Author Topic: The good news is it's broken! (Read 5058 times)

TheBigB · « **on:** October 12, 2005, 09:19:55 PM »

A couple of you good folks already know about my little mis-hap the other day that left me with a broken collar bone, and for all the rest of my fellow Banditos now you know.

It is a sad but all too common story of a man and his bike riding safely and cautiously down the freeway when the big bad cager decides to suddenly change lanes and down goes man and bike. Now, I will spare you all the "if only's", and self doubt that all riders inevitably experience when something like this happens. But I am struggling with a lack of confidence and guilt and realization that I might not be as strong a rider as I thought.

The injury update is as follows. Sever break of the collor bone near the AC joint (where it attaches to the scapula). As a result I have considerable deformaty and it is unlikely the bones will re-attach themselves if left to heal on their own. Therefore, surgery involving pins and plates is scheduled for Tuesday.

I am indeed counting my blessings as, of course, this could have been a whole lot worse - ie being run over.

In the meantime the insurance guys will give the bike a once over and decide how much damage was done. In the light of a new day I am surprised to see how little damage there is. Unfortunately my engine took the brunt of it and, of course, I have been remiss in buying frame sliders or any other such protection. Other than that I am seeing handle bars, headlight, display console, muffler, brake lever, gas tank, turn signals, and front fender.

So all in all not too bad. Some pain, some money and some time is all this will take.

The Big B

Sven · « **Reply #1 on:** October 12, 2005, 09:40:52 PM »

Yeesh! Take it easy and give yourself time to heal. The good thing is by the time you're ready to rumble again, the SoCal weather will be ready for you, no matter when that is!

BTW, when they say "don't eat anything after 8PM the night before your surgery", they REALLY mean it. When broke my thumb, I had surger sched for 1PM, and I, oh my gosh, ATE A MINT around 11AM. (I was STARVING!) They were SOMEWHAT upset and mad me take some stuff to "dry my stomach out".

Sorry you have to go through all this, but ain't none of us perfect. (Well, I am, but the rest of you....)

Desolation Angel · « **Reply #2 on:** October 12, 2005, 09:54:32 PM »

Glad you're still with us!

Denverbandit99 · « **Reply #3 on:** October 12, 2005, 10:00:20 PM »

did the cager stop when you went down?

Red01 · « **Reply #4 on:** October 12, 2005, 10:55:08 PM »

Sorry to hear the news.

Here's to your speedy recovery!

If the side covers were broken during the accident and anything got inside, the motor should be disassembled, inspected, cleaned and damaged parts replaced. Add this into everything else you listed, and it is quite easy to guess this will be enough damage to total the bike - at least in the insurance company's eyes.

Hopefully, all your costs are being covered by the cager's insurance.

mike · « **Reply #5 on:** October 12, 2005, 11:54:55 PM »

God speed on your recovery BigB. Hey, at least you'll get a good script for some percocet after the surgery. ;) The bones'll probably heal pretty quick, but the internal hardware may stay in for a while. They left my plate screws in for a year, the cast came off after 6 weeks though, then I could rehab the muscles... It stays sore for a good while and knocking it even after the cast comes off stings pretty good... Take it easy and follow the docs advice and you'll be good to go in no time. Definitely want to let the bones mend right, in 2 years your body will forget you even had a bad break. You never forget bones that mend improperly...

Good luck on the bike and insurance...

Mike :)

TheBigB · « **Reply #6 on:** October 13, 2005, 01:58:48 AM »

Thanks for all the kind words.

The guy who cut me off did stop, but only after my friend, who was on his bike behind me chased him down and told him what he did. He, of course said he never saw me, even after I went down and ended up pretty much with my bike under his car. I never actually hit his vehicle so I suppose it is possible to believe that he was totally unaware of what happened. We were entering some stop and go traffic when the accident occurred and my friend actually was able to park his bike across the lane of traffic as a barrier and literally run down the freeway and get the guys attention. The guy backed up and the three of us cleared my bike from the lane so that traffic could continue. After some discussion and consideration it was decided that we would not call an ambulance or the CHP and that the guy in the car would drive me to the emergency room. I was in some serious pain and seeing how this was the 101-405 exchange here in L.A. we knew it would be at least and hour before anyone got to me. All in all the guy was pretty cool about owning up to his part in the accident and he did go out of his way to take me to the hospital. He even helped me carry my gear into the ER and he waited around and gave me his name and license number while the nurses got me signed in.

