[Texasppo]

I’m posting from my ER bed, struggling to type. I was on my way to pick up medication for my dog and an online order. Nice enough day for a ride, so I took my bike. A car pulled into a gas station, and as I passed changed their mind and pulled out, cutting me off. I hit my brakes, the car clipped my front wheel. My bike flipped forward, I was thrown hard to the ground on my right side. Helmet saved me from a smashed brain box, gloves saved my hands, leather saved my hide. I did break my right clavicle, shoulder blade, and most of my right ribs are fractured in my back. No punctured organs, a little road rash on my right knee. Waiting to find out if I am getting surgery or if I’m getting my right arm immobilized for a few weeks for things to heal. Bike looked scuffed, one bag shattered, I think it’s mostly good. I’ll find out when I talk to insurance.

Glad to hear that you are still with us. Please take care of yourself and thanks for sharing your story.

 

[JRLinTN]

I just finished this thread. I am pleased to hear you escaped with injuries no worse than you did, although you had some very serious injuries. Please post further as you go through the recovery process and get back to riding.

Your safety gear helped mitigate your injuries. All should read that into your postings. I wish you the best.

 

[John jd]

I just finished this thread. I am pleased to hear you escaped with injuries no worse than you did, although you had some very serious injuries. Please post further as you go through the recovery process and get back to riding.

Your safety gear helped mitigate your injuries. All should read that into your postings. I wish you the best.

Yes, Safety Gear. Here in the state of Florida,you can ride without insurance IF you wear a helmet. You can also ride without a helmet if your bike is insured, up to $10,000 coverage I believe. Me personally, I insure my ride and ride with a helmet on. Even though I now know that my '17 ol dog Vulcan s will never get too much insurance money if it's ever totaled out/too old and too much mileage, the blue book value can't be much...... Still,for me, better safe than sorry..... Also, luckily full coverage on my bike only cost's me around $350.00 year, & that's for Full coverage........

 

[AJ_Burque]

Been resting and dealing with insurance and doctors. I get clavicle Open Reduction and Internal Fixation surgery in a couple weeks, hopefully I'll be back on my bike by February.

Insurance finally ruled it was the driver's fault. Cops never found the car. Unfortunately, hit and runs are common in this state, and our unsolved rates are up there, because we're fairly spread out and have understaffed police departments.

Insurance is working with me. Bike's got some hidden cosmetic bumps and scratches... So do I. The tank got a ding, and the lower pipe got a scratch and dent. I can live with the damage, if I ask for replacement it'll total the bike because labor is included in the repair estimate. I can take a depreciation value, about half the value of the replacement parts... That works for me. I saw some take off pipes in the buy sell that might fit my bike, that'll work just fine. I can send out my ECU to get it flashed while I'm down. My brake lever got some rash, also. I don't mind that, either. My concerns are the bags and the engine guard. They saved the bike, and probably my right leg and hip as the bike threw me down. I might see if I can get the tank replaced without totaling.

Grandfather taught me to ride when I was 8. I've been street riding 34 years, since I was 14. I've taken the MSF twice, and the advanced rider course twice. I've had my endorsement for 25 years. I had to redo my endorsement 18 years ago, when I moved from state to state and they didn't check the MC endorsement box, that's why I took the MSF twice, and I think it was a good thing. I had gotten lazy and picked up bad habits

Yes, I healed well physically. Now mentally, that's a different story, never had all smarts I wanted and wreck didn't add any.

Got a temp bike pretty quickly, Guess it's temp, still have it.

Bike buying help.

OK, y'all know I wrecked my bike and it's totaled. Need something quick as a temp ride, I just couldn't let @BlueRibbonRM beat me in the Monthly Challenge. Came across this add and going to look at it tomorrow after work. I know bikes well, but not the 900. Anything special I should check out...

www.vulcanforums.com

Then only resenty bought my permanent two up ride after deciding what was best for wife and I.

Need some experienced input

Getting settled in to my cabin and it's time for a permanent two up bike since I totaled my Electra Glide for Carla and I. I'm looking for first hand riding experience on a trike. Would actually like a Harley trike, but cost of a later model with lower miles is the biggest hurdle. The Cam-Am...

www.vulcanforums.com

Make sure you take time and heal. The healing time will seem to slow, but in the future you will thank yourself when everything is working.

