Run into
08-30-2012, 12:22 PM
#1
When in doubt, C4
Squid
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Venice, FL
Posts: 72
Run into
If you know me and my riding etiquette, you know I'm over prepared for the worst to happen by wearing all my riding gear and having crash protection.
Well, the inevitable happened Tuesday night, August 21st, on my ride home after work.... I was turned (left) into by a negligent driver of a Honda minivan, who not only failed to use his turn signal, but also failed to yield at the right of way. I was hit on the right side near the rear of my bike, spun 180* and ejected from my bike. Luckily I dropped the hammer a little and managed to get the rear of the bike hit instead of hitting me directly in the leg and tossing me over the van. I tumbled 3 or 4 times but popped right back up on my feet, rushed over to my bike, (that was now banging on the rev limiter) turned it off, then hobbled back to the curb where I started to just drop. I eased my decent as much as I could before completely laying on my back in pain. My helmet ended up taking a fair amount of the possible damage, my riding jacket had some scuffs, my jeans took most of the abrasions damage and left me without any asphalt under my skin. Thankfully, only my jeans had to be cut off after paramedics arrived to take me to hospital.
From what I was told by the FHP trooper as he delivered the crash report to me, the minivan driver contested with both FHP and SRQ Sheriffs that he was not at fault, but both found him in the wrong being in the outside lane of the roundabout and turning left into me. He never even bothered to see if I was ok at the scene of the crash.
I was taken to Venice Hospital via ambulance on a stretcher to make sure there were no injuries to my back or neck. After about 25 x-rays of various areas, there were no other broken bones than my left thumb, and my right ring finger. I also had a few bruises on my knees and a sprained right ankle. I also picked up the nickname "Superman" from the nursing staff, lol.
I cannot stress how lucky I was and glad I made the promise to always wear my riding gear, because I could have been in far worse shape than I was.
There's no worse feeling than seeing a front bumper coming into you and nothing you can do about it
Well, the inevitable happened Tuesday night, August 21st, on my ride home after work.... I was turned (left) into by a negligent driver of a Honda minivan, who not only failed to use his turn signal, but also failed to yield at the right of way. I was hit on the right side near the rear of my bike, spun 180* and ejected from my bike. Luckily I dropped the hammer a little and managed to get the rear of the bike hit instead of hitting me directly in the leg and tossing me over the van. I tumbled 3 or 4 times but popped right back up on my feet, rushed over to my bike, (that was now banging on the rev limiter) turned it off, then hobbled back to the curb where I started to just drop. I eased my decent as much as I could before completely laying on my back in pain. My helmet ended up taking a fair amount of the possible damage, my riding jacket had some scuffs, my jeans took most of the abrasions damage and left me without any asphalt under my skin. Thankfully, only my jeans had to be cut off after paramedics arrived to take me to hospital.
From what I was told by the FHP trooper as he delivered the crash report to me, the minivan driver contested with both FHP and SRQ Sheriffs that he was not at fault, but both found him in the wrong being in the outside lane of the roundabout and turning left into me. He never even bothered to see if I was ok at the scene of the crash.
I was taken to Venice Hospital via ambulance on a stretcher to make sure there were no injuries to my back or neck. After about 25 x-rays of various areas, there were no other broken bones than my left thumb, and my right ring finger. I also had a few bruises on my knees and a sprained right ankle. I also picked up the nickname "Superman" from the nursing staff, lol.
I cannot stress how lucky I was and glad I made the promise to always wear my riding gear, because I could have been in far worse shape than I was.
There's no worse feeling than seeing a front bumper coming into you and nothing you can do about it
08-30-2012, 12:37 PM
#2
the boss
SuperBike
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: largo,fl
Posts: 1,182
dam,that really sucks,these cagers and their left turns.its getting to be too much.
glad you made it out ok,no broken bones is a good thing.
are you gonna fix the bike,hope so.cant let these fools get you down.
GWS
glad you made it out ok,no broken bones is a good thing.
are you gonna fix the bike,hope so.cant let these fools get you down.
GWS
08-30-2012, 12:53 PM
#3
Well take off, eh.
SuperBike
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: QC, Canada
Posts: 1,201
Good riding gear goes a long way.