As far as the surgery is concerned I am being told that the plates and screws are mine to keep. Which is to say that unless there is a problem somewhere down the line the will stay in.

For the next four days or so I will enjoy the cheap high from the Vicadin.

Again, thanks for all the kind words - i really appreciate it.

The Big B

PeteSC · « **Reply #7 on:** October 13, 2005, 03:55:32 AM »

B, you can be 'anal' about being as safe as possible, but, on a bike, you can't always foresee the situation where somebody will take you out.
You can overcompensate for every jerk out there, and you'd probably never get anywhere. Being cautious will tilt the odds in your favor, but there's no way you can eliminate paying some price for the stupid or reckless habits of most drivers.
I had a situation like yours, where the car never actually touched me, but sped past me at 45 mph or so when running a red light.
I had the green light, and essentially dropped the bike in the middle of the intersection while trying to avoid the red light running car.
I was lucky in that situation since I wasn't hurt, it was daylight, and got on my feet right away in the intersection and motioned at the car to come back....and it actually did!
(The next step if it hadn't turned around, would have been to quickly evaluate the damage, determine if the bike was operable, stand it up, and chase the biotch down! Since we were about 2 miles from the state line, it could have gotten interesting.)

The fact is, we don't HAVE to ride bikes. If you're uncomfortable riding the bike after this, it's no big deal. There's no macho factor. It happens.
I sometimes try to analyze stupid traffic habits until I get crossyeyed!
I found it easier to just not ride in such conditions, if possible.

billster · « **Reply #8 on:** October 13, 2005, 07:22:13 AM »

Big B..... heal quickly and get back out there! And of course - there's always the adage that for some reason always pisses me off: "It coulda been much worse!" It's true. Enjoy the chemicals.

One major thing I've learned from all the years riding - BE AWARE OF THOSE BLIND SPOTS. Don't linger in 'em - move up through them quickly 'cause surer than shit from a goose they'll lane-change on ya!

Good luck with the surgery.

Billster

12sdrag · « **Reply #9 on:** October 13, 2005, 09:43:34 PM »

B, sorry about your mis-hap.

to the titanium plate & screw club. I have two 8" plates and 16 screws reinforcing my right fore arm. Hope all goes well.

vadim · « **Reply #10 on:** October 14, 2005, 05:08:13 PM »

Be careful with Vicodin. I was enjoying it after my knee surgery (non mc related) a few years back. It's great if you pop two pills and have a shot or two as a chaser. Don't ask me what that does to one's liver... but I can tell you for sure that Vicodin will make you so constipated that it's not worth the cheap high. Seriously. After a few days I realized that I'd rather bear the pain from the arthorscopy than limp around the apartment for hours hoping to take a good dump. :(

Good luck with your recovery.

-Vadim

Mongo · « **Reply #11 on:** October 16, 2005, 11:09:59 PM »

Big-B hope you get back up soon, Bad place to be 101 & the 405 to many blind mo fokers going through that cut!

Mongo

405 drivers[

TheBigB · « **Reply #12 on:** October 21, 2005, 05:39:59 PM »

Well, the surgery went as well as could be expected. The plate is only about 2 inches long and i have,i think, four screws. The surgery was Tuesday the 18th and i go for my first follow up next thursday. The pain hasn't been that bad and i went off the painkillers yesterday. Getting a little antsy with the immobility of the sitaution.

Just keeping all you well wishers up to date.

The Big B

billster · « **Reply #13 on:** October 21, 2005, 06:31:27 PM »

Excellent! Heel quick and RIDE!!!!!

banditII · « **Reply #14 on:** October 21, 2005, 07:59:27 PM »

Vadim wasn't kidding about pain killers and bathroom habits. Not a pretty subject, just make darn sure you don't go too long even if you don't feel the need to go. Take a laxative or whatever it takes before you have to go to the emergency room to let them take care of it.