Hawk Down - Red Light Rear Ended
 

I think indie got hit harder, but I was rear ended while stopped at a red light today.

My wife and I were riding home from breakfast at 12:40pm, stopped at a red light in the right lane next to a Suzuki Samurai. About 5 seconds or so later...WHAM! My bike goes shooting out from under me, I go over the tail, feet in the air, and land on my back under the bumper of an '05 Tacoma Prerunner driven by a 19 year old. He told the Deputy that he and his passenger were looking at a girl on a bicycle.

My bike ended up about 20 feet forward from where I had been stopped at the crosswalk, and there was an 8' long skid mark from my front tire. I was in neutral and had 2 fingers on the front brake. I checked my mirrors when the light turned red and we were coming to a slow, normal stop, there was nobody behind us at that time.

My wife was the really lucky one, since he missed her by inches (she was in the right tire track). When she put her sidestand down and stepped off to see if I was alive, her left clip-on was 6 inches away from the Tacoma's passenger door.

My back is sore, I got transported to the hospital for x-ray, no broken bones. But my bike is trashed, it ended up on the right side.

Both cans are now semi high mounts, muffler hangers bent.
Right fairing cracked below turn signal and has slight rash in 3 spots.
Right turn signal smashed.
Both brake levers bent.
Left foot peg mount broken.
Clutch cover rashed.
Rear cowl cracked and license plate bent from impact.
I may find more when I look at it closer, it's in the bed of my truck now.

His front bumper and grill were broken.

I'm pissed and upset with a broken '05 VTR1000F.:mad:

Man im glad your ok at least. People ar so retarded. San Clemente huh. I used to live in Mission Viejo.

Bummers about your SH, Surfer...glad you checked out okay...

that is awful. my biggest fear. am very glad you are OK. Distracted drivers are out of control and really put everyone at risk, but especially cyclists. Personally I would have someone check that drivers phone records and see if he/she was texting/talking while on it. Maybe not an issue in this case. But the problem has reached such common practice that its worth checking on it. I don't think the texting issue is going to change until it gets some serious negative attention/consequences.

Again, glad you will be OK, but what a close call.

sorry for this but.. WHAT A FUCKIN' ASSHOLE! I had a dumb bitch (sorry again) rear end me at a stop light when I was running interference for my daughter as she was getting used to the clutch. Waved her off so I didn't kill her at the time. People who don't give a fuck deserve nobody giving a fuck. Karma bitches.....deal!!!!

good news is he's over 18 so you can kick his ass!

That is some lame shit. I have been hit from behind while on a bike. It happened at a freeway entrance with a slight hill, just enough to block the view of all the stopped traffic on the interstate. I came to a stop and prolly 10-15 seconds later heard tires screeching behind me. This was back in the late 90's when many cars on the road did not have any anti-lock brakes.

I'm just glad he missed my wife. But what pisses me off the most is I love this bike, and I just spent about 8 hours 2 weekends ago removing and cleaning the carbs. It was running great. And I can't buy a new one if it ends up totaled. At least he has AAA insurance.

For those who know the area, It happened in Capistrano Beach (Capo Beach) on Doheney Park Road, at the signal 1 block south of Lucy's El Patio Cafe (a local icon). I always hold the front brake at signals if I'm first in line, or even if not, so my brake light is on. Didn't make a difference this time.

I just asked my wife what she thought as it was happening. She said, "I thought, why is Don going on the red", because my bike started accelerating forward.

Glad to hear you're Ok despite the sore body but in all truth you can get another bike. Teenagers........

Oh, and while I'm in the hospital waiting for x-ray, they told me I was the second one today. The guy in the next room was hit from behind at a freeway exit from the I-5. He had a broken coccyx (tail bone). So I'm better off than he is, and his bike is probably trashed as well.

Yeah, this distracted driving sucks.:(

Pay attention cagers :gatlin:

glad to hear you're alright. That's some scary shit. Lucky it wasn't worse. Got to have eyes in the back of your head. It's hard to understand why we think this riding thing is fun when you can't really relax till you're off it.

Sucks about the bike, but it can be replaced. It's you that's not so expendable, huh/

Glad you are o.k. That's good.
The bike can all ways be fixed or buy a new one.

Some thing's cant be fixed, like the news article about a guy stopped at a red light, he got out of his car to get something from the boot quickly, (we have all seen people do this) well while he was getting his stuff he got rear ended, he was unlucky & lost both his legs.

Sorry to hear about the bike man but like others have said thank God you and your wife are ok.

That is one of my biggest fears I have been rear ended many times in my trucks. I always split lanes when ever I can at lights in hopes of avoiding being rear ended.

Yeah, I always split when I'm riding by myself, and occasionally my wife splits with me, but in this case we were first in line. I was in the left tire track and she was in the right on her SV650S, and a Suzuki Samurai was in the next lane.

This guy was just an air head.

Wow, that sucks... sounds like you got hit much harder than I did. Glad to hear your okay and that your wife didn't get hit. I suggest writing up your own estimate first before you speak to the adjuster, that way you'll have some ammunition going in... plus, you'll take the time to scrutinize it, the adjuster wont. Use ronayers.com or bikebandit.com to gather all of the part numbers you'll need, then go to your dealer to get the retail prices for all of them. If they're nice they might even print you out a detailed list with the labor rates too. Don't forget to add in the small stuff... coolant, oil, the gasket for the clutch cover, the side fairing stays, the front stay (yes... it's bent too), and labor cost's.

Get that thing back on the road... you have no choice but to rebuild... keep the VTR species alive!! ;)

Thanks indie. I noticed the top part of the fairing just above the headlight is sticking out slightly, the pointy part, so I suppose that could be from the bent stays.