I hope this will not stop your love for riding, and good luck with the rest of this drama.
08-30-2012, 12:57 PM
#4
When in doubt, C4
Squid
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Venice, FL
Posts: 72
Already spoken to an attorney, have 2 witnesses, and have a specialist appointment tomorrow for my injuries sustained. hoping for them to shell out for the repairs, if not, my totaled lowest amount will cover for an RC51 
I have to be careful with my left hand and the carpal bone that was cracked, I have the possibility of losing full function of my hand as I'm told. I'll be out for blood if that happens 
I have to be careful with my left hand and the carpal bone that was cracked, I have the possibility of losing full function of my hand as I'm told. I'll be out for blood if that happens
08-30-2012, 02:02 PM
#5
Senior Member
SuperBike
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Menifee, CA
Posts: 1,082
Notice how it's never their fault? I say sue the bastard for as muc as you can get from his insurance. Here in CA you usually can't get anything half the time because they're illegals with no license or insurance!
08-30-2012, 02:15 PM
#6
Senior Member
Superstock
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 344
I've heard this before...what happens to these people when the cops arrive? I would hope they go straight to INS and get deported or whatever...
08-30-2012, 02:31 PM
#7
Senior Member
SuperSport
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 807
It takes a few days before all the aches, pains and bruises surface. It sounds like you've done all you can to put your case against the negligent driver together. I hope you're able to get this settled sooner rather than later and that you heal completely, mentally and physically. Thanks for posting.
08-30-2012, 02:48 PM
#8
When in doubt, C4
Squid
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Venice, FL
Posts: 72
It takes a few days before all the aches, pains and bruises surface. It sounds like you've done all you can to put your case against the negligent driver together. I hope you're able to get this settled sooner rather than later and that you heal completely, mentally and physically. Thanks for posting.
08-30-2012, 02:54 PM
#9
When in doubt, C4
Squid
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Venice, FL
Posts: 72
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08-30-2012, 05:45 PM
#11
Moderator
MotoGP
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Gettysburg, Pa
Posts: 5,072
Hell yeah, if minivan is trying to get out of blame, push back hard!
Glad to see you doing well. The gear, the gear, the gear, it really makes all the difference. Rash isn't fun, I speak from experience (20 years ago though). Stories like this make me think about hi-vis stuff. It really sticks out.
Keep us posted on your progress Andrew.
Glad to see you doing well. The gear, the gear, the gear, it really makes all the difference. Rash isn't fun, I speak from experience (20 years ago though). Stories like this make me think about hi-vis stuff. It really sticks out.
Keep us posted on your progress Andrew.
08-30-2012, 06:30 PM
#12
When in doubt, C4
Squid
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Venice, FL
Posts: 72
Hell yeah, if minivan is trying to get out of blame, push back hard!
Glad to see you doing well. The gear, the gear, the gear, it really makes all the difference. Rash isn't fun, I speak from experience (20 years ago though). Stories like this make me think about hi-vis stuff. It really sticks out.
Keep us posted on your progress Andrew.
Glad to see you doing well. The gear, the gear, the gear, it really makes all the difference. Rash isn't fun, I speak from experience (20 years ago though). Stories like this make me think about hi-vis stuff. It really sticks out.
Keep us posted on your progress Andrew.
As far as the gear goes, I've actually priced out both a set of leathers and a 2-piece leather suit to go with a new helmet. Nothing less than that anymore for me. I'd rather walk away I'm disgust than not be able to walk away at all.
Last edited by Sawzall86; 08-30-2012 at 07:30 PM.
08-30-2012, 07:30 PM
#13
Senior Member
MotoGP
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: altoona, pa
Posts: 2,934
Motorcycles are too easy to miss based on my scary experiences, and the inordinate number of left-turn accidents documented today would alone seem to warrant more extreme defensive measures.
Whatever, the essential element here is to figure out why this guy turned in front of you and try to use this info to avoid the same from occurring again because no matter who's right or wrong, we typically come out on the short end.
Heal quick brother!
08-30-2012, 08:20 PM
#15
When in doubt, C4
Squid
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Venice, FL
Posts: 72
bright is right for daylight traffic IMO..........I always run high beams daylight and low beams night of course in city because I've had drivers turn in front of me on multiple occasions with lows on during daylight hours.