If insurance company does total, I've got a few pointers on how to maximize the settlement on bike, just let me know.

Glad ya healed up. That's a nice bike and a nice trike!

Still liking the 900? They really are fun bikes. I've come to really like mine. When I got it, insurance/displacement was one reason I went with the 900. It was between the 900, a 1500, and a VMax 1300. I figured I might be able to tweak a few more HP and a few more # of torque outta it. That's how I found this site!

How are you liking the trike after a few months? Have you gotten used to not countersteering, and switching between bike and trike?

My favorite bike I've had was my Suzuki TL1000, a V-Twin sportbike with the craziest rear suspension. Insurance hated it.

I'm definitely taking my time healing. I already had physical therapy that I was attending. This will be adding to that.

I have bought a couple of vehicles both cars and bikes from the insurance when they wanted to total them. If your mechanical and the damage isn't that bad then it can be worth it.
If frame is bent or there is damage at the neck then you would be better off letting them pay you out. Some times its hard to see all the damage right off. The bike needs to be gone over carefully and all areas inspected to make sure all damage is known.
It also comes down to how attached you are to the bike for me i wouldn't let mine go with out a fight unless there was catastrophic damage but for others its just a bike.

At the end of the day your still here and your family still gets to sit with you for the holidays and that alone is worth more than any thing the insurance could offer.

I did that with my TL, after my big wreck, I fought them, when they wanted to total it I itemized with receipts. Carbon fiber is spendy. They just wrote a check for the parts. They WANTED to total it, the insurance adjuster was the first time I ever heard use the nickname "widow maker" for the TL. It helped that it was the other party's insurance in that instance.

My (adult) son came over yesterday to help me with the inspection and pictures for insurance. We went over the bike headlight to taillight. I was amazed at how the bags and bar took the damage. Checked all welds, checked for straightness and square, checked bearings and triple tree, swing arm, frame, undercarriage, axles, round of wheels, checked the bars to make sure they didn't get tweaked. Not a scratch on the important parts, that amazed me the most! Then I checked mechanical soundness. My bike's in better shape than me!

Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first, and the lesson afterwards. I hope your dog appreciates you and that you recover fast.

Thank you!
It was a remedial course ... And I passed my lessons last time! We keep getting lessons until that final lesson turns us back to soil. My doggie is Princess Khloe. She's my constant companion.

Glad to hear that you are still with us. Please take care of yourself and thanks for sharing your story.

Thank you! And, you're welcome. I am a firm believer in sharing the importance of gear. In the end, it's everyone's individual choice. I'm taking it easy and taking care of myself, as best as I can!

I just finished this thread. I am pleased to hear you escaped with injuries no worse than you did, although you had some very serious injuries. Please post further as you go through the recovery process and get back to riding.

Your safety gear helped mitigate your injuries. All should read that into your postings. I wish you the best.

Thank you.
I won't mince words. My helmet saved my life. And, the MIPS saved me from a new TBI. The neck protector inside the helmet kept me from re fracturing my C5 and C6 vertebra I didn't even "see stars." Without the helmet, I'd have caved my skull and temple.

That's right where I landed, and you can see the damage on the top, where the helmet rolled.
Gear saves lives.

When I would ask why we had to wear helmets, but other people riding didn't, my grandfather used to say "you protect what's important."

Yes, Safety Gear. Here in the state of Florida,you can ride without insurance IF you wear a helmet. You can also ride without a helmet if your bike is insured, up to $10,000 coverage I believe. Me personally, I insure my ride and ride with a helmet on. Even though I now know that my '17 ol dog Vulcan s will never get too much insurance money if it's ever totaled out/too old and too much mileage, the blue book value can't be much...... Still,for me, better safe than sorry..... Also, luckily full coverage on my bike only cost's me around $350.00 year, & that's for Full coverage........

We have mandatory insurance, but don't have mandatory helmet laws, that doesn't stop me from always gearing up! I've only ridden without a helmet 2 times in my life. Picking up a bike once, and to get a helmet once.

