Dirt biking
Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2022 10:48 am
Was going to post in the "car" thread because the bike was talked about there, but didn't want to derail it.
Finally had a proper wipe-out yesterday. Was having a really good ride as the weather was nice and it rained the night before making the sand areas more manageable. On an easier section of the loop, I'm cruising along when all of the sudden, I'm airborne. Never saw it coming. Fist thought was "What the fuck?!" Second thought "I hope I don't hit a tree." Third thought "When am I going to land" Then the landing came. Did a half somersault to land on my lower back. Fourth thought "Oh shit. This is permanent". Took about 10 minutes, but I was able to stand up off my hands and knees. Another 10 minutes before attempting to pick up my bike. Started heading out of the woods towards the nearest flat road. An hour and a half later, I'm back at the trailhead. Got the bike up into the truck, but got help from another rider to strap it down. Started the drive home and started the call to my wife: "I'm ok. I'm in the truck heading home, but I gotta go to ER". Can you scope out the hospitals? She does, and when I get back to the house, we head to Petosky. After a 1.5 hour wait, I finally see a doctor who orders an CT scan and some X-Rays. Next morning I get an MRI.
End result: Multiple rib fractures and a compression fracture of my L-1 vertebrae. Luckily, no surgery needed. Just in a back brace for the next 6-8 weeks.
My examination of the accident revealed a rock about the size of a softball in the middle of the trail. All I can figure is that it shifted my front tire left, and then my rear tire right enough that the bike wanted to make an immediate left turn. I think the front tire then clipped a tree which stopped the bike entirely, sending me on my merry way. I'd say I was about 10-15 from the bike when I landed. I'm estimating that I was only going about 15MPH. I very much wish I'd had my 360 camera running at the time.
Finally had a proper wipe-out yesterday. Was having a really good ride as the weather was nice and it rained the night before making the sand areas more manageable. On an easier section of the loop, I'm cruising along when all of the sudden, I'm airborne. Never saw it coming. Fist thought was "What the fuck?!" Second thought "I hope I don't hit a tree." Third thought "When am I going to land" Then the landing came. Did a half somersault to land on my lower back. Fourth thought "Oh shit. This is permanent". Took about 10 minutes, but I was able to stand up off my hands and knees. Another 10 minutes before attempting to pick up my bike. Started heading out of the woods towards the nearest flat road. An hour and a half later, I'm back at the trailhead. Got the bike up into the truck, but got help from another rider to strap it down. Started the drive home and started the call to my wife: "I'm ok. I'm in the truck heading home, but I gotta go to ER". Can you scope out the hospitals? She does, and when I get back to the house, we head to Petosky. After a 1.5 hour wait, I finally see a doctor who orders an CT scan and some X-Rays. Next morning I get an MRI.
End result: Multiple rib fractures and a compression fracture of my L-1 vertebrae. Luckily, no surgery needed. Just in a back brace for the next 6-8 weeks.
My examination of the accident revealed a rock about the size of a softball in the middle of the trail. All I can figure is that it shifted my front tire left, and then my rear tire right enough that the bike wanted to make an immediate left turn. I think the front tire then clipped a tree which stopped the bike entirely, sending me on my merry way. I'd say I was about 10-15 from the bike when I landed. I'm estimating that I was only going about 15MPH. I very much wish I'd had my 360 camera running at the time.