Motorcycles are too easy to miss based on my scary experiences, and the inordinate number of left-turn accidents documented today would alone seem to warrant more extreme defensive measures.
Whatever, the essential element here is to figure out why this guy turned in front of you and try to use this info to avoid the same from occurring again because no matter who's right or wrong, we typically come out on the short end.
Heal quick brother!
Motorcycles are too easy to miss based on my scary experiences, and the inordinate number of left-turn accidents documented today would alone seem to warrant more extreme defensive measures.
Whatever, the essential element here is to figure out why this guy turned in front of you and try to use this info to avoid the same from occurring again because no matter who's right or wrong, we typically come out on the short end.
Heal quick brother!
Either way, I'm all in the clear on this one.I get what you're saying about the lights though, the more visible you make yourself, hopefully the more visible you are to others. I might get the wheels coated flo yellow or orange now, lol.
08-30-2012, 08:26 PM
#16
Senior Member
MotoGP
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 3,869
Very glad to see you survived, and to see your gear helped with that!
I think nath is already moving onto the next step is all... He's not trying to help defend your current compensation (as legally you seem to be on the right path here), but after recovering a bit, it always good to look at what could have been done to prevent the accident.
Recover well!
I think nath is already moving onto the next step is all... He's not trying to help defend your current compensation (as legally you seem to be on the right path here), but after recovering a bit, it always good to look at what could have been done to prevent the accident.
Recover well!
08-30-2012, 08:45 PM
#17
When in doubt, C4
Squid
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Venice, FL
Posts: 72
Very glad to see you survived, and to see your gear helped with that!
I think nath is already moving onto the next step is all... He's not trying to help defend your current compensation (as legally you seem to be on the right path here), but after recovering a bit, it always good to look at what could have been done to prevent the accident.
Recover well!
I think nath is already moving onto the next step is all... He's not trying to help defend your current compensation (as legally you seem to be on the right path here), but after recovering a bit, it always good to look at what could have been done to prevent the accident.
Recover well!
I am thinking white paint with florescent wheels though, seriously 
The guy didn't bother to signal or yield and thought he wasn't at fault because he figured the outside lane, even though it's a circle, still allowed you to turn left without even considering the inside lane having the right of way. We both entered from the same starting point, he was in the right (outside) lane, and I was in the left (inside) lane. The signs show the right (outside lane) from our same entrance point has to either turn right, or go straight across. The left (inside) lane turns either left, or straight across. There was one vehicle in front of me, nearly 4 car lengths, and he was in a group of 4, with the car ahead of him going straight. He failed to look, signal, or yield.
Last edited by Sawzall86; 08-30-2012 at 08:51 PM.
08-31-2012, 05:53 AM
#18
Senior Member
Back Marker
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Hagerstown, MD
Posts: 211
Wow Glad you made it out OK. I recently had a similar experience with an escalade and its a scary situation no doubt.
I have been running my High beams during the day since I have been riding due to suggestion from my father who has been riding for 40+ years and I can attest to anything additional to show people you are around is essential.
Though if they are reading texts in their lap there isn't much you can do unfortunately (drivers these days are way to distracted). At the end of the day I feel that unless these people are raped at the wallet they wont change their driving habits. So far the only one effected in your incident is you and they are still out and about being a tard face. I say teach them a lesson and if it hurts them financially then they will second guess the left turn.
Usually conscience will say other wise but if you tell your conscience that the guy who hit you could care less about your safety, it should shut up. Mine does every time I throw a spark plug or break a window or dent a hood.
Glad your ok though and happy to see your in good spirit.
I have been running my High beams during the day since I have been riding due to suggestion from my father who has been riding for 40+ years and I can attest to anything additional to show people you are around is essential.
Though if they are reading texts in their lap there isn't much you can do unfortunately (drivers these days are way to distracted). At the end of the day I feel that unless these people are raped at the wallet they wont change their driving habits. So far the only one effected in your incident is you and they are still out and about being a tard face. I say teach them a lesson and if it hurts them financially then they will second guess the left turn.
