a motorcycle the rider detached from the vehicle. No whiplash, no head into steering wheel, no impact to the body. All the bad stuff happened to the bike, not the rider. I could have been driving a dump truck and this dude would have hit me. Because the bike jumped out from under, I was removed from the situation. Not saying motorcycles are generally safe, but in this case, with a kamikaze coming into a crowded intersection, it was an advantage.

I went back to work. Didn't even miss the 1300 meeting. The biggest impacts were that I missed lunch and the dogs didn't get let out. One of them ate my slipper.

 

[hogcowboy]

I saw him coming in the rear view and had left a little get-away room.

Glad you left yourself that option. It's one thing we try to remind people of when they have to stop at intersection. I would hate to think what would have happened had you not left yourself that option or not got rolling at all. That's just too close to really bad stuff. Bikes can be replaced or fixed. Body or body parts can be iffy. You done good!!!

 

[ZXT10D]

Terrible things happened to the bike. Nothing at all happened to me.

Sorry to hear about your misfortune, glad you didn't get hurt.

Think twice about riding when things are weird. Maybe this guy had been cooped up with his kids all week and freaked out. Who knows?

I have seen a few drivers running red lights in the last couple of weeks.
The pandemic seems to have affected our ability to concentrate on
driving.

 

[mike721]

Damn! I'm so glad your OK, that could have been deadly! Well done minimizing the impact, it sounds like you almost escaped.
Sorry about the bike, but you'll get another one, that's the easy part..though buying one right now might be a challenge depending on the lockdown in your area.

 

[meierjn]

Glad that you are OK. Hopefully there are no underlying/undetected issues that pop up later. Is your bike fixable or is it a write off?

 

[RogerC60]

Like others have already said, glad you're okay! Thanks for the reminder to always check behind and always wear the gear. Hope you can get your bike fixed or replaced soon!

 

[BWB75]

Thanks, all. The bike is set for delivery to a local HD shop for assessment. We'll see what happens! In the end, it's just a machine.

I confess to having browsed the BMW and Triumph websites just a little bit.

 

[Critter]

Glad you are okay, let us know how you feel in the morning please,

 

[BWB75]

Amazingly enough, aside from some sore tendons in my neck (which is pretty mild), I feel fine today. Thank you for asking, Critter!

 

[Porky]

Praise GOD you are okay!

I'm sure you let your Insurance co know what happened and his too but saying you are okay physically isn't a good idea because your body can take a while to get sore and worse!

I was hit head on in 1988 by a Kid that turned left in front of me but I was in my Heavy Narc car, a 1984, 4 door Dodge Diplomat and thank GOD and not on my bike! His smaller car wasn't able to drive away but he wasn't hurt. My bumper on the left front was bent into the LF tire but we pulled it out so I could drive it. I had my shoulder harness seat belt on but I still bent the steering wheel at a 45 degree angle and hit my knee on something under the steering column but I felt fine and told the CHP LEO so. He wanted me to take the Ambulance that he'd automatically called but I told him I felt fine and I did, aside from being shook up. He told me that lots of people don't feel problems until the next day.

I went home, took a soak in the hot tub and felt Okay until the next morning when I couldn't even walk! Went to the Hospital because I could barely feel my right leg. After all kinds of MRI's and Cat scans, I had severely crushed lower spine that caused me to walk with a drop step and permanent partial paralysis disability. I was off work for 5 months.

I pray you really are okay!

Sam

 

[BWB75]

Wow, Porky, that is a really scary story! I hope I'm okay, too! I hope you were not in too much pain and that you had insurance for the lost income and good people around you.

I did the same exactly thing you did, by the way, only there was a beverage consumed while in the hot tub. Woke up feeling fine this morning.

Might be best to have a beverage in the hot tub every night this week, just to make sure.

 

[Paula HD]

Wow, Scary! Very glad your ok and sorry about the bike

 

[Retired Guy]

Glad you survived relatively unharmed. I hope your bike is repairable and not totaled out.

When I was first learning to ride, back in the olden days, I was told to watch out for the car behind when I stopped at an intersection. To find an escape route "just in case".

Sounds like you had an escape route, just needed an extra second or two. Your experience is a reminder to the rest of us.