Thanks for the tips. Since the dealer doesn't open until Tuesday, I'll look up part numbers tomorrow. I sure won't be riding.:( I'm going to take pictures of all the broken and bent bits too. Right now it's in the driveway in the back of my Tacoma with a tarp over it.

Oh, and I remember your Yosh's being bent up like high mounts, so I don't think I got hit harder. But my wife said my legs were sticking up in the air in a perfect "V" as I went off the back. I feel okay now, just some discomfort in my lower back, but I hope I can get out of bed tomorrow morning.

When I did my estimate, I claimed the bolts the hold the passenger peg assembly to the subframe and the bolt the holds the muffler clamp to the peg assembly (Only the upper bolts ended up being bent.). Excessive...yes, but better safe than sorry. That's why I didn't want the dealer to do it, they would of just ended up cramming the bent bolt back in there... f'ing up the threads... that's not how it was before I got hit.

Had a memorial ride today, for a Sgt's 22 yo son that passed... 75 bikes came out... a 20 something chick headed to the beach cut RIGHT in the middle of the procession... so a couple of us just parked it and let the rest of the line go by, and held her there.

How do people do it... figure they can just disregard a LARGE group of bikes and think they're okay with it? We obeyed the lights, the signs, etc... just don't race up half the ranks and expect to jump on in, cuz that's where you wanna be at.

Cagers- I swear! But ABSOLUTELY glad to hear you two made it out alive... don't settle till you and your bike are better than good as new!!

The lack of respect today amazes me. The passenger asked my wife to move her bike (6" from the passenger door of the Tacoma, that's how close they came to hitting her) so he could get out and smoke a cigarette. She told him he could get out the driver's door.

I'm sorry for the loss of the Sargeant's son.

Indie, I just looked up your thread from 6/26/09. I didn't realize it was that long ago. Yeah, I guess I did get hit harder. You must have had more of a terrifying experience though, seeing it coming and not being able to get out of the way. I wish I could have avoided dropping it too, but it literally felt like I was being launched from an aircraft carrier.

If putting it back together is feasible with the insurance, I may get Yosh cans. They're probably cheaper than stock anyway.

I'd keep my mouth shut and let the insurance total it, then buy it back for salvage. With the high cost of parts, the high cost of labor, and the uncertainty of frame/swingarm/wheel causing cracked or bent parts further up toward the motor is difficult to assess unless you dismantle.

they totaled mine, paid $1200.00 for my riding suit,helmet, boots, gloves, and tank bag. State farm always low balls as many insurance companies(try to give you the least they can get away with and settle quickly), so I argued that they needed to find me one in perfect condition or give me the money it's really worth. After, and only after, they finally agreed to give me what i wanted, I queried them about buying it back for salvage. They checked some dealers and arrived at $1200 which seemed fair to me, so that's what I did and it worked out financilly to my benefit.

The hidden damage is the great unknown and it could get you later and that's why you need to get it totalled, albeit, I don't know how CA handles salvage titles, so that could effect your modus operandi.

I don't know if you're used to dealing with insurance companies, but based on my experience, their predisposed to settling over going to court and lowballing the customer, and if you present your case well, you'll usually get what yo want. You have the additional benefit of the holding off on the medical settlement(whip lash and back problems) until you get what you want for the bike.

Heal fast, but not too fast, if you get my drift.

Glad to hear you are OK.

Be safe out there people cagers are idiots.

Hey VTRsurfer...glad you and yours are OK. The injuries may not become all evident for a while. Just take your time with the insurance settlements, etc. and be sure you are well. On a bit of a different note though, I'm starting to wonder about the color gray. Rocker's 05 and your 05...gray? My 05...gray. I'm familiar with the discussions of fast colors, but the gray must be so-o-o-o fast it blends in with the atmosphere, even while the bike is sitting still. Cager Punk <-- :mad: must've only seen a red light suspended in mid air and thought it was some vehicle beyond the intersection and far ahead. :) He couldn't fathom that one of the fastest-colored VTRs in existence was right in front of him. I've noticed a couple of times while looking in my garage that all I saw was my truck and the 05 appeared not to be there! :cool: As I got closer it came into view. :D Take care, brother!

Sorry about the bike, but glad you and your lady are both alright. Hope that's a once in a lifetime event.

Glad you are ok! The bike can be fixed or replaced..

I always flash my brake (on and off) and keep checking my mirrors when sitting at a light if there is no one behind me, just to try to get the zoned out cagers attention.

Sorry to hear. Glad the joker missed your wife and that you're doing ok. At least you can look forward to getting a new bike. :)

Glad you and your wife are alright. Hope you can fix her up. Hate to have you jump to a Gixxer site ;)

Thanks to everyone for the support.

lazn, I hear you. I always tell my wife to check her mirrors when slowing or stopping. With about 190,000 miles riding a motorcycle on the street, and only one previous accident (my fault, single vehicle), I'm always thinking defensive driving, on my bike or in my car.

But in retrospect, I'm thinking I may have been more than just very sore this morning if I'd seen it coming and tensed up or tried to accelerate away. As it was, I "rag dolled" off the back after leaving an 8' skid mark with my front tire, since I had the front brake applied and was in neutral.

It's been suggested that at a stop a motorcyclist should be in gear with an eye on the mirrors to avoid the collision you experienced. So...

A. Would it have been even possible to predict/react in time?
B. Was there anyplace for you to go?
C. Are you going to change riding habits? How?

Those of us with a strong desire to survive want to know.

Awww hell Don, I just saw this thread. :( Glad you're (mostly) ok. Let me know if I can help you in any way.