Usually conscience will say other wise but if you tell your conscience that the guy who hit you could care less about your safety, it should shut up. Mine does every time I throw a spark plug or break a window or dent a hood.
Glad your ok though and happy to see your in good spirit.
08-31-2012, 07:52 AM
#19
Junior Member
Squid
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 6
Man, glad you are okay! That van took more damage than I imagined when reading your post. Looks like you got blasted!
Roundabouts are so sketchy with bad drivers, I can't count how many times I've had people drift from one lane to another or realize they're in the wrong lane and urgently change.
I live in Indianapolis and I frequently ride through Carmel, Indiana...Here's a quick snippet from Wiki about it:
"Carmel has become the unofficial roundabout capital of USA, due to the mayor of Carmel, Jim Brainard, installing over 80 roundabouts and demolishing 78 sets of traffic signals. Jim Brainard say "We have more than any other city in the US."
That's a frack ton of roundabouts and a buttload of bad drivers. Shiz gets scary when they fly into them in an SUV like it's an F1 car in a chicane or something. Tires squealing, never staying in their lane, reckless abandon, texting "OMG ON MY WAY TO SOCCER PRACTICE W/ THE KIDS!"
Glad you made it out, and hope you get well/fixed up! Stick it to them as much as you can. Accidents are accidents, gross negligence is just bad though.
Roundabouts are so sketchy with bad drivers, I can't count how many times I've had people drift from one lane to another or realize they're in the wrong lane and urgently change.
I live in Indianapolis and I frequently ride through Carmel, Indiana...Here's a quick snippet from Wiki about it:
"Carmel has become the unofficial roundabout capital of USA, due to the mayor of Carmel, Jim Brainard, installing over 80 roundabouts and demolishing 78 sets of traffic signals. Jim Brainard say "We have more than any other city in the US."
That's a frack ton of roundabouts and a buttload of bad drivers. Shiz gets scary when they fly into them in an SUV like it's an F1 car in a chicane or something. Tires squealing, never staying in their lane, reckless abandon, texting "OMG ON MY WAY TO SOCCER PRACTICE W/ THE KIDS!"
Glad you made it out, and hope you get well/fixed up! Stick it to them as much as you can. Accidents are accidents, gross negligence is just bad though.
08-31-2012, 08:16 AM
#20
Senior Member
MotoGP
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 3,869
At this point it's not really even a frustration, it's more of a fascination. I always want to follow those people throughout their day and see how they handle other adverse situations.
08-31-2012, 11:58 AM
#22
Junior Member
Squid
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 6
That's almost better than here, though. We've only got a couple scattered on in the smaller roads and people not only don't pay attention, they flat out don't know how to use them. I've seen on multiple occasions people turn down the wrong direction at a roundabout (treating it as stop sign) like they've never seen one before.
At this point it's not really even a frustration, it's more of a fascination. I always want to follow those people throughout their day and see how they handle other adverse situations.
At this point it's not really even a frustration, it's more of a fascination. I always want to follow those people throughout their day and see how they handle other adverse situations.
Agreed, I don't know how these people drive everywhere in such a manner and keep their cars in one piece.
Edit-Found a picture of one. The worst part is probably when cars are about to go into it, they have to look backwards because of the entry angle and can't see **** because of the pedestrian bridge railings.
Last edited by Yollasho; 08-31-2012 at 12:02 PM. Reason: picture of roundabout!
08-31-2012, 12:04 PM
#23
Senior Member
Superstock
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 344
We need gas to go up to about 8 dollars per gallon for 1-2 years, get all the SUV douchebags off the road, then slowly come back down...that would be just about perfect...I would happily pay the extra cost to accomplish that, even at the rate the SH sucks down gas.
08-31-2012, 08:15 PM
#24
Senior Member
MotoGP
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: altoona, pa
Posts: 2,934
09-01-2012, 03:17 AM
#25
Out of my mind, back in 5
MotoGP
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Skurup, Sweden
Posts: 6,109
I guess I ain't rigth in the head...
09-03-2012, 01:53 PM
#27
When in doubt, C4
Squid
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Venice, FL
Posts: 72
Man, glad you are okay! That van took more damage than I imagined when reading your post. Looks like you got blasted!
