VFR down

Wa-La, Justin just got the WP shock out, seems to be okay, sweet.. I feel a wee bit better for the moment.

 

Damn, poor bike she was nice looking
glad your okay! Best wishes on a speedy recovery.
So your hosting the next bbq with fresh venison?
Take care and don't try to get back on the computer too soon with those fingers.
Queeg

 

Well, I can't say anything that others haven't said a dozen times over, but I will anyway. Glad you're OK. Bikes can be replaced, skin grows back, chicks dig scars. It could have been a lot worse.

Don't second-guess yourself. There is no future there. You had a split second to do what you thought was right. Looking at it in hindsight while having the luxury of plenty of time is meaningless. Whatever it was that you DID do in that split second may have saved your life, so you did good. If you want to focus on anything, focus on that.

 

Now I understand your post about the Ebay 2000 bike... (first post I got to). I wondered why you were considering a Fifth Gen!

What a bummer! You are the third person I have known to hit a deer at 50+ under the same circumstance, i.e. the deer just jumps in front of you out of nowhere. There is absolutely nothing you could have done differently to avoid it.

I'm glad you are relatively OK, and sorry about your bike.

 

What sucks LOL, trying to stay positive here, I am alive, and able to bitch about it. Yet in addition to make matter worse at least to me, guess I'm one that thinks he has control, I should have been able to maneuver out of harms way, Nope, still, yea, Nope. just talked this over with a friend and he told me I should have aimed for it, I go WHAT!! no way, he explains, ever try and hit one on purpose? you won't they'll move, try it some time you'll see I'm right, but yea there wasn't more than a nano second to react. He explained if I had stayed on course more than likely you would have just brushed by, instead I reacted to it and moved accordingly which was what I believe to be a normal reaction. Oh man so much going on in my head this next week will be a head game..

 

In this case, not much as it was the the chip seal that made this way worse and made me grab tear, stick, grind and tumble. that tumbling was out of control and was the cause to 90% of my injury's. If I was given the choice to slide or tumble, I'll take slide any day, that chip seal is so gnarly, makes ya think why in the hell the county uses that shit, just falling down on it from walking would give you reason to go to the hospital, not mention going down it at 50. Yes, I've made a couple legal phone calls..
Now had I had on my full gauntlet race gloves, no doubt that would of helped, how much, hard to tell. Full leather race pants with knee pads maybe, good question. as it was the gear I had on helped, but the tumbling about ripped it off, biggest thing here I learned, was keep your jacket zipped to your pants No matter what!! had they been attached, I could have saved a good 50% of damage. The lessons we learn he hard way.

 

Hoping for a quick recovery from Seattle...

 

That's ugly, I've read about so many Deer strikes lately. Hope you recover fast, good you made it thru without any major surgery or long Hospital stays.

 

Now your Gen 5 question makes sense, glad to see you're a bit beat up but mostly ok and looking to get 2 wheels back on the road soon. :thumbsup:

100% on a full face helmet saving ones face, had a slide in '04 on course tar that caused wear with resulting road rash through on expensive quality 1000D Condura jacket but as was also wearing motorcycle leather pants and gloves hands and legs were untouched, 3 broken ribs and smashed rib cartledge also meant laughing was out for a while and tend to the replacment Gortex Condura jacket on V hot days or if touring with expected bad weather.

 

This is a bit off the subject, but FWIW: I was following a van at about 40MPH, and was considering passing him but decided against it. I figure I was about 60 to 80 feet behind him. Out of fricking nowhere, a tree fell across the road. I'm not talking a slow, pulling-the-roots-out kind of fall; it was the snap-off-at-the-base kind of fall. The van braked immediately but got hit in the windshield. Had I attempted to pass, I would have have been right about at the tree's drop zone going about 60 MPH...

Sometimes unpredictable stuff happens.

 

man that picture make me hurt looking at it, so gald your able to still get around after that fall..

 

Holy Shit!! yea somethings are beyond our control no matter how much we'd like to think we are.
It's weird how we all make judgment calls like there's another soul or something very eerie.

 

Been there & It sucked! Trashed my 81 CB750 in the same fashion a few years back. Made me want to start deer hunting again just to get some payback! Kris and I send our best wishes. Would have posted sooner but been off line and living in a tent till today.

 

That's still the cleanest 4th gen around!

 

Jay, It's totally natural to try to rationalize what just happened. Do not beat yourself up over it. It was not like you were flying around doing stupid shit. Deer are just dumb animals.

Stay positive and heal up.

 

Deer Strike Map

http://www.statefarm.com/_pdf/deer_map.pdf

 

Deer are as thick as gnats where I live in PA. They're in our yard constantly, eating the flowers and such. They even lie down and rest awhile before moving on. Pretty creatures, but deadly on the road.

 

Jay,

One could say this whole thing was good luck. You are alive and I stri-ongly suspect you will have another fine ride in your garage in no time. Who knows. Had you tried to manouver more and not hit Bambie, you may have manouvered yourself into a wipe out where you hit that tree and not the bike. The chip seal may have slowed you slide down enough to avaid something else.

I have had many "misfortunes" that I call all positive. I survived them all. From being greeted at a door by someone with an axe, to being stuck by lightning. I have been swept down a fast flowing river and under a huge rock and gone around a corner only to find myself looking at the grill of an oncoming Ford van. Dogs have charged at me and I found myself face to face with a bear in the bush once. (just about shit that time). But I am here and so are you. If it were bad luck, we would not be posting this up the way we are. They are all experiences that make my life different that yours, and yours different than mine.

Heal my friend and get yourself a new ride. I will come down there and join you while you Christen it.

 

Jay,...... two things for you today:

1. What time of day was the deer strike ? I think this is key for people to know when they are out the most.

2. Im going out today and purchase a better set of gloves. All leather, hard knuckles, the works. I depend way too much on my hands, and to see your's is a lesson/reminder for me.

I've been riding around with "more comfortable, breathable" but just like stepping up to my Shoei, it think its time.

Hope your doing better,.. peace brother !

 

RVFR, I know it is extremely painful, but it would be helpful to the community if you were to post photos of what the gear looks like so folks could see just how protected they are when wearing equipment made from a product other than leather. I am also interested to see who manufactured the gear and what were the major structural failures of that gear. From the personal injury photo's you have already provided, it would seem that the failure of the gear was catastrophic. These are the types of things that further the education of riders and might influence their personal protection choices in the future.

BTW, there is a large population of deer in my area as well and they teach in the local MSF classes to hold your line and power through it instead of trying to avoid the impact. Hindsight is always 20/20........get well soon and I wish you only the best in your healing process and in the quest for your next ride.