When I got insurance I doubled state minimum, with full coverage. I'm going to be throwing a zero behind everything. An exponential increase, I don't think I got enough. Like you, mine's only about 350 a year I can stand another few bucks. Medical is what I care about the most!

 

[Lesblank]

You definitely have a positive attitude about your incident. Hopefully your upcoming surgery will be successfully and healing is quick. Sounds like a win having your son give a second opinion about bike damage.

Still love the 900. No regrets on getting it. I'm loving the trike. My wife comes up several times a week and says let's go for a ride, first bike she has ever done this. She's extremely comfortable on it, even more than on the Electra Glide. You asked about going from 2 to 3 and back to 2 wheels, never an issue. I can jump off bike to trike without an issue. Some say I'm lucky for that. The trike takes more steering effort, but that was expected. The trike is a tad slower in corners, but only when really pushing it. To me the biggest issue jumping from one to the other is the trike is much more powerful, by a long shot, I mean like night and day. But you have to remember the trike is 114 ci, 1868 cc, compared to a 900. The 900 is my solo bike and trike my two up bike, works out well.

 

[AJ_Burque]

That's awesome about the bike and trike! You've probably posted about it elsewhere, I'm gonna get outta this thread and back to reading and exploring the site after this post!


About my attitude... After my accident on my TL, I had a brain injury that ended my corporate career. That cute dog in my avatar is actually a trained service animal. I got really frustrated and angry after that wreck. Wasn't my fault, shouldn't have happened... It took my life away. I didn't want the migraines, mood swings, memory loss, personality change, seizures, or medications. I was 32, I was hitting my professional stride, I was a corporate cyber security consultant and programmer and my salary was doubling annually... It was all "taken" after the accident. I had a very different attitude!

But, it WAS my choice to ride. It was an adult choice I had made. I had been riding for years, I knew the risks, I chose my bike, gear, helmet.

One big difference is that I've got help and a support structure in my life this time. I put my consulting business on pause. I called insurance, am going to - and LISTENING TO - my doctors. That angry attitude doesn't help. Things won't go perfect, but that's to be expected. I'm being proactive in getting things MADE RIGHT when they go awry.

We ride, we can expect to wreck, or more likely be wrecked by a cage. I gear up in case some cager tries to violate the laws of physics. When I gotta go in to the doctors, I can make a joke about my chihuahua besting me in a wrestling match. The laugh makes the truth a little better. And, the positive attitude makes healing faster.

Sharing our crash stories helps prepare new riders for the probable. Back in Catholic school the nuns used to say "everyone's an example, some people are just an example of how you shouldn't be." I don't wanna be THAT example.

 

[IC3/SS]

Been resting and dealing with insurance and doctors. I get clavicle Open Reduction and Internal Fixation surgery in a couple weeks, hopefully I'll be back on my bike by February.

Insurance finally ruled it was the driver's fault. Cops never found the car. Unfortunately, hit and runs are common in this state, and our unsolved rates are up there, because we're fairly spread out and have understaffed police departments.

Insurance is working with me. Bike's got some hidden cosmetic bumps and scratches... So do I. The tank got a ding, and the lower pipe got a scratch and dent. I can live with the damage, if I ask for replacement it'll total the bike because labor is included in the repair estimate. I can take a depreciation value, about half the value of the replacement parts... That works for me. I saw some take off pipes in the buy sell that might fit my bike, that'll work just fine. I can send out my ECU to get it flashed while I'm down. My brake lever got some rash, also. I don't mind that, either. My concerns are the bags and the engine guard. They saved the bike, and probably my right leg and hip as the bike threw me down. I might see if I can get the tank replaced without totaling.

Grandfather taught me to ride when I was 8. I've been street riding 34 years, since I was 14. I've taken the MSF twice, and the advanced rider course twice. I've had my endorsement for 25 years. I had to redo my endorsement 18 years ago, when I moved from state to state and they didn't check the MC endorsement box, that's why I took the MSF twice, and I think it was a good thing. I had gotten lazy and picked up bad habits



Glad ya healed up. That's a nice bike and a nice trike!