Glad you made it out, and hope you get well/fixed up! Stick it to them as much as you can. Accidents are accidents, gross negligence is just bad though.
Glad you made it out, and hope you get well/fixed up! Stick it to them as much as you can. Accidents are accidents, gross negligence is just bad though.
I'll keep you posted, you get your black box yet?Wow Glad you made it out OK. I recently had a similar experience with an escalade and its a scary situation no doubt.
Usually conscience will say other wise but if you tell your conscience that the guy who hit you could care less about your safety, it should shut up. Mine does every time I throw a spark plug or break a window or dent a hood.
Glad your ok though and happy to see your in good spirit.
Usually conscience will say other wise but if you tell your conscience that the guy who hit you could care less about your safety, it should shut up. Mine does every time I throw a spark plug or break a window or dent a hood.
Glad your ok though and happy to see your in good spirit.
I'm keeping as high of spirits as possible, doing what I can to keep my mind off of it, but for the first few days I'd get jerked from sleep reliving the experience in my dreams with my broken hands clenching for what I could I'm going to start keeping spark plug fragments on my person for future events though.Thanks everyone for your support and kind words, this is one of the best forums I've been on to date, like a big family here
09-04-2012, 09:32 PM
#28
SportTouring
Superstock
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Hawaii
Posts: 274
Sorry to hear about your incident. You are alive and will be riding again. ATGATT
does prove its benefits, though unfortunately only after been proven.
Speedy recovery to your body and person. The nights can be long.
One thing I thought of upon reading your posts was about the frame slider being stuck in his bumper. Mine sticks out a good deal(about 3-4 inches). That frame slider took abut 3 inches of impact to your leg. Maybe another positive point to a frame slider, at least in your case. Heal Well my Friend...
does prove its benefits, though unfortunately only after been proven.
Speedy recovery to your body and person. The nights can be long.
One thing I thought of upon reading your posts was about the frame slider being stuck in his bumper. Mine sticks out a good deal(about 3-4 inches). That frame slider took abut 3 inches of impact to your leg. Maybe another positive point to a frame slider, at least in your case. Heal Well my Friend...
09-04-2012, 09:58 PM
#29
When in doubt, C4
Squid
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Venice, FL
Posts: 72
Sorry to hear about your incident. You are alive and will be riding again. ATGATT
does prove its benefits, though unfortunately only after been proven.
Speedy recovery to your body and person. The nights can be long.
One thing I thought of upon reading your posts was about the frame slider being stuck in his bumper. Mine sticks out a good deal(about 3-4 inches). That frame slider took abut 3 inches of impact to your leg. Maybe another positive point to a frame slider, at least in your case. Heal Well my Friend...
does prove its benefits, though unfortunately only after been proven.
Speedy recovery to your body and person. The nights can be long.
One thing I thought of upon reading your posts was about the frame slider being stuck in his bumper. Mine sticks out a good deal(about 3-4 inches). That frame slider took abut 3 inches of impact to your leg. Maybe another positive point to a frame slider, at least in your case. Heal Well my Friend...
Had my first rehab session today, and another one tomorrow. Good news though, the other guys insurance adjuster decided they should remove my bike from the tow yard, so nothing out of pocket from me to get it moved from one point to another, where I know people who work there
I gave them permission to move it to my approved location, but not release it to them, as I also confirmed to my attorney so no shady **** goes on.Lady at the towing company was pretty snooty with me after I showed proof of ownership this morning. So I told her specific instructions twice about it being moved and not released to them (insurance company), then I told her if she had any further concerns, she could call my attorney, gave her his card and left with nothing else said
09-04-2012, 10:36 PM
#30
SportTouring
Superstock
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Hawaii
Posts: 274
Thats good to hear that you are able to take care of your affairs. You are able to function cognitively.
Your bike actually took care of you best it could. It can be repaired if you choose/are able to. Once it is in safe hands you can concentrate on your repair of your self. Take it easy as you can. Wishing you a speedy recovery.
Best wishes from a fellowforum member in Hawaii.
Your bike actually took care of you best it could. It can be repaired if you choose/are able to. Once it is in safe hands you can concentrate on your repair of your self. Take it easy as you can. Wishing you a speedy recovery.
Best wishes from a fellowforum member in Hawaii.