Still liking the 900? They really are fun bikes. I've come to really like mine. When I got it, insurance/displacement was one reason I went with the 900. It was between the 900, a 1500, and a VMax 1300. I figured I might be able to tweak a few more HP and a few more # of torque outta it. That's how I found this site!

How are you liking the trike after a few months? Have you gotten used to not countersteering, and switching between bike and trike?

My favorite bike I've had was my Suzuki TL1000, a V-Twin sportbike with the craziest rear suspension. Insurance hated it.

I'm definitely taking my time healing. I already had physical therapy that I was attending. This will be adding to that.



I did that with my TL, after my big wreck, I fought them, when they wanted to total it I itemized with receipts. Carbon fiber is spendy. They just wrote a check for the parts. They WANTED to total it, the insurance adjuster was the first time I ever heard use the nickname "widow maker" for the TL. It helped that it was the other party's insurance in that instance.

My (adult) son came over yesterday to help me with the inspection and pictures for insurance. We went over the bike headlight to taillight. I was amazed at how the bags and bar took the damage. Checked all welds, checked for straightness and square, checked bearings and triple tree, swing arm, frame, undercarriage, axles, round of wheels, checked the bars to make sure they didn't get tweaked. Not a scratch on the important parts, that amazed me the most! Then I checked mechanical soundness. My bike's in better shape than me!



Thank you!
It was a remedial course ... And I passed my lessons last time! We keep getting lessons until that final lesson turns us back to soil. My doggie is Princess Khloe. She's my constant companion.



Thank you! And, you're welcome. I am a firm believer in sharing the importance of gear. In the end, it's everyone's individual choice. I'm taking it easy and taking care of myself, as best as I can!



Thank you.
I won't mince words. My helmet saved my life. And, the MIPS saved me from a new TBI. The neck protector inside the helmet kept me from re fracturing my C5 and C6 vertebra I didn't even "see stars." Without the helmet, I'd have caved my skull and temple.

View attachment 259199
That's right where I landed, and you can see the damage on the top, where the helmet rolled.
Gear saves lives.

When I would ask why we had to wear helmets, but other people riding didn't, my grandfather used to say "you protect what's important."



We have mandatory insurance, but don't have mandatory helmet laws, that doesn't stop me from always gearing up! I've only ridden without a helmet 2 times in my life. Picking up a bike once, and to get a helmet once.

When I got insurance I doubled state minimum, with full coverage. I'm going to be throwing a zero behind everything. An exponential increase, I don't think I got enough. Like you, mine's only about 350 a year I can stand another few bucks. Medical is what I care about the most!

Thanks for the full update. I am glad to hear you are so positive through this. You are an inspiration to those who have something like this happen in the future.
Heal well and completely.
My clip by a cage was NO clip. He ran a red light just after coming off the highway. It cost me a Naval career, my lower right leg, and the most comfortable pair of boots I have ever owned. I was just past 21 then and I am still riding 35 years later. The VA has just asked if I would in peer support for amputees that want to keep riding or learn how to ride.
It will help me remembering helpful information having read your post.

 

[DannyC]

I won't mince words. My helmet saved my life. And, the MIPS saved me from a new TBI. The neck protector inside the helmet kept me from re fracturing my C5 and C6 vertebra I didn't even "see stars." Without the helmet, I'd have caved my skull and temple.

That's right where I landed, and you can see the damage on the top, where the helmet rolled.
Gear saves lives.

When I would ask why we had to wear helmets, but other people riding didn't, my grandfather used to say "you protect what's important." Same goes for any activity with a risk - if I'm at the range shooting my automatic pistol from https://gritrsports.com/shooting/firearms/pistols/ - I'm sure as hell using glasses.

We have mandatory insurance, but don't have mandatory helmet laws, that doesn't stop me from always gearing up! I've only ridden without a helmet 2 times in my life. Picking up a bike once, and to get a helmet once.

When I got insurance I doubled state minimum, with full coverage. I'm going to be throwing a zero behind everything. An exponential increase, I don't think I got enough. Like you, mine's only about 350 a year I can stand another few bucks. Medical is what I care about the most!

Holy moly, that's the best ad for helmets ever... Glad I've always been using one now, no real incidents for me(and I hope it keeps being so).